Today (30), the greatest superhero of all time, Batman, turns 82! Its debut took place at HQ Detective Comics # 27, in 1938, created by Bob Kane.
There is no doubt that alongside Superman, Batman is one of the most well-known superheroes, even to those who have never read a comic book. The image of a vigilante detective dressed as a bat fighting crime has already become a myth and is part of the popular imagination of mankind.
After appearing in cartoons and TV series with questionable taste, it was only a matter of time before he hit theaters and it has happened 8 times already with different directors and actors assuming which is considered by many to be a privilege.
Like everything in life, this trip to theaters has its ups and downs and now is the time to try and rank each of the movies to elect the best and the worst. Each movie was rated taking into account the timing of release and the character’s current status as well, as this is something very relevant when it comes to distributing the merits. It should be noted that only “live-action” films are taken into account and that is why none of the animations, even feature films, have been included.
And, as always, I encourage everyone to share their personal ranking and motivations in the comments!
8. Batman and Robin (1997)
Enjoy watching:
Do you remember I talked about the ups and downs? That’s right, it’s without a doubt the lowest point of the Batman franchise in theaters. The cartoonish tone with which Joel Schumacher approached the hero reached its “peak” with lots of weird, “bat nipples” that haunt George Clooney to today or the “bat credit card” until the total unnecessary addition of a “Batgirl” played by Alicia Silverstone. The list of atrocities goes on, as does the outrage of fans and the certainty that this is the worst Batman movie of all. time which has made the franchise “in the fridge” for more than 8 years.
7. Batman Forever (1995)
Joel Schumacher’s first “shot” in the Batman franchise wasn’t as destructive as the second and the result was a movie that, while very bad, still had a few things going in its favor. Although he was once convicted of a silly storyline full of boring jokes, the truth is that Val Kilmer worked hard and was at least a decent Batman and a reasonable Bruce Wayne. Visually speaking, despite looking lighter and cartoonish, it’s clear that the intention to maintain some of the visual aspects that marked the character during the time Tim Burton was in charge, which ended up preventing the film from being fall into the horror show that was your streak.
6. Batman vs Superman: Origin of Justice (2016)
Haven’t we even made half the list and already found the most recent movie? Well, while the parts with Batman work very well, the point is, he’s inserted into a movie that tried to embrace the world and put a lot of stuff together in one story. By juggling to try to make in a single film the junction of universes that Marvel took several long time to build, DC ended up dropping the balls and not developing several characters properly. The lack of a classic Dark Knight villain was also a downside. But, while we were forced to see another take on the hero’s origin, the point is that Ben Afleck did very well as an older, less optimistic Batman, although he didn’t really like his ease of killing. It’s a version of the batman that many dreamed of seeing on the big screen and the fight scenes are extremely visceral and satisfying.
5. Batman: The Return (1992)
The 1989 hit sequel, although Tim Burton was still in charge, had several production issues that showed a director under pressure and losing his creative freedom. Regardless, the film managed to have relative success and several positive aspects, mostly in the villainous team. Continuing the tradition initiated by Jack Nicholson, this time we have two great actors as antagonists of the Guardian of Gotham: Danny Devito as Penguin and the beautiful Michelle Pfeiffer as the best “Catwoman” ever represented in cinema. A good movie that, while not meeting high expectations, was a worthy iteration of the character.
4. Batman: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
The film that wrapped up Nolan’s excellent trilogy in the Batman Universe, while inferior to the previous ones, has some great moments, a big villain, and a satisfying ending that forced DC to reboot the franchise. We see a reclusive Batman already in physical pain after years of beatings in defense of crime. Tom Hardy’s Bane, although difficult to understand with that odd voice, has proven to be an equal opponent to the Batman. Anne Hathaway’s catwoman, while not having the same charisma as Pfeiffer, is also a highlight of the film and her choice as the hero’s romantic interest also turned out to be very fair.
3. Batman Begins (2005)
This 2005 feature film had the difficult task of erasing the atrocities committed by Joel Schumacher’s films from the minds of fans. The talented Christopher Nolan took on this challenge and he was without a doubt the right fit for the job. I actually don’t see Nolan making another superhero movie and Batman was the perfect choice for his realistic and visually striking style. The big weakness is the absence of a major villain, but it was probably a conscious choice to avoid comparisons to the past. Even though he’s not perfect like Wayne and has a cartoonish voice, Christian Bale’s Batman undoubtedly enters the room as one of the franchise’s best, primarily for his physical performance in the role. The point is, Nolan’s approach married like a glove to the hero and managed to resurrect the franchise, turning it into a money-printing machine and elevating the character to the climax of its journey. in the seventh art.
2. Batman (1989)
The position of this film should generate a lot of controversy, but as I said before, you have to consider the time and the situation of the character. By the late 1980s, comic book-based films were considered childish, and the batman’s last reference in “live-action” was wearing blue clothes and brushed eyebrows. There was no concept of a film of the realistic or dark genre. In this way, the feat Tim Burton achieved with this 1989 feature film is something historic. It was one of the biggest hits of the decade and one of the few times I had to face endless lines to watch a movie at the cinema. Michael Keaton might not be tall enough, but his enormous talent gave us a brilliant Bruce Wayne and he did very well in the fantastic ‘stiff neck’ outfit that was created. Jack Nicholson surprised us with a Joker who mixed his crazy, comedic, and psychopathic sides in good measure. Kim Basinger did her job looking beautiful and screaming. The filmmaker’s gothic look matched the character perfectly and Danny Elfman’s soundtrack made us forget that Prince was involved. An absolute classic.
1. Batman: The Dark Knight (2008)
After the success of the 2005 film, the expectations for this film were immense and the news that we were going to see the “Nolan version” of The Joker only increased it. When Heath Ledger proved we were wrong in criticizing his lineup, he stole the show and delivered the franchise’s scariest Joker, we all knew we were up against something special. We will hardly see anything again at this level or we will see an actor win an Oscar for his work in this genre. The film is so good and well balanced that no one has complained about the replacement of the actress who played Rachel. We see Batman go through a journey into darkness in one of the most interesting arches the character has ever taken in cinema. Ultimately what we have here is the “state of the art” of a comic book-based movie that not only places it at the top of the list of Batman movies and the genre, but also as one of the best films of these. cinema.
