I tried to watch Batman & Robin

I tried to watch Batman & Robin. Yes, the 1997 movie with George Clooney and Arnold Schwarzenegger. There’s a Warner movie channel on preview now so I figured I’d record it on the PVR (in HD!) and give it a shot, having never seen it before. I was aware of its less than stellar reputation. I cringed at the first butt shot, winced at the batsuit with nipples and watched through my fingers as if at a horror movie while Arnie lumbered onto the screen and bellowed, “Da ice man cometh!” I found it odd that Batman and Mr. Freeze would meet right at the start of the movie and that distracted me until the hockey guards/attackers skated in.

At that point kitsch was no longer enough. Or it was too much. In any case, that’s as far as I got. I’ll assume Batman won in the end and be happy with that.

The Dark Knight Rises (which is almost as dumb a title as Batman Begins) is coming out this summer. My only concern is that Nolan will fall into his own navel and make it too Grim and Serious. What it is unlikely to be, however, is too campy. I’m fairly confident that Batman & Robin sucked all remaining camp out of the universe.

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