Batman Forever Deleted Scenes - Part 1

A few scenes were cut from Batman Forever. Some of these have been released on the DVD and Blu-ray. So let's take a look at these first.
I've got two versions of the deleted scenes. First up is the raw footage that appeared on the DVD and Blu-ray.

But I also have versions of the deleted scenes with music and sfx added. This is taken from a fan edit called the Virtual Workprint (look it up on google - it's easy to find. Someone posted it to reddit a while ago). The so-called Virtual Workprint took the deleted scenes from the DVD and added them back into the film (the maker also reordered the beginning to match the production script - it starts at Arkham, then has Bruce meet Nygma, THEN we go into the bank heist.

Anyway, enjoy.

SCENE 1 Dr Burton discovers Two-Face has escaped from Arkham.

This is a fun set up - I love how Gothic they made Arkham Asylum - but it's kind of redundant and the writing on the wall is a little hard to read. I can see why they cut this.

SCENE 2 Longer confrontation between Two-Face and Batman in helicopter.

It’s nice to get a little more Tommy Lee-Jones. He definitely got pushed off screen by Jim Carrey's dominating presence but I think the short version in the film works better.

SCENE 3 Riddler redirects Batman to Beauty Parlour.

Yeah I can see why they cut this. It’s really goofy and makes Batman look like a fool.

SCENE 4 Bruce talks with Dick while he trains.

I'm sorry, Dick taping a photo of Two-Face to a dummy is really silly looking. I do like the ending with Bruce high kicking the the top off though. I think Val just about pulls it off. Imagine Michael Keaton doing something similar?  Yeah, me neither.

SCENE 5 Bruce watches the Kenneth Frequency show on TV.

This is kind of interesting. The early scripts had a character called Vondelle Millions who hosted a TV talk show that debated whether Batman was a menace or not. It seems this scene is what it got reduced down to. It’s okay - not a fan of the actor's delivery - but it makes Bruce seem really impulsive. Like because he saw something on TV he decided to quit being Batman.

SCENE 6 Bruce finding his father's diary and confronting giant bat.

This is fascinating. I love the giant bat. I love the symbolism and over the top-ness of it but it sort of stops the film when it should be building towards the climax. I don't love the whole diary aspect. The deleted scene is missing a voiceover. Basically the idea is that Bruce discovers from reading the diary that when he was a boy his father chose to go to the cinema on the night his parents were murdered. Bruce mistakenly thought he had been the one and thus, inadvertently, the one to blame. It’s kind of silly. I'm glad they cut it.

I love the giant bat though and wish they could have found a place for it.

SCENE 7 Does it ever end?

Yeah it's an ill advised copy of the ending to the 1989 film.

I get the pun they are trying to make. "Does it ever end?" Alfred should have said "No, he's Batman Forever" and then winked at the camera. It just the look Nicole gives at the end. She looks like "Oh, maybe I've made a mistake dating this guy."

Originally the film was to end on a shot of Batman and Robin on the rooftops of Gotham City. We'll be looking at that and other deleted shots next time.

Behind the Scenes: Sculpting the Batsuit

Apologies for the somewhat shoddy picture quality. Here's some photos of the Batsuit being sculpted. Interesting to note that the mannequin in the first few looks an awful lot like Michael Keaton. I guess these were made when he was still in contention for the role. It also seems to be some kind of hybrid of the Panther and Sonar suits. Very interesting.

Miscellaneous content: Bruce Wayne magazine

Can't quite remember how I found this but here's one of the fake magazines from Edward Nygma's work cubicle.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Comic and CD set & Debden Organiser

Back to the video reviews. First up we've got a quick review of the Comic and CD set.

And a little bonus episode for the Debden Organiser (aka Filofax)

Batman Forever Merchandise Review: Album Standee and Soundtrack Collection

This week I'm looking at a couple of soundtrack and score related bits.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Bubble Bath bottles

This time, we're diving into the two Bubble Bath bottles they made. As I say in the review my parents never bought me a proper Batmobile so I had to make do with the bubble bath bottle (I know, I know, break out the violin). I would totally recommend either of these if you can find them cheaply on eBay.

