Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt (2003) YIFY - Download Movie TORRENT

This was basically an attempt to do the same thing with "Batman" that was done with "Gilligan's Island" in "Surviving Gilligan's Island." For those of you who missed it (and shame!) "Surviving Gilligan's Island" (full title: "Surviving Gilligan's Island: The Incredibly True Story of the Longest Three Hour Tour in History") was a special from a few years back, where Bob Denver ("Gilligan"), Dawn Wells ("Mary Ann") and Russell Johnson ("The Professor") related the story of the show's creation, cancellation, rediscovery & rebirth. Along the way, stories were dramatized with actors portraying the original cast and crew. It was very well done. It was funny, well cast and came across as a genuine document of the show."Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt" is in a similar style. The re-telling of the history of the show, the re-enactments, the general feel are all the same. What's missing is the straightforward approach that "Surviving" took.In "Return", Adam West and Burt Ward both receive invitations to a car show to which they were not meant to be invited. After being allowed to stay, Adam and Burt witness the theft of the centerpiece of the show: the legendary Batmobile! Adam and Burt decide to chase after it themselves, leading them through clues that cause them to think about the history of the show. This eventually leads to the revelation of who stole the Batmobile and why.Choosing to use this conceit (actually having a plot) is the biggest letdown of this show. Unlike "Surviving", "Return" forces the viewer to follow a less interesting storyline (the theft of the Batmobile) instead of focusing all its attention on what the audience would most be interested in (the history of the show.) It is the historical sections that work the best. The casting (as in "Surviving") is excellent. Jack Brewer ("Adam West") and Jason Marsden ("Burt Ward") capture the feel of the actors without looking *too* much like them. Brett Rickaby ("Frank Gorshin") bears a stronger resemblance to his subject, but captures none of the late Gorshin's charm, only his characterizations. Other actors' portrayals are short and functional, with none standing out as especially good or bad. Many of the stories have been told before, but they mostly play out amusingly, with only the occasional clunky presentation. Another wonderful bit from the historical sections was the use of audition footage of Lyle Waggoner's tryout for the part of Batman. The only place where the flashbacks fail is when they insert obviously made up plot points to advance the main story. This downgrades the accuracy of the flashbacks needlessly.The "main plot" (if that is what we must call it) is, of course, ludicrous. This is not really a fault in and of itself, but it's just not carried off well enough to cover up the shortfall. Strong performances and good writing can make up for a silly plot (especially in these kinds of things) but we really get neither, here. The performances by West and Ward seem somewhat flat (even for them); the dialog too carefully written for it to feel natural. Again, I think the comparison to "Surviving Gilligan's Island" can be seen in that the dialog is mostly just there to set up a flashback. In "Surviving", that's all it intends to be. In "Return" it tries to do double duty and, unfortunately, often fails. Gorshin and Newmar do well (although I agree with others that Gorshin had not aged well and that Newmar had - and what's Waggoner taking to look that good?) but aren't given enough to do. Again, I think they all would have been better served by a more straightforward presentation than the one chosen here.Another odd point about "Return". This special is about the "Batman" TV series and its history, yet all the clips shown are from the theatrical movie. Even the Waggoner footage is technically movie footage. If you know you're "Bat-history", then you know that the movie was originally planned to be made first, only to be delayed in favor of the TV show when CBS needed to fill time fast. So when Waggoner and West were testing for the role, it was for the movie, not the TV show. Why "Return" only uses movie footage is unclear. It most probably has to do with rights issues, but it is a distinct distraction to those in the know: seeing Julie Newmar in the present, but only footage of Lee Meriwether as Catwoman in the past.Overall, I liked the show, mainly for the flashbacks. I would have preferred the style used in "Surviving Gilligan's Island", but I can understand why they'd want a more story-oriented piece given the subject matter. Besides, I like these people. It's nice to see them out and about, still having fun with one of the great pieces of entertainment history. I just wish they had done it a little better and when more of the original cast was still alive to be there.

Holy predictable review opening Batman!...sorry, yep I know, no more. Way back in the vintage days of 2003 this TV movie came out on CBS in America, so basically no one outside of America knew of its existence. What's it about you say? well its simply a comical retrospective or quickfire trip down memory lane for Adam West and Burt Ward over their three season career as Batman and Robin. Its made around a silly little plot involving someone stealing the Batmobile at a convention, so the ancient dynamic duo set out to find the culprit.The bookend plot is frankly meaningless really, I've no idea why they even went down that route when a simple bio approach would have been much better. The minor problem being that the actual sequences of West and Ward in their superhero days are flashbacks dotted throughout the plot. This means they are all too brief which is a shame because they are the best bits by far and you wanna see more.The general approach of the entire flick is a harmless ridicule of the original show and is in no way meant to be anything but a good laugh. So on that note I can't complain, it is a silly ride, there are some nice moments that homage the old show, mainly a lovely punch up between the aging pair and some goons...the camera of course being suitably tilted at an angle. There are a few cameos from stars of the show naturally, Frank Gorshin and Julie Newmar being part of the daft plot, Meriwether makes an appearance and is still pretty darn hot (as is Newmar), whilst other old stars are played by actors and I must say they are very good, Tony Tanner as Meredith/the Penguin is excellent.During the wafer thin and pointless Batmobile mystery plot you get nice cameos, homages and general cartoonish tomfoolery which is of course all in the same camp slapstick vein as the classic show. At the same time the retro flashbacks show highlights from West and Ward's lives in the famous outfits but in a light-hearted family orientated manner. These little snippets mainly focus on things we've heard about in the Batmania documentary like Ward and his audition, meeting West for the first time, Ward getting injured on set often, Waggoner's audition, the duo squabbling, Ward's troubled married life, the intro of Yvonne Craig as Batgirl, some of the big star cameos etc...It does seem to follow Ward more as the underdog, where as West (as in real life) was the more experienced older ladies man who could do no wrong.The two actors playing the young versions of West and Ward are really good and they look like their real life counterparts, plus the stories from behind the scenes during the time of the old show are really interesting. I really liked how the retro flashbacks were done, think Tim Burton's 'Ed Wood' but not quite as cheeky. So while is it cool to see West and Ward firing dialog at each other again (don't forget about the awesome OAP bar room brawl), overall I would have liked to see more of the well created flashbacks.7/10

Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt

2003

Action / Biography / Comedy

Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt

2003

Action / Biography / Comedy

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Movie Reviews

Nicely done, nostalgic romp (for the most part).

Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt

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