Nolan's Gotham
In filming and portraying Gotham as very much a city of our world, Nolan is once again making his Batman films a reflection of modern times. The landscapes in which these villains wield their instruments of destruction, are ones that seem ripped from the world which awaits us when leave the cinema or take out the DVD. Burton’s Gotham was much more gothic and fantastical, which reflected his much more gothic and fantastical characters. Just as the design of Burton’s Gotham was a reflection of his style and sensibilities, so is Christopher Nolan’s.
While in Batman Begins, “The Narrows” (Along with the Wayne monorail) were very much a far away construction, The Dark Knight is filmed in Chicago and has little to distinguish it from our world. This is crucial, as Nolan uses environment to reflect theme. The Dark Knight is much more of a reflection and examination of our times (Specifically terrorism and our response) and this is augmented through the recognizable environments. In Batman Begins, Nolan had much more of a focus on fear and in doing so had much more “fearful” environments such as “The Narrows”, Arkham Asylum (Which is not seen in The Dark Knight) and the Batcave (Once again, under construction during The Dark Knight)
Nolan’s Gotham is one that is much more visibly corrupt than Burton or Schumahcer’s. Nolan demonstrates much more of an interest in the political and social divisions within Gotham society, divisions which promise to be exploited and blow up in The Dark Knight Rises. For its first two acts, Batman Begins is a film which contains a hero attempting to bring down the mob. A key inspiration for The Dark Knight, thematically and aesthetically, was Michael Mann’s, Heat. As noted in the prior Batman article, Nolan’s Batman is one that is very concerned and aware of and for the people of Gotham. While Gotham was very much a big part of previous cinematic interpretations of the character, it never had as much importance or examination on the big screen as it does now. Nolan’s Gotham (And I know how cheesy this sounds) is a character in the film. The people of Gotham are so important to the actions and events of the films, with them forming a crucial part of The Dark Knight’s third act. Entire essays could be written about Batman’s relationship with the people of Gotham throughout these films and how it evolves over the course of the trilogy. The people of Gotham reflect onto Batman, as does Batman to them. He is whatever Gotham needs him to be. The state of the city and the emotions of the people are what dictate Batman’s actions and always will be.
Ultimately Nolan uses the aesthetic of Gotham to augment theme and the people of Gotham to dictate character and story. The city and its people play a role of importance in Nolan’s films that they arguably haven’t before in previous cinematic explorations of the Batman universe. In fact many fans thought so much of the city’s importance during the Nolan era, that at one point, “Gotham” was a fan favourite for many, as the title of Nolan’s third film.
While in Batman Begins, “The Narrows” (Along with the Wayne monorail) were very much a far away construction, The Dark Knight is filmed in Chicago and has little to distinguish it from our world. This is crucial, as Nolan uses environment to reflect theme. The Dark Knight is much more of a reflection and examination of our times (Specifically terrorism and our response) and this is augmented through the recognizable environments. In Batman Begins, Nolan had much more of a focus on fear and in doing so had much more “fearful” environments such as “The Narrows”, Arkham Asylum (Which is not seen in The Dark Knight) and the Batcave (Once again, under construction during The Dark Knight)
Nolan’s Gotham is one that is much more visibly corrupt than Burton or Schumahcer’s. Nolan demonstrates much more of an interest in the political and social divisions within Gotham society, divisions which promise to be exploited and blow up in The Dark Knight Rises. For its first two acts, Batman Begins is a film which contains a hero attempting to bring down the mob. A key inspiration for The Dark Knight, thematically and aesthetically, was Michael Mann’s, Heat. As noted in the prior Batman article, Nolan’s Batman is one that is very concerned and aware of and for the people of Gotham. While Gotham was very much a big part of previous cinematic interpretations of the character, it never had as much importance or examination on the big screen as it does now. Nolan’s Gotham (And I know how cheesy this sounds) is a character in the film. The people of Gotham are so important to the actions and events of the films, with them forming a crucial part of The Dark Knight’s third act. Entire essays could be written about Batman’s relationship with the people of Gotham throughout these films and how it evolves over the course of the trilogy. The people of Gotham reflect onto Batman, as does Batman to them. He is whatever Gotham needs him to be. The state of the city and the emotions of the people are what dictate Batman’s actions and always will be.
Ultimately Nolan uses the aesthetic of Gotham to augment theme and the people of Gotham to dictate character and story. The city and its people play a role of importance in Nolan’s films that they arguably haven’t before in previous cinematic explorations of the Batman universe. In fact many fans thought so much of the city’s importance during the Nolan era, that at one point, “Gotham” was a fan favourite for many, as the title of Nolan’s third film.
