(5 minute read)
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![3-year-old John F. Kennedy Jr. salutes his father's casket in Washington, three days after the president was assassinated, Nov. 25, 1963 [990 X 1166] : HistoryPorn](https://external-preview.redd.it/oAzATE39nXiFrGaOUYD0cuyU-YSUDTHSXOyZ0bNDqfo.jpg?auto=webp&s=c0f7ff2af002908bf2b22fe2ff46c848b300add8) |
| A photograph of 3-year old JFK at his father's graveside, an inspiration for Christopher Nolan and David Goyer during pre-production of Batman Begins |
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Inspired by the recent trailer release of The Batman (2021), I wanted to reflect on and analyze the progression of America's beloved rich-kid-turned superhero and how certain films revolutionized the character for years to come.
The journey from Outside-Underwear Batman to Military-Suited Batman evolved like life itself. As audiences grew older, the storylines grew more serious and complex, and directors crafted more formidable versions of The Caped Crusader.
The path to a darker Batman was not a straight line, but I've identified three major films that most dramatically changed the hero's legacy on screen: Batman: The Movie (1966), Batman (1989), and Batman Begins (2005). Each film embodies a stage in the character's evolution into a darker and more intimidating superhero as opposed to a children's cartoon.
These 3 stages or inflection points essentially represent the degree of how serious each director took Batman as a character. Batman: The Movie was the least complex hero story while Batman (1989) was the first earnest rendition, whereas Batman Begins was the most complex and thoughtful.
And it seems the darker or more complex the story, the more successful the films became. See below
Adjusting for inflation, I grouped films based on how complex the storyline was from 1943 to 2017. In order to take into account some of the older films that don't have box office data, I did a separate row just for IMDb votes as a proxy for popularity.
I determined each film's complexity based on how "real" or human the story of Batman felt. The Joel Schumacher films, Batman & Robin and Batman Forever, were very much like the goofy hero of the 60's, so they fell into the least complex category. All three of Nolan's films naturally fall into the most complex bucket, and overall you can see the stark differences in popularity as Batman stories became darker and more dramatic.
A Quick Bob Kane Brief
In a special interview, Bob Kane described three inspirations that helped him create Batman in 1939. They were Leonardo Da Vinci's flying machine (for the idea and appearance of a bat), the early Zorro films (for the heroism, Batmobile, and Batcave), and the mystery novel The Bat by Mary Roberts Rinehart (for the human costume). According to Kane, the original concept was "a vigilante – dark and brooding, mysterioso, and Dracula-like".
Getting Batman to fit that vision in film was difficult to get right, taking nearly half a century before we reached Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, which set the bar for both superhero genres and films in general. Kane passed away in 1998 before Batman Begins was released, but as a fan I believe he would have called it the best reincarnation of his hero ever to have been created.
Exactly how this hero evolved came during the previously mentioned inflection points, and we will go through each one to spotlight the interpretations of our hero before what I think will be a new evolutionary period in The Batman (2021).
Stage 1 – Batman: The Movie (1966)
"Holy Sardine!" ~ Robin
The first Batman movie to be released comes as a spinoff of the 1960s live-action, comedy TV show called Batman. The famous "Holy [insert funny word here] Batman!" is iconic because it defined campy Batman for decades. Camp means something that is laughably awkward as a result of some deliberate exaggeration. Here's a campy video of Batman running around with a bomb in his hands, which best illustrates this concept: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSZJufHv5kg. This is not the smart, jacked superhero you would think of when you think Batman.
Batman: The Movie (1966) was a comedy as well but it reflected the era of its time. Films in the '60s like James Bond 007 had action sequences that would make you laugh today, but they were regarded seriously at the time. Older movies mostly did not have the resources that we do today.
People also loved Batman the TV show, according to this opinion article:
"During its first season, it was one of only two prime-time TV series to be broadcast twice in one week, and inspired a merchandising boom. Reaching more people and, more importantly, a broader age range than the comics themselves, it’s little wonder that the series had such an impact on the popular mindset. The irony is, of course, that if the show had been presented in the more serious style favored by some Bat fans, it’s highly unlikely that it would have achieved the same level of popularity."
