Talk:Batman (1989 film)

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Contents

[edit] Simple Spelling Errors

Has this article been attacked by 14 year olds on imdb? Just go look at the reactions section. "danceing" "pyhsical" It's awful! AWFUL.

[edit] Axis Chemicals

Anyone happen to know anything about the model that was blown up in the movie? Or what factory it was based off of?

[edit] Requested move (Jan 2006)

Batman (film) → Batman (1989 film) – For the sake of specificity. Hypothetically there could be a whole new movie named "Batman" in thirty or fifty years' time. --Phoenix-forgotten 00:56, 17 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Voting

Add *Support or *Oppose followed by an optional one-sentence explanation, then sign your vote with ~~~~
  • Support See above. Phoenix-forgotten 00:56, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
  • Support to better differentiate between this film and Batman (1966 film). Olessi 01:06, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
  • Support - There are two distictive Batman movies. --^BuGs^ 05:45, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
  • Support --Lox (t,c) 17:04, 17 January 2006 (UTC)
  • Support per Olessi. --zenohockey 06:02, 20 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Discussion

[edit] Result

Page moved. Eugene van der Pijll 18:00, 22 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Studio picks for Harvey Dent

I recall around 1992, when BATMAN RETURNS was released, reading an article that discussed why the Max Schreck character was brought in to replace Harvey Dent in the movie. It said Warner Brothers was not happy with Billy Dee Williams' performance in the 1989 movie and never wanted him cast in the role in the first place. The article said the studio wanted either Don Johnson or Dale Midkiff cast as Dent (and you have to admit there is quite a resemblance between Johnson and the character design of Dent from BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES). Can anyone confirm this, and if so, add it to the article ?

[edit] Jack Nicholson--The new Batman

Why didn't they get Jack Nicholson to be Joker in the new Batman(2005)? Was it because of the way that he demanded the pay for the first Batman(1989)? Or was it something else? ~*~Punk18~*~

For starters, The Joker isn't in the new Batman. JamesBenjamin 01:33, 1 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Summary

No offence to whoever rewrote this summary, but could someone rewrite it so the events of the film are in proper order. If I do it (and I might someday if nothing happens) it'll probably end up like Batman Returns after I rewrote its summary[1].--Lenin & McCarthy 17:36, 5 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Rediculous Rumors and Opinions as reference?

Removed the bit about Nicholas basing the Joker on Pro-wrester Ric Flair. Not only is there a lack of proof for this, but it's absurd.

Also removed the references.... they were all references to a single writer's opinions! Not how it's supposed to be played.

[edit] Trivia section

I'm concerned about the trivia section; specifically, I'm concerned that it exists at all. We link directly to the IMDb; there's no need for us to duplicate its trivia section here, complete with contradictory information, hearsay, rumors, and unsourced, unprovable information. As it stands it's all random information without context or purpose. I'm pasting the old trivia section below. As people find references they can integrate this material into the article proper. If it's important enough to be mentioned we can find a way to do this in context. Let's make this a better article. Mackensen (talk) 00:43, 1 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Trivia (removed from article)

