Batman Forever is an Academy Award-nominated 1995 superhero film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman. It is the third film in the Batman film franchise and the first one directed by Joel Schumacher, who replaced Tim Burton, the director of the first two films in the franchise, Batman and Batman Returns. It is also the first and only film in the franchise to star Val Kilmer as Batman, who replaced Michael Keaton from the first two films. The film also marked the series debut of Robin. The film's cast included Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Chris O'Donnell, Nicole Kidman, Drew Barrymore and Debi Mazar. However, Michael Gough and Pat Hingle, who featured in the first two films, returned to reprise the respective characters Alfred and Commissioner James Gordon in this film.

Plot

The film opens with Batman (Val Kilmer) preparing for action. Two-Face, alter ego of former District Attorney Harvey Dent (Tommy Lee Jones), is holding a hostage in a bank vault. He connects the bank vault by chain to a helicopter, intending to fly it out of the bank. Batman arrives, rescuing the hostage and foiling the robbery by cutting the chain. Two-Face tries to escape but Batman hangs on to the chopper by the chain and is dragged through the City until he climbs slowly on top of the chopper. Two-Face aims at Batman but accidentally shoots the pilot and is forced to take his place at the wheel. Batman bashes his way into the cockpit, but not before Two Face aims to crash the chopper into the "Our Lady of Gotham" statue and locks the wheel. Two Face escapes using the only parachute on board, but Batman luckily manages to dive out of the cockpit and into the river in the nick of time.

Edward Nygma (Jim Carrey), a researcher at Wayne Enterprises, has developed a device to beam television directly to a person's brain. Bruce Wayne, convinced that mind manipulation would raise too many questions, turns the idea down, but Nygma continues to work on it after hours. When Fred Stickley, the head of the research department, discovers Nygma's clandestine overtime, Nygma knocks out Stickley then uses him to test his device, discovering that he can use it to absorb people's knowledge. Realizing Wayne was right about it being mind manipulation, Stickley fires Nygma, but Nygma murders Stickley, doctors the security tapes to make Stickley's death look like a suicide, and then resigns from Wayne Enterprises.

After having met clinical psychiatrist Doctor Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman) at the robbery, Bruce Wayne invites her to a charity circus event. Two-Face and his cohorts storm the event, bringing a bomb with a two-minute timer. Two-Face, who blames Batman for the attack which left him disfigured, will detonate the bomb unless Batman reveals himself. Wayne attempts to reveal his alter ego to Two-Face, but is unheard over the screams of the audience. Meanwhile, the acrobatic family The Flying Graysons work to remove the bomb via an opening at the summit of the circus tent. The youngest member, Dick (Chris O'Donnell), goes ahead of his family and succeeds in pushing the bomb through the hole and out into the surrounding water, but Two-Face fires at the rafters holding the Graysons in the air, causing the rest of his family to fall to their deaths, and Two-Face escapes. Wayne assumes responsibility for Dick and allows him to stay at his home, Wayne Manor. Dick declares his intention to avenge his family's deaths by killing Two-Face, and when he discovers Wayne's secret identity as Batman, he insists on becoming the crime fighter's partner in order to achieve his goal. Wayne is reluctant at first, telling Dick that killing Two-Face won't make the pain go away, but Dick is undeterred, and names his alter-ego "Robin" at the suggestion of butler Alfred (Michael Gough).

Edward Nygma, who has been stalking Wayne and leaving riddles for him, is inspired and delighted by watching Two-Face's raid at the circus on live television and creates his own alter-ego in the form of The Riddler, a master of puzzles and quizzes. He perfects his brain-manipulation device into a system which beams signals to and from the human brain in order to simulate an immersive television viewing experience. This has the side effect of allowing the Riddler to read viewers' minds, as well as augmenting his own intelligence. Making a deal to use his brain-manipulation device to discover Batman's true identity, he becomes partner-in-crime with Two-Face in order to fund mass-production of the device. Successful, he readopts his Nygma persona and hosts a launch event for a set-top version of his device. Nygma convinces an unwitting Wayne to try it, resulting in Nygma and Two-Face discovering Wayne's alter ego. Two-Face attempts to kill Wayne/Batman, but the appearance of Dick (disguised as Robin) at the end helps to foil the plan. Armed with the knowledge of Batman's true identity, the villains later converge upon Wayne Manor. Unwilling to have Two-Face kill his idol, Nygma (as the Riddler) blows up the Batcave and leaves a final riddle for his nemesis, while Two-Face kidnaps Doctor Meridian.

