The Batman Reboot Casting Thread - Part 5

[Llama_Shepherd]

Yeah, Cold Light of Day and No One Lives are both terrible movies who make the actors look terrible as well. Not good indicators of acting talent. But still, it's hard not to judge Evans based off his performance in that. Especially since he's never really had a huge breakout role. The Raven remains his best example of Batman, imo.

I reckon The Hobbit will be a good example, Bard's a fairly dark and commanding character, and he should have some good action.

 

[hafizbat]

I'm not sure we're talking about the same thing. The 'huge gym guy', as I understand the concept, is certainly not 'peak physical condition'. It is a condition of physical abnormality achieved by a concerted program of unnatural practices, from the exercises themselves to the processed and unbalanced diet to the drugs. It results in huge muscle mass, but that is to the detriment of general physical fitness - i.e. in the vascular system. Don't forget that Bruce is supposed to be a martial artist and an acrobat; he is supposed to be able to skip along the rooftops in tandum with Catwoman. The 'peak physical condition' for him must lie somewhere in the range of Joe Calzaghe and Usain Bolt.

This goes to your second point- the notion that Bruce would spend a large slice of his time lifting weights. Of course he would do everything possible to keep himself physically honed, but this doesn't equate to the attempt to maintain an exaggerated muscle mass. Again, his speed and agility are equally important. There is also the question of time and feasibility- between the crime fighting and the 'day job', where is it? I'm sure he would use what time he had where possible, but he simply can't look like someone who spends six hours a day in the gym merely to sculpt themselves.

Anyway, this is all moot, because we seem to be agreed on what is appropriate. I was initially reacting to the term 'huge', which put me in mind of the inhuman proportions of the videogame Batman, which would clearly be inappropriate.

No offense, but you sound overly biased towards people who work out/try to make their body look good. I understand your concerns about having a huge juiced up bodybuilder, but as Elite said, its rather unrealistic to think that EVERY muscular individual out there is on roids or spends "6 hours a day" in a gym, or practices "unbalanced diet" to achieve "abnormal physicality".


People who eat healthy, not abnormally lol, and work out even an hour 3-4 times a week can achieve a muscular body.

And while I totally agree with you that Batman on screen would look outrageous like this

Surely an actor could bulk up to this, naturally

Especially considering that

Superman looks like this

Thor looks like this

Wolverine looks like this (at age 44)

Also, Captain America

I wouldn't describe any of these actors the way you do. Sure, they had to work hard for these bodies but its not that unrealistic, especially for someone like Bruce Wayne.

 

[regwec]

I've made it clear enough that I wasn't describing anyone with that kind of physique, but rather reacting to the use of terms like 'huge' etc. Bale in BB was fine, Cavill's Supes represents the upper limit and in my opinion is probably too heavy for Batman.

 

[Rodrigo90]

The suit always hinders people who are too big.

 

[shauner111]

You should watch The Raven and No One Lives.

I just got through a bit of No One Lives and his accent is awful.

 

[hafizbat]

Also, I want to add that being highly muscular doesn't mean you can't be fast, flexible, or agile enough to run with catwoman on rooftops.

For example look at the body of an NFL safety. These guys fly all over the field covering speedy receivers, have to be strong enough to shed blockers and tackle, and agile enough to make interceptions. They have 40 yard dashes in the 4.0s and extremely high vertical jumps as well.

Here's a gymnast

As you can see, having a ripped muscular body is actually a product of great physical fitness, which any batman should have.

 

[hafizbat]

I've made it clear enough that I wasn't describing anyone with that kind of physique, but rather reacting to the use of terms like 'huge' etc. Bale in BB was fine, Cavill's Supes represents the upper limit and in my opinion is probably too heavy for Batman.

My bad, I took it that you were against having a muscular body in general.

 

[Eddie Dean]

Can we rename this thread "Comic books fans discussing the musculature of handsome men"?

 

[regwec]

Again, an athletic build of that type is just what I am advocating. The gymnast, in particular, is extremely honed while being of an ordinary human size.

 

[Steve Holt]

batman should always have the same frame as Cap, i between a Safety and a Gymnast

 

[EliteF50]

Again, I think Joe's body is near perfect for Batman. Not overly bulky, but still swole. Looks almost exactly like comic book Batman.

Only thing he'd need to work on a bit is his chest.

I just got through a bit of No One Lives and his accent is awful.

