Worst live action adaptions of cartoons and comics

[Terminatah]

I wouldn't be so sure.

It's not up for debate. There's a major difference between camp for the sake of satire and camp for the sake of camp.

-Terminatah

 

[Chris Wood]

It's not up for debate. There's a major difference between camp for the sake of satire and camp for the sake of camp.

-Terminatah

I don't know where you're going with this, but unless you happen to be Mr. Schumacher and can tell us otheriwse, I see little difference between 60s Batman and Batman & Robin. They're both smothered in cheesy goodness.

 

[The Penguin]

I don't know where you're going with this, but unless you happen to be Mr. Schumacher and can tell us otheriwse, I see little difference between 60s Batman and Batman & Robin. They're both smothered in cheesy goodness.

My favorite arc of the Adam West Series, Hizzoner the Penguin/Dizzonor the Penguin where The Penguin runs for mayor is full of satire. There are some great quotes in that episode. They still hold up today...

"Politics is wonderful! I can use all my lowest slurpiest tricks, but now they're legal. Oh I should've been a politician years ago." - The Penguin

"Double the assessments; triple the size of the posters; quadruple the number of campaign buttons. We'll give the voters of this city the kind of campaign that they want—plenty of girls and bands and slogans and lots of hoopla, but remember, no politics. Issues confuse people." - The Penguin

"I'm convinced the American electorate is too mature to be taken in by cheap vaudeville trickery. After all, if our national leaders were elected on the basis of trickery slogans, brass bands and pretty girls our country would be in a terrible mess, wouldn't it?" - Batman

"Bear in mind Robin that most politicians are honest servants of the people. The dishonest ones are the exception." - Batman

I see plenty of difference. Batman knew it was silly. I'm not so sure Batman & Robin did and if they did, based on the rest of the franchise it was sorely out of place.

 

[Chris Wood]

My favorite arc of the Adam West Series, Hizzoner the Penguin/Dizzonor the Penguin where The Penguin runs for mayor is full of satire. There are some great quotes in that episode. They still hold up today...

"Politics is wonderful! I can use all my lowest slurpiest tricks, but now they're legal. Oh I should've been a politician years ago." - The Penguin

"Double the assessments; triple the size of the posters; quadruple the number of campaign buttons. We'll give the voters of this city the kind of campaign that they want—plenty of girls and bands and slogans and lots of hoopla, but remember, no politics. Issues confuse people." - The Penguin

"I'm convinced the American electorate is too mature to be taken in by cheap vaudeville trickery. After all, if our national leaders were elected on the basis of trickery slogans, brass bands and pretty girls our country would be in a terrible mess, wouldn't it?" - Batman

"Bear in mind Robin that most politicians are honest servants of the people. The dishonest ones are the exception." - Batman

I guess it's satire in a loose sense, but it's buried under a thick layer of camp. For example the way Batman delivers those lines dripping with bogus earnestness you know he's just clowning around.

In the same way you could say the character of Poison Ivy is a satirical look at the extremist environmentalist movement-

"Mr. Freeze: I will blanket the city in endless winter. First Gotham, and then the world.

Poison Ivy: Just what I had in mind. Everything dead on earth, except us. A chance for Mother Nature to start again. Behold, the dawn of a new age. My mutant plants have the strength of the deadliest animals. Once you have frozen mankind, these babies will overrun the globe, and we shall rule them, for we will be the only two people left in the world. "

I see plenty of difference. Batman knew it was silly. I'm not so sure Batman & Robin did and if they did, based on the rest of the franchise it was sorely out of place.

B&R is chock full of some of the corniest lines known to man, so it seems impossible it was not intentional. It was out of place following the first three films, which is why it is so loathed by the fan community. What one needs to do is forget about the other films and look at it as a remake of the 60s series. Then it holds up pretty well. The only problem is the serious stuff with Alfred, which belongs in a different movie.

 

[A.J]

STREET FIGHTER THE MOVIE makes it for me. Never before I felt more embarassed than the day I saw this.

