All the way back in 1989, the superhero world would be spun on its head and propelled itself into the cinematic giant it is today. The movie that made that happen was none other than the genius Tim Burton with his groundbreaking Batman film. Ever since its release, there has been an ever-growing list of more and more incarnations of the iconic vigilante, but it is incredibly obvious that Burton's adaption of the comic book hero laid the foundations for the character to continue to grow into the modern world.
From its thrilling action and dark tone, albeit with perfectly timed moments of humor, Burton separated the Bat away from the old superhero stereotype of being considered as light-hearted, eccentric kid-stuff. His adaptation led us to one of the best movie trilogies of all time and turned superhero movies into the blockbusters they are today.
10 It Had One Of The Most Epic Scores Of All Time
Nowadays most movies spend a lot of time getting the music for the film perfect because of course, this is an essential part of getting the audience's feelings to flow even more. Superhero scores of late have also been an integral part of the movie and have led to some iconic tunes, especially with great composers like Hans Zimmer getting involved.
One of the best Batman scores of all time was made for Burton's Batman by Danny Elfman and instantly takes listeners into the dark underworld of Gotham. All these years later, and the score still gives you goosebumps, and it's something Nolan definitely took on board when he and Hans Zimmer made another epic Batman score for his Dark Knight Trilogy.
9 Burton's Batman Had Some Of The Most Iconic Villains
Nowadays, when fans think of Batman, Bruce Wayne isn't the first character to come to mind. Instead villains like Joker, Penguin, and Catwoman pop into your thoughts. That's because the villains in Batman movies have been pretty great for a while, from Heath Ledger's insanely brilliant Joker to Jim Carrey's Riddler, they very rarely get them wrong, and that's thanks to Burton's original taste on Batman's foes that these villains will never be forgotten.
Jack Nicholson's Joker, and then in the sequel Batman Returns, Danny DeVito's Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman, were all absolutely brilliant in their respective roles and set the standards high for any future Batman villains.
8 The Gadgets And The Vehicles Set It Apart From Everything Else
Another famous Batman feature is his innovative technology thanks to his enormous wallet and his enormous brain. Bruce Wayne has become a character who uses his brain as well as the brawns, and his technology is the perfect example of this. Burton made this clear with Batman's awesome suit and gadgets like the Batarang and the speargun.
But of course, Batman's most iconic piece of machinery is his famous set of wheels, the Batmobile. The stylish design of the beautiful beast sent fans into a whirlwind and since has seen more modern-day Batman's also design their own Batmobile, some of which are most tank-like, but will never make the stylish design of Burton's.
7 A Dark And Gritty Gotham Has Become A Regular Occurrence Now
When we think of Gotham now, we think of the always raining and pitch black city in Ben Affleck's rendition, or the gritty underworld of crime and gangs as seen in Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy. Burton's take on the city of Gotham was almost definitely the inspiration for both of these and was in fact one of the first comic book movies to have a setting quite like this.
It was dark, gritty, gothic, and perfectly set the tone for not only the movie but for the vigilante himself. The stylish design was the perfect portrayal of a city infested with criminals and gangs, and of course, a billionaire who patrols the streets at night dressed as a bat.
6 It Set The Stage For A More Serious And Complicated Hero
Before 1989, heroes weren't much other than their physical ability, but Keaton changed the game with his portrayal of not only the dark Batman but also the complicated man behind the mask. The man wrestles with his alter ego, is focused on achieving justice for his city, but deep down also wants to get revenge for his parent's murders.
The genuine performance by Keaton made fans finally find a relatable superhero and was an inspiration for future Batman's where Bruce Wayne's complicated personality was an integral part of the movie.
5 The Action Was Thrilling And Gritty
Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises delivered one of the most memorable hand-to-hand combat scenes of the modern era, in which Christian Bale's Batman goes head to head with Tom Hardy's Bane, and the awesome fight ended with Batman helplessly lying on the floor with a broken back.
This type of gritty and intense fight scene in a movie would never have been seen before Burton's movie, let alone watching the hero actually lose and get severely injured. In Burton's movie, Keaton's Batman went on a revenge-filled rampage on the Joker leaving the villain dead on the floor at the top of the church's bell.
4 Creative Casting Became The Norm After Burton
After his role in Beetlejuice, not many would have picked Keaton as the man to play Gotham's vigilante. He wasn't physically imposing and wasn't the action film star everybody would have expected, but thankfully his slightly awkward Bruce Wayne performance, and his intimidating and mysterious performance as Batman, made him one of the most iconic heroes of all time.
Ever since, Batman movies have continued to cast underdogs who may not have seemed like the perfect fit like Christain Bale and Heath Ledger, who weren't the most famous actors in the world, but turned them into superstars thanks to their impeccable performances as the DC characters.
3 Batman's Cool Suits Became A Major Selling Point
Before in the 40s and later, comic book characters had some pretty laughable costumes that tended to be way over the top making the films completely outside of the realm of relatability, of course, Keaton's Batman suit was one of the first sleek and well-designed costumes in the superhero genre and fit the part perfectly.
It looked menacing and aggressive but also gave him the flexibility to fight probably and be invisible in the shadows of Gotham. Later renditions of Batman have gone down a similar path of slick-looking technologically advanced designs, although some might say that Affleck's suit is a little on the bulky robot side.
2 Batman Wants To Get Involved With The Politics Of Gotham
Micheal Keaton's Batman was incredibly politically involved in his movie as he actively socializes with the elite of the city and actually vows to work with the Mayor to stop the Penguin's political campaign. This side of Bruce Wayne where he wants to make an active difference in the justice system of Gotham has carried on in later iterations.
Although Nolan's Batman doesn't get too involved politically, he still develops a working relationship with Commissioner Gordon in order to keep his vigilantism in check with the law, but also to help him maintain justice in the city. Harvey Dent's character also has a huge part to play and after all, he was the district attorney.
1 Dark Themes Are Now Central To The Batman Movies
A main driving force of Keaton's Dark Knight is his strive for revenge over the death of his parents and thus his need to achieve justice in Gotham. Watching a dark, tragic hero on a revenge mission who is also willing to crush some skulls and stab some men along the way was completely new to the superhero genre, but made some of our favorite films possible today.
Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy would probably never have been made given the dark themes throughout with pretty scary characters like Scarecrow and the Joker featuring, as well as the heartbreaking death of Rachel in The Dark Knight. Ben Affleck's version also seemed to lean on the same vengeful path as Keaton's in Batman Vs Superman.