The 1966 Batman: The Movie has gotten an Honest Trailer that breaks down the film’s not-so-serious portrayal of the Caped Crusader. More than twenty years before Michael Keaton suited up as Batman in Tim Burton’s 1989 film, the DC superhero was initially brought to life in live-action by the late Adam West. Famous for its unapologetically campy tone and style, the ’60s Batman movie followed West as the titular crime-fighter and Burt Ward as his sidekick Robin, as the duo battled a whole team of super-villains bent on wreaking havoc via an elaborate plan that involved turning the leaders of the free world into (literal) powder.
West and Ward would go on to reprise their roles for a couple more seasons on the ‘60 Batman TV show (which premiered about six months before the film hit theaters). The pair certainly left their marks on the franchise; to this day, the Batman property has yet to match the comical brilliance of their straight-faced, yet utterly tongue in cheek performances and equally silly adventures (despite a few attempts to do so). Now, with the grim, R-rated Joker hitting theaters this week, Screen Junkies is reminding everyone of the time when Batman and his enemies were anything but super-serious.
The site has unveiled their official Honest Trailer for Batman (1966), and it even acknowledges the video was timed to coincidence with Joker’s release at the beginning. Check it out, below.
As the trailer points out, the 1966 movie painted a very different portrait of the Caped Crusader and his world than most of the Batman films and TV shows that’ve released in the 53 years since then. Of course, that not to say West is the only actor who’s ever played a goofy version of the Caped Crusader. In more recent years, Will Arnett has voiced an openly cheeky animated version of the character in the form of LEGO Batman (who made his big screen debut in 2014’s The LEGO Movie). Joel Schumacher’s ’90s Batman movies, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, similarly attempted to put a campier spin on the franchise - and though those films definitely have their fans, others feel they lacked the playfulness that made West’s Batman special.
Shortly before his passing in 2017. West actually reprised his role as Batman in the animated films Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs. Two-Face. They made for a fun throwback to his days playing the character in live-action and a reminder of just how entertaining the Caped Crusader can be when he’s not being dark and gritty (though there are plenty of great serious Batman stories, too). This year’s Arrowverse Crisis on Infinite Earth crossover will even give the ’60s Batman movie and TV series a shout-out by including Ward in a supporting role. Here’s just hoping he gets to yell “Holy” something or other at some point.
Source: Screen Junkies
