The Batman
We have heard a lot about the new DCEU Batman movie, set for release in the 2018-2019 area, and it's gotten me thinking. How would I do a Batman movie in the DCEU that
A.Contains a large number of Batman rogues, including Deathstroke and The Joker(both rumored for the film)
B.Showcases Batman's detective side. Show him coming to conclusions and using his mind to solve crimes
C.establish the Bat-family
and
D. takes into account Batman's unnecessary murdering in BVS in a way that improves the story and creates something great out of something stupid. That's what I really want to do. Take a completely unnecessary story element and morph it into something we can be proud of. Make it seem like it was all part of the plan when it was just writers wanting to make Batman “cooler”(which is impossible. Even Adam West Batman is cooler than any real person)
To do these things, I plan to begin by diving headfirst into Batman's world. We’re gonna see how life in Gotham with Batman works. This is a mystery spanning throughout Gotham, to Nanda Parbat, and to the beginning of Batman's career to now.
Villains include
The Joker
Black Mask
Penguin
Deathstroke
Ra's al Ghul
Riddler
Red Hood
The tone will be dark with occasional situational based levity. This should have some homages to noir films. It should have a bit of a noir feeling at times. This movie is an adventure into the heart of Batman's world. It takes place over 24 hours in order to push in the “one bad day” thematic aspect of the story.
What I’m trying to do though, is show a day in the life with Batman.
Here it is:
We start in the slums of Gotham, in a small, cramped apartment. Not Gotham of today, but a Gotham of long ago. It's a Gotham that no longer exists. Gotham, when things were sane. We see the man who will become The Joker. At first it seems like it is the Joker, but then we see, he's still sane. He's normal. He's having a bad day, THE bad day. He's talking to a woman, his wife. She's pregnant. He’s unemployed. He got a gig at a comedy night at a club, but he failed. Now they have nothing. She encourages him though, telling him to smile, he’ll get a new job, and everything will be okay. We see he's being pushed to a breaking point. He's a disappointment. He can't let his family go hungry, especially with another mouth on the way.
Later, he's found a job. He speaks to a man and his gang. He used to work at a chemical plant, before he quit his job to pursue his dream of being a comedian. Maroni’s gang wants his help to break into the plant. They hand him a red leather mask, and welcome him to the red hood gang.
Now, Batman rides the batmobile through the city, batgirl and Nightwing traveling in motercycle X through the streets, all speaking to each other and Commissioner Gordon over comms. The city has been hacked. The Riddler is on every screen. The current time is 10: 39. Bombs have been planted around the city. Riddler asks for the answer to three of his riddles to the city of Gotham. They need to prove themselves. Gotham must prove its smart enough, that it deserves to survive. It's survival of the fittest, really. Get smart, or die. They are trying to find the Riddlers location, and have narrowed it down to three locations. Batman ends up with the right one, and despite warnings to wait by Nightwing and Batgirl, heads in. He discovers Riddler wired to machinery. If he's removed, the bombs go off. If Batman gives the right answer to 3 riddles though, Riddler will deactivate the bombs. Batgirl and Nightwing try to tell him to wait. He shuts off his comm. We have a lot of tension, he answers each Riddle, and the Riddler deactivates the bombs. Nightwing, Batgirl, and the GCPD arrive outside the dilapidated building Riddler was hiding in. This shows how smart batman is.
Batman and Grayson get into an argument regarding what happened and how he could have gotten everybody killed. Batman argued that he wouldn't have failed, because he's Batman. Dick comments that was what he said before Jason died, and rides off. Barbara tells Bruce it was nice working with him again, and that it's been a while. At the Batcave, Bruce looks at Jason's costume, and speaks to Alfred. He was right to leave Batgirl and Nightwing out of it. He can't let them get hurt like Jason did. Batman’s always been something he had to do alone.
Meanwhile, at the docks, a shipment of drugs is brought in, and put into Sionis industries trucks. Suddenly, the drug runners are attacked. Clown masked men with machine guns take down the gangsters, then burn the drugs. One of Sionis’ men manage to shoot a clown.
