Just a quick shout out to the Best Buy near me that put this out on the shelves on Sunday, three days before its intended release.  Thanks!

"Batman" (1989)

Tim Burton's first Batman film is one of those rare cases where a comic book film sort of sucks as a translation of the source material, but is a good enough movie on its own merits that even die-hard Bat fans can't deny its great style and wonderful performances from Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson.  Though, then again, I always believed this was a movie that is fully style over substance in every regard.

Still, it is a fun action movie to watch.  Again, props go out to Keaton's portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman and Nicholson's Joker.  Jack steals every scene while Keaton brings a touch of class to a role that could have easily been poking fun of itself (we had to wait three whole movies before that happened).  While not the best Batman interpertation, Burton's first Dark Knight film is good enough to stand out all on its own.

*** out of ****

"Batman Returns" (1992)

Easily my favorite of the four original Batman movies.  Though "Returns" continues the first one's tradition in being a shoddy Batman interpertation and again, a case of style over substance, I can't help but enjoy the great set-up.  Not only does this one have the smartest script to work off of (written by co-writer of the first "Batman," Sam Hamm and "Heathers" writer Daniel Waters), but also the greatest cast out of all of the four films listed.

Sure, Nicholson may have been the best villian, but this one not only has Danny DeVito portraying a wonderful Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer as a very sexy Catwoman, but also a scene-stealing Christopher Walken as the villainous Max Shreck.  Walken gets away with some of the best lines, many of which I find myself repeating at various innapropriate times (my favorite is, "Santa Claus... 'fraid not").  Plus, there is a very memorable ball room scene that perfectly captures the comic book dialogue that would often be traded back and forth between Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle.

If you noticed, I have yet to mention Keaton as Batman.  And that would be my one major problem with the movie.  Bruce Wayne seems more of a side-character, with the villians stealing the show.  Still, this is a great movie, and, as a bonus, I find it makes an excellent holiday film (Charlie Brown is overrated anyway).

***1/2 out of ****

"Batman Forever" (1995)

And then there was Schumacher.

Truth be told, I actually very much enjoyed this when I was nine and saw it in theaters.  Unfortunately, this one does not stand the test of time well at all.  Bringing a campy "edge" to the film series, director Joel Schumacher seems to be mocking the Batman fans at every turn.  Brightly colored to contrast against Burton's much darker and colder films, "Forever" also has a few too many one liners and zingers for my tastes.

Still, the action scenes are all right and I like Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones as the villains The Riddler and Two-Face, respectively.  And, for what it's worth, Val Kilmer does a good job taking over for Keaton, though I wish he had a bit more depth to offer to the character, especially when he's in the costume.  My real problem here, though is with Robin, played annoyingly by Chris O'Donnell.  Note to Warner Bros.: please leave Robin out of the new franchise... for the love of God...

** out of ****

"Batman & Robin" (1997)

And here we come to the inevitable bashing.

"Batman & Robin" is without a doubt the worst comic book film ever made.  People may dislike "The Hulk" or "The Fantastic Four" or "The Punisher," but you'll always find that that same person will always say, "...but at least it wasn't as bad as 'Batman & Robin.'"  One could blame Schumacher or writer Akiva Goldsman, but the real culprit here is an overly greedy studio.

It is obvious in every single scene of this movie that it is solely intended as an hour and a half toy commercial.  And then the actors!  Good Lord!  In the comics and excellent animated series, Freeze was always portrayed as a soft-spoken, tragic figure.  I always thought he should be played by Kevin Spacey.  Unfortunately, somebody saw it fit to slap Schwarzenegger into a clunky ice suit and have him deliver one-liner... after one-liner... after unending one-liner.  Clooney also shows that he's in on the killing of a franchise too.  From the equally offensive one-liners to his patent head bobble, Clooney proves that he should have stuck with "E.R." for one more season than to drop out for this mess.

Bad, bad, bad, bad.

ZERO STARS out of ****

BOTTOM LINE: It's possible to buy these special editions seperately, and that is what I suggest for those out there that are not anal retentive completists like myself.  Though, "Batman & Robin" can make for a good watch with a group of film fans who don't mind playing "Mystery Science Theater" with you.  

Extras: **** out of ****

Here's where this collection shines, even on the latter two Batman films.  Burton supplies some decent commentaries for the first  and "Returns," while Schumacher has a couple things to say about the last two.  Anyone who has listened to a Burton commentary knows that they can be on the droll side.  The same goes here, but he still has some interesting tales to tell (for example, despite what most people believe, he did not quit the franchise; he was just asked not to come back).  Then Schumacher comes in on both the defensive and offensive side of things.  While the "Forever" track shows that he really thought the film was good, it's the "Batman & Robin" track where he doesn't mind pointing the finger at others (though, he probably has the right to do so as WB was apparently constantly interupting the production).

Along with the commentaries, there is also a second disc for each movie that includes all sorts of cool featurettes and making-of's (and some music videos and trailers for good measure).  These documentaries are not your usual fluff either; most go very in depth into the productions, looking at both the positive and negative sides.  With these honest making-of's and the release of "Batman Begins," it would seem that WB has gotten itself back on track.

Let's just pray they stay that way with the sequel to "Begins" as well as next summer's "Superman Returns."

Superman will suck. It will. IT will cause the Superman character sucks and will always suck. He's not logical anyways, but lets say we live in a world where he was. How the hell is no one gonna know this man isn't superman? I've always hated Superman. Always. I generally have never liked comic books, though. E.C. comics aside. I'm just not a big Comic guy. I like the FLASH and the PUNISHER and that's it.

Also the funny thing... THE FLASH tv show and THE original PUNISHER movie were also my two favorite superhero adaptations.

Batman series is a hit and miss. I like Batman and Batman returns. The other 2 suck. I'm not gonna buy the collection as I already own the two I want. I don't need the special features on these either... as I don't really care too much about them.