Batman as a character has a long tradition
Batman as a character has a long tradition, beginning in the first half of the 20th century. Batman began with comics, then moved into Television, until in the late 20th century, the first batman movie was made. This film portrayed a dark, completely imaginary Gotham city, and featured the extremely memorable, darkly funny, nonthreatening Joker, played by Jack Nicholson. The 1990s spawned a series of increasingly campy and ridiculous Batman films. In the mid first decade of the 21st century, a new Batman saga was begun. This set of films aims to achieve more realism and atmosphere and stars Christian Bale. The second film in the series features the late Heath Ledger as a far darker and more frightening version of the Joker.