The news of the attack at the docks is brought to a man in a Black skull mask, in a penthouse apartment. We also learn that their were simultaneous drive by shootings of establishments owned by Black Mask the same night. He realizes the culprit must be Joker, and declares they have to attack. Joker is encroaching on his territory in a blatant attack on his honor. There's a lot of anger in his voice when he mentions Joker, and we see the black skull mask is melted into his face. Joker did that. He tells his men to find Joker and kill him before this gets out of hand. He doesn't want to deal with a full war, and if he ends things quickly, he can come in and take Jokers territory, making him the kingpin of all of Gotham.
Black Mask’s men attack Jokers strip club, leading to a fire fight. Jonny Frost and Harley Quinn manage to escape in a getaway car as the club burns to the ground. Frost chauffeurs Harley away.
In an abandoned toy factory, the Joker is brought news of the attack on his club by Jonny Frost, who seems intimidated by the Joker, but remains official, though a bit of a “yes man”. Kinda spineless actually. This Joker reunites with Harley. He decides they should ask Frost for advice on what to do in retaliation, and Frost suggests they launch a full scale assault on Black Mask's Penthouse and end things quickly. They'll lose men but it's an unexpected move. Joker wants to draw this out as long as possible to cause more carnage though, and Frost decides they should go after the penguin, Black Mask’s money man, to better suit Jokers needs.
Batman meanwhile, learns of the attacks in the cave from the Bat computer, and heads to the GCPD, where Gordon is working. We learn Gordon was at home when the news of the attacks came in, and it's about one in the morning. If Joker and Black Masks gangs go to war, it'll tear Gotham apart. The body of the clown that was shot is brought in, and identified as a black ops mercenary from the Middle East, possibly with ties to the terrorist group the League of Assassins. He's not the usual Joker goon. Also, there were sightings of a mysterious red masked figure near the docks.
Black Mask’s men return, and inform him that Joker wasn't at the club. It's been months since Joker was seen in public and they were sure he was hiding out there. Black Mask decides he needs professional help, and contacts the assassin Deathstroke, putting a hit out on Joker.
Batman learns from underworld contacts a hit has been put out on Joker, who he’s been unsuccessfully searching for for months. Jokers been in hiding, but this gang war might draw him out. Joker must be found before Deathstroke can get to him. Batman heads out and captures Jonny Frost, interrogating him. Frost claims Joker will kill him if he finds out, but Batman offers his protection. Once he gets Joker back into Arkham he’s never getting out. He is told that there's an imminent attack on Oswald Cobblepot and his waterfront Restaurant/Casino: The Iceberg Lounge.
The Joker, Harley Quinn, and a group of costumed men with machine guns attack the Iceberg, taking hostages as they search for Cobblepot. Cobblepot is in a backroom. Arming himself. He's obviously terrified of the Joker. A shadow falls over him. As the Joker prepares to kill hostages, Cobblepot comes out, giving himself up. The Joker sees this as surprisingly noble, and compliments Penguin before preparing to kill him. Penguin then does a double roundhouse kick, disarms several of Joker's men with lightning efficiency, and reveals he's actually Batman in a fat suit and prosthetics. He ducks under a table during the fight between him, penguins security team, and the Joker's gang to remove the penguin suit and get his cowl back on. Joker is happy, he's been so bored lately, he's been caught up in taking control of Gotham, and his jokes have had no punchline. Now, his punch line is back.
