Why are audiences so obsessed with Batman? Film critics Robert Ebert and Christopher Orr dive deeper into what makes superheroes movies like The Dark Knight and Man of Steel so compelling. Joey Esposito analyzes the reasons behind the fascination of the Dark Knight and how he appeals to our inner desire to use the pain in our lives for good. Audiences often have an easier time relating to Batman while they have difficulty relating to Superman. Batman’s tragic past and human traits make him more relatable to audiences of current superhero films than superman who was born with his godlike abilities.
The caped crusader, guarding Gotham’s streets and citizens, is in reality just a man-the “Optimum Man” as Grant Morrison has pointed out in his six year study of the character(Esposito). Batman has the resources and abilities to do what is necessary to fight injustice; even with no superpowers he uses self-motivation to become the solution to every problem (Esposito). Batman is the secret identity of Bruce Wayne who, as a child, witnessed his parents murder right before his eyes. In Nolan’s film Batman Begins the mob boss Falcone tells a young Bruce “You think because your mommy and your daddy got shot, you know about the ugly side of life but you don’t. You’ve never tasted desperate.” This leads Bruce to face a turning point in his life were he now realizes his purpose and has the drive to restore Gotham from its crime filled state.
Audiences of current batman films can easily deduce from Batman’s actions and behavior that his past was one of tragedy and loss. Batman poses a more complex puzzle than most other superheros because he can accept the criticisms and distrust of the citizens of Gotham City who call him a vigilante, and s...
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...xperience. If asked who you better relate to Batman or Superman which would you choose?
Works Cited
Ebert, Roger. "The Dark Knight." All Content. N.p., 16 July 2008. Web. 20 Dec. 2013.
Ellis, Jessica. "Lopez Lomong: From War Child to U.S. Olympics Star." CNN. Cable News Network, 09 Aug. 2012. Web. 08 Jan. 2014.
Esposito, Joey. "Hero Worship: Why Do We Love Batman?" IGN. N.p., 27 Jan. 2012. Web. 17 Dec. 2013.
McMillan, Graeme. "Why Superman Deserves More Respect." Entertainment Why Superman Deserves More Respect Comments. TIME Magazine, 21 Feb. 2013. Web. 20 Dec. 2013.
Orr, Christopher. "The Atlantic." The Atlantic. The Atlantic, 14 June 2013. Web. 20 Dec. 2013.
"Superman | DC Comics." DC Comics. DC Comics, n.d. Web. 08 Jan. 2014.
Wenzel, John. "The Many Faces of the Dark Knight." Denver Post. 21 Oct 2012: E1. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 17 Dec 2013.
...revolutionize a whole new genre of movie, a genre which is fast becoming more and moe popular. 'As filmmaking technology has made it more and more feasible to bring the worlds of the comics to movie theaters, the comics themselves have begun to provide a broader and richer array of material.. from which films might be made' (Booker 2007: Paul Benton, Lecture notes). All the mentioned arguments throughout this essay on top of; the star performances, unique marketing and special effects, help make The Dark Knight a truly great film. Prior to the movies release it was questioned wether the film could sustain the 'increasing moral weight imposed upon it', the movie to date has more than dealt with this pressure, and has become a focal point for many discussions and essays, and finally it is because of the morals and ethics within the movie that I have written this essay.
This traumatic event does not leave him but remains with him through all his life. It is so surprising that a man like Bruce Wayne can be somebody like Batman. It is as if they are two different people. Nobody would guess that these two identities could be the same man. Many may say what Bruce is doing is normal and is his way of coping but there is too much evidence suggesting that Bruce Wayne is suffering from dissociative identity disorder.
“A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy's shoulders to let him know that the world hadn't ended.” Behind all the action in The Dark Knight Rises is an important portrayal of crime and deviance in society. The superficial analysis of the plot makes The Dark Knight Rises seem like a simple hero and villain story and nothing more. However, the film expresses concepts of justice and provides an important depiction of strain theory and the labeling theory.
