---
title: "Batman & Robin"
year: 1997
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/batman-and-robin"
fi1m_score: 35
critics_score: 35
critics_reviews: 11
published: "2026-09-16T14:38:42.386564+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-16T14:39:09.127936+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Batman & Robin (1997)

Directed by Joel Schumacher · 2h 05m · MPA PG-13 · Action, Science Fiction, Adventure

**Fi1m score: 35** · Critics 35 from 11 reviews

*In a sentence:* Batman has all that equipment and still cannot stop the ice jokes

> Joel Schumacher’s costumed spectacle has inventive sets and an amusing Uma Thurman. But the repetitive action, wearying ice jokes and uninteresting heroes make it poor entertainment, however much there is to look at.

## Synopsis

Bruce Wayne (George Clooney) is Batman, and Dick Grayson (Chris O’Donnell) is Robin. The pair face Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger), also known as Dr. Victor Fries, and Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman), whose other identity is Dr. Pamela Isley. Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Gough) and Commissioner Gordon (Pat Hingle) are among the people around the masked heroes, alongside Barbara Wilson (Alicia Silverstone). Julie Madison (Elle Macpherson), Dr. Jason Woodrue (John Glover) and Nora Fries (Vendela Kirsebom) also feature in this action and science-fiction adventure.

## Review

Joel Schumacher treats *Batman & Robin* as an opportunity for broad comedy and extravagant costumes, and there is nothing inherently wrong with that choice. We do not require Batman to spend every evening looking distressed. But this is a poor action film and a tiring comedy: its jokes repeat, its fights blur together, and its heroes seldom seem to matter. Most critics have little patience with it, and we agree, though the work on the sets deserves more consideration than the screenplay.

George Clooney’s Batman / Bruce Wayne is so relaxed that danger barely seems to concern him. The performance leaves us waiting for some urgency, or even curiosity, that might make him worth following through all this machinery. Chris O’Donnell gets little more from Robin / Dick Grayson, and their partnership never supplies the pleasure of two people who are interesting together. Akiva Goldsman’s screenplay gives them plenty to say without making us eager to hear it.

Uma Thurman fares better as Poison Ivy / Dr. Pamela Isley. Her mocking manner and succession of disguises make the character entertaining to watch even when the writing offers little help. We were amused by her, because she makes the costumes part of the joke rather than simply something to wear while delivering it. Arnold Schwarzenegger is less fortunate as Mr. Freeze / Dr. Victor Fries. His ice jokes arrive so regularly that we start bracing for the next one before he has finished the present one.

Barbara Ling’s production design gives the machinery and sets enough character to compete with the cast. There is pleasure in looking at constructions this brazenly excessive, and their extravagance suits the kind of entertainment the film wants to provide. Stephen Goldblatt’s cinematography serves that same appetite for conspicuous colour and display, making the surroundings more inviting than the action within them. The difficulty is emphasis: with so much demanding attention, the images rarely help us decide what actually matters in a scene.

Editors Mark Stevens and Dennis Virkler keep things moving, but the action sequences become difficult to distinguish in their effect. More hardware and more stunts provide little sense that anyone has gained or lost something worth caring about. Elliot Goldenthal’s music contributes to the bustle without making these confrontations feel much more consequential. We were bored by the repeated action and then irritated by the ice jokes, because the film kept returning to both without finding anything fresh to do with either.

At 125 minutes, there is plenty of space to establish the characters, yet the crowded screenplay makes most of them feel incidental. Alicia Silverstone’s Barbara Wilson adds another presence without making the story more involving. The middle stretch is particularly weak, with neither the comedy nor the action providing much reason to anticipate the next scene. There is willing effort among the cast, but the material leaves too many performers competing for attention rather than building scenes together.

A superhero comedy needs comic timing as much as any other comedy, and this one too often assumes that a conspicuous costume will do the work. There is no need to object to its silliness or wish it were solemn. The disappointment is how seldom its elaborate preparations produce a satisfying laugh or an exciting fight. Only a strong interest in extravagant sets would make us recommend sitting through the rest.

*Fi1m score 35, published 16 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics find Batman & Robin exhausting, with elaborate sets and flamboyant villains offering limited compensation for weak storytelling. Praise clusters around Uma Thurman’s Poison Ivy, whose mocking attitude and theatricality give several reviews something to enjoy even when the leads disappoint. Some critics also admire the production design, though the prevailing complaint is that hardware, effects and repetitive action leave little space for characters worth caring about.

The sharpest divide concerns the camp tone: most reviews find the relentless puns and knowing excess tiresome, while The New York Times embraces the film’s costume-party energy and singles out Thurman. Film Stories offers a more qualified defence, finding entertainment in the garish style while still judging the film bad. The spread is wide, but approval remains scarce; thin plotting, overcrowding and slack narrative momentum recur across the less enthusiastic reviews.

