Top 5 Batman Films
By Austin Johnson
I have a complicated relationship with superhero movies. I own some comics, I go see all of the movies, but I don’t really get emotionally attached. Batman has always been a little bit different though. There’s no real super powers in play. We have an extremely rich guy who has all of the coolest gadgets in his arsenal along with incredible combat skills and a badass car. The setting of Gotham is believable and daunting as hell. The villains are immaculate and portrayed by wonderful actors. Studying the ebbs and flows of these films is extremely interesting. We had different directors take a swing at making Batman films in the 40’s, we have the 1966 Batman directed by Leslie Martinson, we got Tim Burton in the 90’s, the Christopher Nolan trilogy, the recent bombs from Zack Snyder, and plenty of others throughout the years.
This October, the Todd Phillips directed Joker comes out which obviously focuses on Batman’s arch nemesis. In 2021, The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves, will be released. I personally can’t wait for both films. I’m extremely excited for Joaquin Phoenix to add to his resume and for Robert Pattinson to shock the world. Batman fans have so much great content to look back on and so much to look forward to.
This October, the Todd Phillips directed Joker comes out which obviously focuses on Batman’s arch nemesis. In 2021, The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves, will be released. I personally can’t wait for both films. I’m extremely excited for Joaquin Phoenix to add to his resume and for Robert Pattinson to shock the world. Batman fans have so much great content to look back on and so much to look forward to.
5.) The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
“Home, where I learned the truth about despair, as will you. There's a reason why this prison is the worst hell on earth... Hope. Every man who has ventured here over the centuries has looked up to the light and imagined climbing to freedom. So easy... So simple... And like shipwrecked men turning to sea water from uncontrollable thirst, many have died trying. I learned here that there can be no true despair without hope. So, as I terrorize Gotham, I will feed its people hope to poison their souls. I will let them believe they can survive so that you can watch them clamoring over each other to stay in the sun. You can watch me torture an entire city and when you have truly understood the depth of your failure, we will fulfill Ra's al Ghul's destiny... We will destroy Gotham and then, when it is done and Gotham is ashes, then you have my permission to die.”
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The finale to Christopher Nolan’s trilogy starts my list off at number 5. It’s an epic finish that doesn’t quite have the same impact as the first 2, but come on, that’s a tall order. I still love so much from this film, and when I saw it in theaters at age 17, I was convinced I had just seen the greatest film of all time. It takes place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight and we open up with a jaw-dropping scene where Bane abducts a nuclear physicist in an aircraft that’s flying through the sky. Bruce Wayne is getting older, therefore Batman is getting older and his reputation among the public is torn after the events of The Dark Knight. Christian Bale returns as Bruce Batman spectacularly for a third time and a monstrous Tom Hardy plays Bane. Hardy really went for it with the voice and appearance of an action figure. He isn’t one of my favorite villains, but he was entertaining as hell. We get performances from Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle, and returning veterans Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth, Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, and Gary Oldman as Gordon. The film unfolds and we see Batman vulnerable and out of shape for the first time as he confronts the idea of stepping down as protector of Gotham. Bane plans to carry out Ra’s al Ghul’s plan, which I will mention later, but that involvement makes this a fantastic way to wrap up one of the most memorable trilogies of all time. Unfortunately, Rises wasn’t up for any Oscars, but that doesn’t matter when back to back Batman’s make over a billion dollars.
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4.) Batman Begins (2005)
“People need dramatic examples to shake them out of apathy and I can't do that as Bruce Wayne. As a man, I'm flesh and blood, I can be ignored, I can be destroyed; but as a symbol... as a symbol I can be incorruptible, I can be everlasting.”
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I got to see this in theaters while on a vacation with my family in Colorado. It was my first Batman experience at a theatre, and as a 10-year-old, I was pretty frightened by the scene of his parents getting shot by Joe Chill at the beginning of the film. Batman Begins definitely feeds off of the fear factor as Bruce Wayne creates his alter ego, Batman. It takes time to figure that kind of alter ego out, though. Wayne traveled around the world, seeking to fight against injustice. On this journey he meets two of the most badass characters I’ve ever seen in a superhero film. Henri Ducard played by Liam Neeson and Ra’s al Ghul played by Ken Watanabe. Both of them have an agenda that doesn’t align with Wayne’s. He does what’s necessary and finds his way back to Gotham to officially start fighting the nonstop crime in his hometown with the help of Lucius Fox and all time fan favorite, Alfred Pennyworth. I think Bale does his best work as Wayne in this one. Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow and Tom Wilkinson as Falcone makes a great villainous duo, one scrawny lad and one old veteran. As Wayne moves along in his early days as Batman, he finds out that Ducard is the real Ra’s al Ghul, setting up a fantastic duel between bloody Liam Neeson and Christian Bale. This is the first of the Dark Knight Trilogy and it came at a time when Christopher Nolan had only directed mysterious thrillers like Following, Memento, and Insomnia. He was 35 and hungry, and Batman Begins really showed the world that he is capable of breaking into the mainstream with ease. Not only did it make over 300 million dollars at the box office, but it also received an Oscar nomination for Best Cinematography.
