All 7 Batman movie directors ranked from worst to best

4. Leslie H. Martinson

Directed: Batman: The Movie (1966)

Leslie H. Martinson was one of the most prolific directors of his generation. He directed countless episodes of television throughout his long career, including two episodes of the classic 1966 Batman TV series. He would then go on to direct the spinoff film, making history as the first director to ever bring Batman to the big screen in a standalone movie.

What is there to say about Batman: The Movie that hasn’t already been said? It’s ridiculously campy, full of color and life in every single shot and a perfect personification of the Batman comics of the 1960s. It’s everything that made the TV series so successful but amplified by 1000.

Martinson made full use of the resources available to the movie, gifting Bat-fans with an adventure that had the time of its life running all over the silver screen. Everything that is happening in the film is as silly as the TV series, but it’s more expensive and it looks it. From the Batcopter to the Batboat, Batman: The Movie isn’t just an extended episode of the TV series, it’s a big-budget bonanza that only could have worked on the big screen. And Martinson did a wonderful job bringing the craziness of the small screen to movie theaters.

The movie is silly and serious at the same time. It’s everything the TV show was and more. It’s art.