Since both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito are alums of the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Batman film franchise, this seems like a good place to drop Batman Returns which DeVito also stars in as the Penguin.
Directed by Tim Burton
Screenplay by Daniel Waters
Starring: Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken
A mutated baby is abandoned to the sewers of Gotham by his parents on Christmas, but returns years later as the Penguin, again at Christmastime, with an elaborate scheme to exact vengeance on the society that shunned him. Batman shows up to deal with the Penguin’s henchmen and uncover his motivations. Meanwhile, ruthless businessman Max Shreck throws his secretary Selina Kyle from his high-rise office and leaves her for dead after she accidentally discovers some damning company secrets. However, she survives the fall…with some side effects…and transforms into Catwoman. It’s all very convoluted, but all of their paths become intertwined in a surprisingly sexually charged journey of revenge and the battle for the future of Gotham.
Batman isn’t exactly synonymous with the holiday season, but Tim Burton went out of his way to Xmas the crap out this follow-up to his 1989 Caped Crusader film. In the opening scene, Oswald Cobblepot’s (Penguin) parents quietly ponder what to do with their child as a brightly lit Christmas tree shines in the background. And literally the first words of spoken dialogue in the movie are, “Merry Christmas!” greetings exchanged between people in the park. The question isn’t so much about if Batman Returns is a Christmas movie, but why. The film released in June of 1992, so it’s not like it was tied to the holidays for promotional reasons. As we would see through Burton’s career, he enjoyed the Yuletide season and with a sizeable budget for his sequel decking out Gotham in festive cheer made for a much more colorful world where the Penguin and his tactics were more at home.
There’s a lot going on and it’s much less serious than its predecessor but there’s a weird level of sexual energy present. I don’t know i it came from Daniel Waters’ screenplay, Burton’s direction, or just the actors having fun with some over-the-top personalities but, from Catwoman’s BDSM inspired leather suit and Michelle Pfeiffer almost deep-throating a live bird to Penguin’s lechery and bizarre late-movie proclamtion about erogenous zones, it’s definitely there. As a kid, it’s tough to pick up on but as an adult it’s clear to see it’s the horniest of the Batman movies…even though Joel Schumacher would add nipples to the Batsuit and have some ass-centric closeups in his sequels.
This movie marked the last time Michael Keaton would appear as Bruce Wayne and, while many fans believe him to be the definitive Batman, the character and performance that set that bar in 1989 had run its course. His cerebral, brooding vigilante billionaire just didn’t fit with the franchise anymore. As odd weird as this movie is, the performance are all very strong. Pfeiffer brought a manic sensuality to her role but it was her physical acting that really made the character stick. While Danny DeVito required a lot of makeup to transform him into the Penguin, the dark eye circles allowed him to give the character life with a powerful intensity. Almost lost in the shuffle along the larger than life figures, Christopher Walken gave a measured portrayal of the scheming Max Shreck. In a different reality, he would have made for a great primary villain in a movie with no Penguin.
There are plenty of generic Christmas movie but Batman Returns is undeniably one of the more original and creative offerings on this list and presentation goes along way. You can watch it streaming right now on HBO Max and available to rent on-demand.
Holy Happy Holidays, Batman!