The Batman Director Explains Batmobile Chase Scene's Upside Down Shot

The Batman director, Matt Reeves, explains the incredible upside-down shot at the end of the much-hyped Batmobile chase scene, which also involved the Penguin. The Batman‘s story centers around the titular superhero in his second year of fighting crime as he sets out into Gotham City’s underworld and uncovers corruption. Simultaneously, he has to track down the Riddler, a sadistic killer who targets the rich and elite of Gotham and leaves behind a trail of cryptic clues in the process.

Twilight and Tenet star, Robert Pattinson, dons the cape and cowl as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the character’s latest live-action iteration after taking over the role from Ben Affleck following the latter’s appearances in the DC Extended Universe. Pattinson is joined by a star-studded supporting cast including the likes of Paul Dano as The Riddler, Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, and Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin. The Batman made its theatrical debut on March 4 and opened to critical acclaim, holding a Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 85%.

Now, in the latest episode of Cinemablend’s Reelblend podcast, Reeves sat down to discuss the thrilling chase sequence in The Batman involving the Batmobile, as Batman is in pursuit of the Penguin. Reeves described the final upside-down shot in the sequence as a “Hitchcockian” inspiration, where he wanted the viewers to “experience” the Penguin’s point of view as he lay upside down inside the car, which also helped the director in creating Batman’s “mythic appearance” with a “raging fire” in the background. Check out his full quote below:

“And so, we found all those shots, and then- one of them, the one in particular with the upside-down, I was like, well, I’m into this very Hitchcockian point of view — putting the camera in the subjective point of view of the character. So you can put the audience into that experience. So I thought it would be great if, at the end of all this propulsive, French Connection sort of craziness, to suddenly be in The Penguin’s point of view as he’s lying upside down as you have this sort of mythic appearance of Batman with fire raging behind him.”

The scene in question takes place about halfway through the film when Batman and Gordon track down the informant who gave the GCPD information that led to a drug bust ending mobster Sal Maroni’s operation. When the duo’s investigation leads them to the Penguin, they find him in the middle of a drug deal and get caught up in a shootout. However, as Cobblepot attempts to make a break for it, Batman brings out the Batmobile to hunt him down in an exhilarating car chase under the night sky through the crowded streets of Gotham. It ends with the notorious gangster’s car being toppled over multiple times before the Caped Crusader slowly approaches his vehicle with undeniably great panache.

It would be safe to say that the above-mentioned Batmobile sequence, which has been heavily advertised in the trailers and promotional material in the build-up to the film’s release, has blown away audience expectations as it’s one of the most talked-about scenes and arguably one of the standout set-pieces in the film. The final moments of the scene, which capture the striking silhouette of the Dark Knight in all his glory, are sure to become an iconic and wallpaper-worthy shot. A lot of the credit has to go down to Reeves and cinematographer Greig Fraser’s (Dune, Rogue One) slick camerawork in bringing the eye-catching, picturesque shot to life. Fans can finally witness The Batman and its stunning imagery now that the film has hit the big screens.

Next: Who Plays Penguin In The Batman

Source: CinemaBlend

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