Batman: The Movie (1966) and the comics

[Silver Nemesis]

Cesar Romero talks Red Hood, The Joker, 1966 series + an excerpt with Adam West (all done 'in character')

That's a great find, ObserveCreativeSoul. Thanks for sharing it.

I've never seen Romero acknowledge the Joker's comic book origins in detail until now. It's further proof that the people behind this show were more cognizant of the source material than many modern fans are willing to acknowledge.

[The Dark Knight]

Romero had a basic idea of the origins, and that's all he needed to have, especially considering they're never explored in any depth. Romero said he had fun doing the show, and that shows in his performance. That's largely why he's my favorite Joker.

[thecolorsblend]

Romero had a basic idea of the origins, and that's all he needed to have, especially considering they're never explored in any depth. Romero said he had fun doing the show, and that shows in his performance. That's largely why he's my favorite Joker.

Very true. Actors back in those days seemed to thrive with getting only the flavor of a character's history. Before the Method took over everything, it was enough for most actors to get the flavor of a character without necessarily getting burdened with extraneous information. Clearly that approach didn't hurt Romero's performance.

[The Dark Knight]

Romero had a basic idea of the origins, and that's all he needed to have, especially considering they're never explored in any depth. Romero said he had fun doing the show, and that shows in his performance. That's largely why he's my favorite Joker.

Very true. Actors back in those days seemed to thrive with getting only the flavor of a character's history. Before the Method took over everything, it was enough for most actors to get the flavor of a character without necessarily getting burdened with extraneous information. Clearly that approach didn't hurt Romero's performance.

Nope. The simple backstory Romero recounted was enough. After the fall into the acid, the Joker is born. Whoever he was before that incident is largely gone and irrelevant to his performance. The Joker wants to forget that life and instead embraces the laughter and the craziness. And that's what Romero depicts on screen - the inner torment is left largely unsaid because he keeps that shame hidden. There's an episode where he calls life one big practical joke, for example, which viewers can interpret as a mournful reflection. But that's about it.

[Silver Nemesis]

A few minor additions.

This is unlikely to have been an influence on either the movie or the TV show, but the cover of Batman Vol 1 #60 (August 1950) shows Batman and Robin sliding down a fire station pole.

The following panel is from 'The Secret Cavern' (Detective Comics Vol 1 #48, February 1941) and depicts a serviceman saluting Batman and Robin as they fly overhead in the Batplane.

In 'The White Whale' (Batman Vol 1 #9, February 1942) the villains have a submarine disguised as a giant whale. Batman and Robin board the vessel during the story's finale.

I still think the Penguin's sub was inspired by his penguin-shaped blimp from the comics, but 'The White Whale' might also have been an influence.

[The Dark Knight]

This scene from the 66 movie has long been a meme.



But to me it's much more than that.

The self determination and persistence has always struck a chord with me. The batcopter crashed and Batman is far away from where he needs to be. What choice does he have? He can only run, so that's what he does.

No complaining, just getting on with it.

In military training they have sickeners, which involve endurance running for unspecified periods of time. You don't know how long they will go for. You just keep moving and expect it to last forever.

It's a small moment that shows Batman's will is his biggest power, way above gadgets and vehicles.

[thecolorsblend]

This scene from the 66 movie has long been a meme.



But to me it's much more than that.

The self determination and persistence has always struck a chord with me. The batcopter crashed and Batman is far away from where he needs to be. What choice does he have? He can only run, so that's what he does.

No complaining, just getting on with it.

In military training they have sickeners, which involve endurance running for unspecified periods of time. You don't know how long they will go for. You just keep moving and expect it to last forever.

It's a small moment that shows Batman's will is his biggest power, way above gadgets and vehicles.

Yes. This.

And a major selling point of that scene for me how utterly placid West's face is. There's calmness there but he gives the impression that this isn't really pushing his endurance all that much. Robin will make it through sheer heart. But Batman will make it because he has (say it with me) reached the peak of human perfection.

The fact that they're outrunning cars is a nice little bonus.

[The Dark Knight]

I was sitting down by a lake recently, wistfully reflecting about time and tide. Do you remember when this show was under lock and key?  When it was a pipe dream to expect it to be released? How the legal issues seemed to be so tangled? And then one day it all went away, and in current day 2020 the series is readily available. And that is just accepted as the norm. Amazing, really.

[Silver Nemesis]

I'm very grateful that it is available. West is my favourite live action Batman and it's wonderful to have his entire TV series on DVD whenever I want to re-immerse myself in the colourful world of the Westverse Gotham. It's a pity it took as long as it did for the series to get an official release, but it's available now and that's what counts. Just the other week I chose a disc from the set at random and watched a couple of Shame episodes. The sixties Batman never fails to cheer me up.

[The Dark Knight]

A fair question that often gets asked is if West's Batman is so good, why does he get captured all the time?

The obvious answer is the studio adhering to the cliffhanger formula they established. However, talking in-universe, you can't undersell the threats he faces on a regular basis.

So my final retort is this: the fact he escapes every time in extraordinary ways allows him to regularly prove why he's so good.