Bale's Batman voice getting deeper, raspier

By The Associated Press

Published: August 8, 2008

NEW YORK — Though "The Dark Knight” has been a bona fide cultural event, boasting rave reviews and boffo box office, it hasn't been immune to criticism. Some have quibbled with its political undercurrents, and others have criticized a muddled theme.

But here's the critique most widely held: Why does Batman talk like the offspring of Clint Eastwood and a grizzly bear?

Donning the costume for the second time, Christian Bale has delved deeper into the lower registers. As Bruce Wayne, his voice is as smooth as his finely pressed suits. But once he puts the cape on, the transformation of his vocal chords is just as dramatic as his costume change.

Particularly when his rage boils over, Bale's Batman growls in an almost beastly fashion, reflecting how close he teeters between do-gooder and vengeance-crazed crusader.

Last weekend, "The Dark Knight” hauled in $43.8 million to rank as Hollywood's top movie for the third straight weekend, fending off "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor,” which opened a close second with $42.5 million. On Monday, "The Dark Knight” became the fastest movie in domestic box-office history to cross the $400 million mark, earning $400.03 in just 18 days.

Though much of the voice effect is Bale's own doing, under the guidance of director Christopher Nolan and supervising sound editor Richard King, the frequency of his Batman voice was modulated to exaggerate the effect.

Critics and fans have noticed.

"His Batman rasps his lines in a voice that's deeper and hammier than ever,” said NPR's David Edelstein.

The New Yorker's David Denby praised the urgency of Bale's Batman, but lamented that he "delivers his lines in a hoarse voice with an unvarying inflection.”

Reviewing the film for MSNBC, Alonso Duralde wrote that Bale's Batman in "Batman Begins” "sounded absurdly deep, like a 10-year-old putting on an ‘adult' voice to make prank phone calls. This time, Bale affects an eerie rasp, somewhat akin to Brenda Vaccaro doing a Miles Davis impression.”

Before the similes run too far afield, it's worth considering where the concept of a throaty Batman comes from.

In his portrayal on the '60s "Batman” TV series, Adam West didn't alter his voice between Bruce Wayne and Batman. Decades later when Tim Burton brought "Batman” to the big screen in a much darker incarnation, Michael Keaton's inflection was notably — but not considerably — different from one to the other.

As Batman has gotten darker, his voice has gotten deeper. As some critics suggest, Bale and "The Dark Knight” may have reached a threshold, at least audibly.

Comments