Batman (1943)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Lambert Hillyer

Writers:

Bob Kane (character)
Victor McLeod (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 April 1943 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

A HUNDRED TIMES MORE THRILLING ON THE SCREEN! (original 1943 one-sheet posters)

Plot:

Japanese spymaster Prince Daka operates a covert espionage organization located in Metropolis' now-deserted Little Tokyo which turns American scientists into pliable zombies.

Plot Keywords:

Japanese | Bat | Espionage | Batman | Spymaster

Cast

Lewis Wilson	...	Batman / Bruce Wayne
Douglas Croft	...	Robin / Richard 'Dick' Grayson
J. Carrol Naish	...	Dr. Tito Daka / Prince Daka
Shirley Patterson	...	Linda Page

Also Known As:

An Evening with Batman and Robin (USA) (reissue title)
The Batman (USA) (poster title)

Runtime:

260 min (15 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Iverson Ranch, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

CHAPTER TITLES: 1. The Electrical Brain; 2. The Bat's Cave; 3. The Mark of the Zombies; 4. Slaves of the Rising Sun; 5. The Living Corpse; 6. Poison Peril; 7. The Phony Doctor; 8. Lured by Radium; 9. The Sign of the Sphinx; 10. Flying Spies; 11. Nipponese Trap; 12. Embers of Evil; 13. Eight Steps Down; 14. The Executioner Strikes; 15. The Doom of the Rising Sun.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Strings are attached to the bats as they fly around in the cave.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: High atop one of the hills which ring the teaming metropolis of Gotham City, a large house rears its bulk against the dark sky. Outwardly there's nothing to distinguish this house from many others, but deep in the cavernous basements of this house is a chamber hewn from the living rock of the mountainside...

Movie Connections:

Featured in Action Heroes of the Cliffhanger Serials (1992) (V)

Soundtrack:

Rienzi- Overture

Great entertainment (but only for those who enjoy serials)

I was an avid serial fan when I used to go to the Saturday afternoon matinees at the local theater in the early 1950's. Three Columbia serials (with the occasional Mascot serial) were usually shown, hence my bias toward Columbia.

I actually saw 'The Batman' in the mid 1960's when it was shown at a City theater as a 'Cinethon' - all 15 episodes in sequence from start to finish in one sitting. I lived through it as any serial fan would and enjoyed every minute but under these circumstances, some details normally overlooked when watching one episode each week were revealed.

I was intrigued by the access to Dr. Daka's hideout via the amusement park ride. A great bit of imagination went into that one! I seem to recall that the great Jack Ingram was killed off in an early episode and reappeared about Chapter 11 but I could be mistaken after nearly 40 years have elapsed.

The progressive reappearance of the Columbia serials on DVD has me over the moon and I look forward to receiving the 1949 'Batman and Robin' serial when it is released in March. If 'The Batman' is released on DVD, I will be one of the first in line to buy it.