Miscellaneous Content: Schumacher talks to Vulture and Schumacast recommendation

Quick post here to recommend some Joel Schumacher stuff I've been digging this week.

First up, Schumacher gives a fascinating and super honest interview to Vulture about his life and career. It's an odd mix of questions - some tough digs about his past association with Michael Jackson (The Wiz) and Woody Allen - but he come across as brutally honest and utterly comfortable with film making legacy. At 79 and being seemingly retired from directing I guess he doesn't need to care much about burning any bridges.

There's not a whole lot of Batman Forever content - it mostly revolves around the difficulty of Val Kilmer and Tommy Lee Jones on set. It was fascinating though to read about how he's dealt with negative reviews through the years. He's clearly grown very thick skin though there's something to be said about how well he remembers things like Siskel and Ebert's review of St Elmo's Fire.

https://www.vulture.com/2019/08/joel-schumacher-in-conversation.html

And my other discovery was a podcast called Schumacast hosted by Noel Thingvall and Angie Tusa where they go through Joel Schumacher's filmography in great detail - covering one film every episode. It's exhaustive, insightful and very well researched. I'm only a few episodes in but it's already pushed me to check out Flatliners (1990) which has a lot in common with Batman Forever in terms of production design.

Anyway, they are currently up to Dying Young (1991) so I'll give a heads up when they get to Batman Forever because I'm sure it will be great.

https://schumacast.blogspot.com/

Cards: Metal Fleer Batman Forever cards 66-70

Much like eating your vegetables, we have to return to the Fleer metal cards. Not long to go now. Mostly Robin ones here and for once nothing too embarrassing.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Double Dose of Doom handheld game by Tiger

Hey remember those terrible handheld games by Tiger? I sure do, because I recently picked this up. Here's my review.

Batman Forever Merchandise Review - Batmobile model from Eaglemoss

Next up we've got a look at the recent Eaglemoss Batmobile model that was released in the UK. It’s a pretty neat figure with a nicely designed magazine to accompany it.

Behind the Scenes: Batman Forever B-Roll Footage

And now for something a little different. Here's a montage I put together of all the b-roll (behind the scenes) footage I could find. Hopefully it should make an interesting watch. The miniature Gotham in particular is fascinating to see.

Magazine article: Imagi-Movies Vol 3 No 1 - Part 2

More Bat interviews from Imagi-Movies bumper issue including why Billy Dee Williams was dropped from the Harvey Dent role and whether Chris O'Donnell would ever upgrade to Nightwing. We'll we got the costume in the next film...

Magazine article: Imagi-Movies Vol 3 No 1 - Part 1

Imagi-Movies talks to Joel Schumacher and Akiva Goldsman about the new movie with a particular focus on how less murderous Batman is compared to previous films. Uh oh, Joel also reminds the interviewer that they are "comic books" not "tragic books." Oh Joel.

Cards: Metal Fleer Batman Forever cards 61-65

Back to the Metal Fleer cards. Not a bad selection here - characters aren't droopy or weirdly drawn. The Two-Face/Riddler card in particular looks kind of awesome. Shame they didn't try to make a whole set of cards like that.

Hot Toys Chris O'Donnell Robin unveiled at SDCC 2019

I anticipated with the 25th anniversary next year that some toy companies would look to tap into the nostalgia and release some figures. I had predicted it would be NECA or MacFarlane but I was really surprised to see this morning that Hot Toys unveiled a Chris O'Donnell Robin figure at San Diego Comic Con. As expected with Hot Toys the detail is fantastic and the figure looks excellent. Going to need to start saving now. Expect it to be released next year.

No word on if they'll be doing any other figures but I'd be surprised if we don't at least get a Batman too.