Batman & Robin
Warner Bros. / 1997 / 122 Mins / Rated PG


MOVIE
So now it comes to pass that I finally review Batman & Robin, the worst movie of the series. George Clooney made the comment that he killed the series. But in hindsight one can plainly see that it was Joel Schumacher that killed the series. Tim Burton had established the first two movies as brooding gothic set pieces true to the original comic. Joel Schumacher on the other hand turned the second two movies, well.. "GAY" not unlike the 60's series starring Adam West. No wonder this was a BOMB!

Adding to the bad movie is some pretty bad acting from all except George Clooney. The bonkers story goes something like this Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in a really bad role made up of one liners, wants to turn Gotham City into a big freezing Popsicle and the only ones who can stop them are, you guessed it, Batman & Robin. Along the way they meet up with Batgirl (Alicia Silverstone) and also have to contend with Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman) as well... This movie is lame and forgettable and should never have been inflicted upon the world.

VIDEO
At least this Batman movie gets a passable transfer.

Batman & Robin has a wonderfully sharp transfer throughout that is free from any MPEG artifacts.

Film artifacts are few and far between and do not really detract from the movie.

Shadow detail is really the only downside to this transfer as it is lacking and again like Heat as most of this movie is set in dark areas, you do loose some detail.

Batman & Robin is framed at 1:85:1 and is 16:9 enhanced.

This is a single-sided, single layer disc.

AUDIO

The good thing about this disc was the sound. Right from the beginning were are treated to an aural feast. 

The surrounds are used constantly and rear channel separation is quite good in places also which creates an engaging sound field. The .1 channel is used quite constantly also and is well integrated into the mix.

The dialog was easy to hear.

EXTRAS

There are some basic cast and production notes on this disc. Nothing more more nothing less.

Subtitles: English, Arabic, Polish, Greek, Czech, Turkish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Croatian, Closed Captioned.

FINAL THOUGHTS
I would suggest you do not buy this disc at all, the movie is one of the worst made in the last few years and the disc isn't much better.

16:9 ENHANCEMENT DISC RATING

VIDEO:
AUDIO:
EXTRAS:

PLOT:
OVERALL:

REVIEW EQUIPMENT

Display: 48" Sony RPTV.
DVD Player:
Panasonic A350 Player using S-Video Cables.
Receiver:
Pioneer VSX-D508 Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround.
Speakers:
Accusound speaker system.

Copyright © 2000 by [Roger Ward].
Revised: 19 Oct 2000 17:34:20 +1100 .

DVD INFORMATION
Region Coding: Region 4
No of Discs: 1
OFLC Rating PG
Running Time: 120 Mins
Case Type: Snapper Case
Release Date: 29/1/1999
Catalog Number: 16500
List Price: $29.95
Distributor: Warner Bros.
DISC SPECIFICATIONS
Disc Format: PAL
Disc Type: Label Only
Disc Format: SS-SL
Chapters: 42
Macrovision: Yes
Manufacturer: WAMO
VIDEO SPECIFICATIONS
Aspect Ratio: 1:85:1
Anamorphic: Yes
Film Format: 35mm
SOUND SPECIFICATIONS
Dolby Digital:

5.1 Surround

DTS: None
PCM Stereo: None
Other: None
Languages: English
Subtitles: Yes
SPECIAL FEATURES
Audio Commentary: None
Theatrical Trailer: None
Teaser Trailer: None
TV Spots: None
Dolby Trailer: None
Documentary: None
Cast & Crew Bios: None
Deleted Scenes: None
Music Videos: None
DVD Rom Content: None
Collectable Booklet: None
Scene Access: Yes
Animated Menus: None
Production Notes: None
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INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE INFO
OFFICIAL WEB SITE
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VIEW TRAILER
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