There wouldn't have been a Batman movie had people hated the TV series.
If we look at Rotten Tomatoes, 138,896 reviewers gave the film an Audience Score of 62%, which is a good average score when compared to the overall RT average of 60-65%. People had perceived Batman differently back then as a character when mass entertainment distribution and film production were still being developed.
It wasn't until Tim Burton's film in the late '80s that we had our first dark version of Batman. In an article from Screencrush, the author shares an item from Batman: The Definitive History of the Dark Knight in Comics, Film, and Beyond – a letter from Bob Kane himself:
"his letter to Lisa Henson warns that the new Bat-movie should avoid the “campy” mood of the 1960s television series"
Bob Kane, who conceived the idea of a Bat-Man in 1939, had a script ready entitled The Return of Batman, and he too wanted a darker, more serious character for the next film. It was time.
Stage 2 – Batman (1989)
IMDb Trivia: (at around 6 mins) Michael Keaton came up with the famous "I'm Batman" line, in the script, it was "I am the night".
You can tell it's going to be a new type of film just by looking at the poster, a more heroic touch than the poster of Adam West in tights folding his arms.
Burton's Batman was the first film to introduce a real, human Batman with more serious undertones.
From The Hollywood Reporter:
"Uslan [producer] remembers the key words that Burton told him regarding this Batman adaptation.
“Tim said, ‘This is not a movie about Batman. If we're going to do it seriously, this is a movie about Bruce Wayne,’” Uslan recalls.
One of the biggest changes was the suit, one that made Michael Keaton look less like an action figure and more like Dracula. The suit covered Michael Keaton's entire body from head to toe in pitch black to the point where none of his face could be seen.
But the largest change was the story. It explored the brute force of a violent, formidable vigilante that brought fear into the criminal underworld.
Bad Guy being held by his lapels: What are you?!
Batman: I'm Batman.
Tim Burton treated Batman and the Joker more as human beings who share an outlaw persona. The director points out that "Any character who operates on the outside of society and is deemed a freak and an outcast, then has the freedom to do what they want. They are the darker sides of freedom." This is a very meaningful take for a comic book superhero that we had not seen before in feature films.
Burton's Batman was a giant step in the right direction towards a serious, more complicated Batman.
A few years later, George Clooney in Batman and Robin (1997) may have caused the movie to take a couple steps back, but in the early 2000's a man named Christopher gave us the Bruce Wayne that we revere today.
Stage 3 – Batman Begins (2005)
"Bats frighten me. It's time my enemies share my dread." ~ Bruce Wayne
The book The Art and Making of The Dark Knight Trilogy is worth a buy if you you're looking for a fun read: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Making-Dark-Knight-Trilogy/dp/1419703692
It gives you a very comprehensive behind the scenes look of everything that went into creating the trilogy from each character's costume design to the architecture of the Batmobile. It also describes Nolan's motivation and intentions in creating Batman Begins.
"From the beginning, my interest was in taking on a super hero story but grounding it in reality, never looking at it as a comic book movie, but rather as any other action/adventure film ...
It would be a darker, more human Batman – and the opportunity to approach this great iconic character in a new way was very exciting to me." ~ Christopher Nolan
Christopher Nolan is a very serious director, and you can tell just by watching his interviews. He also frequently drinks early gray tea on set, which is the most boring tea let's be real. But it was almost a match made in heaven when the brilliant director decided that this was the film he wanted to direct because the Batman legacy benefited immensely from a humanistic story.
In The Art and Making of The Dark Knight Trilogy, Nolan emphasized that he wanted to create a character that was deeply and sincerely motivated to dress up as a bat in order to fight crime. He wanted Bruce Wayne's story to be believable and that the mark of success would be if people were sold on the idea that a man could logically become this intimidating figure.
What people forget is that a comprehensive Batman origin story was never done before, never even in the comics.
"There hadn't been a single definitive account of the journey of Bruce Wayne into Batman, which meant that there were fascinating gaps in the mythology to be played with. I wanted to tell that origin story with a certain degree of gravity, and in a more grounded way than what had been done before, giving the story and the characters a more realistic spin." ~ Christopher Nolan
Every Batman movie before 2005 had briefly glossed over the tragedy that befell Bruce at a young age, and it's a tragedy that fundamentally deserved more story. In order to re-engage audiences with Batman, Nolan needed audiences to connect with Bruce.
