Here is a goofy interview with Alicia Silverstone by Nickelodeon magazine - some real hard-hitting questions. I thought it was also worth preserving the Pop Tarts advert at the back.
If you want to read this as a higher res PDF, there's a link to the Internet archive here.
A pretty interesting article came out from Entertainment Weekly (link here) recently in which Chris O'Donnell and Alicia Silverstone, while promoting their new projects, looked back at the making and immediate aftermath of Batman & Robin.
Both are pretty honest about their experiences and the film's shortcomings. Silverstone's comments are more to do with the filming and getting in to the costumes. Both of which sound bewildering.
Chris O'Donnell's are more about the critical drubbing the film received. I've got to say as an actor it must be tough when a film is critically panned but you still have to go out and promote it like it's the best thing ever. O'Donnell sounds like he handled it well and has come to accept the film was still "fun to be a part of". I guess he ultimately found his feet in the NCIS: LA TV show and doesn't have to worry about past failures,
But it's sad to hear him say that Joel "was so heartbroken and kind of bummed out about it".
In this podcast episode Drew Griffin goes through the article (and comments) and gives us his thoughts on it all.
Drew Griffin has released a NEW audiobook reading for Doug Moench's novella "Batgirl: To Dare the Darkness."
For those that don't know, this is a fascinating little spin-off that came out in 1997. It's set after the events of Batman & Robin and sees Barbara Wilson having to use her computer skills to go up against Black Mask.
Much like Alan Grant's Robin spin-off "Facing the Enemy", this one also has Barbara Wilson temporarily quit the crime fighting trio and go off to investigate Black Mask's crime spree in her civilian alter ego for much of the story.
Also, the book follows the template of the two Schumacher Batman films by having Black Mask (aka Roman Sionis) be a disgruntled Wayne Tech employee not unlike Edward Nygma and Pamela Isley.
There's a few tiny areas of continuity that don't quite line up (like how come Robin is back in his original red, green and gold costume) but nothing huge.
Once again, Drew has done a fantastic reading with top notch voice work. I particularly enjoy his voice for Robin, who pops up in the story a few times. For those of you wondering about his voice for Barbara Wilson - remember, she went to Oxbridge Academy so of course she's going to have an English accent!
The book was previously made into a very short 30 minute audio drama back in 1997 (link here) but Drew has done full unabridged version for the channel and I've got to thank him for making this. These things are not easy to record. This also means that we now have recordings of all the Schumacher films and their spin-offs.
Well, what are you waiting for. Press play.
Although I usually like my movie action figures to look like they did on screen, I also enjoy when a toy designer throws out the rule book and makes their own wild and crazy reinterpretation. The Batgirl Ice Strike Cycle is definitely one of the latter.
The figure is a predominantly light purple with a visor - worlds away from the look in the film. I really dig it though - it reminds me of the Batman vs Predator comic from the early 90s. Maybe that inspired the toy designer too.
The cycle itself is fairly close to the look of the film. It's missing the big bat symbol on the front and a few other details but it's close enough. I like that they've made it so the character can sit up properly and not have to lie down on top of the bike like so many other Kenner cycle (I'm looking at you Redbird Robin and Street Racer Batman). The wheel missile is a nice addition too. I didn't note it in the video but apparently you can take that missile launcher off and attach it to Batgirl.
All in all, this one is a hearty recommendation.
I've finally tracked down all four of the recent McFarlane Batman & Robin figures and they are glorious. I still can't quite believe they are real and not a dream.
I'm not a big collector of modern figures. I mostly buy vintage stuff from the 90s so forgive me if I don't have the knowledge to compare how these are to other modern figures.
Anyway, first off is the Alicia Silverstone Batgirl. Apart from the matt black colour (why not blue, like the movie?) I don't have much to critique.
The face could have been slightly better. Certainly adding a little black mole on his cheek help with the likeness.
The most surprising element I like is actually the molded plastic cape. I usually hate these things but this one is really well done, the ripple on the cape really give it a realism.
I'll put the Mr Freeze bits to one side and build him at the end.
Anyway, goes with out saying. If you read this blog you should buy this figure. Who knows, they sell enough we may get a Batmobile to go with it!
Okay, I guess it's about time I start reviewing some Batman & Robin merchandise. First up is the Batgirl figure from Kenner. This was one of only two figures they made of the character and unfortunately doesn't look much like Alicia Silverstone. It was based on the concept art by Miles Teves and had a cowl rather than a domino mask. Still it's kind of a fun figure and worth getting if you like this period of action figures.
Another audio adventure tied in to the Batman & Robin movie was Batgirl: To Dare The Darkness.
Written by Batman comic book regular Doug Moench and starring the movie version of the character Barbara Wilson. The story is set just after the movie and sees the character go on a solo adventure against Black Mask.
This was originally published as a short paperback in 1997 and aimed at kids/teenagers (it's only 122 pages). Unfortunately an adaptation was not made of the other spin off novel Robin: Facing the Enemy by Alan Grant.
Anyway, this is an interesting curiosity being one of the only stories to feature the Barbara Wilson character and worth a listen. I don't have the cast list for this but the voice actress does a great Alicia Silverstone impersonation.
Returning to the Film Review Special - we have an interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger about playing Mr Freeze. The other topics covered are his heart surgery that happened almost straight after filming and his thoughts on movie merchandising (spoilers: he loves it, which is probably due to him having a percentage of Batman & Robin's merchandising profits as part of his contract).
Then we have an interview with Joel about making the film. Interesting to note that when a fifth film is mentioned at the end he says he would direct George and Chris and would look to bring back "one or two other characters." I presume he's referring to the idea of bringing back Jack Nicholson as the Joker. The only other character I can think is maybe Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman???
