While the likes of CITIZEN KANE and THE GODFATHER are associated with being the pinnacle of cinematic quality, BATMAN & ROBIN exists on the other end of the spectrum, living its life in the depths thanks to its hammy acting, unintentionally funny moments and having the artistic quality of a Happy Meal toy. Director Joel Schumacher is often the blame, and the director wants every fan to know he’s still sorry.
As the movie approaches its 20th anniversary (June 20) Schumacher sat down with Vice to talk about the film and its infamous legacy of butt shots, rubber nipples and onslaught of corny puns. Before getting into it all Schumacher apologized for the movie right out of the gate:
Look, I apologize. I want to apologize to every fan that was disappointed because I think I owe them that.
Schumacher joins cast members like George Clooney (Batman) and Chris O'Donnell (Robin) who have said they're sorry for making the movie, one Schumacher didn't even want to do in the first place. After BATMAN FOREVER made a good amount at the box office and received only mixed reviews, Warner Bros. wanted Schumacher back for a sequel. The director said he never intended to do the film, but figured he was on a good track with other movies like THE CLIENT and A TIME TO KILL blazing his hot streak:
…my batting average was good. I never planned on being, that dreadful quote, "a blockbuster king" because my other films were much smaller and had just found success with the audience and not often with the critics, which is really why we wrote them. And then after BATMAN & ROBIN, I was scum. It was like I had murdered a baby.
There are many, many, MANY grievances about the movie, but the most hilariously misguided choice of the entire flick is seen as the decision to give Batman and Robin’s suits a set of “Bat-nipples,” something Schumacher has said in the past was inspired by Greek statues. Now, he knows those are the nipples that will haunt him forever:
Ha! Such a sophisticated world we live in where two pieces of rubber the size of erasers on old pencils, those little nubs, can be an issue. It's going to be on my tombstone, I know it.
Schumacher would go on to defend and explain many of his decisions on the movie, but in the end he apologized once more, acknowledging it’s the fans who were supposed to love this movie but instead walked away feeling violated. Today, I feel like people have softened on the movie a bit, seeing it as a camp cheese-fest that inspires countless drinking games. Plus, we can thank it for being so bad it hibernated the franchise until Christopher Nolan could bring it back with his game-changing, grounded reboot. See, silver lining!