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The Batman Quadrilogy
Tomety

�Riddle me dee, riddle me that, who�s afraid of a Big Black Bat?�

The four Batman Movies, Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992), Batman Forever (1995) and Batman and Robin (1997), may by today�s standards seam cheesy and spoofed, but movies such as X Men, Charlie�s Angels and The Hulk have raised the barrier for special effects and comic book heroes. But I�d rather watch a Batman movie than a highly digitised green monster, wouldn�t you?
  The Original, made in 1989 is based around the suprisingly successful 1960�s TV series featuring Adam West and Burt Ward. Michael Keaton was cast as the man behind the mask, with Kim Basinger and Jack Nicholson. We also see a small role devoted to super model Jerry Hall. The movie focuses on one of many villains that are ready to face the Bat. The Joker (Nicholson) falls into a vat of toxic waste, and after numerous operations, is left permanently scared (in more ways than one). His goal is to take over Gotham City, by killing the public through bogus cosmetics. The capped crusader (Keaton) and his wanna be girl friend Vicki (Basinger) have a cliff hanger of an ending, while trying to stop the terrifying Joker.
Batman Returns, sees the superhero pit against two of my favourite Batman villains, The Penguin (Danny Devito) and Cat woman (Michele Pfeiffer). Keaton is back and within this movie we see more gothic architecture, and more of the Bruce Wayne Empire. The sexy yet deadly Cat Woman wants revenge, and teams up with The Penguin to do so. As usual, the Bat is in the middle of the fight, and finds it hard to keep his identity secret.(It must be so thrilling living in a city full of people who cant recognise you with half your face covered in rubber). Definitely one of the better Batman movies, but sadly the last we see of Michael Keaton.
The next man behind the mask is Val Kilmer, and with out a doubt, this is the movie out of the four that has been jam packed with A-list actors. Among them are Drew Barrymore, Nicole Kidman, Jim Carey and Tommy Lee Jones. This time around Batman faces an even bigger threat. A mad scientist has invented a machine that can transport people�s brain waves to The Riddler. The Riddler (Carey) is obsessed with Bruce Wayne A.k.a Batman, and his machine enables him to lure Two-Face (Jones) into his evil plans. Meanwhile Chase (Kidman) becomes fascinated by Bruce and Batman, and has to decide which one she wants. We also see the entrance of Batman�s sidekick Robin, When his family dies in
a circus accident, his only thought is to seek revenge on the man who caused it. By teaming up with Batman for the first time in the quadrilogy, Chris O�Donnel makes his debut as Robin.
The most recent movie, Batman and Robin is the weaker of the four. Although it�s got strong characters played by Uma Therman, Arnold Schwarzenegger and the new Batman George Clooney, it doesn�t poses the Tim Burton Magic, which is present in the other three. Poison Ivy (Therman) and Mr Freeze (Schwarzenegger) team up to rule Gotham City, but they hadn�t counted on Batman�s newest sidekick, BatGirl (Alicia Silverstone). The niece of Alfred (Bruce�s butler present in all four movies) joins the Bat family and we finally see a blonde that Batman hasn�t got the hots for.
Although that was a quick review of all four movies, my movie senses tell me that�s not the last of the capped crusader. Batman Vs Superman is scheduled for release in 2004, although there is no cast yet, I don�t think George will be donning the mask again some how. 2005 will also see a Batman release. Batman: Intimidation (the title at the moment) will see the return to Gotham. Although I�m excited about these two movies, I hope they don�t turn a highly credible series into a digital effect packed Kung foo franchise.
As I commented on earlier, it�s strange that so many A-list actors have appeared in the Batman saga, because the movies aren�t exactly Oscar worthy, but Hollywood�s heavyweights flock to the casting sessions. (Even Madonna�s back up singer Debi Mazar has got a small role!)
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