Interview: Christian Bale
A Dark and Stormy Knight
If you thought Christian Bale’s first turn as Batman was intense, you ain’t seen nothing yet. The hard-working actor and his director, Christopher Nolan, talk The Dark Knight
By Bob Thompson
Christian Bale doesn’t pretend to be a celebrity, but he does have a famous sense of commitment to his craft. That dedication helped him during filming of The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan’s follow up to the reboot of the Batman film franchise, Batman Begins.
“Christian locks those eyes on you, and that’s it,” says Nolan in an interview at Pasadena’s Ritz Carlton Hotel. “His attention to detail is incredible, and so is his nuance. He’s mature way beyond his acting years.”
Bale’s work ethic paid off when he squeezed into a painfully tight
Batsuit to play billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne, and his alter ego
Batman, in Batman Begins, and likely will again with the sequel.
By all reports, The Dark Knight (co-written by Christopher
Nolan and his brother Jonathan Nolan) is even more threatening than the
first entry in this re-invented franchise. In this film, again shot
mostly in and around Chicago, Bale’s Batman faces off with The Joker —
portrayed by the dearly departed Heath Ledger — a bank-robbing
psychopath who’s trying to elevate crime to a new level in Gotham.
Much has been made of The Dark Knight’s freakier tone and
Ledger’s creepy clown, apparently way more disturbing and a great deal
more frightening than Jack Nicholson’s cartoonish take on the villain
from Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman. Certainly, Ledger’s death a few months
after The Dark Knight wrapped only adds to the gloomy overtone.
Returning are Alfred the Butler (Michael Caine) and Lieutenant Jim
Gordon (Gary Oldman). Newcomers include Aaron Eckhart as District
Attorney Harvey Dent (on the verge of becoming the villain Two-Face)
and Maggie Gyllenhaal, replacing Katie Holmes as Bruce Wayne’s friend
and do-gooding Assistant District Attorney Rachel Dawes. Look for a
love triangle between Wayne, Dawes and Dent.
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Christian Bale takes the Batpod for a spin
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There’s also a new Batsuit, which is reconfigured so Bale can swivel
his head inside the cowl (the original cowl gave him headaches).
There’s a Batcycle re-imagined as a Batpod. And to add to the immersive
experience, Nolan used an IMAX camera to shoot four pivotal sequences,
including the first appearance of Ledger’s Joker. So if you thought the
first movie was menacing, prepare to tremble.
But pushing boundaries is a positive thing as far as Bale is concerned.
“We know now that people have supported what we achieved,” says the
Welsh actor, also in Pasadena, in reference to the critical and
financial success of 2005’s Batman Begins. “I have to say
though that I always liked the idea of not knowing if people are going
to like something. That always gives me a certain drive to improve.”
Nolan still marvels at Bale’s capacity to involve himself in
whatever he is assigned, whether it’s suiting up for an action sequence
or becoming a study in contemplation for a quieter scene.
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“I do like the times when I get totally consumed by things,” Bale agrees. “Those are the times I feel a purpose, which is when I am the happiest in life.”
For proof, look no further than Bale’s other roles, particularly the industrial worker with a terrible case of insomnia in 2004’s The Machinist. He dropped 60 pounds for that part, leaving him scrawny and emaciated just before he had to pack on the muscle for Batman Begins.
Then there’s Rescue Dawn, the Vietnam war pic he made for German filmmaker Werner Herzog a few years ago. Herzog cast him as a fighter pilot shot down during the Vietnam War, who faced an even tougher challenge when he had to find a way to survive in the jungle. Filmed in Thailand, Bale ate maggots, rode on helicopter slats, was bitten by a snake and tortured by ants for the film, none of which he regrets. “C’mon,” he says, “how many times do you get to hang out of a helicopter zooming low over the top of the jungles in Thailand?”
In between the two Batman films, Bale decided to stick with Nolan for one more movie — 2006’s The Prestige, a turn-of-the-century drama about magicians. Bale says he was initially hesitant to ask Nolan about the role, “because I really didn’t know if Chris would only see me as Batman.”
Turned out, Nolan had no problem imagining Bale in a completely different part. “I was the one who thought it would be a long road for Christian to do three films in a row with me, but he really seemed up for it,” says Nolan. Bale returns the compliment. “I think Chris is such a smart filmmaker, I always feel comfortable with his decisions,” he says.
Like the decision to transform our hero Batman into a dangerous, obsessed vigilante as he battles The Joker in The Dark Knight? Indeed, the newly made-over Joker — inspired by his dark and serious early appearances in the comic books — might be a lunatic psycho, but it seems like Bruce Wayne/Batman could be suffering from some burgeoning personality disorders of his own this time around.
“That might true,” says Bale, smiling. “And I love playing the demonic Batman. But the vacuous ass-playboy is just as much fun.”
Bob Thompson lives in Toronto where he writes about movies for the National Post.