The silhouette of Batman is an indelible image, instantly recognizable to even the most casual observer. Chris Nolan and costume designer Lindy Hemming knew it was important to preserve that image in redesigning and updating the Batsuit for "The Dark Knight."
Focusing on increased comfort and better flexibility, Hemming and her team did extensive research into the protective suits worn by motocross riders, as well as military issue protective armor. "We wanted the new Batsuit to be a more supple, more maneuverable, more breathable piece of equipment, like a modern suit of armor instead of a rubber suit," Hemming says, referring to the neoprene material used in making the Batsuit for "Batman Begins."
The new Batsuit is comprised of 110 separate pieces. The base layer of the suit was made of a polyester mesh material, which is employed by the military and high-tech sports manufacturers because of its moisture-wicking properties. Then individually molded pieces of flexible urethane were attached to the mesh to form the overall armor plating. For added protection, carbon fiber panels, which are light yet incredibly strong and resistant, were placed inside a select group of the urethane pieces around the legs, chest and abdomen.
To illustrate the evolution of the Batsuit from "Batman Begins" to "The Dark Knight," costume FX supervisor Graham Churchyard points out, "There were essentially three main components to the Batsuit in 'Batman Begins' and on this film there were more than 100, so it was a very complicated suit. Add to that, all of those individual pieces had to be modeled and then molded and cast. Each piece also had to be replicated dozens of times for the multiple Batsuits needed for the overall production. It was an extraordinary amount of work."
At the behest of both Nolan and Bale, Hemming's main mission was to modify the Batsuit to allow more rotation of the head and neck. "In the past, Batman has always had to move his shoulders to turn his head, so that was a definite priority," Bale affirms. The seemingly simple answer was to separate the cowl from the rest of the suit, but it had to appear seamless so as not to compromise The Dark Knight's imposing silhouette.
The overall redesign suited Christian Bale perfectly. "It was much more comfortable and far less claustrophobic than the first suit. It was also more agile and gave me better range of motion, which helped with the action and fight sequences. But it still gave me that feeling of invincibility," he acknowledges. "You can't help but feel protected and more powerful when you put the Batsuit on. It just works."
When it came to fighting and protection, the new and improved Batsuit did more than offer added flexibility. It is also outfitted with a variety of gadgets to aid Batman in his war on crime, including razor sharp fins that can be extended and then fired from the gauntlets on his forearms; and sonar-imaging lenses which flip down within Batman's cowl, enabling him to see sonar images in 3D while masking his eyes behind glowing white shields.
The only design element of the Batsuit that remained unchanged from "Batman Begins" to "The Dark Knight" was the cape. Hemming says, "We spent a lot of time getting the cape right for the first film, and we didn't want to change it." The cape does have one added feature: it can fold itself into a kind of backpack and then unfurl on command, which was accomplished through digital effects.
No, i dont like that. I want Batman to look like he's blatantly armoured, i want his suit to give away the fact that he's just a man, i want him to have pads, lines, and stupid gauntlets with 6 fins, and motocross gloves that go over the gauntlets and have huge velcros to keep them in place. I also want him to have the map of Gotham carved on his pants in case he gets lost.
The BB suit has these elements that you're talking about too, with the exception being that the helmet doesn't resemble the ****** BB cowl.
