Tag Archives: Batman

In Cinemas – 22 October, 2026

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It’s a massive, massive, MASSIVE week of premiere’s in Australian cinemas – so big that I need to whittle down each entry to…CINEMA IN A SENTENCE!

Clayface – A body-horror take on the semi-obsucre, actor turned shapeshifting Batman villain from filmmakers James Watkins and Mike Flanagan starring Tom Rhys Harries, this may be an interesting turn for comic book movies.

The Uprising – Andrew Garfield stars as maybe Robin Hood in this period tale of peasant uprisings in the reign of Richard II, with steady-handed Paul Greengrass in the director’s chair.

Wildwood – The brilliant Laika Studios commands a ridiculously talented ensemble of voices for this stop-motion adaptation of the 2011 children’s fantasy novel about children being swept into a magical forest.

Klara and the Sun – Another adaptation of a dystopian sci-fi novel, Taika Waititi helms this meditation on life, death, humanity, pollution and the world starring Jenna Ortega as a childlike robot.

Ali G: Who Iz I? – Britain’s most notorious provocateur, Sacha Baron Cohen, returns to the character that launched him as the one-time inappropriate talk-show host must face the challenge of being a responsible man.

Possible Love – This Korean Romance explores the lives and relationships of four stranger after a chance encounter brings them together.

Always Your, Never Mine – By contrast, this Filipino Romance explores a relationship marked by years of encounters that never seem to open up into the chance for love.

Fallen Angels – If you’re into theater or just adore Rose Byrne, you may catch this filmed production of the Noel Coward play in a limited release.

Rose of Nevada – A late release from last year, this UK indie mystery stars George MacKay and Callum Turner as fishermen in a remote Cornish village who witness the return of a legendary ship…three decades after she disappeared at sea.

Cash Cows – “…I’m Batman” Part 5

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It would seem that in the intervening period between this and the previous installment, the folks at Warner Bros. have illustrated better than I ever could the dependability of their Cash-Bat. On this the suits at WB and the MegaZord behemoth that is Disney/Marvel/Lucasfilm/YourChildhood seem to be in total concert, as they definitively prioritise what I hereby establish as Superheroes First Principle:

More on that in a bit. Right now? Continue reading →

Cash Cows – “…I’m Batman” Part 4

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Right. If we’re being honest (and this is the internet, so of course I expect we all are) this particular slice of the Batman saga has been pretty much talked out to exhaustion. I seriously doubt there is much new insight I can lend that hasn’t already been discussed by legions of highly qualified, incredibly discerning, articulate and level-headed online fans.

So we’ll be somewhat brief today. And we will start with this:

Joel Schumacher is a good director.

And not a half-bad muppet either.

We’re jumping a little bit ahead, so before we get too deep into this potential quagmire, go and check out his IMDB page. Let that list of films percolate in your brain while we get into Batman’s cinematic adventures – or as the suits at WB call them “CHA CHING CHA CHING CHA CHING!” Continue reading →

Cash Cows – “…I’m Batman” Part 3

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Now let’s see. Where was I? Oh yeah:

National/DC always knew they were onto a good thing with this whole “Tee Vee” thing. While what has become irrevocably known as the “Adam West Show” may have been a mixed bag of quality and camp, it certainly proved there was a huge market to present the four-color heroes to the Saturday morning crowd.

First out of the stables was The Batman/Superman Hour, which, as you can probably tell, didn’t really impact the medium as a benchmark of quality. Most of note about this brief run show (’68-’69) was the fact that the highest billing went to the actor voicing Robin – the legendary Casey Kasem.

Batman/Superman paved the way, however, for the far more enduring Superfriends run from 1977 onward. This series featured not just DC’s biggest guns, but many of the second-tier heroes who would never get a look in of their own, like Hawkman, or Aquaman. Continue reading →