"You ever dance with the devil in the pale moonlight?"

BATMANIA- (Noun)

A mental disease causing one to constantly obsess over Batman, being Batman, or anything involved with the Batman mythos. 

In 1988 (great year, by the way) and 1989, America was engulfed in the nation’s second bout of Batmania, the first being in the late 60’s as a result of the wildly popular television series starring Adam West and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin.  The culprit, this time around, was the highly anticipated feature film simply titled Batman.  With Michael Keaton (Mr. Mom, Beetlejuice) donning the cowl and Tim Burton (also Beetlejuice) behind the camera, the film was poised to be one of the biggest movies of all time.  Filmmaker and comic book writer Kevin Smith remembers:

"That summer was huge. You couldn't turn around without seeing the Bat-Signal somewhere.  People were cutting it into their fucking heads.  It was just the summer of Batman and if you were a comic book fan it was pretty hot."

But things weren’t always so optimistic.

In the late 1970s, the plan was to produce a film titled Batman In Space, potentially seeing West and Ward returning to the roles of the Dynamic Duo.  However, before any work was done on the project, film producers Michael Uslan and Benjamin Melniker purchased the film rights to the Batman franchise from DC Comics.  With several script versions being turned down by major studios such as United Artists and Columbia Pictures, Uslan and Melniker’s darker, serious take on the Caped Crusader was without a home.  This was due to studios believing that audiences wanted something similar in style to the campiness of the 60s television series.

More script versions were written, including one by Uslan himself titled Return of the Batman, but still no one in Hollywood wished to take part.  That is, until Warner Bros. (who are, strangely enough, the parent company of DC Comics, but due to the film rights for the Batman franchise being sold in 1979, the Warners had no involvement until the early 80s) stepped in.  Several versions of the film began pre-production, but were axed for various reasons.  Originally, the film would be titled The Batman and would focus on the origins of Dick Grayson as Robin, with The Joker and a gangster with comic history named Rupert Thorne as the villains, and another comic character named Silver St. Cloud as Bruce Wayne’s love interest.  The intent was for unknown actors in the roles of Batman and Robin and established American actor William Holden James Gordon and British actor David Niven as Alfred Pennyworth.  Before filming began, both Holden and Niven passed away, leading to another halt in production.  The next major iteration of the film would see Bill Murray (KCCO) and Eddie Murphy (yes, that Eddie Murphy) as Batman and Robin, but for reasons of which I am not fully clear, this version never came to pass.

This was almost a thing.

Then 1985 happened.  Why is that year so important?  First, The Dark Knight Returns, a seminal work by Frank Miller, was released.  Depicting an aged Bruce Wayne coming out of retirement to once again become Batman, TDKR is regarded by many as the greatest Batman story of all time.  The second reason being that ’85 was the year Pee-wee's Big Adventure hit theatres.  Due to the success of that film, Warner Bros. hired Tim Burton, who at the time had only done that movie and was in preparing to film Beetlejuice.  Burton and his girlfriend at the time, Julie Hickson, wrote a film treatment inspired by the tone and feel of The Dark Knight Returns and the newly released comic, The Killing Joke.  Long time comic writer, Steve Englehart joined the project to help write a full script keeping most of the previous version intact: Robin’s origins, Joker/Thorne as villains, and Silver St. Cloud.  A subsequent rewrite omitted Robin entirely, with the thought process being that too many characters were present.  One final overhaul of the scripted happened, this time by a screenwriter named Sam Hamm.  Hamm’s contributions included changing the characters of Silver St. Cloud and Rupert Thorne to Vicki Vale (a mainstay in Batman comics) and Carl Grissom (an original creation, ultimately played by the amazingly talented Jack Palance in the film).  But Hamm’s main alteration was the idea of NOT showing Batman’s origin other than through flashbacks.  This concept, I love.  I cannot tell you how exhausted I am of origin stories in superhero films and television.

The comic that changed it all.

