Was it the BEST Batman movie of them all? Debates rage..
June 16, 2022 will commemorate the 30th anniversary of Tim Burton’s sequel to his original 1989 hit.
The 1992 film had a Christmas setting, with evil billionaire Max Schreck being an evil that led Gotham to see the creation of a cat woman.. And a horrid slobbering raw fish eating penguin living under the sewers for years long enough to create an army of little penguins ready to blow up the city.
The movie was as macabre as Tim Burton could get. Danny Devito and Michelle Pfieffer joined Michael Keaton in the film.
While not as off the grid super large as the original, it was still super large.
THE 1992 SUMMER BIG MOVIE
CONTROVERSY!!!
Parents upset!!
Marketing for younger children and it is too violent!
This was the media coverage in 1992 when a number of TV talk shows and news outlets went rogue against Tim Burton’s hit.. One clip as a talk show interviewing a child who said “everything that kids love was being used against them” like clowns and a ducky boat..
(would love to know what this kid thought of Pennywise that aired two years earlier??)
THE ADULT REACTION
Going back in time to what then highly acclaimed and respected movie reviews Siskel and Ebert thought of BATMAN RETURNS: (and they did not love it)
The final conclusion: Tim Burton makes “great looking pictures” but there is “no need” for Christopher Walken as Max Schreck in the movie..
THE LOCAL REACTION
Meanwhile at the former Schuylkill Mall: Over 1,000 people lined up to get into the film. The Republican at the time reported that it was 1,500 strong (you may have ever seen me in that photo if one looked hard beyond the blurry black and white faces) ..
The paper reported that the price for admission was a steep $5.50..
From the story, and here is some major nostalgia:
The crowds that began lining up at 5:30 pm filled the theaters 271 seats for the 7:10pm showing, theater manager Peter J. Kleeman said. The line stretched a couple hundred feet to the Bonanza restaurant in the other side of the mall. The majority of people waiting in line were under 21 years old. However man old bat fans also came out for the opening. A line began forming an hour before the day’s last showing at 9:40 pm. The sellout audience filled the theater and about two-this of the 246 seats in the second theater for the showing, Kleeman said.
A lot has changed in 30 years.
But throughout each summer since 1992, BATMAN RETURNS continued strong.
