The Sequel Was Better? Batman and his Return

The Sequel Was Better? is a series of reviews looking at famous movies with sequels that are considered, rightly or wrongly, to be better than the original movies. Typically, sequels are a step down in quality, acting, and/or production value. But not always. See other reviews here.

Batman (1989) directed by Tim Burton

A couple with a young boy leave a theater in downtown Gotham. The dad can't get a taxi and he slowly leads them into a worse neighborhood (are there any good neighborhoods in Gotham?). They go down an alley and are mugged by two thugs. The thugs go to a rooftop to split the haul. One thug is nervous about being up there because of all of the rumors about "The Bat" who has been throwing criminals off roofs. The other thug thinks it's baloney but then Batman (Michael Keaton) shows up and beats them up. He tells the baloney thug to spread the word that Batman is in town. The cops show up at the mugging and discover the criminals. Ace reporter Alexander Knox (Robert Wuhl) also show up and asks about "The Bat," his journalistic obsession. Police Lieutenant Eckhart (William Hootkins) blows him off while an injured thug goes by on an ambulance gurney mumbling about a six-foot bat. 

Eckhart has more important problems--he's on the dole with Grissom (Jack Palance), the head crime boss in Gotham. Grissom wants one of his loose-cannon underlings, Jack Napier (Jack Nicholson), out of the way. Part of it is jealousy over girlfriend Alicia (Jerry Hall) who is involved with both men. Grissom has a meeting with his lieutenants (the mob ones, not the police on the payroll) to discuss Axis Chemicals, a front for the mob that is being targeted by the uncorrupt police, led by Harvey Dent (Billy Dee Williams). Napier suggests breaking in and stealing all the records. They can pass it off as industrial espionage. Grissom makes Napier lead the raid, something Napier does not want to do.

Meanwhile, Knox has returned to his paper where fellow reporters mock his interest in "The Bat." At his desk, he discovers Vickie Vale (Kim Bassinger), a photo-journalist also interested in the Batman story. She is serious and teams up with Knox. They want to talk to Commissioner Gordon (Pat Hingle) to find out if Batman is secretly part of the police. She has an invitation to a party at Bruce Wayne's home, a fundraiser for the failing 200th anniversary party for Gotham. People don't want to go downtown to celebrate because of all the crime and expenses are getting out of hand.

At Wayne Manor, the commissioner, the mayor (Lee Wallace), and Harvey Dent all blow off Knox. Bruce is fascinated by Vale but is called away by Alfred (Michael Gough), who is aware that the police are doing something big. Grissom has made an anonymous tip about the Axis Chemicals job and Eckhart has taken the lead. Gordon knows Eckhart is dirty and wants to stop him from killing Napier rather than taking him in custody. 

At Axis Chemicals, Napier finds the vault of files empty and knows something is up. His guys try to shoot their way out past the bad cops. In the middle of the fight, the commissioner shows up and demands that Napier not be killed. Batman also shows up and fights all the bad guys. Napier spots Eckhart and shoots him in revenge. Then Batman fights Napier. Napier shoots him but the bullet ricochets and hits Napier in the mouth. Doubled over in pain, Napier falls over a railing. Batman grabs him but after a tense moment loses his grip and Napier falls into a vat of chemicals, presumably killed. The commissioner demands Batman stay for questioning but Batman makes a quick exit. Outside the factory, a deck of cards and a pale hand come up out of a toxic lake where the chemicals have been dumped. Napier has survived.

Bruce has an awkward date with Vickie Vale at Wayne Manor but they sleep together anyway. Meanwhile, Napier has gone to an illegal surgery where the doctor removes the bandages. Viewers don't see the results but Napier does when he looks in a mirror. He starts laughing maniacally. He goes back to Grissom's and kills him after declaring he is now Joker. Later, he meets with Grissom's other associates and tells them he is taking over. After killing one of them brutally, the others fall in line. Joker then starts a plan to kill people in Gotham by tainting products with Smylex, a drug that induces death by laughing with the same rictus grin that Joker has. Joker even broadcasts on TV, explaining that the chemicals are in a variety of products already on the market, though only certain combinations cause results. Batman sees the broadcast and looks for the combination of products that causes the negative reaction.

Vale is lured to the Gotham art museum by an invitation to dinner from Bruce, but it is really the Joker who invited her. When he shows up, he and his henchmen vandalize the art. He tries to convince Vale he is an artist too. Batman arrives and rescues Vale. He takes her to the Batcave where he gives her all his research on Smylex. He then returns her to her apartment.