Burton and company patterned the casting of the Superman film when looking to cast the main roles in the film.  Top names like Mel Gibson, Kevin Costner, and Tom Selleck were considered for the role of Batman and, on the “holy crap, they’d be perfect” list for The Joker were names like Tim Curry, Willem Dafoe, and David Bowie.  Ultimately, Burton’s casting of Michael Keaton led to a backlash among comic fans, which is uncharacteristic for that particular fan base (#SARCASM).  The role of The Joker went to Jack Nicholson.  With two Academy Awards and four Golden Globes, as well as a bevy of nominations, under his belt, Nicholson’s casting came at a cost.  Namely, a ridiculous contact that specified the number of hours he was entitled to have off each day, being off for Los Angeles Lakers home games, having all of his scenes shot in a three-week block (that one ended up not happening, as his shooting schedule lasted about 100 days), a $6 million salary as well as a large percentage of the box office gross.  To top it all off, Nicholson had top billing for the film.  In layman’s terms, that means that his name appeared before that of Keaton’s on all promotional material for the film including posters and home video box art.

"The movie is called Batman.  Who's name should go first, the guy playing BATMAN?  Nah...

Batman opened on June 23, 1989, grossing $43.6 million during its opening weekend, smashing the opening weekend record, set by Ghostbusters II just one week earlier, with $29.4 million.  Batman would eventually gross upwards of $411 million worldwide. 

A Duo of a different Dynamic.

There’s not a lot I don’t like about this movie, but there are several that I downright hate.  For example, Batman KILLS SEVERAL PEOPLE INCLUDING THE JOKER.  I’m not even going to explain why I hate that.

Commissioner Gordon is a dope.  Joker kills Batman’s parents (“small world syndrome” is lazy writing).  I’ve never been a big fan of the all black costume, however, I do like the Bat-symbol and its use in marketing.  Comic writer Grant Morrison brought the use of that particular symbol back about twenty years after the release of the film during his writing of a new comic series titled Batman, Incorporated, a series about the “franchising” of the Batman name:

“I was looking back at the old Tim Burton Batman movie in 1989, and the way they played that symbol, it was such a major merchandising tool.  So I wanted to do something that represented that, or echoed that.  So Batman, Inc. is the notion of Batman taking the symbol and saying, 'let's form an international army or team, or police force, which is endorsed by Batman and wears Batman's symbol.'”

Morrison and artist David Finch bring back the iconic black and yellow oval.

Among my favorite things about this movie are:

The Batmobile, designed by Anton Furst.

This shot of the Batwing, evoking the look of the Bat-symbol.

"He stole my balloons!"

The toys.  My God, the toys.

Bob the Goon doesn't get nearly the credit he deserves.  At least he got an action figure.

Prince.  And to a greater extent, Danny Elfman’s score.

Nothing says "This Batman movie was made in the 80s" like Prince on the soundtrack.

The two greatest things to come from this movie, in my opinion, are the fact that this movie led to the creation of not only a sequel, Batman Returns, but also the launch of Batman: The Animated Series, of which I’ve written at length.  Batmania began in the 60s.  It saw resurgence in the late 80s because of this movie.  And it’s alive and well today and has no sign of going away.  They hated the idea of Keaton, so I don’t think you have anything to worry about, Ben.

Thanks for reading!

-Josh

Sources: excerpts from primary source interviews; Wikipedia; Smodcast.com

Batman, related characters, and images in this blog are owned and trademarked by DC Comics, a division or Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.

There Will Be Light

“Ugh.”

My leading thought every time someone asked me my opinion on the upcoming premiere of Gotham, the Jim Gordon-centric, Batman prequel that is now…  28 hours old.

 

Gotham title card

When first announced, Gotham was to be a Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) focused show that took place after Bruce Wayne had donned the cape and cowl.  I was stoked.  Like through the roof.  It was to be reminiscent of a comic series titled Gotham Central, written by Ed Brubaker & Greg Rucka. It makes sense, right?  Batman deals with Two-Face and Ra’s al Ghul while Gordon and the crew handle the small-time stuff (i.e. regular criminals, mafia, less grandiose super-villains like  Ratcatcher, Cluemaster, or the Ten-Eyed Man (yes, those are all real villains.  Also, can I use parenthesis inside parenthesis? Well, I just did.).)  I could not wait.

 

Gotham Central #1

Then it was announced that the show was to be set in a pre-Batman Gotham City.  My only problem with that is it ruins the Year One version of Jim Gordon’s backstory that I personally prefer.  In the 1987, Frank Miller written story Batman: Year One, the Dark Knight’s first calendar year as Batman is retold.  Equally, or perhaps even more so, the story tells Gordon’s origin literally from the time he comes to Gotham City, having transferred from Chicago, and joining the police force.  Bruce becoming Batman and Jim Gordon coming to Gotham City occur concurrently, which is the way I prefer it to be, but it seemed, at the time, that Gotham would take the Nolan-inspired version from Batman Begins-The Dark Knight-The Dark Knight Rises of having Gordon around when (literally, like at the crime scene) Thomas and Martha Wayne are gunned down.  Which is fine.  I guess.

