Someone edited Tim Burton’s Batman into a silent movie, and it rules
It’s probably safe to assume by now that Tim Burton’s Batman needs no introduction. Released in 1989, the feature-length adaptation of the Dark Knight starring Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson stands shoulder to shoulder with Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman as one of the most influential superhero movies of its era, arguably eclipsing the latter in the scope of its impact on popular culture, superhero or otherwise.
The popularity and success of Burton’s film gave rise toBatman: The Animated Series, and inspired retroactive changes to the comics’ depiction of Gotham City as well as its own limited comic series more than 30 years after its release. Mow, someone went and re-edited Burton’s gothic superhero opus into a silent movie, complete with color-tinted cels, artificial film grain, and stylized intertitles. And wouldn’t you know it — it’s still fantastic.
Ben Crew, a Chicago-based documentary filmmaker who went viral last year for his fan-made script “Muppets Present The Great Gatsby” last year, is the man behind the re-edit. “I’ve always been a big fan of Batman and of Burton, his movie Ed Wood is my favorite film of all time,” Crew told Polygon over email. “I love films that inspire you to seek out other films and Tim Burton’s Batman was that for me. Before I even knew how to use editing software, I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool to watch Batman as a silent film?’”
Although the edit took a month to complete, the first eight minutes were completed and put online in October of 2019, to little attention. “It wasn’t until I wrote “Muppets Present The Great Gatsby” that I realized my ability to go viral working with properties that I loved,” Crew told Polygon. “The response I got from Muppet fans with Gatsby encouraged me
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