Bruce goes to Vale's apartment planning to reveal that he is Batman but the Joker arrives and interrupts. Joker shots Bruce. Bruce has hidden a serving tray under his shirt so he survives, disappearing while Joker blathers on at Vale. Later, Alfred brings Vale to the Batcave in hopes of Bruce being happy with her. Bruce decides he needs to fight Joker, who has promised to have a parade for the 200th anniversary at which he will give out free money. 

At the parade, Joker does give out money but he also releases Smylex gas from the parade balloons to kill the crowds. Batman shows up in the Batwing, steals the balloons, and is shot down by the Joker. The Batwing crashes at Gotham Cathedral. Joker takes Vale hostage and climbs the cathedral's bell tower. Batman follows, fights Joker at the top of the tower, resulting in the death of the Joker and the rescue of Vale.

The movie ends with Gordon revealing the Bat-signal, a spotlight to summon Batman in times of need. Alfred takes Vale to Wayne Manor, explaining Bruce will be late because of other business. She says she is not surprised. Queue the credits.

Batman Returns (1992) directed by Tim Burton

The Cobblepots have a newborn son who is horrifying to them. By Christmas, they are ready to toss the child off a bridge into Gotham's sewers. The baby carrier floats down the river like Moses's basket, into the sewers under Gotham Zoo where the child winds up with penguins at the arctic exhibit. 

33 years later, it's Christmas again. At the Gotham Square Tree Lighting rumors abound about a penguin-man in the sewers. Local tycoon Max Shreck (Christopher Walken) is planning on building a new power plant for Gotham, claiming the city is about to run out of power. He has a meeting with the mayor trying to bypass permits and paperwork to get the project started. As she is filling their coffees, his secretary Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer) wants to pose a question. The men condescendingly laugh her off as the mayor refuses to support Shreck's plan. They still have a presentation at the tree lighting, posing as friends. During his speech, Shreck is kidnapped by the Red Triangle gang, a bunch of ex-circus folks who have been terrorizing Gotham. Batman is summoned and he fights the gang members but they still get away with Shreck. Batman saves Selina from a clown menacing her with a stun gun. She takes the gun and hits the unconscious clown, revealing a less than healthy mindset.

The circus gang take Shreck to the derelict zoo where The Penguin (Danny Devito) demands Shreck help him return to Gotham society. He wants to live among the humans and find out who his parents are. Penguin has records of Shreck's business misdeeds including the toxic waste from one of his properties, so Shreck has little choice but to accept. Shreck realizes Penguin could help with the mayoral situation.

Selina goes home to her empty apartment (except for her cat and her childish decorations) and has a bit of a pity party for herself, complaining that her cat is having more fun than she is. She checks her messages--her mother wants her to come home for Christmas, a guy dumps her, a robo-call tries to sell her perfume that will make her irresistible. She's also left herself a message reminding her to get a file on Bruce Wayne to prep for a meeting the next morning. She's forgotten and has to go back to the office.

At the office, she collects a lot of files and information about the power plant, including the fact that it will take and store power off the Gotham grid rather than provide power. Shreck comes back from zoo and discovers her and what she knows. He tosses her out a window to keep her from telling anyone else. She falls to the snowy ground. Feral cats swarm over her and she comes back to life with a wild look in her eyes. She returns home, tears up the apartment, creates a costume, and takes on a new identity--Catwoman.

At another speech by the mayor, a member of the circus kidnaps the mayor's infant son. He goes down a manhole where Penguin is waiting. Penguin takes the child back to the mayor, becoming a celebrity in the media. Penguin asks for access to Gotham's city records to find out who his parents are. At the hall of records he writes down a lot of information, more than just his heritage. This is all part of the deal between Shreck and Penguin.

Bruce Wayne, in the Batcave, researches the circus gang, trying to find a connection to Penguin as Penguin visits the grave of his parents. He accepts his human identity as Oswald Cobblepot and forgives his parents. At the same time, a woman is mugged and a masked vigilante saves her. The vigilante is Catwoman who complains about women waiting around to be saved by Batman rather than taking care of themselves.

