Did Batman kill the Ice Princess?

[johnnygobbs]

Not literally of course, despite what some of the silly Gorthamites thought, but what I mean is, if Batman didn't exist would the Ice Princess still be alive?  Her death was purely orchestrated to frame Batman.  Thus it makes me very angry Batman didn't do more to save her.

My main bone of contention is that had Batman stayed at Wayne Manor instead of venturing out to 'rescue' her, it's likely the Ice Princess would have survived.  She'd have eventually been discovered and rescued by the police since the Penguin and Catwoman would then have no longer have a reason to lure her to the roof and scare her off in Batman's absence.

I'd like to be proven wrong, but at this moment it does make me quite angry that Batman's action and inaction led to this beautiful woman's death. 

[The Laughing Fish]

My biggest pet peeve in that scene was Batman just stood there while the Ice Princess was attacked by the bats. Burton should have directed the scene better by having Batman make a desperate attempt to stop her from falling from her death, but ultimately failing.

[johnnygobbs]

My biggest pet peeve in that scene was Batman just stood there while the Ice Princess was attacked by the bats. Burton should have directed the scene better by having Batman make a desperate attempt to stop her from falling from her death, but ultimately failing.

I agree.  That really annoys me too.  The graphic-novel does a good job of showing Batman run forward with his arms spread out, as if ready to try to catch the princess, whilst she frantically tries to get away from the bats.  I also like how the graphic novel also has Batman advise her not to panic, thus making it clear that Batman was doing everything he could to help her but that she was going to die anyway.

The novelisation (text format) goes further by having Batman advise the scared Ice Princess to move forward rather than stay put.

I'm not sure what Burton was thinking when he directed that scene.  I wish he could somehow return to the film and do some digital tinkering to make it clearer that Batman was trying to save her.  I'd also love him to introduce a scene/shot where the Ice Princess pushes a little old lady to the ground during the Red Triangle Circus Gang's attack on the Plaza, assuming this was ever shot.  It's mentioned in the Making-Of Book, novelisation and by the actress, Cristi Conaway herself in an 'Entertainment Weekly' interview (in fact she goes further and describes her character as the type to push a little old lady to the floor whilst she is fixing her nail: http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,310892_3,00.html )

[The Dark Knight]

The way Burton directed the scene was nigh spot on for me. Batman didn't need to rescue her from anything.

"Don't move, be careful."

The princess then proceeds to nod intently as if this instruction is equivalent to defusing a nuclear weapon. All she had to do was step forwards off the ledge. But this is the same person who found the lighting process difficult to remember.

Again, she was the one always waiting for some Batman to save her.

[johnnygobbs]

The way Burton directed the scene was nigh spot on for me. Batman didn't need to rescue her from anything.

"Don't move, be careful."

The princess then proceeds to nod intently as if this instruction is equivalent to defusing a nuclear weapon. All she had to do was step forwards off the ledge. But this is the same person who found the lighting process difficult to remember.

Again, she was the one always waiting for some Batman to save her.

I like your way of thinking Dark Knight, and I'm almost inclined to agree with you, but you kind of contradict yourself.  You say that all the Ice Princess had to do was step off the ledge but you also state that Batman advised her not to move.  Now for someone as intellectually challenged as her surely it would be difficult to reconcile the two actions ('hopping off the ledge' and 'not moving') and take some initiative.  After all, she had clearly gone through life expecting a man to always be there to protect and save her, something which Selina ("well, that was brief - like all the men in my life") wasn't so used to.

[The Laughing Fish]

^^
There's that, but most importantly I've  thought Batman will always go
out of his way to rescue someone when he has the chance. Regardless if
the victim is intellectually challenged. 

[johnnygobbs]

^^
There's that, but most importantly I've  thought Batman will always go
out of his way to rescue someone when he has the chance. Regardless if
the victim is intellectually challenged.

Especially if the victim is intellectually challenged (and thus unable to take care of themselves).

It was as if this Batman was orchestrating a type of social Darwinism based on intelligence and decided that the Ice Princess was 'too stupid to live' and thus not worth making much effort to save.  He made more effort to save Chase and Dick in 'Batman Forever', but Chase was a published psychiatrist and Dick was a skilled street-wise athlete so Batman probably figured that they 'deserved to live'.

[BatmanFanatic93]

and Dick was a skilled street-wise athlete so Batman probably figured that they 'deserved to live'.

You forget gobs he was also his adopted son as well which made the situation much more personal for batman to save him.

[The Dark Knight]

You say that all the Ice Princess had to do was step off the ledge but you also state that Batman advised her not to move. 

I get the impression Batman was slowly breaking it down into a process.

"Be careful. Don't move. Put your leg out. Put it down onto the roof. Do the same with the other leg."

But then The Penguin barged in and threw the umbrella. And indeed, all the princess had to do was obvious. But she didn't. She was hanging on every word.

[johnnygobbs]

and Dick was a skilled street-wise athlete so Batman probably figured that they 'deserved to live'.

You forget gobs he was also his adopted son as well which made the situation much more personal for batman to save him.

Brilliant point BatmanFanatic93!  Batman could relate to Dick Grayson's personal tragedy. 

I'm guessing the Ice Princess had never experienced any real hardship or sadness in her life until her awful kidnapping and murder by the Penguin.  It also explains why Bruce saw Selina as a kindred spirit.  She was someone who had been downtrodden for a lot of her life, and her near-death experience at the hands of Max Shreck caused her to behave in an even more traumatised manner, which Bruce could relate to.

I wonder what would have happened if Chip Shreck had been taken by the Penguin instead of Max.  Would Batman have made any effort to save him?  He struck me as vapid and sheltered from hardship (give or take his mother's death) as the Ice Princess, and thus, not someone I imagine Bruce would easily relate to.