10 Subtle Movie Jokes That Probably Went Straight Over Your Head

4. Cancel The Batman Origin! - Watchmen

The opening credit sequence for Zack Snyder's adaptation of what is perhaps the greatest graphic novel of all-time is probably better than the movie itself - jam-packed with little nuggets and references to the alternate history that the world of Watchmen takes place within, there's so much information squeezed into the relatively short three minutes that you're bound to have missed bits - including this very funny and perhaps even poignant Batman reference - one that actually exists to explain to us how Batman never came to be in Watchmen's world.

One of the first shots we see in the credit sequence - at first, anyway - appears to be just of a hero beating down a villain. Okay, nothing unusual at that. But look closely at what's happening in the background, and it becomes apparent that what we're actually looking exists to explain how the Dark Knight never came to be. Look - there's Mr. and Mrs. Wayne leaving the opera as in the classic origin story (flyers tell us this scene is set in Gotham, and the opera translates as "The Bat"). But instead of being gunned down, they're being rescued. A wry gag, and so easy to miss.