We now find ourselves a week away from the release of Christopher Nolan's final Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises. I, of course, could not be more excited. No seriously, I wish I could transport a week into the future to see this damn film already. But I digress. Of course with the release eminent, the online blogosphere has turned their attention to what comes next for Batman on film. Several sites have speculated about what we could expect from the next Batman film, others have offered up a list of things needed for any good reboot. I decided that I would throw in my own list of what I feel is absolutely necessary for any successful reboot of Batman. In the words of the immortal Joker, "And here we go!":
1) Cast a well known, highly regarded actor as Bruce Wayne/Batman.
Bruce Wayne is the foundation of any Batman film IMHO and therefore the actor playing him must be up to the task. I have heard names like Joshua Jackson, Taylor Kitsch, and others tossed around. May I submit my choice for the role-
Yes, that choice is Ryan Gosling. He is hugely popular right now and I feel he can actually act. He looks like Bruce and could portray the inner demons of Mr. Wayne quite well. Physically he looks the part as well. To me, he is the #1 choice for Bruce/Batman.
2) Do not revisit the origin again!
Listen WB, do not think that because of The Amazing Spiderman's success this past weekend that revisiting the origin of a character is the right choice. It really is not. Everyone knows Bruce's backstory. They know about his parent's murder, Bruce falling into the cave, the inspiration for Batman, etc, etc...
Rather, hit the ground running with your reboot. Have the story start with Bruce already Batman for a year or two. Don't waste alot of time showing Bruce with his parents at the theater and then in that fateful alleyway. The audience knows all that. Rather take more time exploring how an adult Bruce is dealing with the guilt and pain of his parents death. Show us his battle to prevent those feelings from strangling him emotionally and socially. That is the heart of Bruce Wayne, his battle to overcome the trauma of that night andcome to a point when he can let go. I would happily take more scenes of Bruce the businessman. Or of Bruce playing the many roles he has to play in order to maintain his the secret of his alter ego. The fine line between insanity and sanity that Bruce skates on is what makes him so interesting. Give us more of that struggle and less of Bruce as a child mourning.
So in summation: NO ORIGIN!
3) Tell an original story.
Now with that statement I am not implying at all that Mr. Nolan did not tell original stories with his Batman trilogy. Rather, I feel he did tell some damn compelling stories that featured equal amounts of originality and fidelity to the source material. That same mentality needs to continue in any rebooted series.
I am fine with the new rebooted film borrowing from the comics and some of the more well known stories, elements, settings, and characters found within the pages of the history of Batman comics. But also they should spin those elements in new directions. Make characters we know well make different choices than they did in the comics. Make their origins different, their look different.
For example, no one has told a good Riddler story, or an interesting Penguin one. Of course all this villain talk will be better addressed later in this post. But the main point I am making here and now is that the writers and director of the next Batman film should set out to make an interesting, original story with Batman. Don't rehash what Nolan did. Don't try and remake the Burton films. No, echo off of what has come before while also making your film distinctive and fresh. It can be done if those in charge of the reboot come to things with the right mindset and have a deep knowledge of Batman.
4) No Batnipples, Bat skates, butt shots, or camp of any and all kinds.
This one is an obvious one, but can we really trust that WB learned their lesson from Batman and Robin. I say perhaps, but we can't take it for granted.
Look, Nolan and Co. were able to successfully restore the Batman franchise to a position of respect and admiration when it comes to comic book movies. He and his team were able to get people to forget about Batman and Robin and embrace the serious, more reality based Batman world that they set out to create.
Now obviously any new film is going to be unable to use Nolan's Gotham literally. But that doesn't mean it cannot still retain the spirit of Nolan's Bat-films. I still believe any reboot should still take the source material seriously as Mr. Nolan did. Don't think by going camp that it suddenly makes the reboot better. It may make it different, but definitely not better.
You may be able to get away with some campy things in The Avengers. But Batman don't play that way, homie.
5) Add secondary characters that Nolan did not include.
I do feel that Nolan did a good job making his series feel definitive when it comes to Batman's rogues gallery. You had Ra's, Joker, Scarecrow, Catwoman, Two Face, and Bane. However, Nolan's series did not include a few pretty well known characters. Characters such as: Detective Bullock, Dick Grayson, and Harley Quinn. I especially would like to see Detective Bullock in any future Batman reboot. In the comics he added some humor to things and I especially like the way he and Batman interacted with one another.
I understand why Nolan did not include Dick Grayson in his series- He hates Robin. I can't disagree with that sentiment at all. I, too, am not the biggest fan of The Boy Wonder. However, if someone is able to offer up a compelling portrayal of both Dick Grayson and Robin, then I might change my mind on the character. Having played Arkham City I can say that I really did like the way they went with Robin. I would not be opposed to the rebooted Batfilm taking a similar approach to the character. I think there is something interesting in seeing Bruce train a young man to be his apprentice/sidekick. There are ways to make it less cheesy and more badass. I hope those in charge of the eventual reboot are smart enough to see that.
6) Pick a strong villain.
