8 Little Known Tics That Made Michael Keaton's Batman Awesome

By Padraig Cotter / February 9, 2017

Christian Bale might be considered the best actor to play Batman overall, but few can deny the impact Michael Keaton had on the role. In just one movie he shattered the Adam West campy era, turning Batman into a dark, psychologically wounded character to be feared instead of mocked. Both of his movies are considered watershed moments for comic book movies, and while they may not have aged well, they paved the way for those types of movies to be taken seriously. Keaton also knew to get out while the going was good, turning down crazy money for the third movie as he thought it sounded €œjust awful.€ His take is still considered one of the best because of the touches he brought to it, including his use of body language and his distinct split between the personas of Bruce Wayne and Batman. This would be hugely influential on all future depictions of the character, from The Animated Series all the way through to The Lego Movie. It€™s the subtle things that make his Batman special, which even fans may not have noticed on first (or even twenty-first) viewing.

8. His Batman Is A Performance Artist

Let€™s be honest; Michael Keaton's Batman is a horrible fighter. He€™s constantly getting shot or beaten up throughout the original film, even getting his ass handed to him by a single henchman in the finale. His lack of skill, and Keaton's odd fighting style, was part of crafting the character, with actor and director deciding fear would be his main weapon; he€™ll intentionally let himself get shot so he can rise up again, or when he needs to disappear he€™ll create smoke and €œfly€ away. Heck, the main reason he wears the sculpted suit €“ outside of the body armour of course - is that he€™ll look more imposing, which will inspire most bad guys to run away in fear. In doing this he€™s creating a character bigger than himself; an unkillable creature that will keep coming for them no matter what. He needs to create this myth because €“ as the movie shows time and again €“ in a real fight he€™s kind of useless, and he needs the psychological edge on his opponents.