### Reviews we read (11)

- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (70/100, inferred): Maslin embraces the film as a wild, campy costume party that suggests a Studio 54 in Gotham, praising its flashy showmanship and frenetic energy. She singles out Uma Thurman's Poison Ivy as the most showstopping character for her mocking attitude and flamboyant disguises. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1997/06/20/movies/holy-iceberg-dynamic-duo-vs-mr-freeze.html)
- **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (50/100, inferred): McCarthy notes the film loses some altitude in the franchise, with the villains (especially Thurman) as highlights but the overall production lacking dash and excitement. He singles out the bland newcomers and sag in narrative drive and humor in the middle section. [Read](https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/batman-robin-1200450193/)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (40/100, inferred): Ebert finds the film visually impressive with strong production design but criticizes its lack of authentic core, as it prioritizes elaborate special effects over meaningful characters or story. He singles out the villains' memorable images and performances while noting the meandering screenplay and over-the-top puns. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/batman-and-robin-1997)
- **Empire**, Neil Jeffries (30/100, inferred): The first half-hour offers some fun set-pieces and design, but the overstuffed plot, incessant puns and wisecracks, and lack of depth soon make it exhausting; Uma Thurman stands out as Poison Ivy while the leads disappoint. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/batman-robin-review/)
- **Los Angeles Times** (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the film overloaded with hardware, stunts and excess that leaves no room for connection or inspiration, describing it as a relief when it ends. They single out the slick surface and repetitive action sequences that blur together without substance. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-06-20-ca-5024-story.html)
- **The Independent** (30/100, inferred): The critic lambasts the film as an overly camp, pun-filled exercise in kinky innuendo and double entendres that strays far from the source material, with a knowingness that undermines any superhero narrative. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/dark-knight-of-the-souldestroying-1258591.html)
- **Total Film** (30/100, inferred): The film is dismissed as predictably dismal pop-operatic guff with too many characters, too little plot, terrible dialogue, poor effects and uninspiring action; some fine design and game cast efforts are noted but cannot save it. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/batman-and-robin-review/)
- **Time Out**, TCh (20/100, inferred): The fourth Bat-flick finds this juvenile franchise running on empty. Clooney plays Batman as an irrelevant bystander while the script recycles random elements with scant rhyme or reason. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/batman-robin)
- **The AV Club**, Nathan Rabin (10/100, inferred): Rabin classifies the film as a commercial and critical failure despite its box office gross, arguing it was audience-proof due to toxic word-of-mouth. He singles out the endless, clunky ice-themed puns from Schwarzenegger's Mr. Freeze and the garish, toyetic production design as particularly egregious. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/my-year-of-flops-case-file-74-batman-robin-1798212739)
- **Film Stories**, James Harvey (60/100, inferred): The critic finds the film still bad but its garish, toyetic style refreshing and entertaining in 2024 compared to modern CGI-heavy blockbusters, singling out its unapologetic campiness and role in rebooting the superhero genre. [Read](https://filmstories.co.uk/features/finding-the-good-in-batman-robin/)
- **Den of Geek**, Simon Brew (1/5): The critic calls the film a horrible mess that continues the rot from Batman Forever, with corporate control ruining the franchise. The only praise goes to some brilliant set design, while everything else is seen as a garish, edge-free disaster that served as a needed wake-up call for Hollywood blockbusters. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/batman-and-robin-blu-ray-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Joel Schumacher
- **Director:** Joel Schumacher
- **Writer:** Akiva Goldsman
- **Cinematography:** Stephen Goldblatt
- **Editor:** Mark Stevens, Dennis Virkler
- **Music:** Elliot Goldenthal
- **Production design:** Barbara Ling
- **Costume design:** Ingrid Ferrin, Robert Turturice
- **Producer:** Peter Macgregor-Scott
- **Cast:** George Clooney as Batman / Bruce Wayne; Chris O'Donnell as Robin / Dick Grayson; Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze / Dr. Victor Fries; Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy / Dr. Pamela Isley; Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl / Barbara Wilson; Michael Gough as Alfred Pennyworth; Pat Hingle as Commissioner Gordon; John Glover as Dr. Jason Woodrue
- **Runtime:** 2h 05m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 20 June 1997
- **Genres:** Action, Science Fiction, Adventure
- **Budget:** $125 million
- **Box office:** $238 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHoCb78b97A

## Where to watch in the US

- HBO Max: streaming, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd
- Hulu: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $4.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $12.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-16.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, ES, FI, FR, GB, HK, ID, IE, IN, IT, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie 1998: Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie (nominated)
- Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress 1997: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress (won)

## If you liked this

- *Flash Gordon* (1980): Bright costumes, broad villains and a sense of fun that survives the dialogue.
- *Batman* (1966): For comic absurdity played with the discipline this version keeps forgetting.
- *The City of Lost Children* (1995): The extravagant sets belong to a stranger, more carefully sustained adventure.
- *Mystery Men* (1999): Another crowded superhero comedy, but its misfits are worth spending time with.
- *Cutie Honey* (2004): Costumed heroics with enough comic energy to make the excess feel purposeful.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/batman-and-robin