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iView Author: Suprateek Chatterjee (Mumbai, India)

Email: supchats [at] gmail [dot] com

Christopher Nolan and Batman - The Phenomenon

Just finished watching Batman Begins, a film I’d seen a couple of years ago on the IMAX screen. Having arrived a little late for it, and also being overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the IMAX experience, it is of little surprise that I remembered very little of the movie (Anyone who has seen a commercial movie on the IMAX screen will agree – the experience is mind-boggling, but forgettable).

Anyway, that’s not the point I’m trying to make here. I saw The Dark Knight recently of course, like every other human being who hasn’t been living in a Bat-Cave. Of course, like everyone else, I was blown away by the movie’s taut direction, the note-perfect casting, the breathtaking action set-pieces executed and inter-cut with guillotine-precision, and of course, the legen-wait for it-dary performance given by the late Heath Ledger as the Joker. No matter that I arrived late for this one as well, sat away from my friends, next to a guy who had read up EVERYTHING there was to read about the movie at www.imdb.com and was waxing omniscient to the pretty girl sitting next to him, as he inched his hand up her skinny jean-clad thigh.

So, anyway, I’d been meaning to revisit the origins of the character for a while, and I knew that Batman Begins was the most accurate portrayal of the origins of The Dark Knight of Gotham City. And boy, was it ever. Watching Batman Begins, I marveled at how Christopher Nolan kept everything so thematically constant, most importantly the look of Gotham City. The city, portrayed as a dystopian, nightmarish mega polis, riddled with crime, lowlifes, and where seemingly half the criminals are insane, former inmates of Arkhum Asylum hell-bent on destroying the city rather than making some money and buying a Lamborghini. On a side note though, I also suddenly remembered the ridiculously campy and enjoyable TV series, featuring Adam West as Batman, which we used to watch as kids, with all the Biffs, the Bams and the Ka-pows, and I want to get hold of some episodes of those as well! Of course, for purists and die-hard fans of the comics, that TV show was a blot on the illustrious history of the Batman franchise, a campy, family-friendly TV show that only kids below the age of 10 could really enjoy.

The biggest blots, although, were perhaps the Batman films of the 90s. Particularly the ones helmed by Joel Schumacher, Batman Forever and – that huge turkey – Batman & Robin. Oh boy, that last step was a real doozie all right. George Clooney as Batman/Bruce Wayne? Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze?? The Bat-Suit, with NIPPLES??? Producers Warner Bros. couldn’t live it down (They, who made Space Jam. Imagine that). The film bombed so badly, and was massacred so ruthlessly by critics, that they decided to shut down the franchise altogether. And shut down it was until this bloke called Christopher Nolan arrived on the scene, and made some of the best psychological thrillers ever in the form of Memento, Insomnia and The Prestige.

Now I’m a huge Nolan fan; Memento, in my book, is one of the greatest movies ever to be made. His Batman movies have his stamp all over them, with washed out colors, a brooding, ominous soundtrack, an atmospheric, noir-ish feel, where even the characters in a superhero movie talk like characters from Chinatown. I mean, sample this gem from The Dark Knight - The Joker, while being interrogated by the Batman purrs – “I’m like a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught it.” That ONE line brings out more about the Joker’s character than two hours of Jack Nicholson uttering lines like “Have ya ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?”

Christopher Nolan has this knack of drawing the audience into the world inhabited by the characters. So, while in Insomnia we were drawn into the Alaskan wilderness with its blinding sunshine even at midnight, here we are instantly transported to Gotham City, an obvious caricature of New York City, and the tone for which Nolan manages to get just right. All the more astounding, when you consider that Batman Begins was filmed in London, and The Dark Knight was filmed in a cleverly disguised Chicago. He has single-handedly revived the Batman series and given it a much needed shot in the arm.

The Dark Knight, as we speak, has amassed in around 3 weeks, a very respectable 400 million dollars at the box office, and is all set to become the second highest grossing film of all time, after Titanic. This is a gargantuan achievement; superhero films are money-spinners all right, but their audience is always limited to people who’ve at least heard of the character. However, such is the hype that middle-aged women who know nothing about the titular character, but have heard great things about Heath Ledger’s performance make up a substantial part of the viewing audience, gushing about the Joker and shaking their heads about what a tragic loss it is to the world.

Another thing I marveled at was how seamlessly integrated the two movies are. One may recall the last few moments of Batman Begins where Lieutenant Gordon (a perfectly cast Gary Oldman) signals the caped crusader via the Bat-Signal we all know so well, and hands him a Joker card adding – “This guy’s got a taste for the theatrical, much like you. And, he leaves a calling card.” I remember the euphoria I felt then, excited that the next movie would involve the single most fascinating villain in all of comic-dom, as Batman swooped off the building into the camera, accompanied by Hans Zimmer’s violin/brass crescendo.

Just awesome. Chris Nolan and Batman are THE pop cultural phenomenons of our times. Something to tell the grandchildren.

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