Some people talk about "the stick of straw that broke the camel's back", meaning when something reached the tipping point. So when did the Batman franchise go bad? Well, "Batman Forever" was getting silly, but it still had Jim Carrey to steal the show as The Riddler ("Batman and Robin" had about as many good qualities as a barrel of toxic waste). Personally, I don't know why they had to have Batman (Val Kilmer) going through therapy; remove that and he still would have been a cool superhero with neat gadgets. Tommy Lee Jones wasn't bad as Two-Face. Nicole Kidman and Chris O'Donnell, as Dr. Chase Meridian and Robin, respectively, didn't really add anything.

Overall, the point is that when Joel Schumacher took over directing, the franchise went downhill. Part of the problem was that while Tim Burton created an eerie Gotham City that looked like New York in the 1940s, Joel Schumacher created a Gotham City that looked like it was trying too hard to be "Blade Runner".

So, the franchise starting getting stale with this one, but Jim Carrey kept the movie from being unwatchable. As Edward Nygma, one of Bruce Wayne's employees, he had some great lines. In the movie, Nygma proposes a device that rests atop TV sets and reads peoples' minds, but Wayne rejects it, considering it too dangerous. Thus, Nygma becomes The Riddler, and he's the best character in the movie.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first two Batman movies, and although Tim Burton didn't return and replaced by Joel Schummacher I decided to give Batman Forever a chance. The film isn't as good or as dark as the first two films, but it is a huge improvement over Batman and Robin, the less said about that film the better. Anyway, this film is quite possibly the fastest and the funniest of the series, but despite all this there are some hit and miss elements. Chris O'Donnell is annoying and lifeless as Robin, the script has its weak spots despite some terrific lines from Jim Carrey and while Nicole Kidman was bearable, her character could have been written better. However, it is stylishly filmed with Oscar-nominated photography and excellent special effects, the direction is surprisingly more efficient and the action hurls along at an exciting and breakneck pace. The acting is good on the most part with Val Kilmer brooding as Batman and Michael Gough perfect as Alfred. The villains steal the show though, while Tommy Lee Jones is excellent as usual as Two Face Jim Carrey is the one with the best lines and delivery as the Riddler. Overall, hit and miss but a decent entry in the Batman franchise. 7/10 Bethany Cox

BATMAN FOREVER was for many years the only Batman movie that I'd never got around to watching, so it was time to rectify that. Seeing it now, I can understand my reluctance to see it; this is a pure live action cartoon, extremely over the top from the very beginning to very end, and far sillier than even the campness of the 1960s TV series. Now, I'm one of the few people who like the camp of the follow-up BATMAN & ROBIN, but this film takes it a step too far. Jim Carrey's crazed villain spoils the whole thing for me; he's hammily mad from the moment we see him until his last scene, and he gets way too much screen time. Val Kilmer has very little to do other than look good in a bat suit, and Tommy Lee Jones is the worst I've seen him; some of Carrey seems to have rubbed off on him. Elsewhere, Schumacher's hyperactive direction is sub-standard and the film looks just as dated as the rubbery Burton flicks. Thumbs down on this one.