Movies - Batman and Robin

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	Movies - Batman and Robin

The correct title of this article is Batman & Robin (1997 film). It appears here with an "and" in replacement due to the ampersand not being compatible with Internet URLs.

Batman & Robin, directed by Joel Schumacher, is the fourth installment in the comic book-inspired film series initiated by Tim Burton. Released in 1997, it starred George Clooney in his only appearance as Batman and Chris O'Donnell returning as Robin, and introduced Batgirl (Alicia Silverstone), a niece of Bruce Wayne's butler Alfred (Michael Gough). The villains in this movie are Poison Ivy, played by Uma Thurman, and Mr. Freeze, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger (who received top billing for this film).

Cast

Arnold Schwarzenegger
... Mr. Freeze/Dr. Victor Fries
George Clooney
... Batman/Bruce Wayne
Chris O'Donnell
... Robin/Richard "Dick" Grayson
Uma Thurman
... Poison Ivy/Dr. Pamela Isley
Alicia Silverstone
... Batgirl/Barbara Wilson
Michael Gough
... Alfred Pennyworth
Pat Hingle
... Commissioner Gordon
Jeep Swenson ... Bane
Elle MacPherson ... Julie Madison

Response

The film was neither a critical, nor a box office success. In his review of the film, critic Leonard Maltin found that "the 'story' often makes no sense" and that the "action and effects are loud, gargantuan, and ultimately numbing."

This film is often billed as the worst superhero movie of all time. The director Joel Schumacher also reputedly admits to not being proud of this film, despite earlier statements to the contrary. The film was mocked for a poor script, over-extending the campy attitude of the previous installment Batman Forever
, the poor casting of other "big-name" stars Uma Thurman and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the addition of a poorly portrayed Batgirl, played by Alicia Silverstone.

Published financial figures indicate that the movie was made on a budget of US$125 million , collecting $107 million domestically — less than any other Batman film — and $131 million abroad . Studios usually expect summer movies — particularly those in a highly successful series — to earn more profit than that, and Warner Bros. temporarily suspended the series after four live-action films.

The film was derisively dubbed Batman on Ice by some critics (for a scene in which the titular heroes both inexplicably have retractable skate blades hidden inside their boots) . George Clooney was himself severely embarrassed by the film, and has repudiated it publicly a number of times. Like his predecessor Val Kilmer, he was criticized for being too stiff to play a comic-book character. Alicia Silverstone (Batgirl) was called more of a forced extra than a real character, placed in to counter the conservative criticisms about its predecessor's subtle homosexual references (mostly Batman's "homoerotic" suit with nipples). Also criticized was Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy, for portraying a character that was viewed to be even more cartoonish than the Riddler and Two-Face, the main villains from the previous film. (Some even complained about her supposedly blasphemous quotes: "Let's see if I can do better ".) The return of the universally derided Bat-nipples (again, save the special "finale" suit) and also those on Robin's suit, as well as the humorous close-ups on all three heroes continued to stir controversy.

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Movies - Batman and Robin

Cast

Response

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