Dispelling Myths: Comic Book Elements In Batman Begins

There are those who believe that The Dark Knight Trilogy are “good films but bad comic book movies.” I heavily disagree with the latter part of that statement. Going through each movie from start to finish, I hope to show that Nolan and co. were not afraid to embrace the comics just because he chose a grounded, heightened realism approach. Furthermore, maybe this series will show just how good of an adaptation the trilogy is.

1. Young Bruce crashing through a boarded up well where bats swarm him (pre death of parents).

2. Bruce being plagued by PTSD nightmares and memories.

3. Creative liberty: Ducard persona gets used as the mentor figure while the revealed Ra’s persona is made the unwanted adversary. This melding of two characters honors both of their relationships with Bruce and highlights their similarities.

4. Physical and tactical training occurs somewhere in the East. The major goal for Bruce besides bettering himself is gaining an understanding of the criminal mind.

5. Bruce knows several martial arts. Creative Liberty: The stunt team mainly just showcase Keysi during the trilogy.

6. The high prevalence of Fear both as a major story theme but also in the inception of the Batman persona.

7. Thomas Wayne’s career as a doctor, and his removed involvement in Wayne Ent.

8. Death of his parents by Joe Chill in an alley. Their murder goes with the more traditional random crime. Bonus: The pearls get scattered.

9. The use of Commissioner Loeb and Detective Flass as corrupt foils for Gordon.

10. Nolan’s Alfred takes on the more paternal characterization of Alfred, which isn’t the most popular version in comi but is still there.

11. Tenants of ninjitsu taught to Bruce as well as weapons training. Bonus: Gets to sword duel Ra’s.

12. The theme of Justice vs Vengeance in Batman’s Crusade. It is of the utmost importance in maintaining his moral superiority over many of his villains.

13. The importance of the Wayne Legacy.

14. Bruce Wayne may think himself to be a loner, but he is never truly alone. Alfred is the big reminder of that.

15. Begins captures the look of Gotham best out of the trilogy. The seedy underbelly is nicely shown by The Docks and The Narrows. Steam rises from the streets. Poverty breeds crime.

16. The utter control Falcone has in Gotham pre-Batman is very true to the comics. This also spins off into showing the vast corruption in Gotham that necessitates a figure such as Batman.

17. Bruce is shown to know more than just English. Although, I do feel this (like his fighting prowess) should’ve been shown entirely more.

18. Did I mention how much Bruce’s phobia of bats comes into play in this movie?

19. Creative Liberty: Bruce Wayne’s no kill code is anchored in not being an executioner rather than trying to be incapable of taking any life.

20. Tactical Mind: His idea to slice arms to mimic his wound in order to pass the final test and using the environment to create an escape from the League.

21. His compassion for his enemies and how that allows them to keep coming back against him/Gotham is shown to Ducard/Ra’s.

22. At 41min, we learn of Thomas Wayne’s altruism through Wayne Ent. and how that nearly bankrupted the company. In Rises we learn that Bruce has similarly done so through various charities and a clean energy project. Comics Thomas and Bruce similarly funded projects in Gotham in effort to better the city.

23. In this same scene in the plane ride back to Gotham, Nolan showcases a great understanding of Bruce/Batman by having Bale deliver his ethos to Alfred and therefore the audience.

24. Alfred is part of establishing the guidelines for Batman.

25. The movie shows Jonathan Crane’s role as a respected psychiatrist connected to Arkham Asylum prior to his super villainy. Also, it is revealed that he possessed the biochemical prowess to create the fear toxin himself.

26. The extensive underground caves beneath Wayne Manor that become used as the Batcave are full comics. Bonus: They also use this as an opportunity to once again bolster up the Wayne Legacy (Underground Railroad reference by Alfred).

27. Bruce’s control over his fear begins to show his trained mental fortitude.

28. The iconography of Wayne Tower in the Gotham skyline.

29. The boardroom scene at 47min introduces the ethical quarries of heavy arms manufacturing in Wayne Ent. Bruce in the comics steers his company away from certain trappings as well. But the focus on R&D and the theme of “one man’s tool is another man’s weapon” is also recurring in comics. Bonus: Board members become recurring characters and board scenes are in each film.

30. Tactical and Business Mind: Bruce plays the fool which allows him to buy out enough public

shares to gain back control of his company without arousing suspicion.

31. Lucius Fox gets to be showcased well in the trilogy. Not only do they show him to be an accomplished engineer and developer but also maintains his business stature. Creative Liberty: Nolan ups Fox’s and downs Bruce’s gadgets/suits/vehicle development in order to be more grounded.

32. The creation of the batsuit. Nolan’s Bruce takes a prototype armored wetsuit and adds: a latex spray paint that hides his heat signature; his League of Shadows gauntlets; a tactical belt used in junction with a grappling gun, taking the weight of his body and suit off solely one shoulder and distributing it to his core - he also magnetically attaches other gadgets to it; a self-designed cowl/helmet with hearing devices in the ears - also there is a sinister scowl; a prototype BLANK fabric self-shaped into his cape, making him capable of gliding. Despite Bruce not designing every part from scratch, which I do not believe is even canon at all, he does heavily modify each aspect. Additionally, he adds the bat symbol and aesthetically veers it into something to fear. Bonus: There is a proto-batsuit that informs the fully realized suit. Bonus Bonus: He gets two different bat symbols.