During the pre-production process, Nolan and screenwriter David Goyer saw a famous photograph of a very young John F. Kennedy, Jr. at his father's graveside.
"That photograph, which showed this little child trying to look stoic and brave, triggered something for us. We thought it would be great if the first trailer showed Bruce Wayne as an eight-year-old boy, after his parents had been killed. We referred to him as the loneliest boy in the world because he becomes heir to this multibillion dollar company, Wayne Enterprises, but he can't run it for another twenty years." ~ David Goyer
The death of Bruce's parents is what created Batman, so it was very smart of the writers of Batman Begins to start with one of the most genuine feelings in existence, the relationship between father and son.
Dr. / Surgeon General Thomas Wayne is the centerpiece of this film very early on even though his screen time is next to none. With what little we see of Bruce's father, we learn that he was an honorable man who wanted the best for his son and for Gotham City. He was someone that a young Bruce Wayne admired and sought comfort in when he was young and afraid. It was Thomas Wayne that rescued his son from falling into a well at a young age and nursed him back to health both physically, as he was a surgeon, and mentally.
Thomas Wayne: The bats again?
Bruce Wayne: *nods*
Thomas Wayne: Do you know why they attacked you? They were afraid of you.
It was Thomas Wayne who invested his fortunes into an elevated train-line to create cheap public transportation for Gotham citizens. It was Thomas Wayne who told his wife he needed some fresh air when Bruce was too scared to continue watching the opera show. It was Thomas Wayne who took the first bullet when the gun was pointed at his wife. And it was Thomas Wayne who selected the best butler on Earth, Alfred Pennyworth.
While he built a remarkable backstory for Thomas Wayne, Nolan unfortunately falls short on delivering a similar parental relationship with Martha Wayne, Bruce's mother. The plot was just missing one or two sentimental moments between Martha Wayne and Bruce that would have made the story much more powerful. Thus the death of Dr. Thomas Wayne, though impactful, was really the only one that resonated with audiences. When we see the effect it has on Bruce, as a child and then as an adult, we grow closer to the character, and we can finally understand where his dark side comes from.
Bruce: All these years I wanted to kill him [the murderer of Wayne's parents], and now I can't.
*Rachel stares at the gun in Bruce's hand, shocked. She slaps Bruce across the face twice*
Rachel: Your father would be ashamed of you.
In addition to the characters, there are strong themes that resonate across Nolan's world of Batman. The Narrows are identified as a slum, filled with people struggling to make ends meet. Crime is rampant much like New York City was in the 80s and early 90s. Carmine Falcone, the mob boss of Gotham, said, "Never underestimate Gotham City. People get mugged coming home from work every day of the week. Sometimes... sometimes things just go bad." The justice system is also poisoned with corrupt officials and judges who are bribed by Falcone to look the other way. Law enforcement like James Gordon's partner are even bought to protect criminals.
The income inequality, crime, and corruption that plagues Gotham City are themes that we as a society have to deal with every day. Some cities have it worse than others, and it's a reality that adds another layer of dimensionality to the plot. In Batman Begins, the fate of the city is in the hands of only a few people, and instead of a Superman fighting the generic "bad guy", the district attorney, a police sergeant, and Bruce are trying to fix the system.
Rachel Dawes: What chance does Gotham have when the good people do nothing?
Batman Begins earns our respect for thematic elements that many other action movies do not convey so seamlessly. Bruce Wayne earns our respect because we learn that he is a self-made man and hero. He suffered mentally, blaming himself for his parents' death, and he continued to risk his life to save the city his father loved. Batman Begins is a story where we learn to pity a rich boy for losing the people dearest to him, understand his early life and motivations, and finally sit back and enjoy the badass that he becomes.
Overcoming adversity against unfavorable odds is an utmost American ideal. We all must face tragedy or difficulties in our life. We fall so we can learn to pick ourselves up. We are Batman. I can't wait for 2021 to re-calibrate our love for this dark, mythological character.
The Batman (2021)