brophog02

It's hard to explain, because it is so intangible and today's actors don't often portray that sort of authority or presence. It is easiest to see in the scenes with Freeman and Caine, both portraying characters where he doesn't have to 'pretend' he's not Batman. They both pop off of the screen, whereas Bale doesn't. He never really carries the weight necessary to be convincing that he could be confused for a superhero.

Agreed, and I think we'll see a lot of him in this coming series, and more growth. Hopefully, in a direction that makes him more interesting as a character, and less of a counter-example, which has been his basic role so far.

I don't recall that either, though every now and again I don't have a real problem with it. After all, we are talking about a male and female, and those things are bound to happen sometimes.

It did get old though with Tennant after a while. Though I'm not entirely thrilled with the execution at times, I am glad they found a way to 'reset' things a bit as the 10th Doctor and that universe started to get bogged down a bit by its own baggage.

I'm certainly excited to see this season play out.

Wow. An opinion of a character is now considered trolling? Even for a term as loosely defined as that one, that's a stretch.

A conversation developed about a character in a thread about the series that character is currently in and the fact you have a personal problem with that is not my concern.

Limited? I can describe nearly any version of the character with the GENERIC descriptions I wrote. I didn't state they were the sole characteristics, but they are indeed general characteristics of the Batman character.

What makes Batman, "Batman" in your opinion? What core characteristics defines the character? I listed a few that apply, whether we're talking the Golden Age, Silver Age, or through current incarnations. They pertain to his origin, and his uniqueness. They explain how he can be treated as a superhero, even though he has no extra-ordinary powers. They also explain how Bale's interpretation doesn't fit.

What is your definition and how does Bale's portrayal apply? The entire argument is whether or not Bale is a convincing Batman, ergo, you must supply a definition of what that means to be Batman. Define how he is a believable superhero, in the context of the universe created in the movie. Define how his portrayal is merely a spin on the core of the character.

It's not coincidence that every time I have ever discussed this with someone they go right to the fact the movie pounds into their heads "reality" but sidestep the fact that this is supposed to be someone one could believe to be a superhero in that environment. In part because they are so over the top in trying to convince the audience how things must occur to maintain this marketing angle for their version of the franchise, they remove the believability that this guy, as a character, is capable of being more than any normal human. It's a shallow and superficial performance by Bale, and therefore not immersible in the specific world it tries to create. Bale lacks the intelligence and intangibles to portray that necessary side of the character, and doesn't have those classic leading man characteristics to carry the part, the way his supposed servants do. He, therefore, cannot convince the audience that he is a superhero in this otherwise "normal" environment.

Chuck Connors could walk into a saloon and you knew he was not to be messed with. He didn't need exotic six shooters. He didn't need to talk with a deep voice to sound tough. He had those leading man qualities. Bale doesn't have those qualities, and that's an enormous shortcoming, especially in such an environment where such a limitation can not be covered up with fancy technology. You don't need that with someone like the Flash, because it is so easily explained with his powers. Batman can't be done that way, especially if you want to be so focused on that aspect. The actor has to carry that part of it on his own. Every time Bale is in a scene with Caine or Freeman, they completely show him up, and that facade crumbles. They have those leading man qualities that he so sorely lacks. In the end, his lack of ability to carry the role in this regard is a downfall to the reality the movie tries to create, because he needs to be propped up to ever hope of convincing anyone.

The great irony is that many of the stories that inspired this interpretation are in contrast with it in the regard of Batman's core character. "The Long Halloween", for instance, is a great story. It's not some other wordly tale where he's fighting super powered aliens. It's something that could have been easily portrayed in a 'real life' environment. However, it's at its heart a detective story. It's a murder mystery. The two Bale movies take scenes from it, but they don't take the heart of it. They don't take the spirit of it. They take the shallow details like names, but like Bale's portrayal, they miss the point of it all. They miss what makes Batman, however different in that book than he is in other books, the same core character despite the changes.

"The Long Halloween" is a good story, and I have no problems with a version of the character that is gritty, in such a world. But the character has to be believable, both in the context of the character being portrayed (Batman) and in the role he's attempting to portray in that specific universe. I was disappointed in Batman Begins, but was hoping the lack therein was simply to set a contrast with the growth Batman in the second film, but when it again failed in this regard, it only made both films, as Batman films, feel horribly disappointing (they do have many qualities as a whole that I find admirable). They spent so much time attempting to convince people that they weren't their predecessors that they failed to sell the character they were supposed to be portraying.

He's different. He's just not Batman.

He's killed in the dream world of Amy's Choice.
He's killed by the Silurian in Cold Blood (then the crack gets him).
Even in the finale, you're not sure until the end if he truly lives, it's just teased until the end on whether he's back or not.


I think he is dull. Do you like dull characters? I think he is annoying. Do you like annoying characters? If you like him for the reasons that I hate him, then you must answer 'yes' on both accounts.

He makes Mickey 'pseudo tin dog' interesting by comparison. Either kill him off or seriously put work into fleshing him out.

That will never happen, because he's duller than dry toast.

They weren't meeting their forum complaint quota.

I can't recall a character I liked less. He does nothing but provide a sexual foil to the Doctor, who seems oblivious to Amy's flirtations, anyway. If there was at least some tension the way Rose had with her respective Doctors, the character would make some sense in that role.

He's annoying, uninteresting and useless, and the fact they keep teasing us with his many deaths just annoys me further. I absolutely hate that character.

Why? His "Batman" is a complete joke. He has a weak will, no inner strength, and couldn't solve a mystery if the answer were tatooed to his forehead. Worse yet, they took two actual leading men and attempted to make them subservient to him, only to make it crystal clear how pathetic Bale is in the part.

He grunts a lot. Last I knew, that wasn't Batman. A good Batman has to make you believe he is a superhero, not by lifting cars over his head but by having such an inner drive that he can seemingly accomplish anything. Instead, this version of the franchise pounds it into your head over and over again that he's just a dude in a funny suit with a couple of fancy kicks. He has neither the inner strength, the intelligence, nor the crime solving capabilities to play any version of Batman.


I agree. I like both movies, as long as I pretend they are something other than Batman movies.

If only it came with less Rory.

Only to the cry babies, and no one should group with cry babies, anyhow.

http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showt...aster+judgment

We really need some tiny violin emotes.

I used to think the movie 'Idiocracy' was slightly satirical. I now realize it didn't go nearly far enough.

..

On the fuller servers, I haven't witnessed that at all. They're run every hour of the day, every day of the week.