[edit] Casting

  • Adam West, star of the Batman TV series, wanted to play Batman, but Michael Keaton was given the role after getting the nod from Bob Kane. The choice of Keaton created a stir because Keaton was primarily known for his comedic, light-hearted roles.
  • Ricky Addison Reed was cast as Robin when the character was part of an earlier story treatment. Robin was eventually dropped, and Reed lost the role.
  • Robin Williams was considered for the role of The Joker; he would later be considered for The Riddler in Batman Forever. Jack Nicholson got the role of The Joker but demanded top-billing and a lucrative deal that gave him royalties on all merchandise.
  • Billy Dee Williams appears as Harvey Dent, who in the comics became Two-Face. Williams took the role with the expectation that he would be brought back to play Two-Face and reportedly had a contract clause added reserving the role for him. During casting for Batman Forever (1995) Warner Bros. decided they would prefer Tommy Lee Jones and bought out Williams' contract.
  • It is claimed that Adam West was offered a cameo as Bruce Wayne's father but turned it down, though West denies being offered the part.
  • Sean Young was originally cast as Vicki Vale, but broke her collarbone while filming a horse-riding scene with Michael Keaton. The scene was subsequently written out of the script.
  • Alec Baldwin, Charlie Sheen, Bill Murray, Pierce Brosnan and Tom Selleck were rumored to be considered for the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman.
  • Willem Dafoe, David Bowie, James Woods and John Lithgow were all considered for the role of the Joker.
  • According to a Playboy interview with Robin Williams, Jack Nicholson was offered the role of Joker first. When Nicholson kept delaying his answer, Williams was offered the role. The producers immediately turned around and informed Nicholson that Williams was considering the offer, and Nicholson accepted. Williams has remained bitter about being "used as bait." See Batman Forever trivia (1995).
  • The Special Edition DVD features a vignette of an unused storyboard where The Joker, being chased by Batman, would drive through a circus presentation featuring the Flying Graysons, where he sets fire to the tightrope and kills them. This would set up Robin for the sequels. Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprise their respective vocal roles from Batman: The Animated Series for this vignette. However, due to the abscence of Loren Lester, Dick Grayson is voiced by Jason Hillhouse.
  • Although the filmmakers have noted Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns as a key inspiration for the film, Miller himself has stated his dislike for the film upon having viewed it.

[edit] Production design

  • Set designer Anton Furst deliberately mixed clashing architectural styles to make Gotham City the ugliest and bleakest metropolis imaginable.
  • The plastic surgeon's weird surgical tools are believed to be originally from another Warner Brothers production, Little Shop of Horrors (1986). They were the dentist tools owned by Orin Scrivello. They are also believed to have been used as the gynecology tools used in the film Dead Ringers (1988).
  • The Batsuit weighed 70 pounds.
  • The Batman symbol on the costume in this film is slightly different than the version seen in the comic books. It has two extra "points" on the bottom of the black bat emblem that represent bat feet. However, the teaser poster and other such promotional materials for the film depict the logo just as it appears in the comics, for copyright purposes (because that specific look for the logo is what DC Comics had copyrighted). The Batman costume was slightly modified for Batman Returns (1992) and sported the comic version of the symbol.
  • Heavy security surrounded The Joker's makeup.
  • The throne that The Joker sits on when he spreads money over the citizens of Gotham may be a replica of the "Silver Throne", the Royal Throne of Sweden which the King of Sweden used until 1974 at the opening of the Swedish Parliament.
  • The painting that The Joker spares during his vandalism spree is Francis Bacon's Figure with Meat.
  • The design of Gotham City is based on the work of architects Antonio Gaudi, Otto Wagner and Shin Takamatsu.
  • Scenes of the Wayne Mansion were filmed at two English stately homes: Knebworth House for exterior scenes, Hatfield House for the interiors.

