Okay, so Batman & Robin isn't a good Batman film, or a good film in general. It's still one of my least favorite superhero movies. It's hokey, campy, immature, poorly-acted, poorly-directed... but when I look back at every single live-action movie incarnation of Batman, it still boggles my mind that, at its core, it's the most faithful adaptation of comic Batman's core values and morality.
Unlike every single other live-action Batman portrayal, George Clooney's Batman is the only one that actually doesn't kill. Like, that's incredibly important to who Batman is as a character and what separates him from countless other dark vigilante heroes like The Punisher. No matter how bad it gets, no matter how much he may want to take a life, he isn't a killer.
When it comes to movies, it feels like the Batman we get is more often like All-Star Batman and Robin's rampaging nutcase with a violence-boner.
While Tim Burton's Batman will always hold a special place in my heart, he's kind of a murderous psychopath. When one of his lines is literally "I'm going to kill you" followed by said Batman killing you, that's a pretty kill-happy Batman. By the sequel, he's blowing people up with a deranged smile on his face.
Again, I like the movies, and I like Tim Burton's utterly weird, time-displaced take on Gothic Gotham, but it's a pretty inauthentic take on Batman.
Joel Schumacher was brought in to lighten things up a bit, but even Batman Forever has Batman directly causing the death of one of the villains (and a former friend).
("vengeance won't make the pain go away, Dick. But here, let me do it for you anyway")
The Dark Knight Trilogy successfully revamped Batman away from the camp, and even made it a huge part of Batman's character that he "doesn't kill". The only problem? He's a big damn hypocrite who kills a lot of people in that trilogy. One big pivotal scene that was THE moment I gave up hope of this finally being a story that understood Batman was Bruce refusing to save Ra's Al Ghul.
While it may seem like some kind of loophole, the whole point of Batman is that he'll always try and save people - even his enemies - because at heart he's a character who values life. They kind of did an entire 90s Knightfall storyline about a guy (avatar quote) who becomes Batman and utterly fails at the job because... he refused to save a criminal from certain death. Like, the very thing that proved Jean-Paul Valley was the wrong guy for the job is the very excuse used in the Nolan movies for why it's okay for Batman to let Ra's die (among other casualties).
And then, of course, we have Snyder's Batman...
(no, you see, it was the bullets and explosions that killed them; not Batman)
That means the only live-action movie Batman who values life, doesn't kill, and goes out of his way to save even his enemies is... George Clooney's Batman.
It's also the only live-action Batman movie to truly even attempt to do the Bat-family justice, as someone here mentioned before.
I hate this.
While there are elements of what makes Batman interesting in all the other Batman movies (and better execution that makes them infinitely better movies), Batman & Robin is the closest one to actually getting what makes Batman the best hero of all time - the fact that he's NOT defined as a quintessential lone-wolf hero, but a mentor and father to a whole family of next-generation crime fighters.
That he's not just a dark, brooding, violent depressed guy who beats villains into the hospital, but a guy who has the empathy and kindness to reach out to his worst enemies and seek to bring them into the light.
That he's someone who is defined by his compassion, understanding of trauma, and quiet value of the dignity of life.
Obviously, some of the comics and TV shows have done it better, but Hollywood has habitually gotten one of the greatest and most popular heroes of all time wrong time and time and time again. I'm baffled it just keeps happening, and it makes me very curious to see if the upcoming Robert Pattinson portrayal will change that.
Do you agree with my hot take, or is a "kill if necessary" Batman acceptable for you? Do you think we'll ever get a Batman movie that actually understands Batman as a character beyond the superficial trauma, darkness, and "cool" factor?
Or can we just accept that Mask of the Phantasm got it right and we put too much stock in live-action movies?
(oh, look at that; another story about a vigilante killing criminals that shows why Batman is different and necessary)
Edit: And special shout-outs to Lego Batman.
Unlike every single other live-action Batman portrayal, George Clooney's Batman is the only one that actually doesn't kill. Like, that's incredibly important to who Batman is as a character and what separates him from countless other dark vigilante heroes like The Punisher. No matter how bad it gets, no matter how much he may want to take a life, he isn't a killer.
When it comes to movies, it feels like the Batman we get is more often like All-Star Batman and Robin's rampaging nutcase with a violence-boner.
While Tim Burton's Batman will always hold a special place in my heart, he's kind of a murderous psychopath. When one of his lines is literally "I'm going to kill you" followed by said Batman killing you, that's a pretty kill-happy Batman. By the sequel, he's blowing people up with a deranged smile on his face.
Again, I like the movies, and I like Tim Burton's utterly weird, time-displaced take on Gothic Gotham, but it's a pretty inauthentic take on Batman.
Joel Schumacher was brought in to lighten things up a bit, but even Batman Forever has Batman directly causing the death of one of the villains (and a former friend).
("vengeance won't make the pain go away, Dick. But here, let me do it for you anyway")
The Dark Knight Trilogy successfully revamped Batman away from the camp, and even made it a huge part of Batman's character that he "doesn't kill". The only problem? He's a big damn hypocrite who kills a lot of people in that trilogy. One big pivotal scene that was THE moment I gave up hope of this finally being a story that understood Batman was Bruce refusing to save Ra's Al Ghul.
While it may seem like some kind of loophole, the whole point of Batman is that he'll always try and save people - even his enemies - because at heart he's a character who values life. They kind of did an entire 90s Knightfall storyline about a guy (avatar quote) who becomes Batman and utterly fails at the job because... he refused to save a criminal from certain death. Like, the very thing that proved Jean-Paul Valley was the wrong guy for the job is the very excuse used in the Nolan movies for why it's okay for Batman to let Ra's die (among other casualties).
And then, of course, we have Snyder's Batman...
(no, you see, it was the bullets and explosions that killed them; not Batman)
That means the only live-action movie Batman who values life, doesn't kill, and goes out of his way to save even his enemies is... George Clooney's Batman.
It's also the only live-action Batman movie to truly even attempt to do the Bat-family justice, as someone here mentioned before.
I hate this.
While there are elements of what makes Batman interesting in all the other Batman movies (and better execution that makes them infinitely better movies), Batman & Robin is the closest one to actually getting what makes Batman the best hero of all time - the fact that he's NOT defined as a quintessential lone-wolf hero, but a mentor and father to a whole family of next-generation crime fighters.
That he's not just a dark, brooding, violent depressed guy who beats villains into the hospital, but a guy who has the empathy and kindness to reach out to his worst enemies and seek to bring them into the light.
That he's someone who is defined by his compassion, understanding of trauma, and quiet value of the dignity of life.
Obviously, some of the comics and TV shows have done it better, but Hollywood has habitually gotten one of the greatest and most popular heroes of all time wrong time and time and time again. I'm baffled it just keeps happening, and it makes me very curious to see if the upcoming Robert Pattinson portrayal will change that.
Do you agree with my hot take, or is a "kill if necessary" Batman acceptable for you? Do you think we'll ever get a Batman movie that actually understands Batman as a character beyond the superficial trauma, darkness, and "cool" factor?
Or can we just accept that Mask of the Phantasm got it right and we put too much stock in live-action movies?
(oh, look at that; another story about a vigilante killing criminals that shows why Batman is different and necessary)
Edit: And special shout-outs to Lego Batman.
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