New 'Batman V Superman' Images Show Off Batfleck's Swanky Batcave
One of the most promising aspects of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is how different Ben Affleck's take on the Caped Crusader appears to be. This isn't Michael Keaton's neurotic weirdo or Christian Bale's angry young man – this is a tired, middle-aged vigilante whose fear and rage has boiled over into general world-weariness. Whether the film is ultimately good or not (and no number of lousy trailers can fully diminish every speck of hope), at least this Batman will stand apart from the others.
The difference between Batfleck and his predecessors can be seen in the film's new take on the Dark Knight's base of operations, the Batcave. Glimpsed in several of the trailers, this version of Batman's laboratory/armory/garage/museum certainly looks like a refreshing take on the most famous secret lair this side of the Fortress of Solitude and two new photos are here to drive that point home.
These two new photos come to us courtesy of Entertainment Weekly and while they don't show us anything too new or spectacular, they're certainly interesting enough to grease the wheels of a conversation. This Batcave is the home of a superhero who's been around for a good long time. Unlike Tim Burton's stylized, gothic cavern and Christopher Nolan's "guy literally working with power tools in a hole in the ground," director Zack Snyder and his collaborators have created a genuine complex full of flashy technology and design choices that a proper billionaire would make. This is what a long-established base of operations built by the world's greatest detective with an unlimited budget looks like. With one foot planted squarely in reality (nothing here looks impossible to build) and one foot planted in fantasy (but how did one man and his butler build this?), this looks like it could be the coolest cinematic Batcave yet. The fact that this technological marvel is apparently situated under the ruins of an abandoned Wayne Manor makes it all the cooler.
And here are those images. First up is Bruce Wayne brooding next to a computer terminal while Jeremy Irons' loyal Alfred hangs out nearby. After that is a piece of concept art that, if the trailers are any indication, is very close to the finished set.
For comparison's sake, here's the Batcave from the 1989 Batman:
And here is how it was depicted in 2005's Batman Begins:
EW also has a few quotes from the men who inhabit the Batcave. First up is Affleck, explaining how Batman's humanity and mortality is a key ingredient in the Justice League:
[Batman] represents human beings, mortal men. In a world of Flashes and Aquamen and Supermen, there needs to be that guy. It's interesting that he became the leader of the Justice League in the books — I'm not sure how that'll play out here — but his humanity is also an asset.
And here is Irons, explaining that his Alfred isn't just some loyal servant, but Bruce Wayne's direct and active partner-in-anti-crime:
Alfred is a lot more hands-on in our film than he has previously been. He's a bit of a grease monkey, and he's very involved in the decisions Bruce makes.
Batman v Superman will open on March 25, 2016.