 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Batman (1989)
- Review Date: September 6, 2005
- PG-13
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- 1989
Common Sense Media says
Stylish, violent, and often dull Batman adventure.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that kids watching this movie will see the murder of parents before their own kids, disfigurement, a quill pen jabbed in a man's throat and another electrocuted to death, along with numerous shoot-outs, wild chases, and vigilantism portrayed in a favorable light.
What's the story?
After witnessing his parents' murder by a criminal as a child, millionaire Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) grows up to track and apprehend criminals in the guise of Batman. When crime lord Grissom decides to dispose of a troublesome henchman, Jack Napier (Jack Nicholson), by sending him on a fool's errand to a chemical factory, Napier battles Batman and winds up falling into a vat of toxic chemicals. Napier lives, but the fixed grin he has acquired as a result of the chemicals leads him to call himself The Joker. The Joker kills Grissom, and then sets his sights on courting Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger), a photographer currently dating Wayne. The rest of the movie rotates around the Joker's plan to poison the city's cosmetics supply and his abduction of Vicki.
Is it any good?
Director Tim Burton is skilled at depicting the whimsical, the demented, even the nightmarish. If this movie is any indication, however, he has little talent for creating "normal" people or telling a logical story. BATMAN does have its virtues: eye-catching production design, and Nicholson's joyfully hammy turn as The Joker. Nicholson holds viewers' attention during the movie's first quarter, before the Batman/Joker conflict kicks in.
Keaton, however, sleep walks through his performance as the Caped Crusader. While the armor-covered Batman is nearly always in motion, Bruce Wayne barely puts out any emotional energy. Though he improved a bit in the superior -- but darker -- sequel Batman Returns, Keaton's casting as the muscular Bruce Wayne remains one of the most wrongheaded decisions in movie history. The talented supporting cast can't overcome the stiff dialogue, and so it's up to Nicholson to steal the show by quipping, shrieking with laughter, and boogying down to several catchy Prince tunes.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about vigilantism. When Batman decides to punish or kill criminals himself, instead of handing them over to the police, is he doing the right thing? For younger kids, you might discuss whether Batman acts like a good guy when he dangles people over city streets or kills criminals. Older kids might be interested in discussing real life instances of vigilatism and contrasting that with what happens in the movie.
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AGE
The best batman movie, even better than the Dark Knight.
This is the way all Batman movie's should be made. I actually find this movie to be slightly better than "The Dark Knight". I also perfer this joker (played by Jack Nickelson) over the joker played by Heath Ledjer. Why? Because this joker acts obnitoux and is very unpridictable, and this is the way he should be, not some siycopath that jabbes a pencil through a guy's eye.
Now don't get me wrong, I loved the dark knight, infact, I thought that it was the best movie of 2008, but this is the batman movie that all batman fans wanted. It's dark, it's mysterious, and it's actually funny at times. Also, I think that Michle Keton is by far the best actor to ever play batman. If your a fan of batman you have to see this movie, otherwise you cant call yourself a batman fan. And if your not a fan of comic book movies then prepare to become one.
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AGE
This movie was an excellent movie. Language includes ba--ard, d--n, he--(said twice), b-tch, s--t, d--k, and then some .. Eerything is said once except for he--. Violent wise, you see batmans parents get killed with no blood, a man is killed and slid across a desk, showing blood on the desk, The Joker is shot in the face in the beginning showing blood, then falling into a strange chemical. You see a bloody surgery room, a man getting stabbed in the neck with a stick pen, and a man getting electrecuted and then just a burnt corpse, and the joker falls off a building. There is a couple of kisses.
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AGE
ur kidding me right!?ok for 9!!??
NONONONO
definitely not for little kids
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AGE
AWESOME movie Ages 9 and up should see it!
It's a good movie in all, but I think there is a little to much cursing in it. Some blood and violence but not to much. I can't wait to watch it again.
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AGE
for 8 lol they cant get sleep when they watch this movie in that age
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AGE
Dark, dull, and creepy, but not without highlights
First of all, the story: a fairly generic Batman plot where a bad guy falls into a pit of acid and turns into the Joker, a homicidal psycho with a taste for theatricality. The rest of the movie is slightly boring, and disturbing sometimes, but also sometimes enjoyable with some good acting or a spot of humor, although the action scenes aren't quite up to what you'd expect from a superhero movie.
Violence: there's no lack of it. Multiple people are shot, although we rarely see blood. The most graphic instance is when the Joker fires about 15 bullets into a man. We only see the first few hit him, but we later see blood on the newspaper that had been in front of him. The Joker stabs a man in the neck with a quill pen (bloodless), electrocutes a man to the point where he is a charred, blackened, bloody corpse, shoots acid at people, and uses gas that causes people to laugh to death, literally. Before he becomes the Joker, he is shot in the face (fairly bloody). There's a lot of punching, sometimes with blood, and a couple of people take long, fatal falls.
Sex: it is implied that Bruce and Vicky spend the night, along with some double entendres.
Language: there is some fairly course swearing (worst instances being s**t and g**d**n). There is some drinking.
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AGE
Excellent Joker and Batman
I enjoy this movie. For people that don't like this or call it dull like Common Sense, just remember that there would be no Batman Begins or The Dark Knight if it wasn't for this movie.
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Kid, 11 years old
June 26, 2009
AGE
talk about action!
love the movie awsome.
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AGE
Starts Great, but Ends Up a Let Down...
This isn't a great movie. I will admit that Tim Burton creates, in Gotham City, a very intriguing place of darkness and corruption. However, nothing much happens there. The film is all set-up and not much pay off. The first 20 minutes of the film are engaging and, quite frankly, the best Batman stuff I've ever seen. However, it all goes downhill from there. Joker feels like a dillousional circus clown, not a satanic villain. Also in the beginning of the film, we are given two cool heroes: Vicky Vale and Bruce Wayne (Batman). The movie also gives us a sexy romance between them. However, soon afterwards, these characters become stale. They are so boring, we have to be reminded to root for them. This movie reaches greatness, then falls down into complete ludicracy. In the end, you will feel let down. Two scenes mainly make this film inapropriate for kids. In the first, Joker shoots a man multiple times to carnival music. You see the man's body, and blood on his desk. Later, Joker electrocutes a man, leaving a charred skeleton behind. Some people die in creepy ways, becoming like Joker right before they die. There is brief mention of Vicky and Bruce sleeping together, but nothing is shown. Language can get coarse: "SOB"s, "d*ck", "d**n", "b****rd", and "a*s".
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AGE
an o.k. movie, i guess, but it has lots of swearing like s**t, d**k and bi*ch, which are used multiple times within the first few minutes. there's lots of violence. the joker kills many people, and in one funny scene, vandalizes a museum. s*x is implied with vicki and bruce, and in the first few minutes a prostitute tries to stop a married man. [SPOILER] at the end, the joker falls off a high building. at first you think he's alive because of his eerie laugh. but they find out it's just a recording. blood is shown, and it's not seen up close, but you can tell his head is crushed. it's very gross. oh, how could i forget the worst part?? in an old surgery building, in a very scary scene, bloody tools are shown in the dark room as an operator works on the joker's face. his face isn't shown yet, but he takes off his bandages, and, laughing like a maniac, leaves the building. it really scared me. kids may be frightened by the joker.s appearance.
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| Topics: | superheroes |
| Studio: | Warner Bros. |
| Director: | Tim Burton |
| Cast: | Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Michael Keaton |
| Genre: | Action/Adventure |
| Run time: | 126 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | June 23, 1989 |
| DVD release date: | August 22, 1997 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
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