Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Latest Caped Crusader movie is a hit and so is a video spoof of 'The Batman' trailer

AMARTÍNEZ, HOST:

Holy sequels, Batman. The latest caped crusader movie is a hit; so is a video spoof of the trailer for "The Batman."

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO)

ADAM WEST: (As Batman) To the Batmobile.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

In the mock movie promo, the most recent actor to wear the Batsuit, Robert Pattinson, is digitally replaced.

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO)

WEST: (Singing) Adam West, Adam West, Adam West.

MARTIN: Adam West was the star of the 1960s TV series.

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO)

WEST: (As Batman) Hello? Batman speaking.

FENNER ROCKLIFFE: We thought it would be such a funny contrast to have the old, you know, campy Adam West Batman in this world of, like, this dark, gritty Batman.

MARTÍNEZ: Fenner Rockliffe with the special effects company Corridor Digital is one of the screen magicians who transplanted the '60s version into the new footage. Jordan Allen is another.

JORDAN ALLEN: My favorite shot, personally, is, you know, there was this dance sequence from the original "Batman" series. (Laughter) I don't even know what the context was 100%, but it's really funny footage. And, you know, the idea was to kind of infuse that dancing as he's coming up this dark, gritty hallway full of gunmen and he's just taking them out while having the time of his life.

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO)

WEST: (As Batman) I swear by heaven, I'll kill you all.

(SOUNDBITE OF GUNSHOTS)

MARTIN: It took three people a week and a half to make the 90-second video, which comes complete with original music and updated pows, zoks and baps to punctuate the fight sequences.

ALLEN: With the old classic na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na at the end.

MARTÍNEZ: Going viral reminded both Allen and Rockliffe of some wise words famously spoken to another superhero.

ALLEN: Yeah.

ROCKLIFFE: Spider-Man - with great power comes great responsibility (laughter).

ALLEN: It's so true. Yeah. Because there really are - there are - there's a duality to this. There's two sides of this coin, right? There's using it for the wrong reasons and using it to bring joy. And I think we want to live comfortably on the other side of that, to use it for the right reasons.

MARTÍNEZ: Batman as a bringer of joy - I think we can all get behind that. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.