[edit] Other trivia

  • Tom Mankiewicz was first contracted to write a Batman script for Warner Bros. in the early 1980s following his work on Superman: The Movie and Superman II.
  • Michael Keaton worked out for two months to prepare for the role, and learned kickboxing from his stunt double, David Lea. Though hard to spot, many of the fights are just about evenly split between Keaton and David Lea in costume. Keaton, however, went on to perform all of the fights himself for the sequel Batman Returns.
  • It made an estimated additional $750 million in merchandising alone.
  • Executive producers Benjamin Melniker and Michael E. Uslan sued Warner Brothers for forcing them into accepting a net profit agreement rather than the gross profit one that was set up for other parties like Jack Nicholson. Warners then claimed that, although "Batman" at the time was the 5th biggest grossing film ever, it was still technically in the red, and offered the two producers a $1 million out-of-court settlement, which they rejected.
  • Corto Maltese (where Vicki had been taking pictures) is the name of a popular European comic character, starring in the adventure comic books of Italian Hugo Pratt. Corto Maltese is also an island country in Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, one of Burton's inspirations for Batman.
  • Burton has also admitted that his movie draws heavily from the Batman story, Batman: The Killing Joke.
  • This was the first film to ever get a "12" rating in Great Britain. The rating was created to prevent young children from seeing the film. It had been in place up until 2002, where it was updated to "12A" for the live-action Spider-Man (2002) movie.
  • Kim Basinger is only a few inches shorter than Michael Keaton. To make Keaton appear taller, she wears flat heels or is in stocking feet in all the scenes in which they are standing next to each other.
  • In the Globe office, an artist hands Knox a drawing of a bat dressed like a man, poking fun at his belief in Batman. The drawing is signed "Bob Kane." Kane himself was originally planned to play the artist.
  • Jack Nicholson received a percentage of the gross on the film, and due to its massive box-office took home around $60 million. As of 2003 it is still the single-movie record for actor's salary.
  • The flag of Gotham City closely resembles the state flag of Indiana. It can be seen briefly in Harvey Dent's office.
  • When the Tom Mankiewicz script was in development, the directors associated with the project included Joe Dante and Ivan Reitman. Producers wanted an unknown to play Batman and the cast wish-list included William Holden as Commissioner Gordon and David Niven as Alfred, Bruce Wayne's faithful butler.
  • Vicki Vale is based on the comics character of the same name (who was a reporter and photographer) and also on 1970s Bruce Wayne girlfriend Silver St. Cloud, a name deemed too silly for a movie character.
  • The character of Alexander Knox (Robert Wuhl) was a character created for the movie. In the first draft of the script, the character was killed during the parade scene. He may be named after the late actor Alexander Knox.
  • When Alfred receives Vicki Vale's message, a portrait can be seen in the background, some believe it to be a portrait of Thomas Wayne, Bruce's father.
  • For its first video release, the film was graded slightly lighter, as cinema audiences had complained that it was filmed so darkly that they could hardly see what was going on.
  • Anton Furst's designs for Gotham City were partially incorporated into the comics during the early 1990s.
  • In a newsroom scene, Vicki Vale and Alexander Knox examine a map of Gotham City which has been marked with Batman sightings. The map is actually a map of Vancouver, British Columbia.
  • The film was the first live-action movie to be played on Toonami.
  • One scene in the film includes the destruction of a priceless painting when one of joker's goons places his hands on the painting (leaving red hand prints.) But later in the scene we see that the hand prints are mysteriously gone.
  • Screenwriter Sam Hamm was annoyed at the filmmakers over certain changes made from his original drafts. The most notable would be making The Joker the killer of Bruce Wayne's parents, and Alfred Pennyworth letting Vicki Vale into the Batcave. Hamm himself said that he was able to keep Burton from making these changes until a writer's strike which prevented him from being with the production.
  • In Sam Hamm's original draft, Alexander Knox was a more serious character who has romantic rivalry between Bruce over Vicki. Knox was also able to figure out Bruce's secret identity, but would later be killed in the climax.
  • In the book Hit and Run, author Kim Masters writes that Tim Burton's original vision for the film was much, much darker, but producers Jon Peters and Peter Guber vetoed the idea.
  • Jack Nicholson based his performance of The Joker on professional wrestler Ric Flair.

[edit] Japanese dubbing artists

Data from the Japanese Wikipedia.

Video and DVD

  • Bruce Wayne/Batman: Hiroyuki Watanabe
  • Jack Napier/Joker: Demon Kogure
  • Vicki Vale: Masumi Miyazaki

October 14, 1992 TBS Wednesday Road Show

June 18, 1995 Morning Sun Sunday Western Theater

Cat's Tuxedo 22:37, 15 March 2007 (UTC)

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