The Problem with Batman's Voice

With Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" steadily breaking Hollywood records with every passing day, it seems that fans are now calm enough to give their opinion of the film. The fact that "Dark Knight" has pulled in $400 million dollars at the box office in 18 days and shows no signs of leaving the Number 1 spot is evidence that the fans are watching closely. Apparently, the biggest gripe that has been expressed among fans is the voice of Christian Bale's Batman.

The question posed by the Associated Press is this:

"Why does Batman talk like the offspring of Clint Eastwood and a grizzly bear?"

The answer to that would also come in the form of a question: Why not?

In "Batman Begins," the voice apparently wasn't meaty enough for fans. MSNBC's Alonso Durald compared the two, writing that Bale's voice, "sounded absurdly deep, like a 10-year-old putting on an 'adult' voice to make prank phone calls. This time, Bale affects an eerie rasp, somewhat akin to Brenda Vaccaro doing a Miles Davis impression."

While the voice is completely Bale's, director Christopher Nolan and supervising sound editor Richard King adjusted the voice, exaggerating it through modulation.

NPR's David Edelstein called the changed voice "deeper and hammier than ever," and so far, fans are divided in their opinions. Many agree and find the voice distracting and annoying. Others rebuke such people and insist they're just trying to find something to gripe about.

Looking back at the history of Batman films, Christian Bale is the first Batman to fully alter his voice between Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego. While Michael Keaton's voice as Batman was different from Bruce Wayne's, they were still close enough to make the connection. Val Kilmer and George Clooney did little to modify their voices for the character.

The difference between the Batman films of the 90's and Nolan's two films is the concept of realism. Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher's films barely allow realism to enter the equation. Their variety of nefarious criminals -- Burton's Joker, played by Jack Nicholson being the obvious favorite -- dance the line between absurdity and comedy, elements that drew fans to the films in the first place.

Christopher Nolan broke the mold with "Batman Begins," the first Batman film since Joel Schumacher's 1997 "Batman and Robin." There is no continuity between the Batman franchise of the 90's and Nolan paints a new, darker image of Batman. His Batman is placed in a world that is based on realism -- on a world that viewers would recognize and villains that perhaps aren't so outlandish after all. The cartoony, often campy acting is replaced with a realism that took fans by surprise.

Christian Bale's Batman fully shielded his identity with a mask and a voice that villains would come to fear. The Batman of "Dark Knight" is more beastlike than the one of "Batman Begins." He is angry, frustrated and above all, tired. The animal-like intensity that has set fans off, of course, carries to the voice. It adds to the fact that Bruce Wayne and Batman are two different people. The smooth, arrogant voice of Bruce Wayne shouldn't carry over into Batman's voice.

Perhaps people are just trying to find something bad about "Dark Knight," perhaps the voice is truly distracting. Chris Nolan's vision is a change for the Batman franchise. Even Batman icon, Adam West didn't change his voice when going between Batman and Bruce Wayne. Chris Nolan has given Batman a facelift since the Batman of the 60's and the 90's. The voice is just one of those changes that add to that facelift.

However, despite the controversy, it doesn't seem to make any real difference. Batman is still firmly poised at Number 1 and fans still keep watching.

Bale's Batman Voice Too Much?, The Associated Press

"Dark Knight" Clears $400 Million at Record Pace, Yahoo! Movies: Movie News