 

Jim Gordon comforts young Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins

Then, it changed again.  Not only was this going to now be a prequel, but 8(ish)-year-old Bruce Wayne was going to be a recurring/main character?  I can’t hang with that.  I mean, how stupid?  Anakin Skywalker built C-3PO/Obi-Wan doesn’t remember having owned any droids/Jar Jar Binks levels of stupid.  So, I shut down and stopped caring about the show.  I didn’t watch trailers, I didn’t read (very many) articles, nothing.  I.  Did.  Not.  Care.  And I’d like to add that I’m not typically one of those guys.  You know, the ones that nitpick everything that is different from the comics and the movies/television shows.  I actually hate it when people do that.  But, I always said I’d at least give it a try.  So the premiere was last night and, due to a heavy schedule, I didn’t get to watch it until tonight.

I’d like to take a quick break so everyone who knows me personally can go grab a calendar.  Got one?  Great.  Now get a highlighter or a felt pen or something.  Okay, ready?  Find September 23^rd, 2014.  Circle it, highlight it, draw a unicorn, just do something to signify the date.  Okay.  Here goes:

 

I WAS WRONG.

You’ll likely never hear me say that again, so take it for what it’s worth.  On to the show.

Despite everything I’ve said to this point, I tried my best to go into the show with an open mind.  I caught myself at times being harsher than I needed to be, but that’s just kind of how it is sometimes.  I don’t want to go too spoiler heavy (if Bruce Wayne’s parents getting killed is a “spoiler” to you, please never speak to me again), so I’ll just graze over some of the key points in a very “stream of consciousness” way:

Fish Mooney, a mid-level mob boss portrayed by Jada Pinkett Smith, is not a character adapted from comics, but is an original to the show.  Similar to Daryl Dixon of Walking Dead fame, Mooney has the potential to be a breakout character simply due to not being tied to any particular destiny as the rest of the characters on the show are.

 

The newest addition to the Batman universe, Fish Mooney

I’ll chalk this up to not inundating myself with information on the show prior to watching, but I had no idea Carmine Falcone (pronounced “fal-kone-E”, not “fal-kone” as they were in the show) was going to be in the show.  Falcone will, seemingly, serve as the “Big Bad” of the show for at least the foreseeable future.  Similarly, the appearance of GCPD Detectives Renee Montoya and Crispus Allen, who have a tenuous working relationship with Gordon’s partner, Harvey Bullock, was a pleasant surprise.  Also, Montoya and Jim Gordon’s fiancée Barbara (that’s Batgirl’s mom for those keeping score) seem to have a past of a… Romantic nature.

 

Detectives Crispus Allen & Renee Montoya on Gotham

Compared to their comic counterparts

Villains galore.  Oswald “Penguin” Cobblepot as Fish Mooney’s lackey/umbrella holder/foot massager.  I believe Robin Lord Taylor will bring a “love to hate him” feel to the character.  Edward Nygma (AKA The Riddler) as a forensic something-or-other in the GCPD.  Cool little cameo in the first episode that saw one of his riddles shut down immediately by Jim Gordon much to Nygma’s chagrin.  “Ivy Pepper” who is clearly based on Poison Ivy.  Dumb and I don’t even want to go into it.  Selina “Catwoman” Kyle.  She’s actually the first character we see on the show.  Young Ms. Kyle goes from jumping from rooftops and stealing milk and wallets to witnessing the crime of the century (at least where Gothamites are concerned) in the murder of the Waynes.  She also reappears at the funeral and again at Wayne Manor at the end of the episode.  Next week’s episode is actually titled “Selina Kyle”, so we’ll no doubt get some backstory on the future Catwoman.

 

Slightly stalker-ish pre-Catwoman

Oh, and the guy giving a private stand-up comedy routine for Fish Mooney in her club?  This guy?

 

Joseph Kerr

Yeah, that’s the f***ing Joker.

