The Bat Woman

Basically just a Santo movie with a female wrestler in the lead nipping like Santo in a sports car about the glamorous backdrop of Acapulco without ever attracting the attention of traffic cops or the public. Currently dropping in is the diabolical Dr Eric Williams (what kind of name is that for a mad scientist, even if he does have an assistant called Igor?), who travels the world in a yacht called Reptilicus harvesting wrestlers to provide components for his prototype fish-man Pisces (who rewards his master by putting more effort into clobbering Williams' goons than fighting The Batwoman).

Crime-fighting heroine Gloria is supposedly a millionairess who moonlights as the masked superheroine The Batwoman; keeping herself in trim when not fighting bad guys as a pro woman wrestler. (The bodysuit and trunks she wears to wrestle being far more becoming of a superheroine than the beach party bikini and cape she adopts a couple of times in the movie - and for the poster- as The Batwoman.) Like Yvonne Craig in the TV series, Maura Monti is far tastier without that stupid cowl covering her hair; and in the film's best (and probably most expensive) sequence she does battle underwater with Pisces wearing just a one-piece, after which Dr.Williams and Igor both get a good look at her without her mask without anyone being remotely concerned.

Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of The Batwoman; here's the breakdown of my ratings:

Story: 1.25 Direction: 1.00 Pace: 1.00 Acting: 1.25 Enjoyment: 1.00

TOTAL: 5.50 out of 10.00

Even today, when I watch Batman 66: The Movie, I find it hard to believe somebody considered jumping on this bandwagon, even though the series was a massive success. So imagine my surprise when I came across this little Mexican picture. It screamed out for me to have a peek. And even though the silliness is still evident, especially in the costume department, these moviemakers decided to play it for realism. And it comes off slightly better than its male hero counterpart. Though I did miss lines like, "Someday's it's hard to get rid of a bomb!"

The writer, Alfredo Salazar, brings us the tale of the Mad Scientist trying to create the perfect human crossbreed. He wants his creation to have dominion of the seas, so he splices man's DNA with a fish. It's a strenuous transformation, and his mutations don't always survive. Therefore, he has his henchmen kidnap wrestlers in peak condition. Their disappearances and the rediscovery of their corpses become the police's number one priority. Unfortunately, they get nowhere with their investigations and have to bring in a third party to help them. Enter The Batwoman. In every respect, except for a few principal alterations, she is the female Bruce Wayne. One of the changes is that the authorities know her secret identity. Another is the dismissal of Alfred the Butler and Robin the Boy Wonder. They are replaced by her handlers-come-coworkers-come-friends, Tony and Mario, who work for different police agencies. Will she be able to terminate the doctor's evil plans in time, or is she the missing piece that will solve his puzzle? The plotline is basic DC sci-fi fantasy stuff of the 60s, and it's an enjoyable enough romp. However, it did need more comedic elements. The narrative doesn't cry out for it - the movie does.

Though Salazar provides us with a reasonable tale, the director, Rene Cordona, decided to stay with some of the more camp trademarks of the film and series. The Batwoman's attire is one of the chief issues. When she's wrestling in the ring, she dons a complete outfit, sans cape, similar to Batman's. However, when she's outside the ring, say, walking down the street and into police HQ, she assumes a skimpy two-piece bikini, Avec cape - Thank God they didn't get Adam West into speedos for most of his scenes. Then we get to the Evil Doctors mutation - who I fondly call Goldfish-Man or Carp-Kid. They have basically painted The Creature From The Black Lagoon's costume a lovely goldy-orange colour. Even though it's very comic'ish it's not too fearsome. They shouldn't have wasted money on the paint; he was scarier green. That said, Cordona isn't too bad a director. For a 60s moviemaker, he's pretty decent at capturing the fight scenes - which are better than the simple slugfests of its counterpart. And because the fights are more choreographed, they don't need the POW! CRASH! BOP! Exploding captions.

The actors and actresses are engaging in their performances. Though the characters are a tad two-dimensional, which was the case with comics back then, the cast does their best to instil extra life and credibility in them. Sadly, it doesn't always work out. But on the plus side, none of the cast is atrocious.

