Did anyone se Batman Returns in theaters?

[Mace Dolex]

I remember the teaser poster as early as December 1991 with the tight close up of the Bat-logo ears and the Summer 1992 at the bottom.

I remember impatiently waiting for the school year to be over and ready for Batmania all over again but in this case it wasn't as huge a marketing push as in '89 but now quality control on merchandise was really strict to thwart out the pirated stuff such as T-shirts, toys.

There was the CBS special hosted by Robert Urich and E! had an hour long one too of which I still have on VHS, some pretty cool stuff especially seeing Christopher Walken being interviewd without realizing how kooky he would become in later roles, he even wore a tuxedo to the premiere admiting he didn't know what the attire would be thinking it would be like a huge gala event. oh Chris you're so kooky.

The movie itself didn't impress me much since once again Batman took a backseat to the villians but seeing it every so often with an older perpective I can appreciate Burton's attempt at making weird movies before that didn't fit the studio standard.

 

[JohnnyGobbs]

I remember the teaser poster as early as December 1991 with the tight close up of the Bat-logo ears and the Summer 1992 at the bottom.

I remember impatiently waiting for the school year to be over and ready for Batmania all over again but in this case it wasn't as huge a marketing push as in '89 but now quality control on merchandise was really strict to thwart out the pirated stuff such as T-shirts, toys.

There was the CBS special hosted by Robert Urich and E! had an hour long one too of which I still have on VHS, some pretty cool stuff especially seeing Christopher Walken being interviewd without realizing how kooky he would become in later roles, he even wore a tuxedo to the premiere admiting he didn't know what the attire would be thinking it would be like a huge gala event. oh Chris you're so kooky.

The movie itself didn't impress me much since once again Batman took a backseat to the villians but seeing it every so often with an older perpective I can appreciate Burton's attempt at making weird movies before that didn't fit the studio standard.

Excellent. Do you know if it is possible to watch the E! hour long special online? And if not, any chance you'd be able to put it up on youtube at all?

 

[Mace Dolex]

To this day I dont know how it happened especially since I was a massive batman fan by that point since early 89, reading religiously and waiting for every single Batman issue, but I had no clue a sequel came out until it appeared on VHS late the same year. Dont ask me how, I just didnt know. havent seen any ads, havent heard anything about it (I was born and grew up in Europe btw)

The hype and promotion for 89 movie was massive, but BR I never heard about until my dad made a surprise for me and brought it to me on VHS in the winter of '92 the day it got released . As a side note, imagine my shock and happiness at the same time. I think thats even better than anticipating the movie. Its like "hey, B89 is one of your 2 favorite movies? I got something for you. Here, theres a sequel and you can watch it now, its in your hands"

Wow I can't even fathom the thought of going to a video store and out of the blue spotting a brand new Batman movie that you never heard was out.

 

[Mace Dolex]

Excellent. Do you know if it is possible to watch the E! hour long special online? And if not, any chance you'd be able to put it up on youtube at all?

Wish I could but I'm not tech savvy when it comes to posting videos online but I can tell you that the special was hosted by Michael Murphy (Gotham Mayor) and Vincent Schiavelli (Organ Grinder), the first half is the usual behind the scenes with the cast and the second half shows clips of the premiere at Hollywood Mann's Chinese theater.

Celebrities that attended were Keaton, Pfeiffer, DeVito, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Alexander, Rene Russo, Christian Slater and Chris Walken in a tux. t:

 

[SimbaRises]

The movie itself didn't impress me much since once again Batman took a backseat to the villians but seeing it every so often with an older perpective I can appreciate Burton's attempt at making weird movies before that didn't fit the studio standard.

That is at it's core the most profound thing Burton has done in cinema. Was test the boundaries for making weird, mass consumed, studio films.

 

[El Payaso]

Wow I can't even fathom the thought of going to a video store and out of the blue spotting a brand new Batman movie that you never heard was out.

