In ‘Spiderman’, he appears out of the sunlight which tells us he is wholly good whereas in ‘Batman’ he appears out of the shadow which makes him seem sinister and evil. In addition Batman is also shown as sinister and threatening when the there is a low angle shot of him when he looks down at the criminals, and there is a sinister long shot as he appears behind the criminals at the beginning.
Gotham is a dirty and distorted city, and also the police are not as good as they are meant to be therefore this contributes to Batman being mysterious. Batman is feared by the criminals as he acts in a sinister and mysterious way as when he comes to rescue the vulnerable people, he always appears to the criminals in a sinister and threatening way such as spreading his wings and quietly creeping up behind them therefore this is why he is doubted by the police and the people of the city. Whereas in ‘Spiderman’ New York is presented in a positive way as Spiderman appears out of the sunshine. Therefore this contributes to Spiderman being an idealised American hero, as he saves the vulnerable people and therefore this helps out the police.
Spiderman starts his hero career by seeking revenge from the car-jacker, although he soon learns his moral lesson and then saves the weak and forgets about all self-interested goals for the greater good. However Batman’s hero career is based on revenge for justice. When he rescues the vulnerable, he manages to come across as evil and sinister, therefore he is a force of good but this is not recognised as it is harder to see on screen.
Sound also creates a grey area for Batman however not for Spiderman. In ‘Batman’, there is a non-diagetic sound in the film every time Batman saves or arrives to help others. The non-diagetic sound is his theme tune; a sinister sound; it is played in the scenes in which Batman arrives to save the people of Gotham city. In contrast in ‘Spiderman’ there is also non-diagetic sound as he appears on to the screen to help the innocent people. The sound is the complete opposite of ‘Batman’ as the music is more triumphant and heroic in a major key whereas in ‘Batman’ it’s more sinister.
Sound creates an evil impression of the Green Goblin however the sounds and music of the Joker challenges our expectations of the villain. In ‘Spiderman’, when Norman Osborn meets the Green Goblin there is non-diagetic music, as Norman Osborn cannot hear the music played. The instruments used are tribal drums, tension strings, minor chords, low windwood and brass. This is played when the camera shows us parts of Norman Osborne’s house displaying the sinister masks; all of which suggests the Green Goblin is evil and to be feared. Also in ‘Spiderman’, the voice of the Green Goblin is disembodied in this scene which is a classic horror film technique; the Green Goblin also has a sinister and insane laugh which makes the audience shiver. In ‘Spiderman’ they also use an artificially reverberating voice for sinister effect of the Green Goblin. In ‘Batman’, when the Joker visits the art gallery, there is diagetic music which is synchronised with that is seen on the screen. The diagetic music in this scene is Prince’s “New King in Town”; this is the Joker’s choice which it tells the viewers about him; how he is proud of what he does. This music is very strong with a good rhythm to dance to; and so this makes the viewer enjoy what the Joker does on screen.
In conclusion, the evidence shown tells us whether the four main characters conform or challenge our expectations of their roles in the films. In ‘Batman’, we see the hero presented in a sinister way and therefore this challenges our expectations about the presentation of the hero as we expect him to be presented in a positive way as a force for good. However, in ‘Spiderman’, we see him presented in a triumphant and positive way which therefore conforms to our expectations about the presentation of the hero as this is what is expected as a force of good. In ‘Batman’, we see the Joker presented in a psychotic and a disturbing way but also appealing and fun in which makes him seem even more evil and as a result this conforms to our expectations about the presentation of the villain as this is what is expected as a force of evil. However, in ‘Spiderman’, the Green Goblin is presented as a force of evil but there is a time where we feel sympathy for him during the scene with the mirror, Norman Osborn does not want to be evil but eventually he gives in to the Green Goblin. Therefore in modern superhero films there is not always a wholly good and a wholly evil villain, there is sometimes a grey area between the two opposites.
