Batman (1966)
Batman (1989)
Those are really the only two I watch anymore.
Adam West was my introduction to the character and he played it right out of the comic books. I watch an episode of the 1960s show almost weekly. He fit the character as-written at the time. I’m also a big fan of Keaton in the role. He kept the character grounded, brought in a touch of realism, yet he still kept one foot in the comic book world. I think that is an absolute must for the character to work. A great addition to the franchise and the mythos.
Batman only though. Batman Returns was terrible, but not because of Keaton. Tim Burton ruined it. It seems to be the film where he found his one-note signature style; Everyone has dark circles around their eyes, pale skin, and wild hair. I saw the film once in the theater, lost interest about halfway through and never watched it again. I remember nothing other than the fact that I thought it was bad.
If I had to rank the others;
Batman Begins
The Dark Knight Rises
The Dark Knight
I thought Bale was a good choice as a modern - what if he were real - portrayal. However, having Batman that grounded in reality took away from his mystique. There were a few scenes in the second and third films where I felt it bordered on parody. Plus that ridiculous voice.
The first of his three is by far the best. The second one gets taken over by Ledger constantly chewing the scenery. I find his portrayal of The Joker to be exhausting. The third one has some great moments, but drags on for way too long and the story is unnecessarily complex. Bale’s performance just hasn’t aged well for me.
The rest are forgettable. Clooney at the bottom, just above Kilmer. Two terrible portrayals in the two worst films in the character’s history. I saw each film only once and have forgotten nearly every moment of both of them. I agree with Sheldon Cooper on Big Bang Theory when he listed his arch enemies; “Joel Schumacher, who nearly ruined the Batman franchise.”
I haven’t seen Batman v Superman yet, but just from the clips it looks like Affleck is better than Bale. He seems more believable. I suspect he’ll go to my #3. I’ll update after I go see it. I’m looking forward to a Batman-only Affleck film.
Worth pointing out; I have all the episodes of Beware The Batman and watch them with some regularity. I thought it was very well done. Nice to see Batman back to his detective roots.