I’m not sold on Alfred yet.  The actor (Sean Pertwee) did a great job, and he got a laugh out of me in one particular scene, but I may just need to see more of the character to become a fan.  Also, although Pertwee's isn't as overt, Alfred is not supposed to have a Cockney accent.  Michael Caine (who beautifully portrayed everyone’s favorite butler in the Dark Knight Trilogy) is the exception, not the rule.

 

Mr. Pennyworth

The scene with the Wayne’s murder, followed up by the scene with Bruce and Jim Gordon, moved me to tears.  Don’t know why, I guess the stars were aligned or something.  It was truly the best interpretation of the inciting moment of Batman’s career that has ever been put on screen.  Also, Bruce shows his inherent detective skills from the get-go as he provides Gordon with some clues to the identity of the killer.

 

An iconic image

The premiere pulled a 3.2 Nielsen Rating, which is not exactly Walking Dead numbers, but it’s nothing to sneeze at, especially for a network (as compared to cable) show.  The only programs to do better Monday night were the Bears/Jets Monday Night Football game (5.2) and the season premiere of The Big Bang Theory with an outstanding 5.4 Nielsen Rating.  I think the real indicator will be how Gotham fares next week after the premiere buzz has faded away.

All in all, I thought the show was good, the pros outweighed the cons, and my interest has been piqued, so I will be tuning in next week.

Thanks for reading!

-Josh

Sources: excerpts from primary source interviews; Wikipedia; Nielsen.com

Batman, related characters, and images in this blog are owned and trademarked by DC Comics, a division or Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.

A Goal Without a Plan is Just a Wish

Film-making is hard.  Just in its basest form, professional film-making is really, really difficult.  Compound that by having a vision for something that goes beyond picking up a digital camera on the Blue Light Special at Kmart for $149.95, filming your friends (who are not actors) without sets or costumes, and having a “screening” in your living room for seven people and you’ve got yourself nothing but stress.  Stress and a story to tell, that is.

I started writing a screenplay a few years ago.  I would write intensely for days or weeks, creating scenes and plot developments, and then I’d leave it for months.  This cycle repeated itself since then.  I have literally worked on this from February 2009, with massive gaps between stints, until about five minutes ago.  I’ve called myself a writer for the longest time, but I’ve never really felt like it.  I mean, I guess the definition of “being a writer” is that you write things and, in that sense, I do and I am.  But, my theory is that you aren’t really a thing until you succeed at that thing.  So, I made the effort to go from the guy that Stewie Griffin would make fun of (“Got a, got a nice little story you're working on there?”) to actually finishing the screenplay and moving the project forward.

 

So many rewritten scenes

More so than writing (but less than Batman, who is typically the subject of this blog), a large interest and passion of mine is the art of film-making and the film industry as a whole.  Anyone who has ever watched a movie with me in my home has probably had to sit through me watching each and every Special Feature on the Bluray immediately after the movie is over.  That or re-watching it with the Director’s Commentary turned on.  I can’t help it!  The process, from scripting, casting, and pre-production to principal photography, re-shoots, and post-production and editing, is all so fascinating.

In reality, wanting to (and having to, if we’re being honest) be Writer, Director, and Producer on my film will help the film-making process in the long run.  It will just mean switching hats all the time.  During the writing process in these last couple of months, I’ve been stuck in director mode.  “How will I be able to get that shot?” “That scene needs less dialogue.”  These are the things that have littered my thoughts at all the wrong times.  When I should be focusing on what Character X needs to say to get his point across in a particular scene, I’m thinking about which camera or editing software I want to use.  I’m sure when I’ll need to be giving direction to an actor on set, I’ll be second guessing scene placement, but I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

The role that runs throughout the project, from concept to filming to editing and beyond is that of the Producer.  For those that aren’t entirely sure, the producer of a movie can be summed up in one line:  They make it happen.  Director wants a particular location for a shot, producer makes it happen.  The studio needs to cut the budget by a small margin, the producer makes it happen (without the quality suffering).  And, with the writing process (pretty much) complete, the tasks of creating a shooting schedule, making a budget, and finding actors begins.  Oh, and finding money to make this all happen.

Ultimately, the goal is to have this film prepared for screening(s) in Tulsa in Autumn 2015.  A lofty goal, I know, but “a goal without a plan is just a wish.”

I appreciate any and all support (moral or otherwise).

Thanks!

-Josh

P.S. Yes, I made a Family Guy reference.  Deal with it.