Something like thatb happend to me. Back in the mid-90's I went to a video store and found this new "Superman" movie. It had actors I never heard about attached to anything Superman and by the looks of it I almost thought it was a prank.

It happened to be the Lois & Clark pilot. Where I live that series was never heard about untill later.

And something similar happened when I saw that they had done a Batman animated movie based on the animated series.

It all happned in the B.I. time, life before internet.

 

[SimbaRises]

You probably weren't living in America, that's why. Because both Batman Returns and especially Lois and Clark were marketed like hell.

 

[GothamAlleys]

Wow I can't even fathom the thought of going to a video store and out of the blue spotting a brand new Batman movie that you never heard was out.

never happened to me before or since, but as I said it was hellova surprise

 

[CConn]

The only time that happened to me was with Mask of the Phantasm. I remember getting it for my 6th birthday, having no clue it was ever in theaters.

 

[Ponyboy]

Wow I can't even fathom the thought of going to a video store and out of the blue spotting a brand new Batman movie that you never heard was out.

Ahh, life prior to the interwebs.

 

[El Payaso]

You probably weren't living in America, that's why. Because both Batman Returns and especially Lois and Clark were marketed like hell.

Ah yes, some people don't live in America. But I was referring to Mask of the Phantasm, not BR. BR had good marketing.

The only time that happened to me was with Mask of the Phantasm. I remember getting it for my 6th birthday, having no clue it was ever in theaters.

Well, where I live it wasn't even released on theaters. But I heard it didn't do good in America either.

 

[SHADOWBAT69]

Dang, you had classes in mid June?

In college, yes. No such thing as "summer break" when youre trying to earn a degree.


But there did exist a "Batman break". lol

 

[Brain Damage]

To this day I dont know how it happened especially since I was a massive batman fan by that point since early 89, reading religiously and waiting for every single Batman issue, but I had no clue a sequel came out until it appeared on VHS late the same year. Dont ask me how, I just didnt know. havent seen any ads, havent heard anything about it (I was born and grew up in Europe btw)

The hype and promotion for 89 movie was massive, but BR I never heard about until my dad made a surprise for me and brought it to me on VHS in the winter of '92 the day it got released . As a side note, imagine my shock and happiness at the same time. I think thats even better than anticipating the movie. Its like "hey, B89 is one of your 2 favorite movies? I got something for you. Here, theres a sequel and you can watch it now, its in your hands"

This post just made me realize how much I much I hate the internet.

 

[JohnnyGobbs]

Wish I could but I'm not tech savvy when it comes to posting videos online but I can tell you that the special was hosted by Michael Murphy (Gotham Mayor) and Vincent Schiavelli (Organ Grinder), the first half is the usual behind the scenes with the cast and the second half shows clips of the premiere at Hollywood Mann's Chinese theater.

Celebrities that attended were Keaton, Pfeiffer, DeVito, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Alexander, Rene Russo, Christian Slater and Chris Walken in a tux. t:

Damn, that just makes me even more eagar to see it...

 

[Mace Dolex]

Something like thatb happend to me. Back in the mid-90's I went to a video store and found this new "Superman" movie. It had actors I never heard about attached to anything Superman and by the looks of it I almost thought it was a prank.

It happened to be the Lois & Clark pilot. Where I live that series was never heard about untill later.

I'd love to hear what your thoughts on it were, shocked, disgusted, confused, especially considering Teri Hatcher and Dean Cain were not household names yet.

I also remember spotting a VHS The Flash movie but it was only the TV movie pilot.

 

[El Payaso]

I'd love to hear what your thoughts on it were, shocked, disgusted, confused, especially considering Teri Hatcher and Dean Cain were not household names yet.

Ah well, I decioded not to rent it that day. But I was very curious. I remember I thought how on Earth I did not know about it. Haha.

First of all, I saw the Superman suit and thought it had to be a joke. The S symbol, Dean Cain's face... they looked like it was a parody. I don't hate Cain, but his face was anything but Superman-ish.

