The Poster Memorabilia blog

When Batman Changed the Superhero Movie Game

New York, summer 2008 — the night before everyone knew, and a poster signed in the thick of it.

By an anonymous Hollywood insider

Before the MCU became the juggernaut it is today, there was Batman. I'd even say Batman's box-office success over the years helped make superhero movies a legitimate sub-genre today. For better or for worse, comic book flicks wouldn't be here today if not for Batman.

I personally feel that the sub-genre reached its peak with Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight series. Those films were almost Best Picture Oscar-worthy, packed with great scripts, cool effects, and magnificent talents like Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman, among many others.

My favorite of the three was The Dark Knight. Batman Begins had already set the table three years earlier, but this was the one that turned the trilogy into a legend, especially with how emotional that ending was. The world hadn't seen that level of drama in a superhero movie before. Suddenly, movies about our favorite comic book characters were mature and sophisticated.

“Suddenly, movies about our favorite comic book characters were mature and sophisticated.”

I went to the movie's premiere in New York City in 2008. It was fitting to stage it there, since it's no secret that the Big Apple heavily inspired Gotham City. No one had seen it yet, but people were already confident because it was Nolan. By then, the filmmaker had already reached prominence.

People were excited, and even before seeing it, some speculated it would be one of the year's biggest hits. They weren't wrong, since The Dark Knight earned $1 billion globally and ranked as the top-grossing film of 2008.

That was the mood of the night, and I got caught up in it when I asked the cast to sign my movie poster. All of the leads were there—Christian Bale, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Aaron Eckhart. They signed the poster for me, and it truly made my year.

The one who couldn't be there was Heath Ledger. His Joker is the reason that film is what it is, and watching him take the Oscar the following year was bittersweet for everyone who loved the movie.

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When I finally saw the film, I was floored. I know I've been raving about the movie, but I can't help it. I couldn't believe Nolan managed to make such a masterpiece out of a familiar franchise that, to be honest, was already pretty old at that point. We had already seen so many Batman films by then.

I think this is also how the MCU garnered the success that it did. Apart from Saturday morning cartoons in the 80s and 90s, audiences hadn’t really seen Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and more on screen before. Those movies were the first time we saw these beloved comic book characters portrayed by human actors.

Batman, however, was a different story. From Michael Keaton and Val Kilmer to George Clooney to, now, Christian Bale, countless actors have taken on Bruce Wayne. Some better than others, but all entertaining nonetheless. I was honestly surprised people didn't groan when Nolan announced he was rebooting the whole thing back in 2005.

Though, why would they, when he'd already knocked it out of the park with Batman Begins? I loved this one so much that I chased down the rest of the cast who weren't at the premiere and got their autographs on this poster too. I wouldn't have done that for any other film, especially another typical superhero movie.

Some things you watch. This one you keep.

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