Batman (1989 film)
Batman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. Directed by Tim Burton, it is the first installment of Warner Bros.' initial Batman film series. The film was produced by Jon Peters and Peter Guber and stars Jack Nicholson, Michael Keaton, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl, Pat Hingle, Billy Dee Williams, Michael Gough, and Jack Palance. The film takes place early in the title character's war on crime and depicts his conflict with his archenemy The Joker.
"Batman '89" redirects here. For the DC Comic book series, see Batman '89 (comic book).Batman
Sam Hamm
- Characters
by DC Comics
- Warner Bros.[2]
- Guber-Peters Company[2]
- PolyGram Pictures[2]
Warner Bros.[2]
- June 19, 1989 (Westwood, Los Angeles)
- June 23, 1989 (United States)
- August 11, 1989 (United Kingdom)
126 minutes
English
$48 million[5]
$411.6 million[6]
After Burton was hired as director in 1986, Steve Englehart and Julie Hickson wrote film treatments before Sam Hamm wrote the first screenplay. Batman was not greenlit until after the success of Burton's Beetlejuice (1988). The tone and themes of the film were partly influenced by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland's The Killing Joke and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. The film primarily adapts and then diverges from the "Red Hood" origin story for the Joker, having Batman inadvertently cause gangster Jack Napier to fall into Axis Chemical acid, triggering his transformation into the psychotic Joker. Additionally, Batman co-creator Bob Kane worked as a consultant for the film.
Numerous leading men were considered for the role of Batman before Keaton was cast. Keaton's casting was controversial since, by 1988, he had become typecast as a comedic actor and many observers doubted, he could portray a serious role.[7] Nicholson accepted the role of the Joker under strict conditions that dictated top billing, a portion of the film's earnings (including associated merchandise), and his own shooting schedule.
Filming took place at Pinewood Studios from October 1988 to January 1989. The budget escalated from $30 million to $48 million, while the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike forced Hamm to drop out. Warren Skaaren did rewrites, with additional uncredited drafts done by Charles McKeown and Jonathan Gems.
Batman was both critically and financially successful, earning over $400 million in box office totals. Critics and audiences particularly praised Nicholson and Keaton's performances, Burton's direction, the production design, and Elfman's score. It was the fifth-highest-grossing film in history at the time of its release. The film received several Saturn Award nominations and a Golden Globe nomination for Nicholson's performance, and won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction. It also led to the development of the equally successful Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995), which in turn began the DC Animated Universe of spin-off media, and has influenced Hollywood's modern marketing and development techniques of the superhero film genre. The film was followed by three sequels: Batman Returns (1992), with both Burton and Keaton returning; Batman Forever (1995), which featured Val Kilmer in the lead role; and Batman & Robin (1997), which featured George Clooney in the role.
Plot
Reporter Alexander Knox and photojournalist Vicki Vale investigate sightings of the "Batman", a masked vigilante targeting Gotham City's criminals. Both attend a fundraiser hosted by billionaire Bruce Wayne, who is secretly Batman, having chosen this path after witnessing a mugger murder his parents when he was a child. During the event, Wayne becomes infatuated with Vale.
Meanwhile, mob boss Carl Grissom sends his sociopathic second-in-command Jack Napier to raid Axis Chemicals and retrieve incriminating evidence. However, this is secretly a ploy to have Napier murdered for sleeping with Grissom's mistress Alicia Hunt. Corrupt lieutenant Max Eckhardt arranges the hit on Napier by conducting an unauthorized police operation. However, Commissioner James Gordon arrives, takes command, and orders the officers to capture Napier alive. Batman also appears, while Napier kills Eckhardt as revenge for the double-crossing. During a scuffle with Batman, Napier topples off a catwalk and falls into a vat of chemicals. Although presumed dead, Napier survives with various disfigurements including chalk white skin and emerald-green hair and nails. He undergoes surgery to repair the damage, but ends up with a rictus grin. Driven insane by his new appearance, Napier, now calling himself "the Joker", kills Grissom, massacres Grissom's associates, and takes over his operations.
He then starts terrorizing Gotham by lacing hygiene products with "Smylex" – a deadly chemical that causes victims to die laughing. The Joker soon becomes obsessed with Vicki and lures her to the Flugelheim Museum, which his henchmen start vandalizing. Batman rescues Vicki, takes her to the Batcave, and provides her with all of his research on Smylex, which will allow Gotham's residents to escape the toxin. Conflicted with his love for her, Wayne visits her apartment intending to reveal his secret identity, only for the Joker to interrupt the meeting. Joker asks Wayne, "Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?", which Wayne recognizes as the catchphrase used by the mugger who killed his parents, realizing the killer to have been Joker (as Napier) all along. He shoots Wayne, who survives thanks to a serving tray hidden underneath his shirt.
