To say that Batman changed my life may sound like a dramatic exaggeration, but it truly did set me on a journey that led to me being here, writing this short love letter that you are reading now. I can even pinpoint the exact date my world turned upside down: August 19, 2008. It was my first watch of Christopher Nolan’s magnificent masterpiece The Dark Knight in cinemas.
Growing up I was terrified of the cinema: it was too loud, too dark, and the smell of popcorn made me feel queasy. As my cinephile dad took my younger sister to the theatres, I spent my time in the bookshop next door with my mum. Film just wasn’t really part of my life, which is why my parents were surprised when I said for my 14th birthday I wanted to see The Dark Knight. But there was just something about the idea of this film that had left me curious, from the exciting trailers to the viral marketing campaign, and of course the many, many five-star reviews. The news of the tragic death of star Heath Ledger had also captured my attention, and it was that which introduced me to the character of The Joker. Who was this laughing maniac, with his messy painted-white face, unnerving grin, and dirty purple suit? And why was this masked vigilante chasing him? What was the relationship between the pair and why the fuck was the man dressed like a bat? From this outsider perspective, I didn’t have a clue, but I did know that I wanted answers to these questions.
Why so serious?
Nothing could have prepared me though for not only just how damn brilliant The Dark Knight is, but how much of an impact it would have on me. From that very first striking opening scene of the Joker’s bank heist, I was completely enraptured - by the time the credits had rolled it felt like my eyes were finally wide open. I’m still yet to experience anything on that level again and being honest, I doubt I ever will.
A new world had opened up for me and I was determined to dive right into it, reading anything I could about Batman, Nolan, and films in general. My obsession did of course mean I had to get over my fear of cinemas pretty sharpish, although I still admittedly can’t stand the smell and taste of popcorn. Eventually, I realised I wanted to turn my love of movies into a job after my dad introduced me to the idea of film criticism, encouraging me to start writing reviews on my very own blog (may The Mint Film Blog rest in peace in the depths of the internet somewhere). Not only did that shape my career but it’s also how I met my partner, a fellow film fan and journalist.
A silent guardian
It’s strange that I have a film and fictional character to thank for all of this but I genuinely do - if my curiosity about Batman hadn’t spurred me to face my fears watching The Dark Knight, and if that film wasn’t incredible, who knows where I would have ended up in life. Probably not here…
And this Batman Day, which is being celebrated on September 16th this year, is even more special to me as it comes two months after an experience that was simply a dream come true: interviewing Nolan himself for his latest triumph Oppenheimer (something which still doesn’t feel real). My tweets about that did draw in some snobbery in the comments as people laughed at the fact a superhero film was what made me fall in love with cinema, but that was inevitable. What did surprise me was the amount of people replying and reaching out to me to share their own experience of how The Dark Knight or another Batman movie changed everything for them too. Upon reflection there really has been one for every generation, from Adam West’s kooky ‘60s show to Robert Pattinson’s recent grizzled take on the masked detective. Yes, a silly man dressed as a bat did have this much impact on me but even so, shouldn’t that be celebrated instead of guffawed over? I think so.
Batman Day is September 16th 2023. For the upcoming DC movies and TV shows you need to look out for, we have got you covered with our guide.
