Comics Interview with Sam Hamm

[BatmanFurst]

Hey guys! In case no one has read this here's a great interview with San Hamm on the 89 film. It's probably the best interview I've read with Hamm discussing the film.  http://www.1989batman.com/2013/05/vintage-magazine-article-comics.html?m=1

My favorite pull from the interview was this quote: "Every generation there's going to be another bunch of people who come in and have a whole lot of ideas about "wouldn't it be cool if Batman was this, did this, etc., etc." Think that's a very healthy thing...I mean, that's just a natural part of the process. And so as far as doing a particular Batman, that never really entered my mind because I didn't think there was one Batman to do. And fans are concerned about what the interpretation of the character is going to be-. Well, if I did the Batman that I first started reading when I was a kid, who made the first and strongest impression on me, he would be traveling back in time to meet the Aztecs, and fighting pink aliens."

[Silver Nemesis]

This is an interesting find, BatmanFurst. It would make a good addition to the Comic Creators Comment on Batman Movies thread.

Hamm says here that he didn't have a finished copy of The Killing Joke, but he did have a copy of Moore's original script. He also says that Burton wasn't a fan of The Dark Knight Returns, but was a great admirer of TKJ.

[The Dark Knight]

My favorite pull from the interview was this quote: "Every generation there's going to be another bunch of people who come in and have a whole lot of ideas about "wouldn't it be cool if Batman was this, did this, etc., etc." Think that's a very healthy thing...I mean, that's just a natural part of the process. And so as far as doing a particular Batman, that never really entered my mind because I didn't think there was one Batman to do. And fans are concerned about what the interpretation of the character is going to be-. Well, if I did the Batman that I first started reading when I was a kid, who made the first and strongest impression on me, he would be traveling back in time to meet the Aztecs, and fighting pink aliens."

He's right. Every interpretation needs to be different, otherwise what's the point? We can only call something 'our Batman' if we have a wide selection to choose from.

Also interesting how he's flippant about the possibility of bringing back the Joker - suggesting it wouldn't be much of a problem. An undead version of Nicholson (his body stolen) would've been my solution, if Jack ever agreed to return. Which I'm doubtful he would. Ultimately, keeping his Joker dead was the best option. There was already a suspension of belief in that his corpse was perfectly intact and not just a red smear.

[BatmanFurst]

It's also nice to hear that Hamm was very much against Joker killing Batman's parents before the film even came out.

Also, for some reason I thought Sam was on the set initially but then left in the wake of the writers strike. However, this interview makes it clear that that wasn't the case at all.

Interesting that there was skepticism amongst fans specifically in regards to Batman using guns. Really wish I could've been there when trailers, footage, and designs debuted at conventions.

[The Laughing Fish]

I'm not surprised to hear Tim Burton preferred The Killing Joke over The Dark Knight Returns, it was the first comic he ever read. I remember he was quoted saying this on Wikipedia, and the only book that I could find that printed the quote was Christianity's Dangerous Idea: How the Christian Principle & Spirit Offer the Best Explanation for Life & Why Other Alternatives Fail (don't ask).



TDKR is a much more complex story that heavily explored the political and psychological ramifications of Batman's return into a society that has became worse for wear. Every time I read it, I always discover something that I hadn't noticed before. TKJ, though not without its own symbolism and themes, is easier to follow in comparison. If you look at is simply as a Batman-Joker story then it's no wonder why Burton would have a greater appreciation for it. TDKR delves a lot more than that.

I liked Sam Hamm's reasoning why he preferred to take an unconventional approach in exploring Batman as a mysterious figure whose story unfolds as the story progresses rather than following the typical by-the-numbers origin story. Judging by how Hamm was describing it, Tom Mankiewicz was copying the Donner Superman template onto Batman.

Good to hear that Hamm cited Terry Gilliam's Brazil as an influence for the architecture and feel of Gotham City. I watched that film a year and a half ago, and I can some similarities between that city and B89's Gotham.

[The Laughing Fish]

Last October, Sam Hamm was interviewed to discuss every Batman project he ever worked on, from Burton's first film to the comics he wrote: Blind Justice and Batman '89.

He also had expressed regrets to turn down an invitation for dinner at David Bowie's house to discuss a potential casting as Rorschach when he was writing a script for the cancelled Watchmen project.

It's a rather so-so interview, in my opinion. The only real highlights are when he discusses how Two-Face was an inspiration to create the Jack Napier Joker and how that character's vanity drove him over the edge, how samurai film score may have been an influence for B89's music, and he had to scrap plans to have Harley Quinn as a major villain in the '89 comics. I don't think giving her a big presence would've made those comics turn out any better because they were already overstuffed with so many subplots and characters with no satisfying conclusion. So I was fine with her being reduced to only a cameo.