The next day, Bruce Wayne meets with Shreck. He also sees through the ruse and will not support the power plant plan. Selina show up, surprising Shreck and his son Chip (Andrew Bryniarksi). She escorts Mr. Wayne out and they strike up an uneasy romance. Shreck visits Penguin and convinces him to run for mayor, so he can grease the wheels for the power plant project. He even has an election office set up in spite of Penguin's objection that elections were last month. Shreck has some people try to polish up Penguin's appearance. Penguin bites the nose of one of the aides and gropes one of the female volunteers. Shreck puts everyone back to work while they discuss Penguin's ascension. They plan an attack by Penguin's circus gang to discredit the mayor's tough-on-crime stance.

The attack works, causing chaos in the city and plenty of work for Batman. Catwoman takes advantage to vandalize Shreck's department store. Batman finds Penguin in the area when Catwoman comes out of the department store and it explodes. Penguin flees, leaving Batman and Catwoman to fight, both injuring each other. 

Penguin announces his mayoral run. Back in his lair above the election office, Catwoman shows up and makes an uneasy deal to destroy Batman. They are just as menacing to each other as they are to Batman and Gotham. Catwoman almost swallows Penguin's bird while Penguin threatens her pet cat. They come to an agreement where Penguin plans to discredit Batman.

Bruce Wayne and Selina run into each other on the street and set up a date at Wayne Manor. The date goes well until they discuss problems with duality (which they both have). Things get romantic but they each realize their battle injuries are hard to explain and the stop making out. Also, the TV shows the new tree lighting where Commissioner Gordon is explaining that the Ice Princess, who is supposed to light the light, has been kidnapped, apparently by Batman. Bruce and Selina separately race downtown to deal with the situation.

The mayor tries to make the best of the situation. The circus gang sabotages the Batmobile while Batman find the Princess in an abandoned penthouse. Catwoman shows up, fights Batman, and drags the Princess away. On a rooftop, the Princess is on the edge. Penguin throws an umbrella full of bats at her. She falls off before Batman can save her. Batman is blamed for killing her. Batman and Catwoman have another confrontation winding up under mistletoe and having a cute line. Batman flies off to his car. Catwoman meets the Penguin on another roof where she complains about killing the princess. Penguin hits on her but she has none of it. Frustrated, Penguin get rid of her with a trick umbrella. Then he goes to a trailer where he can remote-control the Batmobile. Batman is trapped in his vehicle as Penguin causes a lot of chaos with the Batmobile. Penguin also taunts Batman and makes fun of Gotham's citizen while he crashes the vehicle into crowds and police. Batman eventually disables the remote control by breaking through the floor and removing the broadcaster. Back in control, he leaves the area.

An even more frustrated Penguin goes to make a speech but Alfred and Batman hack into the sound system and broadcast the insults Penguin made about Gotham while he was controlling the Batmobile. The crowd turns against him, throwing eggs and vegetables and forcing Penguin to flee in despair. He returns to the zoo lair where he plots to kidnap all of Gotham elites' children and kill them while their parents party at Shreck's Max-scerade Ball. One of his goons objects to the plan and Penguin kills him without batting an eye.

Selina Kyle and Bruce Wayne both go to the ball (without masks since their true identities are when they wear masks). They dance together. He reveals that he's there for her; she reveals that she's there to kill Shreck. He tries to calm her down as they discover some mistletoe. They repeat the cute line that Batman and Catwoman shared, realizing who they really are. They hold each other closer in a desperate moment. Then Penguin attacks the ball to kidnap Shreck's adult son. Shreck demands he be taken instead of his son. Penguin agrees since he wants revenge on Shreck. 

They go back to the zoo. Penguin's minions are too slow rounding up the others and Batman saves the children. He sends a note to the sewer, so Penguin sends out the actual penguins with missiles on their backs to destroy downtown Gotham. Batman tracks the signal and races through the sewers in a Batboat. He passes the penguins and reaches the lair. Meanwhile, Alfred hacks into the radio controls on the penguins. He manages to turn them around and head them back to the zoo where they will attack. Before they arrive, Penguin's allies abandon him. Penguin tries to flee but Batman arrives. They fight, the penguins show up and start firing on the zoo. Batman beats Penguin who falls into the waters.

Shreck escapes his cage in the lair but Catwoman shows up. Batman tries to stop Catwoman but she can't quit. Shreck has a gun and shoots her several times. She counts down her nine lives as she is hit but he runs out of bullets before she runs out of lives. She pulls out the stun gun and grabs a hanging electrical wire, then kisses Shreck using the stunner as a conduit. He bakes to a crisp as they are buried under rubble. Batman comes to find them but only discovers the charred remains of Shreck. Penguin rises from the waters he has fallen into and tries to use one last umbrella to kill Batman. It is a cute one, so he fails. He drops dead and the penguins take him in a funeral procession to a watery grave.

