Favorite Batman suit on film?

[Edd Grayson]

I think I'm going to surprise some fans with my pick. It's neither of Keaton's suits, nor Bale's, nor Affleck's, but Val Kilmer's first suit in Batman Forever.



I like this one best.


How about you ?

[JokerMeThis]

I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree with you Mr. Shreck. My favorite Batman suit on film is Keaton's in Batman Returns.

[Edd Grayson]

That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

[The Laughing Fish]

As much as I like the latest live action Batsuit, I have to agree with JMT. The Batman Returns costume is still the best for me.

That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

Just to play the devil's advocate here, do you think there's even much of a difference between the BF and 1989 costumes?

[Edd Grayson]

That one was my longtime favorite, Mr. Joker, but I like Val's more.

The 1989 suit deserves credit too obviously,  made Batman look a lot like a "giant bat" as he was rumored to be.

Just to play the devil's advocate here, do you think there's even much of a difference between the BF and 1989 costumes?

Yes, I think the 1989 suit is more rough and basic, while the BF suit is still dark but more stylish. And I think the 1992 suit fit the film too.



And for the record, I never had a big problem with any of Schumacher's suits, though other fans apparently did. Just not a huge fan of the "silver" ones.

[The Dark Knight]

Batman Returns and Batman v Superman have the best suits, in my humble opinion.

[Edd Grayson]

I have yet to see Batfleck in action. I am looking forward to that.

[The Dark Knight]

If you're implying the Batfleck suit cannot be judged yet because the film isn't out, then I strongly disagree with that opinion.

[Edd Grayson]

If you're implying the Batfleck suit cannot be judged yet because the film isn't out, then I strongly disagree with that opinion.

I can judge the suit, but not the man wearing it right now. But yeah, this thread I made with the suits in mind, that's another topic, the actors in the suit. 

And I stand by my first choice, the dubbed "Panther suit" in Batman Forever.

[thecolorsblend]

What I dig is how each movie has an outfit with its own identity.

The B89 suit has texture to it. The Golden Age had a lot of superhero outfits with a lot of implied texture and detail to them that couldn't be illustrated. Alex Ross has never understood this but it's true. The B89 outfit has a sort of rough texture to it that could give a scared street thug who only got a glance at Batman that he truly is a monster or demon or something because it looks vaguely humanoid in some ways but the texture, the cowl, the cape and so forth give the impression of being non-human.

The BR suit has that machined aesthetic that suggests that Batman is armoring up since it's more well known that he's just a man now. And it could play into the implied submerging of his humanity that Batman Forever picks up on.

Frankly I see less symbolism in the Batman Forever panther suit. I like that suit, it's sleek and awesome but I just don't see where it "says" something about the character. Mind you, it doesn't have to say something. In a movie like this, it's enough that it looks cool. But Burton went the extra step in telling us something about Batman using his outfit in B89 and BR and it's noticeable (to me if nobody else) that Schumacher went the popcorn route instead. That's not a praise and that's not a criticism; it's just true.

I'll say this for the BF suit though. It was the last one in live action to have the yellow oval, which I really miss these days.

As to B&R, I see less character insight in those costumes. I see marketing insights, obviously, but not so much character insights.

As to the Nolan trilogy, I've never bothered analyzing those suits.

The Snyder Batman outfit looks cool for the stylistic break it seems to represent from previous suits, which all had a sort of "designy" appearance to them (yes, even the Nolan suits). The Snyder Batman costume appears to have the fabric outside the armor and it gives a pretty difference appearance. I rather enjoy it and look forward to seeing more of it.