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3.) Batman (1989)
“I now do what other people only dream. I make art until someone dies. See? I am the world's first fully functioning homicidal artist.”
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There was a 23 year break for Batman on the big screen, but when 30 year old Tim Burton got the job as director, it was all worth the wait. He created an unforgettable Gotham that looks like no American city. With Nolan, it just feels like we are in New York City or Chicago. That’s fine, because it provides a realism to the story that makes it believable. Burton’s Gotham feels like a setting inside of a comic book that we will never see again. The film opens up with Batman catching a couple of thieves, wasting no time on letting us know who the hero of Gotham is. There’s also a sort of origin story for the Joker. Jack Nicholson plays Jack Napier, a mob enforcer who falls into a vat of chemicals, causing his skin and hair to change colors. I love seeing how villains are born, and that scene is executed very well in my opinion. This Batman has a very similar origin as Begins, only it’s more of a plot device in this one. Bruce Wayne is played by Michael Keaton in the Burton Batman films and instead of some thug killing his parents, it’s a young Jack Napier. Therefore, the Joker is really who influenced Wayne to become the protector of Gotham. The two try and outsmart each other in an epic battle for the city. In Batman, we have Pat Hingle playing Gordon, Michael Gough as Alfred, Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent, and Kim Basinger as Wayne’s love interest Vicki Vale. Back in '89, this was one of the highest grossing films of all time. It won an Oscar for Best Art Direction and will always be remembered for its aesthetic and theatrics.
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2.) The Dark Knight (2008)
“Don't talk like one of them. You're not! Even if you'd like to be. To them, you're just a freak, like me! They need you right now, but when they don't, they'll cast you out, like a leper! You see, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show you. When the chips are down, these... these civilized people, they'll eat each other. See, I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve.”
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The Dark Knight is ranked as the 4th greatest film ever on IMDB. I can’t say that it’s in my top 4 films ever, but it certainly deserves a lot of praise, which is why I have it number 2. At the beginning of The Dark Knight, we have quite possibly the most rewatchable scene in any Batman film. The Joker and his thugs rob a bank, only for him to have every last one killed off, so that all of the earnings from the heist are his. From there on out, it is the Heath Ledger show. He becomes the only thing you want to look at when he’s on the screen. Batman is in the middle of his run as protector of Gotham, but a big chunk of the population wants him to be arrested. This gets DA Harvey Dent and his girlfriend Rachel Dawes involved. I didn’t mention Rachel earlier because I wanted to mention her here. We went from Katie Holmes in Begins to Maggie Gyllenhaal in this one and I gotta say, they look nothing alike. This can only work when the films are pristine, so let’s move on. Batman’s entire philosophy is questioned as he battles the Joker for two and a half hours of gut-punching action. Lucius, Alfred, and Gordon all play heavy roles again, but something seems to click better with them in this one. I think that’s what makes it the best of the Nolan trilogy. The little things were all done perfectly in The Dark Knight, forming one of the most well put together films of the century. It was nominated eight times at the 81st Academy Awards, including a win for sound editing and a win for the great Heath Ledger, who is cemented into all of our minds as one of the best to do it. Rest In Peace.
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1.) Batman Returns (1992)
“Actually, this is all just a bad dream. You're at home, in bed,
heavily sedated, resting comfortably, dying from the carcinogens you personally spewed in a lifetime of profiteering. Tragic irony or poetic justice, you tell me.” |
All three Christopher Nolan films are accounted for and now both Tim Burton films are as well. Batman Returns is the follow up to Batman, so we still have Keaton as Wayne, Hingle as Gordon, Williams as Dent, and Gough as Alfred. This time, Batman has to battle Danny DeVito’s Penguin, Christopher Walken’s Max Shreck, and Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman. It’s like an all star game for two straight hours and Gotham looks more wicked than ever. The film begins with Oswald Cobblepot’s (Penguin) parents throwing him into a sewer. Jesus! He was just a baby! Oswald then grows up with a bunch of penguins underneath Gotham. Him and Shreck are some slimy bastards who want as much control as possible. Catwoman, well, she gets thrown out of a window by Shreck and chaos ensues. The drama is at a high level and all the weirdos are out and about wreaking havoc. I thoroughly enjoy rewatching the romance between Keaton and Pfeiffer, two undeniably charming performers. Over time I’ve grown to love the chemistry between Walken and DeVito. See, all of these films that I listed have wonderful action sequences, characters, and moments. I just like how it’s done in this one the most. 1992 was a nutty year filled with terrific films like A Few Good Men, Aladdin, Wayne’s World, Reservoir Dogs, Chaplin, Glengarry Glen Ross, Juice, White Men Can’t Jump, The Mighty Ducks, Unforgiven… Batman Returns still sticks out in my mind when thinking about that year in film. It was up for two Oscars at the 65th Academy Awards ceremony, and it’s quite possibly my favorite superhero and/or Christmas film of all time. Burton’s eccentric characters and stylized Gotham is something to behold and admire forever.
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