Poster © Warner Bros.. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreCrime
RatedNot Rated
Runtime2 hr 6 mins
ReleasedJune 23, 1989
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorTim Burton
StarringJack Nicholson, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger
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Batman (1989)
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| iIMDb Profile | %Rotten Tomatoes |
| WWikipedia | LLetterboxd |
| TTMDB | +Add to Top 8 |
| Batman's Details | |
| Genre | Crime |
| Rated | Not Rated |
| Released | 06/19/1989 (Westwood, Los Angeles); 06/23/1989 (United States); 08/11/1989 (United Kingdom) |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 2 hr 6 mins |
| Budget | $48M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Based On | Characters by DC Comics, Batman by Bob Kane and Bill Finger |
| Country | United States, United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Batman's Interests | |
| General | Gothic skyscrapers, the Batmobile, Axis Chemicals, fancy fundraisers, tabloid photographers. |
| Music | Danny Elfman on the score, with songs by Prince. |
| Movies | Batman Returns (1992). Burton and Keaton again, with penguins this time. |
| Television | Batman: The Animated Series. It borrowed Elfman's theme and ran with it. |
| Heroes | Alfred. Butler, chef, cover story and the only grown-up in Wayne Manor. |
| Batman's Crew | |
| Director | Tim Burton |
| Writers | Sam Hamm, Warren Skaaren, Sam Hamm (story) |
| Producers | Jon Peters, Peter Guber |
| Cinematography | Roger Pratt |
| Music | Danny Elfman (score), Prince (songs) |
| Edited By | Ray Lovejoy |
| Production | Warner Bros., Guber-Peters Company, PolyGram Pictures |
| Distributed By | Warner Bros. |
The movie is called Batman, and Batman is maybe the third most interesting thing in it, behind Jack Nicholson and the buildings. Nicholson plays the Joker like a guy who wandered in from a louder movie and decided to stay. Michael Keaton is a great, twitchy Bruce Wayne who seems like he’d rather be home alone, which is the right call, but the rubber suit has him turning his whole body just to look sideways. Tim Burton’s Gotham is the real star: crooked towers, smoke, a whole city that looks drawn by somebody in a bad mood. The story, though. Vicki Vale is stuck screaming in every other scene, and the plot wanders like a guy looking for his car in a parking garage. It made $411.6 million worldwide, and you can spot its fingerprints on a lot of gloomy hero movies since. A 6.8 because the look and the Joker are iconic and the story holding them together is thin. $393 says you pause it when the Batwing crosses the moon just to take a picture of your TV.
What works: Jack Nicholson’s Joker is a full-volume show, and Tim Burton’s Gotham looks like nothing else from its era.
What doesn’t: The story drifts from set piece to set piece, and Vicki Vale is written as someone who mostly exists to scream and get rescued.
Who it’s for: People who like their superheroes gothic, moody and a little bit silly at the same time.
Spoilers
The Joker turns out to be the man who killed Bruce Wayne’s parents. Their showdown ends at the top of a cathedral, where the Joker falls to his death, and Gotham gets a Bat-Signal to call Batman when it needs him.
Gotham City is grimy, smoky and crawling with crooks, and the crooks are nervous. Word on the street says a giant bat is hunting them one rooftop at a time. Reporter Alexander Knox (Robert Wuhl) and photographer Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger) want the story, and both end up at a fancy fundraiser hosted by billionaire Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton), who can't stop looking at Vicki. Meanwhile mob enforcer Jack Napier (Jack Nicholson) gets set up during a job at Axis Chemicals, takes a plunge into a vat of something toxic and climbs out grinning. Tim Burton directs. One hundred twenty-six minutes, all of it after dark.
Anyone with a utility belt and a decent tailor. Gotham is hiring.
| Jack Nicholson | Jack Napier / The Joker |
| Michael Keaton | Bruce Wayne / Batman |
| Kim Basinger | Vicki Vale |
| Robert Wuhl | Alexander Knox |
| Pat Hingle | Commissioner Gordon |
| Billy Dee Williams | Harvey Dent |
| Michael Gough | Alfred Pennyworth |
| Jack Palance | Carl Grissom |
| Jerry Hall | Alicia Hunt |
| Tracey Walter | Bob the Goon |
| Lee Wallace | Mayor Borg |
| William Hootkins | Lt. Max Eckhardt |
| Liza Ross | tourist mom |
| Garrick Hagon | tourist dad |
| Adrian Meyers | tourist son |
| David Baxt | Thomas Wayne |
| Sharon Holm | Martha Wayne |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 18 October 2026 DataBot +40 Numbers refreshed: IMDb users 7.5 / 10 (437,326 votes) → 7.5 / 10 (437,357 votes).
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 17 October 2026 DataBot +480 Numbers refreshed: Worldwide box office $411.6M; Domestic box office $251.4M; Opening weekend $40.5M; Profit / loss (est.) +$133.8M; Rotten Tomatoes 77%; CinemaScore A; box office chart updated; Rotten Tomatoes critics 77% (143 reviews); Metacritic 69 / 100; CinemaScore A; IMDb users 7.5 / 10 (437,326 votes); movie.guru score 7.9.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 17 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.