Batman: The Movie (1966)

Its £5 and has a commentary from none other than Adam West and Burt Ward themselves?

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What more needs to be said? I expect you to have alread pressed "BUY" after that!

Providing a polar opposite to the jet-black exploits of 'Batman Begins' this spin-off movie from the classic TV series of the 60s is a high camp pantomime of quite gut-busting hilarity. Both Adam West and Burt Ward play their roles with their tongues lodged so firmly in their cheeks its a wonder they didn't suffer from extreme jawache. Not one, not two, not even three...but FOUR villains provide our heroes with plenty of action and suprises and with appearances from all the TV faves such as Burgess Meredith (Penguin), Cesar Romero (Joker), Frank Gorshin (Riddler) and the delectable Lee Merriwether (Catwoman) not to mention Chief O'Hara, Commisioner Gordon and good old Alfred fans of the original show are sure to be entertained. From the now-legendary opening sequence which sees the Caped Crusader fending off the attentions of a distintly fake rubber shark using his conveniently monikered 'Shark Repellant Spray' 'Batman - The Movie' is sure to have you in stitches. It's all here - the 'climbing up the wall' SFX, hilarious dialogue, plenty of 'Holy...' exclamations and, of course, countless BAM! WHAP! and ZOWIE! accompanied bust ups. If you like you Caped Crusader served up Dark then this is certainly not for you but Batman has always been an extremely flexible creation and, much as I adore the modern Dark Knight of Gotham City I will always have a place in my heart for the zany, off-the-wall adventures of the 60's. The DVD follows in the sense of humour with a self-deprecating commentary from West and Ward and plety of flying Bat insignias gracing the menu screens. If nothing else it certainly makes one wonder what exactly went on in that Batcave of theirs, and, more to the point, why Robin earned his title of The Boy Wonder...

Filmed in between Series One and Two of the TV show, Batman The Movie (1966) is a very cheesy but loveable spin-off movie starring Adam West, Burt Ward, Lee Meriwether, Cesar Romero, Frank Gorshin and Burgess Meredith.

This movie is completely cheesy and totally silly. The effects are awful, the plot is ridiculous, the dialogue over-the-top and it should make an awful movie but there is a lovable appeal to this movie.

Most of that appeal is due to the charm of the cast. West and Ward are loveable wholesome heroes. Romero is very charismatic as The Joker and Gorshin brings a slightly manic touch to The Riddler. But its Meredith who steals the show as a wonderfully over-the-top Penguin.

This movie has kitsch appeal with many now classic and much parodied moments. The shark repellent spray, the riddles which make no sense, Romero's Joker with white makeup covering his moustache and West's classic line "some days you just cant get rid of a bomb."

This is a very corny movie and a million miles away from The Dark Knight but its a movie of its time and there is fun to be had so long as you dont take it seriously. The special edition has a great cast commentary from West and Ward.

Back long before Christian Bale was the dark and brooding caped crusader, Adam West (Family Guy) was the camp, morale, sixties man with the cape and Burt Ward was his youthful sidekick Robin. Having played the roles on the small screen in an equally camp and sadly unreleased TV series of the same name, this film saw the characters and the actors move to the big screen to take on their most common and deadly adversaries: The Penguin (Burgess Meredith), The Joker (Cesar Romero), The Riddler (Frank Gorshin) and Catwoman (Lee Meriwether taking over for Juile Newmar) who are working together to hold the world to ransom having stolen a super high powered de-hydrator to use on the world leaders!

Even though it is camper than a row of tents and contains more cheese than a supermarket, for me it still remains the best adaption of the characters ever and the cast that carry it off is superb with many famous faces appearing as well as the well known ones from the TV show and while it doesnt have loads of money thrown at it, it is even funnier and more entertaining as a result. There isnt much to the plot, the special effects or the (deliberately) pantomime and camp acting but the nostalgia value of this film for fans is priceless and any viewer is certainly going to be entertained by the crazy antics of West and co. in this now famous and heavily parodied film, which has so many stand-out moments. Look out for Batman disposing of a novelty bomb, an attack from a clearly rubber shark, Batman always having to explain the plot, the ridiculous traps and reasons for escape, the constant unnecessary labels on various props and much more, its all in here in its original laugh out loud entirety.

In all, this certainly feels like the forerunner to things like Airplane and The Naked Gun and fans of films and shows like this will probably like this camp fest. Also for fans of the TV show this is a perfect piece of nostalgia especially as the much loved TV series has never been released which is a shame as alongside this it is certainly one of the best and most hilarious adaptions of the caped crusader to ever grace the screen big or small.

I loved this when i was a kid thought it was funny, loved all the villains together, but where not enough for the dynamic duo... used to watch the series too looking back now its soo camp and cheesy but a great Batman flick