Critical Round-Up

BATMAN RETURNS

'The film flaunts large artistic ambitions but also looks set to repeat its predecessor's huge commercial success . . . It is an empty progression of eye-popping effects, jabbing our psychic buttons more or less at random.' Hugo Davenport, Daily Telegraph

'Batman remains an obdurately dull hero, low on sex appeal despite hs black leather, too easily swamped by special effects and villains. DeVito proves another problem. He may not unbalance the film as much as Jack Nicholson's Joker in 1989, but his strident capering is monotonous.' Geoff Brown, Times

'It looks like a gigantic fairy tale without a real centre for the imagination to catch upon. To be frank, it's often kind of dull.' Derek Malcolm, Guardian

'The characters look terrific. But style is no substitute for story. And you would be hard put to find one here.' Anton Antonowicz, Daily Mirror

'He (Tim Burton) does, however, once again prove himself as a film-maker of rare vision, with the atmosphere of a city on the brink expertly created by a man who knows exactly what he wants to say.' Philip Thomas, Empire

'It wears its mega-budget on its sleeve. Certainly, there's not much else to show off.' Geoff Andrew, Time Out