Note: This piece was originally published in June 2019, but with the shocking news that Michael Keaton is in talks to reprise his role as Batman in 2022’s The Flash, we figured it deserved another look.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
It’s been 31 years since Tim Burton’s Batman hit theaters and showed the world a wholly different vision of the Caped Crusader than the one made famous by Adam West. The 1989 Batman’s legacy is hard to overstate. The film’s release and the ensuing “Batmania” served as a taste of things to come for our superhero movie-obsessed culture. The tone, aesthetic and music directly paved the way for Batman: The Animated Series. But there’s one thing a lot of moviegoers seem to forget. As much as Jack Nicholson’s Joker tended to dominate the conversation then and now, Michael Keaton is the true unsung hero of Batman. 31 years later, his is still the best live-action Batman of them all.
It’s understandable why Nicholson’s Joker has always hogged the spotlight. He was the A-List talent Warner Bros. needed to sell moviegoers dubious about a cinematic reboot handled by the director and star of Beetlejuice. In fact, the studio was so desperate to land Nicholson they wound up agreeing to one of the most ridiculously lucrative contracts of all time. And by his very nature, the flamboyant, scenery-chewing Joker is always going to steal the show from a grumpy, soft-spoken man in a black costume.
Rewatching Michael Keaton’s Batman
But the more you rewatch this movie, the more it becomes apparent just how much Keaton is bringing to the table and how well he brings the Batman role to life. Sure, he doesn’t have the sheer physical size or muscle mass we’ve come to expect from our contemporary Batman. The restrictive rubber costume prevents all but the most rudimentary fight sequences. But in a way, that wound up playing in Keaton’s favor. Because he couldn’t easily move in the suit, Keaton was forced to play Batman as a brutally efficient fighter. Between backhanding escaping criminals in the Axis chemical plant and dropping Joker’s goons with one well-placed kick, this Batman is one with no time to waste showing off.
To his credit, Keaton seemed to have the right instincts for this vision of Batman, specifically altering and cutting his character’s dialogue on Batman and Batman Returns so that the Dark Knight never minced words unnecessarily. “My version of the script had more a lot more Batman and Bruce Wayne speeches [sic],” Batman Returns screenwriter Daniel Waters told The Hollywood Reporter. “Michael Keaton would go through the script and say, ‘Hey, that’s a great line, but you gotta cut it. This is a good speech, but you gotta take it out.’ He wanted to have very minimal dialogue, especially in the Batsuit. When I saw the final film, I realized he was exactly right.”
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=actors-who-almost-played-batman&captions=true”]
Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne
Ultimately, though, it’s the Bruce Wayne persona where Keaton’s performance truly stands the test of time. Keaton has a unique way of channeling the pain and loss fueling this orphaned millionaire vigilante. Keaton’s Bruce often seems lost and detached, like he’s never fully mentally present in any given scene. You can see it in the absent-minded way he takes a glass of champagne and then leaves it for Alfred to clean up during the Wayne Manor party. You can see it in the way he’s often staring off into the distance, reflecting on the past or obsessing over Vicki Vale. You can see it during his first dinner date with Vicki, where he seems completely uncomfortable in the guise of rich playboy, retreating to the comforting solace of Alfred’s kitchen. At times, Keaton’s Bruce doesn’t seem like a driven superhero so much as a lost, wounded boy still trying to understand why the world has wronged him.
At other times, Keaton’s Bruce comes across as eccentric and even dangerous, not so far removed from the Joker himself. The most obvious example of this would be the iconic “You wanna get nuts?!? Let’s get nuts!” confrontation. But there are other, quieter moments. In the scene where Bruce and Vicki sleep together for the first time, Bruce wakes up in the middle of the night so he can sleep suspended upside down, like an actual bat. Is there a valid reason for him to be so committed to the Batman persona, or is he really just that weird? Rather than telling a complete origin story, Batman settles for revealing tidbits about his past and training methods and leaves the rest a compelling mystery.
Then there’s Keaton’s most enduring contribution to the Batman role. It was he who popularized the trend of Bruce Wayne and Batman having very distinct voices. And with the exception of voice actor Kevin Conroy, no one handles the Bruce/Batman vocal divide better than Keaton. You can actually believe the citizens of Gotham wouldn’t recognize famous playboy Bruce Wayne under the mask. And best of all, Keaton’s Batman voice is achieved without the cartoonish distortion effects that are such a hallmark of the more recent movies.
[ignvideo url=”https://www.ign.com/videos/2015/08/19/history-of-awesome-tim-burtons-batman”]
Robert Pattinson’s Batman
He may be short, and he may be a little too prone to acts of reckless manslaughter, but Michael Keaton’s Batman is still the most satisfying and well-rounded version of the hero we’ve yet seen in live-action. Robert Pattinson has a tall order to fill if he hopes to claim that crown for himself.
[poilib element=”accentDivider”]
Jesse is a mild-mannered writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.
Source: IGN.com 31 Years Later, Michael Keaton's Batman Is Still the Best