Yeah, it's pretty damn bad. It was better in The Raven, but still. No One Lives tainted my image of Evans as Batman, lol.

 

[Sawyer]

Can we rename this thread "Comic books fans discussing the musculature of handsome men"?

Isn't that what it always comes down to?

 

[hafizbat]

Again, an athletic build of that type is just what I am advocating. The gymnast, in particular, is extremely honed while being of an ordinary human size.

Then we think alike

 

[regwec]

Isn't that what it always comes down to?

Yep, the sheer volume of waxed male torsos on view during the Conan casting debates had me questioning how I used my spare time.

 

[hafizbat]

While not everything, its undeniable that the physical aspect of the character is important, and considering this is a casting thread for a comic book superhero, its a completely valid topic.

In today's world, the human body is a huge deal. There are billions of dollars spent in gyms, diets, marketing, etc. It's an important part of life, and probably more scrutinized by today's audience than it was at the time of Reeve's Superman or Keaton's Batman.

These comic book superheroes are like today's mythology, and the physical aesthetics can make a difference in how the film is received....look at how out of shape Maguire was in SM3.

The amount of buzz, press, articles. magazine issues, and overall fascination generated by just 10 seconds of Cavill on screen without a shirt surely justifies discussion on the physique of the next actor to play Batman.

 

[Sharkboy]

Manganiello would be great...if he could act. People love to forget how important that is on here.

 

[hafizbat]

Again, I think Joe's body is near perfect for Batman. Not overly bulky, but still swole. Looks almost exactly like comic book Batman.

Only thing he'd need to work on a bit is his chest.

I agree. And considering that he's this jacked on his own (not a professional fitness model or anything, right?) I imagine if he was cast he could put another 6 months completely devoted to his physique.

I'm not sure about his acting tho, has anyone watched him in True Blood?

Also, here he is without the trademark beard

 

[Rorschach2012]

But this video gives a good idea of how Manganiello's Batman voice would sound
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQ-xPGq9FMw

There is a quick butt

 

[Sawyer]

He's not Bruce Wayne. I like him, but he's just not.

 

[hafizbat]

I have to admit, I kind of feel the same way. As great as his voice, body, stature would fit as Batman, I have a hard time seeing him as the suave playboy Bruce Wayne. I also don't get the "world's greatest detective" vibe from him nor that edge that Batman needs to have. He seems a bit too nice for that lol

 

[EliteF50]

Now that's something almost every good actor could change. A voice is much harder, but I'm positive he can change up his nice personality to make it *****ey/suave/edgy. Without talking or smiling, he looks like a pretty mean guy. He could definitely pull off Bruce's scowl. Besides, I thought he was a gigantic *****e in Spider-man, so I know he can do it.

Some more Joe scenes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=365XQSG_mmk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=wC-o9C35jKY#t=28s

Now all I need to do is learn how to spell his goddamn last name, lol.

 

[Rorschach2012]

Joe Manganiello is solid in both of those videos. And it demonstrates how he'd do in action. He has the voice, build, and look.

"Henry's just ... I love Joe Manganiello too, by the way. Really he (Manganiello) was the only other guy I was thinking of, to be honest, other than Henry. In the end, I think Henry just has this innocence, too [in addition to the physicality required for the role]."

If the only edge Cavill had on Manganiello was his innocence, I trust Snyder's judgement of Manganiello. After all Bruce is a less innocent character than Batman.

With shorter, slicked back hair, and a shave, Joe Manganiello would make for a pretty comics accurate Bruce Wayne.

 

[Bruce Malone]

This is like looking into a time machine into the old superman casting thread seeing joe m there being pimped.

He's not going to get the role, i don't dislike him but he's not a leading man candidate despite his ripped bod.

I know his work i watch true blood (big of me to admit) even among the overal light-weight acting there he doesn't stand out among the cast.

 

[Sawyer]

This is like looking into a time machine into the old superman casting thread seeing joe m there being pimped.

He's not going to get the role, i don't dislike him but he's not a leading man candidate despite his ripped bod.

I know his work i watch true blood (big of me to admit) even among the overal light-weight acting there he doesn't stand out among the cast.

The acting's not the problem there. The actors are solid. It's the writing that's light-weight.

 

[Bruce Malone]

Again that sort of plays into his own capabilities. Among all the actors i would have to rank him last, is that purely the fault of the writing i don't know? but like i said his acting stands out the least among anybody in the main cast.