One day I will write and publish an essay outlining why Nolan ruined the mainstream perception of Batman mythology for various reasons. In fact it’s going on my to-do list, it might be the first thing I pitch to NoC.
Because it’s so frustrating to me that this horribly misunderstanding of Batman and Bruce Wayne and everything that exists in Batman comics is so prominent in mainstream pop culture. It’s the go-to adaption for Batman. The ironic part being it’s not even about Batman. It’s about a selfish, self-centered man who puts on a Bat-suit for revenge purposes, who beats up mentally ill people without thought or remorse, and feels he’s owed the affections of his childhood sweetheart and has so little interest in the well being of his city of its people it’s laughable.
The best characters in Nolan movies have always been the side characters: Gordon, Catwoman, and the Joker. I don’t count Ras Al Ghul, Tialia Al Ghul, and Bane remotely good representations of their comic book counterparts. Mainly because they’re whitewashed. Nolan is so stuck on only including one character of color (Fox who exists only to help Bruce) he wouldn’t even hire Zoe K because he didn’t want the movie to seem “urban”. She could have been Tam Fox! But that would mean Nolan would have to actually care about his source material.
Batman is suppose to be one of the greatest detectives ever. Nolan didn’t even have him use Google. He didn’t so much as interrogate criminals as torture them for information. I never felt that Batman or Bruce Wayne cared about their city. Not when he could so easily give it up twice in one movie. Excuse me, three times (once in Dark Knight, twice in Dark Knight Rises).
The Nolan films emphasize, for me, all the worst aspects of a Batman story. A man who’s angry, lacks any sort of emotion, uses his strength, wealth and power to terrorize criminals and doesn’t do anything for the people of Gotham. An utterly self-centered man with to much power and anger with no one keeping him in check. Don’t get me started on the insult that was “Robin” in DKR.
This is why I’m surprised people praise Nolan’s Batman over Synder’s. Batfleck is Batman. He’s traumatized, he’s angry but not without consequences. He actually appears to care about people. During the movie he’s bitter, and cynicism has infected him like a disease (like Alfred said) but by the end of the film he’s a little closer to being healed, he saw that he was wrong, and wants to do better by people. He also showcased that he actually cared about his city and its people. He showed more emotion in that one scene where he helps a man from out of the rubble of Metropolis and holds that little girl than BaleBats ever did. He sets up victim funds for his employees who survived the Metropolis attacks, he gazes at the Robin suit with regret and longing. He researches his little heart out and yells things like, “I love those shoes!” and “Sorry pretty girl, don’t quote me” and “My company has already donated in favor of…books”. He has Alfred breathing down his neck about children and basically has a sign behind him at all times that reads “Chill the fuck out Bruce we’re both to old for this!”
He’s human. He’s Batman and he’s Bruce Wayne. Nolan’s Batman doesn’t even come close character wise. Nolan created a well made, well directed film with flat characters with no respect for the source material.
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