While Bale was an accomplished actor, Nolan knew he needed to fill out the cast with well-known and established actors… and he did just that. When Bale was cast, most regular folk probably went “Who?” but most die-hard Batman fans everywhere cheered in elation. What some might not realize is that Bale was actually a fan favorite for the role, with fans exclaiming “ Bale Dammit!” on message forums to show their support of the Welsh actor for the part. Christian Bale was cast as Bruce Wayne/Batman, an unknown to most mainstream audiences but known very well to a set of movie fans as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho. It started with the cast, which at the time was arguably the greatest cast out of any superhero film to date. He approached it like a movie in and of itself.Ĭhristopher Nolan directing Christian Bale and Katie Holmes on the set of “Batman Begins”. Nolan didn’t approach Batman Begins like an ordinary comic book movie - as a matter of fact, he didn’t approach it as a comic book movie at all. While Singer and Raimi may have proved superheroes could work in a modern context, what Nolan proved is that you could make a superhero movie that sits up there with some of cinema’s greatest works. Sam Raimi turned Spider-Man into a blockbuster icon. Bryan Singer, another independent auteur, brought the X-Men to life in ways no one thought was imaginable. Nolan’s Batman was coming off of a renaissance in the comic-book movie genre (which, back then, wasn’t even a genre like it is now). To understand why Nolan’s approach was so pioneering, it helps to understand the state of comic book movies as a whole back then. Not since Richard Donner’s Superman: The Movie (released in 1978) had Hollywood seen a more innovative and groundbreaking superhero film. While not many people could have guessed it at the time, what Nolan was doing would later send shockwaves through Hollywood and forever alter the way Hollywood would approach a superhero movie. Warner Bros quickly took to Nolan’s ideas and in 2003 hired him to direct the next chapter in the Batman franchise. His pitch was simple - take Batman back to his roots, make it grounded in realism and do what no other Batman film has done before: the origin story. However, he pitched his idea in 90 minutes. When WB first asked Nolan about Batman, he confessed he was not a comic book expert. Nolan was actually working on a completely different project at the time WB approached him - he was writing a Howard Hughes biopic - but as fate would have it, Martin Scorsese would end up making The Aviator, making room for Nolan to focus on something else. The film was a critical and box office success and it was around that time that WB was looking to finally bring Batman back to the silver screen. In 2002, Nolan directed the mid-size studio film Insomnia for Warner Bros. He was just coming off Memento, which pulverized the indie community and put Nolan on the map as an up-and-coming director to pay attention to. That filmmaker was Christopher Nolan, who was quickly establishing himself as an auteur filmmaker with a bright future. But it would take one filmmaker in particular to help Batman rise from the darkness.Ĭhristopher Nolan on set directing “Batman Begins”. In that time period, many filmmakers would try to resurrect the Dark Knight from its ember-filled grave: Darren Aronofsky, Boaz Yakin and even Joel Schumacher again. After the colossal failure of Batman & Robin, the Batman franchise would lay dormant for 8 years. The movie was a box office disappointment, was trashed by critics and ripped to shreds by fans, who left the theater upset and confused. Even to this day, most comic-book fans would agree there hasn’t been a more disappointing superhero movie. Then along came 1997’s Batman & Robin, directed by Joel Schumacher and starring George Clooney as the new Batman and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. It was just coming off 1995’s Batman Forever, which at the time was a big box office success and a hit with audiences. In the late 90’s, the Batman franchise was at an all-time high. With the fifteen year anniversary of Christopher Nolan’s seminal film this week, let’s take a look back at how Nolan - before he was the enormously successful filmmaker he is today - redefined Batman and the reboot. Before Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins, the future of Batman in live-action was uncertain. However, fifteen years ago things were completely different. In today’s movie climate, the term “reboot” is a word bandied about casually and Batman as a character and movie franchise is held in high regard. Christian Bale as Batman in 2005’s “Batman Begins”.įifteen years ago the state of the Batman franchise - and the movie industry - was in a much different place than it is now.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |