Genre: Action, Adventure
Director: Tim Burton
Distributor: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Duration: 126 minutes
Batman Returns
Genre: Action, Crime, Fantasy
Director: Tim Burton
Distributor: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Duration: 126 minutes
Batman (1989) & Batman Returns (1992) Ultimate Collector’s Edition(s) (4K UHD) – Movie Reviews
Batman has been around for decades, and the masked vigilante has been presented to mainstream audiences in many different shapes and forms. Recently we saw Robert Pattinson pick up the cape and cowl, but we’ve also seen Christian Bale and Adam West fight crime in the past. Nonetheless, in 1989 and 1992 Michael Keaton starred in Tim Burton‘s take on the Batman universe in Batman and Batman Returns, and up to this day, it might just be those two movies that got a lot of kids, teenagers, and adults into reading comic books. We were lucky enough to receive the Ultimate Collector’s Editions for both movies, and as these movies need no further introduction and explanation, we will mainly be focusing on these good-looking boxsets for our review.
While both movies on display probably don’t need much of an introduction, we’ll just run down a bit of the basic information. In Tim Burton’s first Batman movie, we’ll see Batman fight the iconic Joker, who is hellbent on plunging Gotham into chaos. In Batman Returns, the notorious Penguin enters the stage, as well as Catwoman, making it so that Batman has two impressive adversaries to worry about. The movies follow the typical format of good versus evil, albeit with some typical Tim Burton-esque vibes thrown in the mix. This means that the atmosphere is very important in these films, and these are not exactly the same as the very old comical interpretations of Batman or the typical action movie format of Christopher Nolan’s trilogy.
Tim Burton’s interpretation of ‘the bat’ is also the first cinematic depiction of Batman that wasn’t silly or comical. Adam West used to battle crime in his own unique and entertaining way, but it toned down the overall serious backstory of the caped crusader. Burton’s movies are quite dark and bleak and they build up the proper atmosphere for Gotham’s somewhat despicable villains. Jack Nicholson was a great Joker but he was also violent and didn’t shy away from taking down the opposition. The same can be said about Danny DeVito, who plays a somewhat ‘filthy’ version of the Penguin. The veteran A-listers shaped this take on the Batman universe with their unique take on the characters. Michelle Pfeiffer also strengthened the cast in Batman Returns with her interesting version of Catwoman. Nonetheless, it was Michael Keaton who stole the show, before Val Kilmer and George Clooney picked up the role of vigilante in the third and fourth movies, which sadly flopped. Even the veteran cast members of those films couldn’t save the films from tanking. We did, however, enjoy seeing Jim Carrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Uma Thurman, and many more veterans star in these lower-quality sequels.
For collectors, there is one disappointing thing you should know about these collector’s editions. The currently available ones include the two we are discussing in this review, as well as The Dark Knight trilogy by Christopher Nolan. Sadly, this means that Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997) are not released in this limited format. While we understand that these movies aren’t exactly success stories, it would have been nice to have these two titles included, as they would be interesting for collectors.
These fancy collector’s editions come in a hard cardboard sleeve, and you’ll also get a good-looking steelbook with characters of the respective movie on them. The steelbook alone is definitely worth checking out if you’re a movie collector, as this is basically as good as it gets. On top of that, you’ll get a few extra goodies in the package, which are also stored in a separate cardboard envelope-like sleeve. These goodies include a picture book, a double-sided poster, art cards, and lobby cards. These lobby cards look like the original promotional material of the film(s), but they are very similar to the art cards, that just show the movie’s characters on them. As a whole, you’re getting quite a lot of bang for your buck here, as a 4K UHD steelbook often already costs a pretty penny.
On top of the iconic films and the physical extras, you’ll also get a lot of special features on the actual discs. Both movies come with over two hours of extra content each. The extras will revolve around the creative process behind the movie, the actual costume design, the musical score, character bios, cast and crew experiences, and so on. We’ll also get a lot of commentaries from Tim Burton and several producers. For the extras alone, these releases are very much worth looking into.
Conclusion
Are the 4K UHD Ultimate Collector’s Editions of 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Forever worth it? We can easily and quite enthusiastically say yes. These films would look great on any collector’s shelves, especially with all the collectibles in the box, but the films themselves also come with a fair amount of special features that can be found on the disc(s). Even though these impressive rereleases will set you back a pretty penny, they are most certainly worth looking into, if you’re looking to expand your DC or Batman collection.
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