Although it performed well at the box office, the critics were less than convinced by the gloomy turn taken by Batman Returns. So, when Tim Burton said no to a third outing, Warners brought in the flamboyant Joel Schumacher. As a result, this entry is nowhere near as dark as its predecessors, even though the brooding Val Kilmer took over the Dark Knight's mantle from Michael Keaton. However, it's easily the funniest and the fastest in the series, with the action hurtling along at a breakneck pace. Throw in stylish special effects from a team that includes the legendary John Dykstra and Oscar-nominated photography from Stephen Goldblatt, and you have a rousingly undemanding piece of popcorn fodder.

Batman faces off against two foes: the schizophrenic, horribly scarred former District Attorney Harvey Dent, aka Two-Face, and the Riddler, a disgruntled ex-Wayne Enterprises inventor seeking revenge against his former employer by unleashing his brain-sucking weapon on Gotham City's residents. As the caped crusader also copes with tortured memories of his parents' murder, he has a new romance, with psychologist Chase Meridian.