Bruce and Alfred eventually solve the riddles, each one having a number in it:

1. "If you look at the numbers on my face, you won't find thirteen any place." (a clock)

2. "Tear one off and scratch my head; what was once red is now black instead." (a match)

3. "The eight of us go forth, not back, to protect our king from a foe's attack." (chess pawns)

4. We're five little items of an everyday sort; you'll find us all in 'a tennis court'." (vowels- in the words 'a tennis court')

Each number corresponds to a letter in the alphabet, with 1 and 8 being digits for the number 18. 13 being "M", 18 for "R" and 5 for "E", M-R-E, or "Mr. E"- mystery, or enigma- Mr. E. Nygma. Changing into Batman, Bruce asks Alfred whether he should use the Batboat or the Batwing. Dick suggests both as he enters the Batcave- now dressed in a "Robin" costume of Alfred's design. Bruce decides two against two are better odds, and finally agrees to Dick becoming a partner.

Batman and Robin use both vehicles to enter the aquatic lair; however, the machines are destroyed by the Riddler and Two Face. The heroes end up swimming to an island made of metal, where they are separated. Batman fights his way through the Riddler's deadly traps, while Robin finally fights Two Face. He manages to send the villain over the edge of a ledge, where he clings to dear life. Realizing that he cannot kill Two Face, Robin helps him up instead. The villain thanks him by pulling out a gun and trapping him. Meanwhile, Batman finally reaches the Riddler, who sits in a large throne beneath the glass chamber that collects the brainwaves of Gotham's citizens. He reveals Dr. Chase and Robin, imprisoned in large containers over a large, deadly pit.

Riddler, challenging Batman with the greatest riddle of all ("Can Batman and Bruce Wayne actually co-exist?"), gives him the choice of rescuing only one of them. Batman distracts Nygma with a riddle of his own; unable to resist, the Riddler takes his hand off of the control that would drop the two. Batman uses this distraction to hurl a Batarang at the brain-wave hub, shattering both it and the Riddler's massive intelligence. Before Nygma collapses, he springs the trap doors in Robin's and Doctor Meridian's cages, sending them plummeting to their apparent doom. Batman rescues both of them, only to be drawn on again by Two-Face perched on a nearby plank. Before he can shoot them, though, Batman acts on a suggestion of Dr. Chase, who had theorized that Two-Face's coin is his Achilles' heel. He tells Two-Face that he must flip the coin to determine their fates. Two-Face agrees and flips his coin-but Batman hurls a handful of similar coins into the air. Frantic, Two-Face grabs at the coins, but loses his footing and falls to his death. As he drowns, his own coin lands in his palm.

Batman returns to the now-destroyed Riddler's lair and finds Edward, his mind now enfeebled by the brainwave reversal. He answers Nygma's riddle saying "I had to save them both. You see, I'm both Bruce Wayne and Batman. Not because I have to be, but because I choose to be". But one wonders if The Riddler even heard or understood the answer - just after Batman tells him the answer, the Riddler is screaming in terror as he sees a bat flying towards him.

The Riddler is later committed to Arkham Asylum, and Doctor Chase is asked to consult on his case. She is told that he has been screaming for hours that he knows who Batman is. Wondering if The Riddler has indeed remembered the information taken from Bruce Wayne's brain concerning Batman's identity, she goes to Nygma's cell. She identifies herself and then asks Riddler if he remembers her. When he answers yes, Riddler offers to reveal the identity of Batman to her if she says please. She does so, and The Riddler responds by telling her that he thinks he himself is Batman, and as if to prove his point, he starts flapping his arms as if to imitate a bat. Doctor Chase then meets Bruce Wayne outside and tells him his secret is safe. Kissing him, she tells him "don't work too late". The film ends with the image of a Bat-signal, with Batman and Robin running as if appearing from the signal itself towards the camera. As their flowing capes come together, the screen fades to black and goes to the closing credits. This ending is similar to both Batman Returns, and Batman & Robin

Reception

Batman Forever opened on June 16, 1995 in the United States in 2,893 theaters, accumulating $52,784,433 over its opening weekend. The film went on to gross $336,531,112 worldwide. It is the fourth highest grossing Batman film to date, behind Tim Burton's Batman and Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, though it did have a higher opening weekend than Batman Begins. The opening weekend gross was a record at the time and the studio beat their goal of making more money than Batman Returns. Batman Forever was the second highest grossing film of 1995, only losing to Toy Story.

Roger Ebert depicted the film as highly entertaining, though felt that the definitive Batman film had yet to be made. Brian Lowry of Variety cited the film as a poor attempt to "save" the Batman film series. Peter Travers from Rolling Stone called the film a "sour taste," and mocked the formation of how it transferred back to the campy Batman TV series. Comic book veterans took heavy negative feedback against the film as well. Scott Beatty called Tommy Lee Jones' performance "a Joker knock-off rather than a multi-layered rogue," while Lee Bermejo cited it as "unbearable." One scene depicts Two-Face flipping his coin until he gets a result he wants. In the comics, a key element of his split personality is that he unquestioningly accepts the result of a single coin toss concerning any decision he makes. Overall, the film holds a 44% rating at Rotten Tomatoes.