36 Batman (1989)

In one of the bravest acts of Cinema History, Warner Brothers decided to give Tim Burton, a former Disney animator with a whopping two directing credits to his name, the keys to the Batcave. One of Burton’s most controversial decisions, casting comedic actor Michael Keaton as the brooding millionaire Bruce Wayne. The cinema event of the summer, Batman 1989 touched pop culture in a way that exceeded even Richard Donner’s Superman of the previous decade. Launching a franchise that lasted almost a decade, Batman 1989 also launched several other comic book properties hoping to grab hold of a new audience buying an increasing amount of comic books. Much loved by a generation, it is also much maligned by those like me who feel the World’s Greatest Detective needs to be more like Frank Miller and less like Batman ‘66.