Vicki is taken to the Batcave by Wayne's butler, Alfred Pennyworth, who had been coaxing the relationship between the pair. After exposing his secret to Vicki, Wayne reveals he cannot focus on their relationship with Joker on the loose. He then departs to destroy the Axis plant used to create Smylex. Meanwhile, Joker lures Gotham's citizens to a parade honoring Gotham's bicentennial with the promise of free money. This turns out to be a trap designed to dose them with Smylex gas held within giant parade balloons. Batman foils his plan by using his Batwing to remove the balloons, but Joker shoots him down. The Batwing crashes in front of a cathedral, which Joker uses to take Vicki hostage. Batman pursues the Joker, and in the ensuing fight, he explains that Napier killed his parents and thus, indirectly created Batman. This leads Joker to realize Batman is Bruce Wayne. Joker eventually pulls Batman and Vicki over the cathedral's roof, leaving them hanging while he calls in a helicopter. The helicopter is piloted by his goons, who throw down a ladder for him to climb. Batman uses a grappling hook to attach Joker's leg to a crumbling gargoyle that eventually falls off the roof. Unable to bear the statue's immense weight, Joker falls to his death while Batman and Vicki make it to safety.
Sometime later, Gordon announces that the police have arrested all of Joker's men, effectively dismantled of what remained of Carl Grissom's mafia organizations, and unveils the Bat-Signal. Batman leaves the police a note, promising to defend Gotham should crime strike again, and asking them to use the Bat-Signal to summon him in times of need. Alfred takes Vicki to Wayne Manor, explaining that Wayne will be a little late. She responds that she is not surprised, as Batman looks at the signal's projection from a rooftop, standing watch over the city.
Themes
When discussing the central theme of Batman, director Tim Burton explained, "the whole film and mythology of the character is a complete duel of the freaks. It's a fight between two disturbed people", adding, "The Joker is such a great character because there's a complete freedom to him. 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. Insanity is in some scary way the most freedom you can have, because you're not bound by the laws of society".[7]
Burton saw Bruce Wayne as the bearer of a double identity, exposing one while hiding the reality from the world.[7] Burton biographer Ken Hanke wrote that Bruce Wayne, struggling with his alter-ego as Batman, is depicted as an antihero. Hanke felt that Batman has to push the boundaries of civil justice to deal with certain criminals, such as the Joker.[16] Kim Newman theorized that "Burton and the writers saw Batman and the Joker as a dramatic antithesis, and the film deals with their intertwined origins and fates to an even greater extent".[69]
Batman conveys trademarks found in 1930s pulp magazines, notably the design of Gotham City stylized with Art Deco design.[70] Richard Corliss, writing for Time, observed that Gotham's design was a reference to films such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) and Metropolis (1927). "Gotham City, despite being shot on a studio backlot", he continued, "is literally another character in the script. It has the demeaning presence of German Expressionism and fascist architecture, staring down at the citizens."[71] Hanke further addressed the notions of Batman being a period piece, in that "The citizens, cops, people and the black-and-white television looks like it takes place in 1939"; but later said: "Had the filmmakers made Vicki Vale a femme fatale rather than a damsel in distress, this could have made Batman as a homage and tribute to classic film noir."[58] Portions of the climax pay homage to Vertigo (1958).[72]
Marketing
The B.D. Fox ad agency created hundreds of unused logos and posters for promotion, many by John Alvin. In the end Burton and producers decided on only using a gold and black logo designed by Anton Furst and airbrushed by Bill Garland, with no other key art variation, to keep an air of mystery about the film.[73] The logo is also an ambiguous image, which can be read either as Batman's symbol or as a gaping mouth.[74] Earlier designs "had the word 'Batman' spelled in RoboCop or Conan the Barbarian-type font".[5] Jon Peters unified all the film's tie-ins, even turning down $6 million from General Motors to build the Batmobile because the car company would not relinquish creative control.[5]
During production, Peters read in The Wall Street Journal that comic book fans were unsatisfied with the casting of Michael Keaton. In response, Peters rushed the first film trailer that played in thousands of theaters during Christmas. It was simply an assemblage of scenes without music, but created enormous anticipation for the film, with audiences clapping and cheering.[5][27] DC Comics allowed screenwriter Sam Hamm to write his own comic book miniseries. Hamm's stories were collected in the graphic novel Batman: Blind Justice (ISBN 978-1563890475). Denys Cowan and Dick Giordano illustrated the artwork.[19] Blind Justice tells the story of Bruce Wayne trying to solve a series of murders connected to Wayne Enterprises. It also marks the first appearance of Henri Ducard, who was later used in the rebooted Batman Begins, albeit as an alias for the more notable Ra's al Ghul.[19]