33. They do at first put Gordon against Batman, and the GCPD against Batman, but Nolan does get to the working relationship between the two allies by the midpoint of the film.

34. Gadgetry: He gets the aforementioned gas-powered grappling gun, electric gloves that in tandem with the cape allow it to glide, smoke pellets, hand-thrown mines, self-made batarangs, a parascope with optics, and a sonic device that attracts bats (featured similarly to Year One).

35. The Batmobile: The Tumbler is a real working vehicle that the stuntmen were unable to flip during filming. It has a specially designed front two wheels that are not connected together. That allows one tire to stop while the other continues to spin allowing for sharper turns on this mammoth of a car. The multifunctionality, engineering, and defensive/offensive capability definitely makes this a Batmobile. I’d argue that the windshield and the plate layout invokes bat imagery as much as the suit (without the symbol) does. In fact, bat iconography on the Batmobile was a late addition to the vehicle in comics, and it is not always drawn to have it either. Bonus: The Tumbler has been drawn into a couple comics now.

36. Bruce/Batman performing surveillance on the streets.

37. Testing of equipment.

38. The use of shell companies and other precautions to distance Batman from

private/business Bruce Wayne.

39. Batman intervenes on a drug shipment. 1) This has Batman at his street level heroics before getting into “save the city” stuff. 2) It has him targeting Falcone as his first and primary target, ala Year One again.

40. Also at an hour in, we see Batman in full costume picking apart a group of thugs while moving around in the shadows. We see from their perspective of fearsome Batman can be. Bonus: He employs batarangs and his grappling gun a lot.

41. “I’m Batman.” Nuff said.

42. Batman appears out of nowhere to save Rachel (he already is aware of the plot to kill her from earlier surveillance). He quickly dispatches one criminal which causes the other to run away in fear. Bonus: His suit is taser proof. Bonus Bonus: Bat-pose. Bonus Bonus Bonus: Ability to suddenly vanish.

43. Batman works with both the police and DA’s office in effort to take down organized crime.

44. Stands like gargoyle looking over Gotham.

45. Loeb is against Batman, and not for noble reasons.

46. The creation of a public persona to distance Bruce Wayne from Batman. Bonus: Fast cars, fast women, and feaux drunkenness.

47. Crane’s mask is Scarecrow based and even had a noose. Bonus: The mask filters out his fear toxin.

48. At 1hr 14min, Batman hangs dirty cop Flass high up via grappling hook in the rain and interrogates him until satisfied.

49. Gotham is so corrupt a policeman will perform a hit on the DA.

50. 1hr 17min: Batman crouches into the shadow before his silhouette rises behind Crane and thugs. He dispatches of the one who separated himself before he gets the second thug.

51. The fear toxin makes him hallucinate bats in his immediate environment and brings up past traumas.

52. Batman manages to escape and get to safety despite being impaired. Bonus: Alfred comes and rescues him; in the comics, Alfred and other members of the Batfamily have had to do the same for a physically/psychologically hurt Bruce.

53. Secret entrance to the Batcave.

54. Arkham Asylum is used, and it does look like a place where the sick do not get better. Creative Liberty: It is placed on an island like it’s comic counterpart, however in the movie it is part of the Narrows instead of being isolated. Also it’s gothic design is not as pronounced.

55. 1hr 27min: Batman builds up the fear in a room full of armed thugs before striking. Bonus: Batman makes Crane succumb to his own gas.

56. Have I mentioned long, billowy cape?

57. Creative Liberty: Instead of having Batman fight SWAT and use the sonic device in the car chase like in Year One, Nolan uses it to keep him out of a physical altercation and gives the Tumbler a stealth mode to escape the chase.

58. Batman is a skilled defensive driver. Bonus: All the buttons in the Tumbler.

59. Creative Liberty: This Batman doesn’t run on rooftops (although there is a dialogue reference); he drives on them.

60. Secret Batmobile entrance to Batcave. Later used by The Bat in Rises.

61. There’s a society event (his birthday) that has Bruce get into a tux. Bonus: Bruce sacrices his reputation in favor of acting as Batman.

62. Ra’s genuinely wants Bruce to join him. The League has existed for thousands of years and shaped parts of history. Creative Liberty: The immortality of Ra’s is the title, not also the person.

63. Have I mentioned the greatness that is Wayne Manor?

64. Gordon is actually an active participant, unlike previous films.

65. Forgot about the tally marks on Zsasz’s neck.

66. 1hr 58min: There, Batman leapt off a rooftop. Bonus: Batperch prior.

67. Tactical Mind: Batman separates one League member from the others before combatting the group.

68. Tactical Mind: Batman goes into the final showdown with the Tumbler already programmed to take down the monorail. His fight with Ra’s merely distracts him from the

inevitability.

69. Creative Liberty: This Batman’s code does not make him save Ra’s.

70. Bruce’s mask has become his public face. The monster he puts on at night has become more of who he is.

71. Thomas Wayne integrally informs Bruce’s ideology and heart.

72. Have I not mentioned the look of Gary Oldman as Gordon and the way he portrays him?

73. The Batsymbol. The GCPD rooftop meeting with Gordon who is now a lieutenant. Bonus: The Joker calling card complete with “Recovered by J Kerr.”

74. Creative Liberty: Gliding is greatly embellished to what is normally portrayed. How do comics not love gliding?!?

75. Left out: Batman’s cape rests over his shoulders, but it can also be pushed behind.

Well, that is all folks. Let me know if I made any errors or left anything out.