Sniper rifle fire shoots in from a window, but is blocked from hitting Joker by Batman. Deathstroke crashes in through the skylight. Batman, must now defeat Deathstroke, at the same time protecting Joker, and making sure neither he or Harley Quinn escape. They fight, crashing into a polar bear enclosure in the center of the casino. They both escape the polar bears. Deathstroke brutalizes Batman, playing dirty, and stabs his shoulder, but is eventually defeated, and makes a tactical retreat, Joker is knocked out, and Harley escapes. The sun is rising, and Batman brings Joker to Arkham where he taunts Batman(watching in hiding from the dark corners of Arkham), describing how he killed Jason, and he can't believe Batman hasn't killed him for it, mentioning how much Jason cried and how easy it was to break him. He tells Batman he killed Robin so that they could be pure. Two opposite forces without any baggage, any friends or family to tie them down. Batman speaks to Gordon, telling him that they need to keep an eye out for Deathstroke, who could still be hunting Joker. Bruce returns to Wayne Manor as the sun comes up. Alfred tells him he should sleep, but Bruce says there's still work to be done. The men that attacked Black Mask’s drugs and buildings weren't Joker affiliated. Someone orchestrated the conflict between Joker and Black Mask. Batman runs a search through su unity cameras in the city for facial recognition on known members of The League of Assassins. He also gets a call from Dick, which he declines. Batman is obsessive, refusing to let anyone else get involved, and determined.
In the sewers below Arkham, Deathstroke prepares to sneak into the asylum when a mysterious man offers him double what Black Mask is paying to leave the Joker for him, and go after Black Mask. This figure is revealed to be wearing a Red Hood mask.
Flash back to the man who would become the joker. They are outside the chemical plant, near a river. He is wearing a tuxedo. He puts the red leather mask over his face and looks at himself. He thinks he looks good. Theatrical and threatening. He asks the gangsters working with him what happened to the last guy who wore the mask. They comment that he got shot. The man, let's call him Jack for brevities sake, realizes that the red hood is a target, a means for this gang to send a false criminal mastermind out while they take the cash. He tries to talk his way out, but they tell him it's just one job, and they'll be gone before the police come. They head in, he tries to lead them to the safe, Batman attacks. He takes out the other gangsters. He's a ghost, a nightmare in the shadows. Terrifying.
Jack and the remaining gangsters make it to the safe. Jack is terrified. He's going to die. A bat monster is going to kill him. One of them pulls out a gun. He shoots the gangsters, and takes the money for himself. They were going to kill him anyway, they would never have given him a cut. This is probably what they did to the last who knows how many red hoods. He needs this money, it's for his wife, his daughter.
Jack tries to escape, shoots at batman and accidentally causes an explosion. We end up with him above a chemical tank on a catwalk, trying to get to the fire exit. Jack is terrified. Batman swoops down, treating Red hood like an old enemy, someone he's spent months tracking down. As Batman steps through the smoke between them as the building burns and explodes, Jack finally gets a good look at him… and bursts out laughing. Saying that he thought Batman was an actual Bat monster, but they're both just idiots in costumes. Two freaks in masks. He tries to shoot Batman, misses, Batman tackles him. The money flies into the chemicals below, Jack jumps after it, Batman tries to grab him and fails. An explosion rocks the catwalk as it begins to fall. Fire burns around the chemical plant, Batman is forced to leave as the building explodes.
Batman gets a call from Gordon. Joker was just broken out of Arkham by a man in a red hood mask. The man got in by using prosthetics over his mask to disguise himself as a doctor. Batman quickly checks a storage area in the Batcave which holds the original red hood mask, slightly burned and with some white discoloration. Batman drives to Arkham. He sneaks into the Asylum, passing by the Riddler’s cell. He meets Gordon at Joker's cell, where he is allowed in to investigate despite protest by other cops. Gordon is surprised Batman came, as he almost never works during the day.
Batman discovers the remains of the prosthetics. They're the same kind he used earlier. He comments that whoever started the gang war must have done it to get Joker back in public so he could be captured, and the culprit is using Batman’s weapons. It's someone who knows him, maybe an old foe.
Alfred calls him, saying that the computer found a match. Ra's Al Ghul, the leader of the league of assassins is in the city. He's staying at a penthouse under a fake name. Batman leaves, telling Gordon to keep him updated. Bruce tells Alfred he believes Ra’s is behind the attacks. As Bruce Wayne, he heads to the hotel Ra’s al Ghul is staying at. He plays the drunken playboy as he gets a room right below Ra’s al Ghul, and claiming a bus full of Victoria's Secret models will be arriving shortly and should be let up to his room.