In order to truly understand the things that Batman does, one must know how he came to be. Batman’s true identity is that of the multi-billionaire owner of Wayne Enterprises, Bruce Wayne. The first movie in the Dark Knight trilogy, Batman Begins, tells the story of how Bruce came to don the cape and the mask of Batman, from the perspective of the director, Christopher Nolan. When Bruce was a boy, he was leaving a theatre with his parents Martha and Thomas. As they started walking down the alley to get home, his parents were shot and killed by a mugger. This traumatic event happens right in front of Bruce without him doing anything to stop it as he is stricken by fear and powerless. Years later, Bruce starts training with the League of Shadows, a group of assassins that live the mountains. Under the tutelage of their leader Ra’s al Ghul, Bruce it taught that to “conquer fear, you must become fear, you must bask in the fear of other men,
The purpose of this paper is to provide the reader with an insight into the Super Hero Series Batman. This crime fighter originally appeared in Detective Comics issue #27 in 1939. It later became a comic book series, a TV series and a movie series. The character Batman is second only to Superman as a Super Hero. Amazingly Batman has no super powers, but he does have a lot of neat crime fighting gadgets. In this paper, we will explore the creation of Batman, his supporting cast of characters both good and bad and the gadgets he used.
We are currently living in the Golden Age of Superheroes. They dominate our cultural life, and have become seemingly permanent fixtures in modern media. Since X-Men burst onto the screen fifteen years ago, we have witnessed the release of over forty superhero movies. By 2020 we will have seen the release of more than twenty-five more. Today, the much anticipated film Superman vs. Batman has come to theaters. Though a plethora of superhero movies have been released, it is to the dissatisfaction of many, having long been exhausted by the stories of the Hulk, Batman, and Spider-man. Although I must agree that it is quite easy to get bored with the constant action, and flashing colors of these films, if one looks deep enough into the story they will discover universal themes and metaphors. Though they may be fighting off alien invasions, these heroes are also battling with their personal challenges, challenges which we can
Have you ever wondered who the man is under the dark knight mask? Bruce Wayne, is a wealthy American playboy, philanthropist, and owner of Wayne Enterprises, who after witnessing the murder of his parents Dr. Thomas Wayne and Martha Wayne as a child, he swore vengeance against criminals, an oath tempered by a sense of justice. Bruce Wayne trains himself physically and intellectually and crafts a bat-inspired persona to fight crime. But the man riddle to this amazing “Cape Crusader” is brought along with many interesting facts about this dynamic crime fighter, such as, while Bruce was growing up, he learn he had an older brother, or that Batman is actually afraid of something, how about Bruce Wayne’s no drinking alcohol diet, or even batman’s
Gotham is Batman’s hometown and an incredibly corrupt place. It is well known for its corrupt police department, which turns a blind eye to Batman’s questionable actions, since they are for the sake of the city. The city produces deviance because of the officials and police officers which shy away from addressing crimes. Although Batman is committing crimes in order to fight crime, this is not necessarily moral. While Batman is ultimately solving the city’s
The terms "hero" and "villain" are as distinct as the terms "good" and "evil." They are mutually exclusive; the hero is courageous, popular, strong, morally, and willing to save the people at whatever cost, while the villain is despicable, hated, and heinous to his core. However, when we turn away from the archetypal world of comic books, this distinction is no longer as clear. When we look at real human beings we do not see a hero as a hero or a villain as a villain, but rather individuals composed of varying degrees of both extremes. No hero is perfect, and no villain is completely heinous. The most recent film adaptation of the DC Comic series Batman presents this truth of human nature. The Dark Knight Rises effectively communicates the
Somebody who had established higher power in their community. Somebody who tried to run from fate, and has the moment of recognition and understanding of their destiny. Batman. Even though he is considered the strong and powerful superhero of Gotham City, Batman's characteristic features show that he relates strongly to that of a "tragic" hero. In the beginning, the Batman is presented at a higher state of appreciation, even though the police see him as a vigilante. Despite his wealth, Batman, otherwise known as Bruce Wayne, is easily relatable to audiences, which makes it easy to sympathize and empathize with the character. Batman is in a constant battle within himself, trying to be the good guy, while defeating the bad guys. His morals prove true when he admits that he won't kill any of the many villians that cause destruction for Gotham City. But, because of this moral, sometimes the villians end up escaping and doing more harm then good. In the end, this interal chaos and internal battle is seen interally and externally through Batman. At the end of the most recent Batman series, The Dark Knight, his exit at the end of the movie is, in essence, his figurative death. Bruce Wayne wants to keep Gotham City safe. And with the "Batman" gone, villians will be least likely to continue to destroy and conquer. As an audience, we cling to the edge of our seats and feel dismay for our beloved superhero and what is to become of