On the whole, The Batwoman is an agreeable and enjoyable flick worth one viewing, especially if you're a DC comic book fan - like me. It doesn't make my Guilty Pleasures list like Batman 66 does, but it's a different take on the hero and worth an hour and twenty minutes of your time - particularly on a lazy Sunday morning while you're munching on your breakfast.

Holy Carp-Kid Batwoman, it's time to check out my Holding Out For A Hero, The Final Frontier, and The Game Is Afoot lists to see where I ranked The Batwoman.

Take Care & Stay Well.

The Batwoman (1968)

** (out of 4)

Dead wrestlers are turning up in the river and the police are baffled so Batwoman (Maura Monti) is called in to investigate. Before long she discovers a mad scientist who is doing bizarre experiments including making a sea monster.

LA MUJER MURCIELAGO, aka THE BATWOMAN, is a pretty weird Mexican film that mixes action, wrestling and a few horror elements. I've discovered that whenever you watch this type of movie it's best to be either drunk, stoned or suffering from a severe cold. Sadly, when I watched this, I wasn't any of them so perhaps that's why I didn't enjoy this as much as some of the other films in the genre.

I must say that there were a few good things here that kept the film mildly amusing and worth watching to fans of the genre. For starters, I found Monti to be extremely beautiful and I thought she did a good job in the role. She made for a good female superhero and this was a plus. I also liked the monster in the film. It's basically a rip-off of The Gillman from THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON but here the monster is a bright red just like the Devil. The look was cheap and silly but it was at least entertaining.

The biggest problem with the film is like so many other Mexican movies is the fact that there's not too much going on. There are way too many scenes where people are just standing around talking and the dialogue is bad and boring. There are way too many scenes where there's not any action or excitement. You've got a decent monster and a good hero and yet they really aren't on screen enough.

"The Batwoman" ("La Mujer Murcielago") is a very strange film. It's part luchador film (a VERY popular genre in Mexican films of the era) and part knockoff of Batman (which was VERY popular on American TV at the time). I suppose DC Comics could have tried to sue, but why bother?

The film begins with yet another dead luchador (Mexican wrestler) being discovered in the water off of Acapulco. It seems it's the fifth such dead wrestler and each had their 'pineal juices' removed....if there is such a thing. I know there's the pineal gland in the skull. At a loss as to what to do next, the Mexican official contact the FBI and the FBI call in their secret weapon...Batwoman! Batwoman is a rich sexy lady who excels in nearly everything...including crime fighting and wrestling!

Seeing gorgeous Maura Monti running about in skimpy bikinis throughout the film is nicer than seeing the more rotund Santo or Blue Demon (popular luchadors in films in the 60s and 70s)....though it's just as utterly ridiculous. What also is utterly ridiculous is the mad scientist's creation using these pineal juices....a half-man/half-goldfish who is the scientist's personal killing machine!

So is this any good? No....though a I said before, Monti is quite lovely to look at (hence a score as high as I gave the film), but the story itself is weird and silly. It's good for a laugh or two but otherwise is an utterly ridiculous superheroine film.

The Batwoman is the campiest movie ever made and I say that with great respect and admiration. Movies that are so bad they are good are hard to find and this one has it all. The well-endowed Maura Monti is Batwoman who wears a very revealing 2-piece bikini and a cape through most of the movie. She is called Batwoman but there is no bat about her - she is ALL woman! Not only is she the crime fighting heroine but she is also a pro wrestler and police agent who fights mad scientists. And what is a mad scientist who does not have a faithful servant name Igor and calls him Master? Well, this film has it all. Our mad scientist has created a fish man who is also a wrestler and now he wants to create a fish woman and that woman shall be none other than our favorite batwoman. He plans on creating an army of fish men/wrestlers to rule the sea! I admire his ambition. But the big question is will he get his woman, er I mean his bat, to create the first fish woman? I highly recommend this movie. It is so bad that it is good and highly entertaining.