MEMENTO director to helm next batman film

[derek]

fox news just reported that christopher nolan will direct the next batman film. i wonder if it will run end to beginning?;)

[Beast]

If it's the one I read about on Ain't It Cool News, pretty much. The villian is supposed to be The Scarecrow. And the story is told partially in reverse/flashbacks, starting with Batman's imprisonment in Arkham Asylum after being affected by The Scarecrow's fear gas. I'll work on trying to find the report from over there. :)

MTFBWY and HH!!

Jar Jar Binks

[Beast]

Your First Look At BATMAN 5 Details?! 1/6/2003

Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab. Okay... got your salt ready? Pick out the biggest grain you can find, and then read on.

If this letter turns out to be true, then consider this your first break on what might be the next BATMAN film. The writers this guy mentions are interesting. Both were credited with passes on FROM HELL, and both of them have done plenty of great work in the past. Rafael Yglesias wrote FEARLESS, one of the great overlooked movies of the ‘90s, and Hayes is, of course, the writer of THE ROAD WARRIOR. If they really are bringing the Dark Knight back to the bigscreen, there may be reason to rejoice...

Hey AICN,

I managed to get my grubby little paws on a draft of what I assume may be the next Batman movie. My big bro works for a division of WB and handed me a photocopy of what is currently titled Batman: The Frightening and the credited writers are Rafael Yglesias and Terry Hayes. Neither name struck a bell so I wasn’t sure if I’d be enduring another Batman and Robin or something special. Well, I’ll be honest, this draft is something special. The date on the draft is from December 23rd of 2002 and was marked as a First Draft so I’m not sure what will be changed, but with a little work I think this could be a great turn around for the franchise.

I’m not sure what you’ve reported on this flick so far so I’ll give you a few quick tidbits on what is and isn’t in the script. The villain is The Scarecrow. Robin is not in the movie and is never referenced to, nor is Batgirl. Alfred is here of course and Gordon is in it quite a bit, in fact plays a very integral role in the entire thing.

I’ve never been a huge fan of the comics or the movies, but I think what I found most striking is how dark the entire thing was. I’m talking a complete 180 from what we’ve seen in Batman Forever and Batman and Robin, and even a few shades darker than the first Batman. WB seems to be going an entirely different route with the franchise now. Batman is a detective first, crime fighter second. The means and technology he uses to unravel the crimes is some of the coolest stuff in the script.

The character of Jonathan Crane is the most riveting villain in, well hell, any comic book movie I’ve seen yet. He reminded me quite a bit of Norman Osborne from Spiderman, and his alter ego The Scarecrow is one of the most sinister sum*****es you’re likely to find period.

Now to get into a few spoilers. The script is written in flashback form. It starts off with Batman’s escape from Arkham Asylum, and then reverts back to what led up to the point of him going insane and being locked up. Throughout the main narrative there are flash forwards where we see Bruce Wayne struggling with what he had done to end up at Arkham, and the latter part of the film is him moving on past Batman and living with the scars he’s caused.

The action sequences, if filmed properly, should be pretty impressive. The breakout from Arkham is a pretty cool thing in and of itself, and introduces Alfred as a more integral part of Batman’s operation. The finale on The Scarecrow’s blimp is equally cool and relentless. Seriously, by the time I finished the script I needed to take a long nap, it hits hard in all the right spots.

A couple of things I didn’t care for were the slow spots right after the breakout. It takes awhile for the script to live up to its opening, and the detective work of Batman seems sometimes tedious in that we already know who the villain is and where the fear gas comes from. Btw, the fear gas is used in just about every which way possible here, including one very cool scene where Gotham’s Finest surround a factory, and then after being exposed to the gas see The Scarecrow's convey come crashing out of the walls in the shape of a rhino stampede, which leads to a very lengthy chase sequence.

Either way, I’ve got that scan software that can turn images into text and I've been trying to scan my copy of the text in but it doesnt' translate wells. If I can get it to work I’ll send you the script in a word document. Let me know if you care. Thanks.

I’m going to start poking around to see what I can turn up on this. I find it hard to believe Warner Bros. could have hired two A-list writers like that and had them turn out a draft without anyone hearing anything. Still, stranger things have happened. The days ahead will determine if this is just some fanboy’s dream, or a glimpse at where BATMAN is headed in the near future. "Moriarty" out.

Christopher Nolan Set To Make The Next BATMAN Film?! 1/28/2003

Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab. The short answer: no.

He is, however, signed on to develop a BATMAN film for Warner Bros, according to Michael Fleming of VARIETY, who broke the news this morning.

