Batman ’89: 6 reasons it’s more comic-accurate than you think

Credit

: Warner Brothers; from

Batman

(1989)

3. The Batsuit and other “wonderful toys”

Now before some of you start saying, “But Batman never wore an all black suit in the comics,” allow me to explain. Yes, this Batman isn’t dressed in navy blue and grey tights, but take a closer look at the suit. Designed by Bob Ringwood, Batman’s costume in the film has a lot of aesthetic similarities to how Neal Adams illustrated it. The larger ears on the cowl, the prominent yellow oval symbol, the capsule like partitions on the utility belt, the sculpted musculature of the body armor–that’s definitely inspired by Adams’ depiction of the Dark Knight.

In addition, the costume looks intimidating even when Michael Keaton isn’t wearing it. It also helps that strategic lighting placements and camera angles further give accentuate an appearance of feriouscity. This aspect is apparent when Tim Burton focuses on Batman’s cowl, particularly the eyes. Often, you can’t see the eye holes in the mask, which, given the way it’s sculpted, makes Batman even more intimidating. But sometimes the light only shines on the eyes, leaving the rest of the mask in silhouette. This gives an illusion that Batman’s eyes are glowing in the dark–much like how some artists depict him in the comics.

As an aside, it’s also the best-looking version of the live-action Bat costumes. While the costume worn by Ben Affleck does resemble how the suit looked in The Dark Knight Returns, it also seems aesthetically off with the shorter ears on the cowl. The suits worn by Christian Bale in Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy, either looked too cumbersome or too slimmed down. Keaton’s suit manages to find that sweet spot between aesthetically looking good on camera while also being somewhat faithful to its comic book roots.

As for the rest of the Caped Crusader’s arsenal, Batman is one of the few cinematic depictions of the character in which his gadgets and vehicles are actually bat-themed. It’s certainly one of the few Batman movies showing the Batarang as it’s depicted in the comics, in action. And while their designs are unique to the movie, both the Batmobile and the Batwing especially have this motiff. Can you even recall the last time a live-action version of the Batmobile even had fins shaped like bat wings?