A year later or so, it was on national TV.

I never watched the series much. Mostly because it was too obvious that nothing really awesome was going to happen due to bidget and special efects.

I also remember spotting a VHS The Flash movie but it was only the TV movie pilot.

I don't remember having seen the TV video box before the actual series. Was it your case?

An, and I remember I saw "Robocop 4" on video. It was the pilot of the TV series.

 

[Mace Dolex]

I don't remember having seen the TV video box before the actual series. Was it your case?

As a matter of fact I have that VHS that I bought used for a buck, there are other Flash videos floating around with 2 episodes of the series edited as movies.

An, and I remember I saw "Robocop 4" on video. It was the pilot of the TV series.

Just wait till you ever get a chance to see Robocop Prime Directives.

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

I never watched the series much. Mostly because it was too obvious that nothing really awesome was going to happen due to bidget and special efects.

I watched it back in the day, occasionally you would get a pretty good episode, there was one I kept on tape for years, might still have it, where Clark goes back to Smallville, and loses his powers and memory due to a type of kryptonite, just when some bad guys in the military descend on Smallville, as they figure out that's where Superman's spaceship landed.

edit: looking at the episode guide, it might be ep 8 from season 1, called the green, green glow of home.

 

[El Payaso]

I watched it back in the day, occasionally you would get a pretty good episode, there was one I kept on tape for years, might still have it, where Clark goes back to Smallville, and loses his powers and memory due to a type of kryptonite, just when some bad guys in the military descend on Smallville, as they figure out that's where Superman's spaceship landed.

edit: looking at the episode guide, it might be ep 8 from season 1, called the green, green glow of home.

Thanks for the info.

One thing I did like about Lois & Clark was that some storylines and secondary characters from the comics of that time were incorporated. It was fun to think 'HEY! I read that!'

 

[munchie64]

I was confused when I walked out of Batman in 89...but I was totally buzzing when I came out of Batman Returns...I felt I had saw some things onscreen that I wanted from a Batman movie finally...

- a villan who not only acted like their comicbook counterpart, but looked just like they had stepped from the page(Catwoman)

...seeing Batman up on the rooftops fighting a super-villan(CW)

.... Batman fighting a random attack by a colourful gang of crooks (the Circus gang, esp the 1st set-piece, as on that first showing I did not know they were Penguin's gang, I thought they were just a random Gotham gang, it felt like a crazy mutant type gang from Miller's TDKR)

and extended action set pieces with Batman that involved super-villans in the action...

Now, you might think I was just there for the action, but no, of course I did enjoy the story, esp MP's Catwoman origin and characterisation....it was just that I had been waiting on a serious live action BM movie my whole life, and this one came closer than Batman 89 to delivering what I wanted to see onscreen Batman wise.

Ummm... What comics were you reading at the time?

 

[Cain]

So Catwoman wasn't a woman conflicted with her own duality; questioning her own morals and attracted to Batman but at the same time at odds with him in the comics during the early 90's?

Don't confuse the superficial (OMG she wasn't a brunette thief) with characterization.

 

[Thebumwhowalks]

Aye, and even in the late 70s comics, she dated Bruce Wayne, and found out his secret I.D. She did reform for a while there, but even when she would return to crime now and again, she was never a murderer, and was only really interested in stealing or kicking Batman's ash.
and yeah, they even did the whole identity crisis stuff with her back then too, there was a great issue where she was caught between her old Catwoman persona and the Selina Kyle who dated Bruce. Can't recall the issue number.

 

[CConn]

She wasn't nearly as bat**** insane in the comics, though.

Not that I minded it.

 

[munchie64]

She wasn't nearly as bat**** insane in the comics, though.

Not that I minded it.

Exactly. I loved it as well. But she was NOT comic Catwoman.

 

[CConn]

I'm not saying that either.

She did have a lot of comic elements inherent in her character.

Button just kind of cranked the dial up to 11 on her character.