When he gets up there, he scales the building from his window and gets to the penthouse, where he battles a sudden onslaught of dozens of ninjas, at once. After defeating every one of the 40 something ninjas, injuring his recently stabbed shoulder even more in the process, Ra’s al Ghul comes to meet him, only calling him “the detective”, not Bruce or Batman, and mentioning that he wanted to see if Bruce was still the man he once was, mentioning that he has always considered Bruce an equal, and had once offered Bruce his daughter's hand in marriage to Bruce along with control of the League after his death. Bruce finds it strange Ra’s is complimenting him so much, and Ra's explains it's to prepare him for what he has to say next. He may have already suspected, but here is the confirmation: Jason is alive. Bruce punches Ra's in the face.
Cut to years ago. Dick telling Bruce he needs to find his own path, and can't live under the shadow of the Batman any more. Bruce raised him in darkness and pain, but that's not what he wants. He wants to be something better, more hopeful. Bruce says goodbye. Later, we see Bruce meet Jason, a teen who tried to steal the wheels off the Batmobile. We see him take Jason in after learning he's an orphan, train him, and eventually make him the new Robin. Jason asks Bruce why he dresses as a bat, and Bruce tells him you have to become what you fear to conquer your fears. Then, we see a hostage situation. Joker's gang has taken control of a building and is killing hostages. Batman tells Jason to wait in the car. He's not ready for the Joker. Jason tells him he’ll need help. Batman denies this, telling him he won't fail, after all, he's Batman.
Batman falls for a trap, and while injured, Jason comes in to try and save him, only for the Joker to grab him, knock him out and take him away. Joker tortures Jason in a hidden hideout, telling him Batman won't find him, he's already given up. Jason says Batman is going to kill Joker, and Joker tells him Batman doesn't kill. He's going to let him do this again and again and again. Batman searches the city for Jason, beating up Joker goons. He eventually finds Joker, knocks his teeth in, and relentlessly beats him as he asks where Jason is. He almost kills Joker but stops and Joker is taken to Arkham, gets grills, and meets Dr. Quinzel. Batman continues to search for Robin, until the day Joker escapes from Arkham with Harley Quinn. Batman finally traces Jason to a playing card factory, and finds Jason's dead body. He cradles it in his arms, a father silently weeping over the lose of his son.
There is a funeral, Dick is there, with a bruised face and bloody knuckles. He couldn't be the light, the dark just wouldn't let him go. Hope is gone for him. He blames Jason's death on Bruce and leaves.
Cut back to now where Bruce punches Ra's al Ghul over and over again, asking why he brought Jason back, and how. Ra's, still as calm as ever(he was letting Bruce punch him) tells Bruce that the League has many secrets, including the secrets of raising the dead. Ra's brought Jason back as a gift to Batman, but when Jason learned that Bruce didn't kill the Joker for what he did, he changed his plan, asking Ra's for soldiers and resources. Ra’s is here to monitor Jason's progress. Bruce demands to know where Jason is, and Ra's sends him to the location of the playing card factory, where the Red Hood had collected Joker, Black Mask, The Penguin, and several other crime bosses.
Cut back to the fire at Ace Chemicals, then transition to another fire at Jack's home. Police and fire fighters surround the building. A man in bandages and a ragged tuxedo asks what happened to a cop, who informs him that there was a fire, but everyone except for a pregnant woman on the 3rd floor of the apartment complex escaped. Jack leaves, chuckling that it was all for nothing, dropping the bag of money in his hand in a gutter, and continuing to laugh as he walks off. It was all a joke, a pointless meaningless act. All his work, everything he did, all for nothing. Nothing mattered. It was all a joke. As he wanders into the night, he laughs maniacally and bohemian rhapsody begins to play.
