Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy has essentially rendered the Hollywood filmmaker one of the most coveted, prized, and recognized figures in the industry. His work on the Batman films (and famously, the Tumbler) – that served as a reimagination of the classic DC superhero figure – shifted away from the norms of the over-the-top funky gadget-aided vigilante bringer of justice in the night.
Instead, what Nolan presented in his vision transformed and transcended expectations and delivered a delicacy on film that showed the audience the potential of who and what Batman can be. And in that, the Dark Knight trilogy accomplishes what most CBM franchises cannot: become critically, commercially, and unanimously deified.
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Christopher Nolan’s Coveted Design For The Tumbler
The Tumbler aka Batmobile (as it is more commonly known) has been at the forefront of popular culture and its most treasured hoard of fan-favorite collectibles ever since its inception in the Batman comics. With an imposing design that strikes as much fear in the villain’s heart as its technologically adept owner, the Batmobile has been the essential sidekick, even before the arrival of the multiple Robins.
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As reports go, Christopher Nolan, himself has been the mastermind behind the design of the Batmobile, and the car (if it can be reduced to such a simplistic term) has been inspired by the angular shape of a Lamborghini. In its entirety, the Tumbler was built using parts from model cars, boats, and planes, fitted with a V8 engine and three-speed gearbox. The military supercar born in the basement of Wayne Enterprises was estimated to cost approximately equivalent to “a small mortgage”, as succinctly put by Chris Corbould, Nolan’s special effects supervisor on the three Dark Knight films.
The Tumbler’s Cost Ordered To Be Kept a Secret By Nolan
Chris Corbould has played a major part in the transformation of the Dark Knight from the comic-flavored caricature superhero into the grim and morbid Crusader who would rather cling to mass hatred and stealthily tip-toe around death. In an interview revealing how much work was invested into the making of the Tumbler, Corbould joked he would “be shot” if the price happened to be leaked to the media.
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Adding the eerie and threatening dictum issued by Nolan with Corbould’s claims of the cost being equivalent to a “small mortgage” easily chalks the Tumbler’s price to at least a million. And given how the budget of the first film in the trilogy, Batman Begins, was $150 million, Christopher Nolan could have spent a hefty sum behind the construction of what became an iconic and worthy spectacle on the big screen.
The Dark Knight trilogy is available for streaming on Max.
Source: The Guardian
