frederick- Noir Batman

In Batman, Tim burton uses the elements of film noir to create a claustrophobic, abnormal and unsettling mood for his film.  Some of the elements he uses include distinct lighting, the stereotypical film noir conflicted hero, and the setting in Gotham's urban modernity. Tim Burton also somewhat undermines the film noir concept in a few different ways.

Film noir has a very recognizably form of lighting. There is low-key lighting with dark muted tones, which creates deep contrasted shadows. In Batman, the shadows help to reinforce the idea of good verses evil. The stark contrast of the shadows symbolized that good verses evil struggle, and it also gives the mood a conflicting sort of violence, as if they light and darkness are actually fighting. The angles Burton uses to film the set and scenes also contributes to the claustrophobic mood because of the way it distorts the scenery. Burton plays against the film noir characteristics though when he makes the Joker the colorful and vibrant character while Batman is all in black. Because he is dressing Batman, the hero, in black, the stereotypical villains clothing, Burton challenges norms and makes you question you're preconceived notions of what a villain, or a hero, is.

Burton also uses the conflicted hero in Batman, which is a typical character in film noir. This character is usually a young single man, usually a detective with a psychological issues and questionably morals. Batman fits this character to a tee. He is young and single, more than single he is almost alienated from other people because of his introverted personality. He is somewhat of a detective, because he solves riddles and puts criminals to justice. He is scarred by the murder of his parents in front of him, leading to an inability to connect with humans, as well as a constant feeling of insecurity. This insecurity is evident because Bruce Wayne closes his self and his life off from the world. He lives in a gated mansion and makes it his job to protect his city because he believes no one else can, or will. Batman also has some shady moral choices. For most civilians it might be a hard choice to kill people, even criminals, but Batman doesn't flinch. The movie mentions his killing of one crook, by throwing him off of a building, and we see him kill the Joker in the end. Batman does strive for his own personal view of justice and good however, because he always tries to protect the people and the city.

Gotham's setting plays a big part in giving off the creepy, claustrophobic and alienated mood. Film noir is characterized by large cities with no organic or natural feel. Gotham is just that. The city, which was a built set, not an actual place, is dark, grim, and almost feels like a jail. It's a prison to the people within it, because they are trapped in the violent, alienated world. There is no reference or contact with other cities or places outside of Gotham in the film, which makes you feel very trapped. This trapped feeling adds to the unsettling mood.

One way Burton undermined the film noir concept was in his choice of female lead. The character Vicky Vale can in no way be deemed powerful, dangerous, or seductive. She is an attractive woman but is more virgin than siren. Vale is constantly being controlled by the male characters, like when the Joker harasses her at the museum then at her home, and kidnaps her in the end. She's controlled by Wayne/Batman when he demands she get in the car and he takes her to the Batcave and drugs her before taking her home. She is much more of a fairy-tale princess as opposed to a film noir femme fatale.