Perceptions of the superhero and supervillain are mainly based on subjective definitions of each concept. These observations often lead to a definitive dichotomy that precisely splits characters into two impermeable divisions. However, this stringent separation is unable to account for the characters that are not at the extreme ends of their respective side. Neither is this rift capable of classifying characters that flirt with both sides of the superhero-supervillain dichotomy. Therefore it is imperative to analyze the established criteria for both superhero and supervillain to derive a more adequate explanation. Most superheroes are not easily characterized, but rather fall somewhere between Superman, the bastion of moral purity, and Doctor Doom, the display of indubitable corruption. This solicits genesis of an entirely new notion about the differences between superheroes and supervillains. A more precise idea is that superheroes and supervillains are lined on a spectrum that spans from pure good to pure evil. Disparities between superheroes and supervillains are not black and white, but rather these characters are on a spectrum that radically changes based on individual cases.
For Batman, he is a famous person with high social class. His image is a successful businessman and on the other hand he is a hero to save the city. He is very strong and well body shape. When he catches the thief, he acts independently. He will not ask for help and refuse the others involve although he gets hurt. He is very clever and very calm. He will first plan before he takes action.
Being a hero means that one can show courage when it comes to facing a problem. It is a person who helps others in many ways, such as a person in danger. In the modern era, the creation of superheroes have become popular when it comes to producing films. Viewers can choose their favorite heroes due to the idea that there a many of them. However, most fans argue which superheroes are better. Two of the most popular superheroes are DC’s Batman and Marvel’s Iron Man. Although Batman and Iron Man are loved by many viewers because of how they help people in danger, they still demonstrate imperfections which can cause viewers to dislike them. However, both superheroes share similarities and differences between themselves. Batman and Iron Man have
Batman Begins has an incredible amount of struggles that not only Bruce Wayne must face but all of Gotham must face. The first of many of these was Thomas and Martha Wayne's sudden death at the beginning. This left both the people of Gotham and Bruce Wayne to struggle along without them “Their deaths galvanized the city into saving itself and Gotham has limped on ever since.” (Batman Begins, Ras Al Ghul, Scene 31) This also created much anger and rage in Bruce Wayne that he released as Batman. There is also the struggle with the crime rate in Gotham and keeping alive the cities slowly falling government. These things differ from the Dark Knight where the struggles are with mainly the Joker and his actions. Many more unexpected and out of control struggles occur in The Dark Knight. The Joker (mastermind terrorist) creates many series of problems and difficulties for Batman, Gordon, Dent, and all of Gotham in general. Another big problem, quite different from the first one is the capturing of Joker. Unlike the first film, the struggles of The Dark Knight are much more external while the first one was fixing what was on Gotham’s internal problems. An example was after Rachel’s death it changed Harvey into an evil person therefore changing the whole ending of the movie, and a lot of the next one. Another big difference between the two films is The Dark Knight has a lot more violence and explosions,
In the inky blackness, glistening lights shone bright. Making it easy to see the towering buildings of Gotham City. Overlooking the glittering city, stood the dark brooding hero known as Batman. His black, slick cape billowed with the breeze, as his alert eyes watched for trouble. His costume was charcoal gray, with his his yellow and black emblem on the top center of his chest. The emblem was of the creature of the night, the cave dweller, the bat. His cowl, just like his cape was dark black. He wears his dark yellow utility belt, it's contents have saved him more than can be counted. Now his eyes, they're cold and dark. If you were to look at his eyes, they would make you stop dead. He wore all of his attire, not just to hide his identity, but to also strike fear in the hearts of criminals.