This couldn't have happened at a better time.
For those unaware, my Jandy ("grandmother", for the layman) passed away earlier this week. While it is hard for someone to lose any family member, this loss has affected me greatly based upon my closeness to her. I love her very much and she will be deeply missed by my family. I have been spending the weeks before her passing and the days after preparing myself for the loss and the effect it will have on me in the time to come. Overall I think I'm OK, but that doesn't mean I don't want something to think about. Then, somehow, as if Jandy sensed I needed to focus on something else for a moment, she sent me this beautiful nugget of information. Ben Affleck is Batman.
Like many controversial decisions surrounding pop culture icons, this revelation has caused a bit of an uproar. The casting of Affleck in Zack Snyder's Batman/Superman follow up to Man Of Steel has its advocates, and a vast opposition. Lord knows, I understand where they're coming from. A Batfan of my caliber should be championing the opposition to the role being played by the star of such fare as Surviving Christmas, Pearl Harbour, Gigli, and Jersey Girl. And let's not even talk about 'Bennifer'.
So here's the twist: I like it.
Without going too far into it before getting to the list of reasons why this is going to work, I will say that Affleck is a controversial, if not inspired, choice for the role that NO ONE saw coming. In this way, it's much like the announcement of the film itself. A bold move that no one could have predicted, with everyone in tow ready to back it up. I shall dropeth the knowledge as to why both the film and Affleck's role therein will work. As I am an advocate of everyone's opinions, I assume that even after this there will remain an opposition and I welcome the arguments.
But I'm going to be right.
1. He's Not Christian Bale.
A couple of points here. First off, yes, I very much appreciated and enjoyed Bale's work in the Dark Knight Trilogy. I hold true to the belief that he's the best live action portrayal of the Caped Crusader (so far). But the rumours surrounding him taking up the role once again for the sake of a ridiculous payday fucking TERRIFIED me.
Keep in mind that this is probably not going to be a one-shot deal if it works. We might very well see a Justice League film or at the very least an Affleck-starring Batman film. Extending Bale's run to that length would only bring out the flaws in his performance that people loving throwing shade at. Do we really need that voice for another three films? The more significant problem with Bale's being Batman again is that it completely fucks the continuity of the DK trilogy. It was wrapped up nicely in the context of what it was and should exist by itself with no relation to a DCU franchise, which is also why casting Joseph Gordon Levitt wouldn't work either. We needed a clean break and now we have one.
Getting back to Affleck, not only do we have a fresh franchise, we have a completely unexpected star donning the cape and cowl. And he is SO different from Bale in many ways. Bale was a great Batman and a decent Bruce Wayne. I'm interested to see what Ben's Batman will be like, but he's going to be a fucking GREAT Bruce. He's much more charismatic on screen than Bale; charming, good looking, and can throw around sleaze like crazy when needed. Some are thrilled to bring up his turn as Daredevil as a reference to how he'll be as Bats, but I'll get to that later. Right now, I'm just happy that I no longer have to stress about my beloved Dark Knight Trilogy getting fucked with.
2. Affleck's A Big Guy.
It seems kind of trivial, but the physical presence of Batman is an important element of his character. His whole shtick is based upon striking fear into his enemies and it's hard to do that if you're not physically intimidating. It's one of the many, MANY reasons why Michael Keaton's turn as Batman has lost its luster for me (because he's a fucking midget). Affleck stands at over 6'3", the tallest actor to portray the Dark Knight to date.
Add to that, he's bulky as well. Films like Daredevil and, more recently, The Town show he's able to be in the shape he needs to be in to take on the job. Yeah, he's 41 years old, but in the last 20 years of making Batman films no one has really been young and been Batman at the same time. Besides, we don't know the context in which Batman will be brought into in the new film. He might be a bit older, with the Batman already an established presence in the world. I'm down with it.
One last thing, and it's kind of dumb, but you don't want him TOO big. There was big talk about Joe 'Alcide' Manganiello taking up the cowl, which by himself wouldn't be a bad choice. But he's almost half a foot taller than Henry Cavill and when fucking Superman has to fly just to make eye contact with you, a wrong message is being sent. Trust me, Affleck's got the right look for the job.
3. Affleck's A Nerd.
Nothing makes me happier than when I hear about an actor taking a job he wants because of appreciation for the original work. Affleck's an established and proud comic book geek, as per his friendship with patron saint of nerds, Kevin Smith. Before staring in Daredevil, Affleck wrote the introduction to Kevin Smith's Daredevil graphic novel 'Guardian Devil', and having read it several times over, I can say that Ben has an affection (Affleck-tion?) for the genre.