Yes, I did just write villain and not villains. It is important for any reboot to understand that loading up on the villains is not a sure way to success. Rather, take your time to introduce and fully develop just one villain. Perhaps choose a villain that is lesser known and perhaps one that was not given a really good portrayal in the film universe. This could apply to The Penguin, Riddler, or Mr. Freeze.
I personally would like a film with Freeze as the main villain. One that takes its time in showing the tragedy of his wife Nora and the aftermath for Victor. I am sorry but Schumacher's Freeze could not be more wrong. I would also love to see Guy Pierce in the role.
I mean seriously. He would kill in the role. But I digress...
7) Throw in elements from the larger DC universe.
I do believe that this is part of the plan for WB when it comes to this reboot. It was announced several months ago that WB was moving forward on a Justice League film. With that in mind, it seems logical that WB would use any rebooted Batman film to start to lay the groundwork for the eventual Justice League film. I mean Batman is their most popular DC character on film and will still be hugely popular with the general movie going audience after the final Nolan film is released. Why not use that character and his popularity to start to bring the DC universe together.
Like for example you could mention Lex Luthor as a corporate rival of Bruce Wayne. Or have Alfred mention Bruce returned from Metropolis. Lois Lane could be one of the reporters at a press conference, and ask Gordon a question. Wally West could breeze through Gotham. The possibilities are endless.
In addition this would make any new Batman film instantly different than its predecessors. With that said, I would advise careful planning and execution by those involved to make any universe building in a Batman film be done in the right way, a way that does not take away from Bruce Wayne and the city of Gotham.
8) Make Batman a true detective once again.
I do love the Nolan series of films, but one thing they never quite got right was the detective side of The Dark Knight. Sure, you could argue the sequence in The Dark Knight when Bruce lifted the fingerprint off the shattered bullet was classic Dark Knight Detective. But I say it only went halfway and seemed to be thrown in as a way of saying "Hey, look see we did acknowledge his detective skills!". But honestly it wasn't enough.
When I read Batman comics growing up I always felt Bruce was the smartest guy in the room. He was smarter than the police and smarter than the criminals. He used his mind just as much as he used his brawn to stop the plans of criminals and supervillans alike. That was one of the things I loved about this character. He wasn't just a brute force, deterring crime with his fists. Batman showed that deductive reasoning is just as important. It showed me as a kid that if I used my mind that I too could make a difference.
The team behind the reboot need to understand this. They need to work to show Bruce using his extraordinary intellect, coupled with the tools he has access to, in order to discover and defeat the plans of the villain he faces. Nolan's Batman often times just reacted to the villains plans and seemed a few steps behind even (cue The Dark Knight). Now as I said I love the Nolan films. But I just want any rebooted film to embrace that one aspect of Batman's persona that Nolan missed.
Make the next film with this character one which is basically a detective story, with a detective who wears a bat suit.
9) Retain Nolan's "real stakes" attitude.
What does that mean exactly? Well it means that what happens in the film can cause real change for the characters. It means that no one is safe and any character can potentially die. I admired Nolan's brazen attitude in this regard. His belief that Batman's war on crime was going to put those he loved in danger. I think it was brave of him to kill Rachel. As I will equally admire him if he kills The Dark Knight himself in his final film.
Plus Nolan had the events of one film carry over to the next. There was a real sense of continuity in the series and it made for a very nice cohesive bond to be formed between the three films (note: I have not seen The Dark Knight Rises yet, will do exactly one week from the moment I am typing this.).
The new team behind the reboot cannot be afraid to kill a character or have the choices made by the Batman and others bleed into future films. Don't treat Batman like Bond with each film its own story. No, I feel it is far preferable to have things carry over film to film and create that same sense of continuity that Nolan did.
10) Make it fun!
Christopher Nolan has dark and gritty down to a science now. But that doesn't mean that dark and gritty is all the Batman is capable of on film. I think you can add some humor to a Batman film. You can certainly make it fun and exciting as well. You can even add some sense of dashing adventure, reminscent of old serial films or pulp heroes like Zorro, Robin Hood, etc.
The point is that the makers of the reboot need to instill that same sense of excitement to this film that you could find as a child reading Batman comics. Now am I saying they should make this new film cartoony like the 1960's Batman series? No, not at all. The best way I can describe it is to use the ending of Tim Burton's Batman. Nicholson's Joker is poisoning the people of Gotham and here comes Batman in the Batwing to stop him. I remember when I first saw that how excited I was to see Batman getting ready to take the Joker down, it reminded me of scenes in the comics where Batman is busting through windows, larger than life.
That is what I am talking about. Those great moments where you sit up alittle more in your chair and really can't wait to see what Batman is going to do next. I miss that sometimes and haven't quite been able to recapture that feeling with Nolan's films.
And that is all folks. These are just the 10 suggestions I could think of off the top of my head. I think it is a solid list and I, for one, would be thrilled if WB and DC did even half of these things when if comes to the eventual reboot.
I love Batman on film and will continue to support it as long as those in charge continue to make exciting, compelling, dramatic, and ultimately entertaining films with The Dark Knight. And with that I am off to bed. 7 days to go until I see The Dark Knight Rises! Can. Not. Wait.
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