
The Schumacher Cut (as highlighted with this passage from the tie-in novel) makes better use of the journal than the theatrical cut does. ‘”But Martha and I have our hearts set on Zorro, so Bruce’s cartoon will have to wait until next week.” Moisture from the cave? From the tears spilled long ago that he had forgotten about? Carefully he separated the pages and turned them… ‘He paused and then noticed that the page was stuck back-to-back with the next one.

“Bruce insists on seeing a movie tonight…” And there it was, just as he had remembered. In essence, this passage is describing what would be seen in The Schumacher Cut. I will use an excerpt from the Batman Forever novelisation by Peter David, to better explain the significance. In The Schumacher Cut, the journal has a much greater significance. The trauma here is the idea that Bruce feels sadness over the book, knowing that his father will never write in it again. Eventually, he remembers the significance of the book and explains that it was his father’s journal. In the theatrical cut of Batman Forever, Bruce agonises about this journal, but can’t recall why.

This sequence, involves the aforementioned red journal. Arguably the most significant sequence cut from the theatrical release of Batman Forever is a scene in which Bruce Wayne addresses the trauma of his parents’ death (as depicted in Batman ’89).