 

[Noukon]

B&R is chock full of some of the corniest lines known to man, so it seems impossible it was not intentional. It was out of place following the first three films, which is why it is so loathed by the fan community. What one needs to do is forget about other films and look at it as a remake of the 60s series. Then it holds up pretty well. The only problem is the serious stuff with Alfred, which belongs in a different movie.

I look at it this way: The major difference is that B&R is camp on a high budget. The charm of the 60s series is that it is what it is mostly for lack of money (and because the character's development on the comics side of things wouldn't reach true maturity for another twenty years). With the amount of money that was poured into B&R, there was no real reason for it to be a campfest.

But I do agree that it was pretty obviously designed as a tribute to the West Batman.

 

[The Penguin]

But I do agree that it was pretty obviously designed as a tribute to the West Batman.

A very bad one.

 

[Chris Wood]

A very bad one.

Seemed like a pretty good tribute to the show if you ask me. Not so much to West himself, but then Clooney had big boots to fill there. Maybe Bruce Campbell could have done West justice but it's hard to say.

 

[The Penguin]

Seemed like a pretty good tribute to the show if you ask me. Not so much to West himself, but then Clooney had big boots to fill there. Maybe Bruce Campbell could have done West justice but it's hard to say.

I loved the TV show as a kid and I still do. Batman & Robin was a disgrace to both the Batman movie franchise and the TV series. It tried to be both and did neither well.

 

[Chris Wood]

. It tried to be both a did neither well.

Perhaps that's a fair assessment, but I think the camp is covered fairly well. The whole business with Poison Ivy seducing B&R is a riot.

 

[Zinal]

I really dislike the Garfield Movie. I don't understand why it had to be live-action anyway. I like the comic though.

 

[Nightwing]

With Batman as one of my fandom specialities, my opinion thinks it's safe to say that "Batman & Robin" and the 60s Batman live action series can truly not be compared.

If nothing else, The Penguin's quotes from his favorite arc of the Adam West series give us proof. In the 60s, things were campy and corny. And at the same time you could find very profound, deep, and timeless stuff as a result, which would make you able to simply laugh off the parts that weren't.

"Batman & Robin" wasn't smart like that at all. The Skull gang was cool, and that shot of George Cloony looking out the window at the "Robin signal" with Batman Forever music in the background was gorgeous, visually, but everything else hurt bad, as a Batman movie or just as a regular movie.

The only salvation for this movie would be for it to be just for kids, but I wouldn't want little kids watching it, whether one thinks it would be fine for them or not. Plus I can think of better ways to introduce a newcomer fan to Batman.

I think comparing it to the Adam West Batman series is a desperate excuse, and an insult to the 60s Batman show.

 

[Chris Wood]

I think comparing it to the Adam West Batman series is a desperate excuse, and an insult to the 60s Batman show.

Why? From the ridiculously corny lines to the campy sets and costumes B&R was clearly inspired by the 60s show. Of course it isn't as good, but then there's only one Adam West.

 

[Noukon]

Why? From the ridiculously corny lines to the campy sets and costumes B&R was clearly inspired by the 60s show. Of course it isn't as good, but then there's only one Adam West.

I would agree... the comparison is justified. Obviously the 60s series had a lot more charm and fun to it, whereas B&R took the general "feel" of it and turned it into utter garbage, but that was the basis for it, so making the comparison isn't insulting.

 

[Elven Moon]

Scooby Doo 1 & 2 - Terribly corny and unamusing, at least to me. They could've done so much better.

Garfield - Not that I hate the idea of a Garfield film, but come on! John didn't even look like the lovable dork cartoonist we all know. And don't get me started on Liz. I haven't seen the movie and I'd really rather not. And now a sequel? Why?

 

[Chris Wood]

Garfield - Not that I hate the idea of a Garfield film, but come on! John didn't even look like the lovable dork cartoonist we all know. And don't get me started on Liz. I haven't seen the movie and I'd really rather not. And now a sequel? Why?

Now this movie did suck, but I've got no complaints about Liz. Wow!