The factory now has fallen into disrepair. It's rusted, abandoned, and has partially slid off its foundation into the river behind it. Parts of it are submerged. There are holes in the floor. The factory is still filled with old equipment though. We see Red hood waiting with the criminals tied up and covered in gasoline as The Joker keeps making who wore it better jokes despite beatings. Bruce arrives as Batman, encountering the new Red Hood for the first time, who explains that he had to start a gang war to draw out several of the criminals there who were in hiding. He unmasks, revealing himself as Jason to the shock of the Joker, who laughs hysterically at this. Jason lists of people killed by these individuals, telling Batman that they'll keep killing as long as they're alive. Batman tells Jason that now that they're captured, they can be turned in. Let the law deal with them. But, according to Jason, the law didn't stop Joker from escaping, and the law allowed Black Mask to go free so many times because of his money. Batman has two options. He can light a match, and burn these criminals alive, or Jason kills them himself, or the third option,Batman can disarm him, save the criminals, and let them harm countless others.
Batman refuses, telling Jason that if he kills them, he’ll be just as bad. They have a code, and if they cross it they go from hero to vigilante. Jason calls bullshit, telling batman that he's a hypocrite, and he knows about the people Batman killed, and how he tried to kill Superman. Batman tries to explain, pleading with Jason not to do this. He doesn't want to hurt him. They can still end this peacefully. After Jason died, and after Metropolis, he went to a dark place, and became everything he hated, and it took a miracle to bring him back. He doesn't know if there will be a miracle for Jason. Killing feels good. It's like an addiction. After Jason starts, he might not be able to stop. Jason can still come home, they can call the police and end this here. Joker taunts Jason, telling him he's right and should kill him. Make the right choice, kill the murderer and save the day. Make them suffer for that one bad day. Batman does what he does because of one bad day too, Joker just knows it. He's just an angry man trying to punish criminals for what happened to him. Anything else is just window dressing. Batman tells Jason the law isn't perfect, that's why they exist, but there are lines they can't cross. Jason tells Batman that he abandoned him to die, and he doesn't have to listen to a word he says.
Jason puts his red hood mask back on than tries to light a match and burn the criminals, Batman tackles him to the ground. They fight, Jason hits him repeatedly in the shoulder, making Batman cry out in agony. They fight up the stairs of the building until they are on the top floor. Jason is pushed back by Batman, pushing him through a window as light spills in from outside. Batman holds onto Jason by one hand, until he squirms free and dives into a river below, splashing into the water in the same way Jack did all those years ago.
Batman searches for Jason but doesn't find him. A fall from the height they were at probably killed him. He's most likely drifted out to sea by now. He calls Gordon to take all the tied up criminals away, then returns home to the Batcave. Alfred asks Bruce if he wants Jason's memorial in the cave put in storage, but Bruce tells Alfred to keep it up. The memorial is there for Batman to remember every person ever killed by the criminals he fought and the pain they've caused. What happened doesn't change anything. He goes to sleep for a few hours in an armchair in his study near a bust of his father.
A few hours later, the sun has set. 10:39 pm. Joker is being transported to Arkham when he's busted out by Harley and Jonny Frost. With Black Mask in prison, they can take over all of Gotham. Joker tells Frost he knew he'd come through for him, then shoots Frost in the face for literally no reason as a joke, had a good laugh with Harley, and they leave.
Batman is awake. He asks Alfred if he even made any difference in Gotham. Did his crusade even matter? What good came from it? Alfred tells Bruce he's inspired people. Jason at one time wanted to be like him. Barbara still does. Dick is trying to be even better as we speak. Bruce learns Joker escaped and calls Nightwing and Batgirl for help catching him.
Meanwhile, Ra’s Al Ghul returns to his home in the Hindu Kush mountains, greeting his daughter Talia, and his grandson Damian, who asks if Ra’s many questions about where he went and what he did. Ra’s tells Damian that he is just like his father, a little detective.
THE END