I want to be more excited about this news. I mean, in theory, it rules. Nolan is obviously a fan of BATMAN based on his comments in the article, and that’s what has been sadly missing from each and every announcement regarding Warner Bros. and SUPERMAN so far... a genuine love of the source material. Ratner mumbled about having a framed ACTION COMICS on his wall in his house, but nothing he’s said in the press or in private makes me think he is any sort of fan. Nolan’s also got giant bucketloads of talent, and if he wanted to bring Guy Pearce to the table to play Bruce Wayne, I don’t think there’s a fanboy alive who could complain about that. Of course, I know that Pearce was offered DAREDEVIL several times and professed a general disdain of movies that would encase him in rubber or spandex, so I’m not sure if Nolan would be enough to persuade him or not. One can hope...

Casting is a long, long way from happening, though. Right now, Nolan’s got to crack the material. He’s got to convince Warner Bros. to actually make a film, and as anyone who has followed the recent efforts to make a WB superhero film knows, that is easier said than done. I mean, we don’t know if he’s writing something or if he’s just attached to direct or what.
This puts him into a long line of guys who are kicking around Batfilms for the studio, including Aronofsky and Frank Miller. If Nolan’s signed on for the heavily-rumored BATMAN: THE FRIGHTENING (one lousy title, if you ask me), then he’ll be working in the franchise that’s already been established. One would hope that they’re going to allow him to reboot the whole damn thing and just start over, and that he’ll be writing his own film.

Also, keep in mind that Fleming's article still has Ratner attached to direct SUPERMAN, something that hasn't been true for about a month now. Michael Bay has come and gone already, and it looks like the studio may be circling back around to the guy who got bumped in the first place, McG, with several other names waiting in the wings just in case he doesn't make his deal. I hope that Fleming has a better source on this BATMAN story than he does on SUPERMAN right now, and that Nolan is indeed signed, sealed, and delivered.

Whatever the case, I’m encouraged to see him attached, but I’m not about to start holding my breath on seeing the actual film yet. This is one very positive step in what will likely be a long, long development road. Let’s just hope that it’s a productive one. "Moriarty" out.

AICN: Your First Look At BATMAN 5 Details?! (http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=14127)
AICN: Christopher Nolan Set To Make The Next BATMAN Film?! (http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=14315)

MTFBWY and HH!!

Jar Jar Binks

[derek]

wow jar jar. i thought i was being funny. ya know with memento being told in reverse. this could be really well done. so is guy pierce gonna play batman?:crazed:

[James Boba Fettfield]

There's too many Batman films. I'm pulling for Miller and Arnofsky's Year One project, personally. Not saying this one will do bad, but Miller knows his Batman.

[Pendo]

I lost my faith in the Batman franchise after that awful thing called "Batman Forever" :mad:!!!

The 1960's Batman movie with Adam West and Burt Ward will always be the best :p!

PENDO!

[Rogue II]

I want that Adam West Batman movie on DVD, I just have to find it.

I'm confused. Is another Batman film a good thing? The first 2 Batman films were good, the 3rd was "meh" at best, and I couldn't bring myself to see the last one.

Batman 5: Gotham CSI

[The Overlord Returns]

I doubt there going to have it be "Batman 5"....

More than likely it will be a reboot of the series in general. Much like the new superman film is not going to be "Superman 5".

[James Boba Fettfield]

I was hoping they would properly remake Scooby Doo Meets Batman. Imagine the CGI Scooby and that fatty Val Kilmer playing Batman again. Now that would be totally reimaging the series.

[Rogue II]

Originally posted by James Boba Fettfield
I was hoping they would properly remake Scooby Doo Meets Batman. Imagine the CGI Scooby and that fatty Val Kilmer playing Batman again. Now that would be totally reimaging the series.

Only if the Harlem Globetrotters make a guest appearance.:D

[James Boba Fettfield]

Even better! Load it up with everyone that ever met up with Scooby and the gang! Wait, in 5 years WB will be throwing this at us next.

[Eternal Padawan]

Heck, that'd be worth the $10 admission even if it was the worst movie ever. Scooby, Batman, the Globetrotters, Sonny and Cher, and Dick Cavett. All in one movie. :D

[QLD]

Don't forget Mama Cass, Abbot and Costello, and Tim Conway!

[Beast]

What? No Don Knotts or Jonathen Winters? :cry: :crazed: :D

MTFBWY and HH!!

Jar Jar Binks

[James Boba Fettfield]

I think I speak for all of us in saying we are sitting on a potential Warner Bros. gold mine here. Does anyone have skills writing screen plays?