First Impressions

[JokerMeThis]

What were people's first impressions of this movie? When I first saw it I thought it was great. Easily the best of the Batman movies in my opinion. I had already seen Batman '89 and Batman Forever and liked them but Batman Returns was better than both. Over the years I've only come to love it more now that I'm older, wiser and understand more of what's in the movie.

[johnnygobbs]

I never got to see the film at the cinema during its initial release, but I'd read the Making Of and tie-in adaptation prior to watching the film.  I even had the Panini sticker album.  So I pretty much knew everything that was going to happen.

I really liked it, even without any surprises, because I could soak in the gorgeous art direction, costumes and atmosphere, as well as the brilliant, spot-on performances.

Batman '89 is still my favourite Batman film though.  That one knocked me out when I first saw it on TV circa 1991.

[Edd Grayson]

I saw the Burton films and Batman Forever in order, even if I did so about 19 years after BR was released. At first I liked Batman Returns, but not as much as Batman '89.

That changed with time and they're pretty much equal to me now. Great in different ways, the two Burton films.

And I've also come to like Forever more than the last two Nolan films, after getting used to the new direction and Carrey and Jones trying to go 60's camp style.

[Wayne49]

I was graduating from college when this came out. I found it very uneven upon my first viewing. I thought DeVito was over acting as the Penguin and they tried too hard to make him grotesque like the Joker was.  I HATED Christopher Walken as Max Shrek because his villainy was so dry compared to the others, plus I thought his power plant scam was very vanilla. Of all the things corruptible politicians do, this was his great plan? It just felt very uninspired and tired. But most of all, I felt like Keaton had nothing to do in the movie. He just felt like a prop being moved around in the story when it was time for some Batman screen time.

Over time I have grown fond of the film, and appreciate it's social messages and dark humor. But at the time, it felt like a pretty big miss from a franchise that was just getting started. I was not remotely surprised when Keaton passed on the next film. I will also add though I LOVED the Batman costume in this film. Very nicely done. It was more streamlined and the bat-insignia was properly displayed.

[Catwoman]

Wow. I'm going way back in time for this since I saw it the first year (on VHS). First impressions? Hm....tbh I was frightened a bit by it. I had been, erm, sheltered by my mom from a lot of things that this movie featured. Selina getting shot was the first time I'd ever seen that happen to a woman in a movie. I thought only guys got shot, not even kidding lol. It freaked me out. So did the Ice Princess' fall and her uncensored crash landing. For a six year old girl who was her mommy's little princess, that was very heavy for me to see at that age. Worse than that, she thought it was just fun old Batman, like the TV show and the cartoon which I was watching all the time, so she had put the movie on and gone to do chores and stuff so I was alone in my bedroom watching this by myself. At the time, to be honest, I didn't really care if I ever saw it again, but as Batman said (well short pale and ugly said it first) "Things change."

Things did change, and so did I. Those scenes that frightened me as a child are among my favorites in any movie ever now. This movie had a very profound impact on me. Mr. Edd (aka Max) could tell y'all all about that (if he does I'll kill him, lol). The darker, more sexual sides of my personality were born straight out of this movie. The whole thing, it's a screwed-up fairy tale just like me. And I love it.

[thecolorsblend]

I was 11 when it came out. I was incredibly stoked... and somewhat disappointed that there wasn't more action and gadgets and stuff. I enjoyed what we got; I just wanted more. I saw it on opening day with my dad, who was a little creeped out by the movie.

As I got older, what I realized is that BR might not have been the action-packed summer blockbuster I wanted at that time but it's an amazing piece of cinema and is a visual banquet. That's satisfaction money can't buy.

[The Dark Knight]

When I first saw it I was sucked into the world. As a youngster I found BR more atmospheric than B89. And if there's one thing I love, that's atmosphere.

The transformation scene in Selina's apartment sticks out as a moment you never forget, with such power and emotion. And even as a young kid I knew Michelle's Catwoman was a real woman. Someone I'd love to hang around, even if I didn't exactly know why at that stage.

Frankly, the film had me sold just with the opening title sequence with the carriage moving through the sewers. That was atmospheric and mysterious to the max with me.

I probably wanted more action, but loved the characters.

[Azrael]

What were people's first impressions of this movie?

Enchanted. When I was a kid this movie spoke to me in ways no other movie ever did.

[THE BAT-MAN]

This youtube video has been featured on the forum site before, but I felt it was appropriate to feature here as well.  Hope you all enjoy. 

[The Laughing Fish]

My first impression was even though I enjoyed it, I felt that it was a very sombre movie. The ending of B89 glamoured everything up as a triumph once Batman avenged his parents. But this movie never glosses over the tragedy for all the main characters, and it stays consistent to that tone to the very end. By the time Batman saved the day, it still felt like a loss because he was deprived of a potential love interest in Catwoman. As Max Schreck (aka Edd Grayson) said in another thread, no one got a happy ending here.

I HATED Christopher Walken as Max Shrek because his villainy was so dry compared to the others

Were you taken by surprise at how much screentime he got? One could be forgiven for feeling misled since Schreck didn't appear in the trailers or film poster, and yet it turned out that he was equally prominent to the plot as the other three characters.