Ever sinceBatman & Robinfaced off against Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy back in 1997, there has been a strict embargo on fun live-action adaptations of the classic DC superhero. The scale had tipped too far into silliness, and fun has been forbidden in theBatmanfranchise for twenty-five years now. While there is no sign of a funBatmanbeing released from the Warner Bros. jail of ideas (outside of animation and LEGO adaptations), some fans have caught on to a few subtle fun cues that may have slipped by executives in this most recent film adaptation.
While Matt Reeves’The Batmanis certainly a dark and brooding film per usual, there are quaint artistic choices that signal the old-fashionedBatmanfun wants out again. For one, the cinematography is far more stylized. Mixing London into the Chicago locations added a more gothic feel to the environments, hearkening back to the Tim Burton vibe. Also slipping in a few clandestine fun cues was composer Michael Giacchino. The music shift represents the most blatant adjustment back into Burton territory, with Giacchino not shying away from Danny Elfman-style cues. The composer’s previous films are also very theme heavy with a number of Pixar films,Spider-Man, andStar Warscompositions under his belt. While that Elfman theme never made its way out, it clearly wanted to. Giacchino even brought out a beautiful gothic melody hiding in Nirvana’s “Something in the Way,“a song title that speaks volumes to the issue at hand.
Perhaps most telling was the popular Corridor YouTube channel being inspired to re-skin Robert Pattinson with Adam West’s Batman. While the stunt was done for views and laughs, some fans felt the correct Batman tone was inadvertently revealed by the move. Considering how closely Hollywood pays attention to online culture and how quickly they are to react and adapt mass viral demands into their pipeline, be it correct or not, we may see the next Robert Pattinson film get a little more colorful.
Let’s now take a look at what is in the way of Batman becoming fun again and how a sequel may continue to clear a path for this inevitable joyous return to form.
Fun Batman Wants Out
2019’sJokerreinforced the brand’s place in a doom and gloom realm of depression and anxiety that may have resulted from traversing the internet’s darkest corners as a form of market research. If the web serves as Hollywood’s primary source for informing the direction they should be pushingBatmanto best resonate with the masses, it is likely we can expect more utterly depressing installments. Stripped of its color and flair, Mr. Freeze is simply a barely-clothed transient, freezing to the brink of villainous insanity on the cold winter streets of Gotham. Poison Ivy is an addict who went down the rabbit hole of gateway drugs beyond the point of no return. Clay Face is surely a cannibal who bathes in mud and drinks children’s blood. While all of this reinforces the current trajectory of the brand, it is also possible we have exhausted the dark tone ofBatmancinema, and deep down, everyone knows it.
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Zack Snyder’sJustice Leagueis also a great example of the tonal struggle at hand and may serve as litmus for the direction of the nextBatmanfilm. The theatrical cut featured a Danny Elfman score that paid homage to John Williams’Supermantheme and Elfman’s ownBatmanwork, which remains the most memorable and iconic of allBatmanthemes. While theSnyder Cutgave audiences a more fleshed-out cosmic struggle involving the iconic villain Darkseid, both cuts seemed to struggle with maintaining an overtly dark tone for the insanely colorful DC universe.
Marvel is Doing Just Fine
While Marvel seems to have no problem finding a perfect tonal balance between light and dark tones, DC continues to struggle with its most popular franchises. Currently, there are no details confirmed about a sequel toThe Batman, but during the Las Vegas CinemaCon presentation, Warner divulged a follow-up was happening. It is possible that DC and Warner will come to terms with a more light-hearted approach to the DC universe moving forward. Either that or we are seeing a specific strategy unfold where the studio is picking and choosing exactly which properties get to be fun and which ones do not.
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After all,Green Lantern,Aquaman, andShazamwere a blast. On that same note,The Suicide Squad,Birds of Prey, andWatchmenseem to attempt to walk a fine line between light-hearted comic book fun and gloomy despair. Perhaps it is time to allow Batman to walk that tight rope again.
