BATMAN

It was early 1989 when I got into Batman comics. The DEATH IN THE FAMILY trade paperback was this first Bat-book I ever read. At this early stage I wasn't really collecting comics yet, and my reading was inconsistent due to issues selling out fast. It'd be at least a few more years before I started a subscription.

The first I'd heard about a Batman movie was reading the letters section of DETECTIVE COMICS #598. The issue number is the only detail I remember other than being super excited. I was so pumped! I remember the casting of Micheal Keaton as Bruce Wayne being such a big deal. Mr. Mom as The Dark Knight? Weird. I was too young to be cynical in 1989 so I didn't freak out, I just found it odd that a comedic actor was playing the part.

The time came and it was the summer of Batman. Everybody had Bat-fever and the movie was a smash hit! The film was so popular that it was several weeks if not a month or two till we saw the movie.

When we did finally see the movie is was like an all day thing. My parents and I saw it at the Battlefield Mall. We couldn't get right in so we bought tickets and walked around the mall until showtime. Back then it was perfectly normal to see a movie weeks if not months after opening weekend. These day if you don't see a film on it's opening weekend, you're yesterdays news.

I loved the movie! I wanted to see it again but couldn't due to a summer vacation to Disney World. My parents let me buy the novelization instead and I read it on the plane. I don't think I ever saw the movie again till HBO or getting the VHS for Christmas.

So that's my BATMAN story. Does the film hold up after all these years, especially now after the Christoper Nolan films? The answer is yes, kind of.

The dark humor of the film has turned slightly campy thanks to the Nolan trilogy, but it's nothing I have a problem with.

THE DARK KNIGHT is the better film but the 1989 film will always kick ass. 100% because of sentimental reasons. These days I feel like I'm watching a Hollywood blockbuster more than a comic book movie. But,viewing the movie as an adult the new thing I love most about BATMAN is the Film Noir aspect to it. Something I knew nothing about as a kid. Other than that you've got a decent Batman movie in there somewhere.

While I think we had yet to have a true comic book movie version, you cannot deny how classic BATMAN is. Jack Nicholson as The Joker is still just the best. The look of the film is still awesome. Danny Elfman's score is still to this day iconic! And lastly, Micheal Keaton will always be my favorite Batman. However, I love what Ben Afleck is doing with the role, so my opinion may change soon? Time will tell.

As time goes on (if not slightly already) I do believe Tim Burton's film will become completely overshadowed by Nolan's trilogy and future franchise installments. Who knows, maybe Ben Afleck's THE BATMAN (20XX) will set a new standard? Because like it or not, his portrayal is the closest they've come to a comic book version of the character. Okay that's not entirely true. I recently watched the animated movie BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM, and that film is probably be best screen adaptation of the character we've seen so far. And why isn't it on Blu-Ray yet? Lame.