Random Movie: James Batman (1966)
Are Batman and James Bond more fun in the Philippines?
I don’t know very much about the cinematic tradition of the Philippines.
I know a little bit about the Philippines in general. I had an ex who worked with a lot of Filipino newcomers, and the result was that we went to a lot of social events with them. An enthusiasm for Crown Royal shots meant that I often left these events absolutely blasted, and their love of karaoke meant that I often had middle-aged women hooting when I hit the falsetto part of ELO’s Last Train to London. But what we didn’t do was watch movies - or at least not any Filipino movies. So in spite of being surrounded by people from the country, I did not see a single Filipino movie.
Until James Batman.
Yes, I sought it out because both the name and concept were inherently funny. James Bond - well, James Hika in the film - and Batman teaming up to fight an evil organization. None of this was licensed by any of the people who owned the rights. The filmmakers were playing fast and loose with other people’s properties for fun and profit.
As an introduction to a country’s films, this is not an expected choice, but not one that’s necessarily bad. The art a nation produces tells you something about it, and James Batman tells us that the Philippines was absolutely saturated with western media in the 1960s. In spite of being overwhelmed by someone else’s culture, they decided to make it their own.
As we begin, there’s an evil organization called CLAW, which wants everyone to become communists and reject America. If the world doesn’t fall in line, they’re going to launch nukes at everyone. Enter James Hika and Batman - both played by famous comedian Dolphy - along with Robin (Boy Alano) and Shirley (Shirley Moreno). As we’ve established, I’m not an expert, but from what I can tell this is a star-studded cast. It’s not a serious movie, but this isn’t a group of weird amateurs, the majority of people behind and in front of the camera knew what they were doing.
Except for the costume designer, these are some bad costumes - especially the masks - and nothing seems to fit properly.
It wears its influence proudly. It looks and sounds like someone had been watching a lot of Adam West Batman - they use a clear derivative of the theme song - though the James Bond influence is relatively minor - the character is a horny womanizer who, at one point, gets bitten on the dick by a caterpillar. Even though it’s mostly Batman, you can tell someone was watching Dr. No, and there’s enough John Barry in the sound to give a less-than-subtle nod to the originals.
It’s an interesting looking movie as well. The fight choreography is on about the same level as an Adam West Batman - so, terrible - but the way it’s filmed is intriguing. The takes are long, and they move in a dynamic way. The setups can be pretty odd, but they’re designed to really use the sets and make them as interesting as possible. The grand finale is shot in what appears to be a paper mill, and the constant movement in the background never overwhelms the fights happening in front of it. It’s an inspired choice.
This is definitely a stupid movie, on purpose. The comedy is broad, the jokes can get sexist, and building a parody of a show that was already goofy means you’re not exactly getting high art. But it’s a kind of cultural exchange, taking something distinctly American and filtering it through their own sensibility. I can’t imagine Adam West and Burt Ward contemplating the best way to serve rice, for example. Some jokes don’t translate, some do but are very stupid, some of the very stupid ones remain quite funny - there’s a bit where James is hiding under a leaf which is probably the best stretch in the movie.
At the end, the villain explains why he wants to blow up the world. He’s smart, he’s talented, and he gets no respect because he’s poor, so he wants to blow up what he calls “the free world.” Is this the Filipino experience? You’re just as good as everyone else, but don’t have the same resources, so people feel comfortable mocking you.
Someone else, when watching this, would try to mock it. They’d make fun of any elements they find amateurish, any part that isn’t up to the more expensive standards of a larger nation. And, that’s not fair, both to the movie and the film industry that made it. Yeah, it’s dumb, but of course it is, it’s using dumb source material. It’s still interesting, it’s still worth watching, and it’s not a movie that needs either an apology or mockery.
It also deserves better than the Youtube copy that’s the easiest to find version of the movie. I imagine there’s not much incentive to do a restoration - the market is limited in a world where copyright is actually enforced - but at the very least we need a version without constant audio glitches.
It has also made me more curious about Filipino film, because there is a lot of interesting stuff going on here. The cast puts in great performances - it’s a shame that I can’t find complete credits because the people playing the villains are absolute delights - it’s a very interesting looking film, and the mix of influences make me wonder what else was happening at the time. And I’m also curious where the industry has gone since, and what today’s films look like.
Going into James Batman, I expected a joke. And I got several, because it’s a comedy. But I also saw what happens when a country takes someone else’s cultural exports, puts them in a blender, and makes them their own. And even if the people who made it don’t have the same resources, they deserve the respect that a lot of people in the western world don’t give them.