Alfred takes Bruce Wayne away from the zoo in a limo. Bruce thinks he sees Selina's shadow in an alleyway but she is not there. He picks up a cat, takes it to the car, and drives home. Alfred and Bruce wish each other a merry Christmas with the least conviviality possible. The camera pans up to the rooftops, where the Bat-signal is visible and Catwoman looks up at it. Queue the credits.

So is the sequel better? Let's look at some points of comparison.

• SCRIPT--While both scripts provide interesting stories and characters, the second film is a lot more complicated narratively and thematically. Joker's origin is told in an interesting way while Batman's is relegated to a flashback (though the opening sequence is a bait-and-switch, with the same thing that happened to Bruce happening to an unnamed family). Penguin's origin and story arc is the central narrative of the second film. The uncaring treatment of his parents is paralleled with the uncaring treatment of Selina by her boss and herself. She is not quite aggressive enough as a secretary to rise up the corporate ladder. But the seeds of aggression are in there, seeds that bloom out of control as Catwoman develops. She wants to be a hero but her anger at men (understandable given her treatment) leads her down the wrong path. The damage caused by absent families is seen in the three main characters, with Catwoman starting down the road Batman has trod while Penguin is obsessed with his lost family and unrecognized humanity. Max Shreck, the outwardly most normal villain, has much stronger family connections (he and his son look out for each other). Even so, he's a bad influence on Selina and Penguin, using them for his own ends. The mutual exploitation between Penguin, Catwoman, and Shreck are contrasted with Batman and Alfred's mutual support. The story has some parallels with pre-World War II Germany and the visuals adopt a lot of the German Expressionist aesthetic also from pre-World War II Germany. Max Shreck is even named after the actor who played the Dracula character in Nosferatu. The second script is a lot richer. Advantage Batman Returns. 
• ACTING--Michael Keaton, a controversial choice for the character at the time of the first movie, provides fine performances in each film. Nicholson is great as the Joker, exuding menace and mayhem in every scene. He is over the top but so is the character. The performance fits well. DeVito as the Penguin is almost unrecognizable in his horrifying appearance and behavior. Penguin is very vulgar and unpleasant, even when he tries to be charming. Even so, his character is still somewhat sympathetic, at least to the film makers. His emotional moments are taken very seriously and his death scene plays like a highly tragic ending. Pfeiffer's character is also over the top but she manages to switch back and forth between the mousey Selina and the ferocious Catwoman seamlessly and gets her own level of pathos from the filmmakers. Her sexiness in the role distracts from the fineness of her performance. Advantage Batman Returns.
• ADVANCES THE STORY/MYTHOLOGY--The Batman franchise does not have a larger narrative arc (like Star Wars or Dune or the MCU), it is more a matter of facing different villains and situations as they come. Viewers don't get a deeper understanding of Batman or Gotham or other characters as the movies develop. No advantage.
• SPECIAL EFFECTS--The second film looks like it had a bigger budget. Some of the effects in the first film look dated, or at least more dated than the effects in the second film. Advantage Batman Returns.
• VISUAL STYLE--The gothic vision of Gotham in the first film changes into a German-expressionistic vision in the second. The larger than life statues and sets are reminiscent of Metropolis and other great silent German epics. While both Gothams are squalid, there is an even great oppressiveness to the second film's depiction. Penguin is especially repulsive, often drooling black bile and being sexually aggressive when he has no sex appeal at all. On the other hand, Catwoman oozes sensuality in a way totally inappropriate for a movie ostensibly aimed at kids. There was a lot of protests and complaints, especial from tie-in products like McDonald's Happy Meals. The second film is too gruesome and perverse in some moments, making it a mixed bag. Slight advantage to Batman.

FINAL THOUGHTS

While there are negative and positive things to say about both films, I still would rather rewatch Batman Returns over Batman. Even though sometimes more is less, in this case the second film has so much more going for it. It reminds me of the discussions about Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army, where fans think that the first film is truer to Hellboy creator Mike Mignola's vision of the character and the second film is more of director Guillermo del Toro's vision. Batman Returns is much more a Tim Burton take on the characters than Batman is.

Also, Batman Returns was the topic on Unspooled #334, a film commentary podcast that is a lot of fun.