Batman: Every version of Gotham City ranked from worst to best

4. The Schumacher Gotham City

Appeared in: Batman Forever, Batman and Robin

We like our Gotham Cities to be vivid, and you can’t get much more vivid than the one seen in the Joel Schumacher Batman movies. A change in direction for the franchise after its darker predecessors, this portrayal is characterized by its bright neon lights, its ridiculously large Greek-god-like sculptures, and high bridges.

There was a vacuous extravagance to it all that just matched Batman Forever and Batman and Robin so well. It was so over-the-top for no reason, and yet it was easy to buy into because anything could happen in Gotham City. The movies may not have been well-received, but their iteration of the city feels like one of the things they got so right – and it’s time we started admitting that to ourselves more often.

The Gotham in the Schumacher movies were loud and in-your-face but at least it had something to say. For better or for worse, it had its own identity and made a solid case for why it’s the most innovative of the Gotham Cities seen on film thus far. And you can’t really fault it for that.

It’s an acquired taste, for sure, but if you acquire it, you have taste.