In the months before Batman's release in June 1989, a popular culture phenomenon known as "Batmania" began. Over $750 million worth of merchandise was sold.[31] Cult filmmaker and comic book writer Kevin Smith remembered: "That summer was huge. You couldn't turn around without seeing the Bat-Signal somewhere. People were cutting it into their fucking heads. It was just the summer of Batman and if you were a comic book fan it was pretty hot."[75] Hachette Book Group USA published a novelization, Batman, written by Craig Shaw Gardner.[76] It remained on The New York Times Best Seller list throughout June 1989.[77] Burton admitted he was annoyed by the publicity. David Handelman of The New York Observer categorized Batman as a high concept film. He believed "it is less movie than a corporate behemoth".[72]
Reception
Box office
Batman grossed $2.2 million in late night previews on June 22, 1989, on 1,215 screens and grossed $40.49 million in 2,194 theaters during its opening weekend.[78] This broke the opening weekend records held by Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (which had a 4-day Memorial Day weekend gross of $37.0 million the previous month)[79] and Ghostbusters II (which had a $29.4 million 3-day weekend the previous weekend).[80][81] Upon opening, the film would go on to reach the number one spot above Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.[82] Additionally, it had the largest opening weekend for a Jack Nicholson film for 14 years until it was dethroned by Anger Management in 2003.[83] Batman also set a record for a second weekend gross with $30 million (also the second biggest 3-day weekend of all-time)[79] and became the fastest film to earn $100 million, reaching it in 11 days (10 days plus late night previews).[80][84] The film closed on December 14, 1989, with a final gross of $251.4 million in North America and $160.2 million internationally, totaling $411.6 million.[85] The film would hold the record for being the highest-grossing Warner Bros. film until 1996 when Twister surpassed it.[86] It was the highest-grossing film based on a DC comic book until 2008's The Dark Knight.[87] Furthermore, Batman held the record for being the highest-grossing superhero film of all time until it was taken by Spider-Man in 2002.[88] The film's gross is the 143rd highest ever in North American ranks.[89] Although Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade made the most money worldwide in 1989,[90] Batman was able to beat The Last Crusade in North America,[91] and made a further $150 million in home video sales.[92] Box Office Mojo estimates that the film sold more than 60 million tickets in the US.[93]
Despite the film's box office – over $400 million against a budget of no more than $48 million – Warner Bros. claimed it ended up losing $35.8 million and "not likely to ever show a profit," which has been attributed to a case of Hollywood accounting.[94]
Critical response
Batman was criticized by some for being too dark, but nonetheless received a generally positive response from critics.[7] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 76% based on 138 reviews, with an average score of 7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "An eerie, haunting spectacle, Batman succeeds as dark entertainment, even if Jack Nicholson's Joker too often overshadows the title character."[95] On Metacritic, the film received a weighted average score of 69 based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[96] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[97]
Many observed that Burton was more interested in the Joker and the art and set production design than Batman or anything else in terms of characterization and screentime.[7] Comic book fans reacted negatively over the Joker murdering Thomas and Martha Wayne; in the comic book, Joe Chill is responsible. Writer Sam Hamm said it was Burton's idea to have the Joker murder Wayne's parents. "The Writer's Strike was going on, and Tim had the other writers do that. I also hold innocent to Alfred letting Vicki Vale into the Batcave. Fans were ticked off with that, and I agree. That would have been Alfred's last day of employment at Wayne Manor," Hamm said.[64]
The songs written by Prince were criticized for being "too out of place".[13] While Burton has stated he had no problem with the Prince songs, he was less enthusiastic with their use in the film.[16] On the film, Burton remarked, "I liked parts of it, but the whole movie is mainly boring to me. It's OK, but it was more of a cultural phenomenon than a great movie."[92]
Despite initial negative reactions from comics fans prior to the film's release, Keaton's portrayal of Batman was generally praised.[72][98] James Berardinelli called the film entertaining, with the highlight being the production design. However, he concluded, "the best thing that can be said about Batman is that it led to Batman Returns, which was a far superior effort."[99] Variety felt "Jack Nicholson stole every scene" but still greeted the film with positive feedback.[100] Roger Ebert was highly impressed with the production design, but claimed "Batman is a triumph of design over story, style over substance, a great-looking movie with a plot you can't care much about." He also called the film "a depressing experience".[101] On the syndicated television series Siskel & Ebert, his reviewing partner Gene Siskel disagreed, describing the film as having a "refreshingly adult" approach with performances, direction and set design that "draws you into a psychological world."[102]