That's a game-changer when you compare Affleck with someone like Bale or say, Tim Burton. Making art and practicing your craft is one thing, but doing it with the enthusiasm and motivations of a fanboy are so much more. You know who the character is, and moreover you want to do him justice. Burton gave not a fuck about that and turned Batman into a fucking terrorist (see: the last 20 minutes of Batman '89). Nor will it be a Clooney situation where he's just stroking his own ego. Affleck will care about doing a good job, and I feel like the character is safe in his hands.
4. He's An Accomplished Veteran Actor.
Stay with me, here.
Once upon a time, in the long ago, Ben Affleck was Daredevil. It is one of the least liked superhero films that Marvel has ever put out, and the guiltiest of pleasures for me. I love this film, through and through. But I understand why it gets all of the shit. It's not all Ben's fault, but he's the star so some blame will inevitably fall on him. It doesn't help that the early 2000's saw Affleck dump shit movie after shit movie all over the world. His career was spiraling out of control at this time and I was afraid he would never get his shit together.
That was ten god damn years ago, and he has pulled his shit together.
The past few years has seen Affleck rise up as a star actor and a fucking Oscar-winning director. I mentioned before why he'd be a great Bruce Wayne. Well, we also know he can do action in roles like The Town, and his performances in that and Argo show he has a gravitas that is absolutely necessary to be Batman. Clooney comes off like a fucking oaf because he never took anything seriously as Batman. Affleck has the ability to come off as a normal guy, but also has a grimmer, serious tone and look about him when the situation is appropriate.
As mentioned, Daredevil will be a talking point when discussing Ben as Batman, but the circumstances could not be more different. We have an experienced crew in Snyder and company as opposed to Mark Steven Johnson, who's claim to fame includes directing Ghost Rider and not much else. The Superhero film genre is stupidly popular right now when ten years ago, all we had was X-Men, Spider-Man, and Hulk to base our context on. Most importantly, Affleck is ten years older, and thus more experienced in life and film. He turned a spiralling career and addiction problem into a huge comeback story. You don't do what he's done without talent. The combination of that talent and experience will be huge advantages to his being Batman over a lot of the younger talent that everyone assumed would be taking up the role in the new film. And yeah, he has the added experience of being a superhero in a failed franchise. I don't see that hurting. He knows the character. He has the acting chops and physical presence. He has a personal struggle and dark past full of failures, drug abuse, and actresses named Jennifer to pull from. All he needs is the benefit (Ben-efit?) of the doubt. Give it to him, he deserves it.
5. He NEEDS To Be OK.
Lastly, let's take Ben out of the equation for a minute. This is DC/Warner's last ditch effort of catching up or trumping the Marvel/Disney empire of Superhero films. Man Of Steel was a lackluster performance when compared to The Avengers or even Iron Man 3. The Batman/Superman announcement was the kick in the pants everyone needed to get some momentum going for the next few years, and the casting of Batman was the next most important decision to make. This film will make or break the competition between DC and Marvel and the success will heavily depend on the stars of the film. So knowing that, do you really think they came to this decision lightly?
Henry Cavill is still a new face, and while The Avengers had fresh faces like Hemsworth and Renner, it also had Robert Downey Jr., an accomplished actor whose turn in Iron Man launched the whole Marvel line. When he was cast, no one was sure what to think. He went from '???' to 'Best in the world' overnight. Same thing happened when Heath Ledger was chosen as The Joker. He won a goddam Oscar. Inspired casting has made this genre what it is; and now, we have Affleck as Batman. He can very well be the RDJ of the DC movie line. He's popular, successful, on a ridiculous hot streak, and a success story that people can identify with. Ben's the face people will recognize and want to see. Christ, the announcement happened less than a day ago and literally everyone is talking about it. Love it or hate it, this is a big deal, much bigger than if Alcide or Karl 'Bones' Urban got the gig. This is the momentum that the film needs to be as big as Avengers. Yeah, people were going to see the movie because Batman is awesome but NOW more people will be paying attention because no one knows how this will go, and everyone wants to. The only way to capitalize on it is by having it be the right decision. Sure, I would have been OK with someone else being cast. No, I did not see this coming nor would Ben even be on my list of people to cast. But here he is.
In conclusion, I strongly believe as a movie buff and as a Batman devotee, that this is a good decision. Call me in 2015 and we'll see where we are. If I'm right, you're welcome. If I'm wrong, and Affleck just Clooneys the fuck out of this thing, feel free to berate my tombstone. Because I will be dead of sadness and stress-induced aneurysm.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, thank you Jandy, and I love you.
Knight Owl
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