10 Overlooked Positives Of Batman Forever

5. Arkham Asylum

Warner Bros. Pictures

Batman Forever marks the first time we see Gotham institution Arkham Asylum in this cinematic universe. Well, Michael Keaton's habit of either murdering his enemies or getting them killed didn't exactly leave the orderlies of Arkham with much to work with. As of Batman And Robin, Arkham's population stands at precisely three - Riddler, Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze.

It's not much, but its appearance here adds a little legitimacy to the adaptation of Batman's world and widens the scope for further adventures (the sequel would feature fairly heavily, with a breakout and everything). It looks good too, even if Schumacher overdoes the Goth chic. Better that than the Arkham of Batman Begins, which lacks the personality one might expect from a grand mental institution named after the mighty H.P. Lovecraft.

The Arkham of Nolan's Dark Knight-verse's population, by the way, stands at even less - just being the Joker. For a man with a code against killing, poor Christian Bale managed to do even worse than even George Clooney. Whoops.

Contributor
Contributor

A film critic and professional writer of over ten years, Joel Harley has a deep and abiding love of all things horror, Batman and Nicolas Cage. He can be found writing online and in print, all over the Internet and in especially good bookstores.