Batman

Theatrical Release Date: 1989 06 23 (USA)

UPC: 085391162995

Studio: Warner Home Video

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Violence, Questionable for Children, Adult Language]

Summary: Behind the black cowl, Gotham City superhero Batman is really millionaire philanthropist Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton), who turned to crimefighting after his parents were brutally murdered before his eyes. The only person to share Wayne's secret is faithful butler Alfred (Michael Gough). The principal villain in Batman is The Joker (Jack Nicholson) who'd been mob torpedo Jack Napier before he was horribly disfigured in a vat of acid. The Joker's plan to destroy Batman and gain control of Gotham City is manifold. First he distributes a line of booby-trapped cosmetics, then he goes on a destruction spree in the Gotham Art Museum while the music of Prince blasts away in the background, and finally he orchestrates an all-out campaign to win the hearts and minds of the Gothamites, hoping to turn them against the Cowled One. Meanwhile, reporter Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger) becomes the love of Batman's life-which of course plays right into the Joker's hands. Photographed by Roger Pratt, designed by Anton Furst, and scored by Tim Burton's favorite composer Danny Elfman, Batman was a monstrous box-office hit, making $100 million in the first ten days of release--$82,800,000 in North America alone. Incidentally, Billy Dee Williams' comparatively small role as DA Harvey Dent was originally designed to set up the sequel, wherein Dent was to convert into master criminal Two-Face; but by the time the producers got around to that character in 1995's Batman Forever, Two-Face was played by Tommy Lee Jones. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Category: Action

Awards: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – null Best Art Direction – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Art Direction – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Picture - Drama – People's Choice Awards

Features: Production notes
Languages: English & Fran?ais
Subtitles: Englidh, Fran?ais & Espa?ol (feature film only)

Batman

Format: DVD

Release Date: 05/15/2007

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 126 Minutes

Sides: 2

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1, Side A -- Batman [FS]
5. 5 [2:21]
10. 10 [2:10]
12. 12 [4:00]
13. 13 [7:38]
16. 16 [12:41]
19. 19 [7:10]
22. 22 [4:24]
24. 24 [2:25]
27. 27 [3:50]
31. End Credits [4:29]
Disc #1, Side B -- Batman [WS]
5. 5 [2:21]
10. 10 [2:10]
12. 12 [4:00]
13. 13 [7:38]
16. 16 [12:41]
19. 19 [7:10]
22. 22 [4:24]
24. 24 [2:25]
27. 27 [3:50]
31. End Credits [4:29]

Matthew Doberman

At once whimsical and somber -- and, above all, dark -- Batman remains one of the better adaptations of a comic book character to the screen, and certainly one of the most stylized. This is not your father's Batman, and, given its relentless grimness, it perhaps shouldn't be your kids' either, if they are very young. In a broad sense, the film, falling on the cusp of the 1990s, reflects a final departure from the innocence of previous filmgoing generations to the cynicism and angst of a new one. Cinematic superheroes had moved from the simplicity of Christopher Reeve's Superman to the brooding, tormented, shadow-enshrouded Dark Knight. Michael Keaton, better known for light comic fare at the time, is surprisingly effective as the mysterious Batman, while Jack Nicholson hams it up to perfection as the maniacal Joker. Rounding out the leads, Kim Basinger's slinky, film noir heroine fits the spirit of the film well, even if she and Keaton don't develop much chemistry. More than just a solid achievement of Tim Burton's direction, this is one film in which the contributions of the set designer and the composer go a long way toward rounding out the full experience. Anton Furst won a set design Oscar for his vision of a bleak, soaring urban wasteland, a hodgepodge of architectural styles, reminiscent of Blade Runner and Metropolis, that suggests no particular time period; and Danny Elfman's score is appropriately dark and dramatic. ~ Matthew Doberman, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Michael Balfour  Actor 
Keith Edwards  Actor 
Amir M. Korangy  Actor 
Richard Strange  Actor 
John Sterland  Actor 
Edwin Craig  Actor 
William Hootkins  Actor 
Liz Ross  Actor 
Vincent Wong  Actor 
Kit Hollerbach  Actor 
Philip O'Brien  Actor 
David Baxt  Actor 
Mac McDonald  Actor 
Rocky Taylor  Actor 
Del Baker  Actor 
Lachelle Carl  Actor 
Kate Harper  Actor 
Joel Cutrara  Actor 
Elliott Stein  Actor 
Christopher Fairbanks  Actor 
Dennis Lili  Actor 
Philip Tan  Actor 
John Lurie  Actor 
Leon Herbert  Actor 
Richard Durden  Actor 
John Dair  Actor 
George Roth  Actor 
Sam Douglas  Actor 
Wayne Michaels  Actor 
Paul Birchard  Actor 
Garick Hagon  Actor 
Bruce McGuire  Actor 
Jazzer Jeyes  Actor 
Carl Chase  Actor 
Steve Plytas  Actor 
Marion Dougherty  Actor 
Warren Saire  Screenwriter 
Tim Burton  Director 
Danny Elfman  Composer (Music Score) 
Sam Hamm  Screenwriter 
Lorenzo Semple, Jr.  Screenwriter 
Warren Skaaren  Screenwriter 
Michael E. Uslan  Executive Producer 
Benjamin Melniker  Executive Producer 
Michael Keaton  Actor 
Jack Nicholson  Actor 
Kim Basinger  Actor 
Robert Wuhl  Actor 
Pat Hingle  Actor 
Billy Dee Williams  Actor 
Michael Gough  Actor 
Jack Palance  Actor 
Jerry Hall  Actor 
Lee Wallace  Actor 
Tracey Walter  Actor 

Country: USA