5 Things About ‘Batman 1989’ That Made Zero Sense and 5 Things About It That Made Perfect Sense

Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ arrived in 1989 with a darker tone, a gothic Gotham, and a version of the Caped Crusader played by Michael Keaton. It mixed crime thriller beats with comic book spectacle and set the stage for a new era of superhero filmmaking. Jack Nicholson’s Joker, Kim Basinger’s Vicki Vale, and a moody Danny Elfman score shaped how audiences pictured these characters for years.

Rewatching ‘Batman’ today shows how much of its world building still stands out. It also highlights choices that raise questions about tactics, timing, and character decisions. Here are five things that made zero sense and five that made perfect sense, laid out side by side.

Zero Sense: Alfred brings Vicki to the Batcave

Alfred personally escorts Vicki Vale into the Batcave and exposes Bruce Wayne’s identity without warning. The scene shows no attempt to test her trustworthiness or to limit what she sees, and the reveal arrives before Bruce decides how to handle it. This places a lifelong secret in the hands of a reporter with no safeguards shown on screen.

The film treats this as a practical step to move Bruce and Vicki closer, but it does not present any prior plan, protocol, or fail safe from Alfred. Bruce’s response is subdued and the story advances without addressing the risk, leaving the reveal as an unchallenged decision that bypasses security and discretion.

Perfect Sense: The Smilex combination scheme

Joker’s Smilex plan works by contaminating specific consumer items so that only certain combinations trigger poisoning. The movie demonstrates this through news segments where anchors stop using cosmetics and hair products to avoid the mixture, which immediately undercuts public confidence and causes citywide panic.

This approach explains why standard product testing fails at first, since single item checks do not detect anything unusual. The combination rule fits the plot’s investigation beats, gives the villain a credible edge, and justifies Gotham’s scramble to map which items are unsafe to use together.

Zero Sense: The Batwing attack run

Batman lines up the Batwing for a straight pass at street level and opens fire, then holds a steady course over the parade. The aircraft’s targeting display locks on, yet the maneuver keeps the craft on a predictable path and low altitude while the villain is in the open with a clear line of sight.

Joker pulls an extra long revolver from his coat and shoots as the Batwing descends, and the aircraft goes down immediately. The scene shows no evasive movement, no second pass, and no defensive countermeasures before impact, which turns a technological advantage into an avoidable failure in the open sky.

Perfect Sense: The origin loop between Batman and Joker

The film links Bruce Wayne’s trauma to Jack Napier by naming Napier as the killer in the alley. Later, Batman’s confrontation at Axis Chemicals leads to Napier’s fall into the vat, creating Joker. This circular structure ties hero and villain through cause and effect that the story can reference at key moments.

By making each responsible for the other’s emergence, the movie gives both characters a personal stake in every encounter. The cathedral showdown and the alley flashbacks gain weight because each confrontation is not only about Gotham but about the founding event that shaped them.

Zero Sense: The serving tray save

In the apartment confrontation, Joker shoots Bruce Wayne in the chest and Bruce collapses. After the scene, the film reveals a dented metal serving tray hidden under Bruce’s shirt that absorbed the shot, but it does not show him placing it there before the gunfire or acknowledging it in the moment.

The delayed reveal leaves the mechanics of survival unclear while the scene plays out. Only later does the tray appear as an explanation, turning a life or death event into something the audience can only piece together after the danger has passed.

Perfect Sense: Gotham’s corruption and police response

From the opening, the movie establishes mob influence over city institutions. Jack Napier works as muscle for Carl Grissom, and bribes touch multiple levels around Gotham. Commissioner Gordon and Harvey Dent are shown trying to push back while short on leverage and public trust.

That environment justifies why a masked vigilante can operate without immediate shutdown. Gordon’s cautious outreach during operations, like the Axis raid and the parade, reflects a department balancing the need to stop a crisis with limited clean resources. The setup makes their guarded cooperation with Batman understandable.

Zero Sense: The cathedral countdown

Joker tells his pilot to pick him up in ten minutes, then forces Vicki Vale up the cathedral’s stairs. The characters climb for a long stretch, fight through several obstacles, and reach a belfry that towers over the street, yet the helicopter arrives on cue as if the timing never changed.

The sequence treats the climb and the multiple delays as suspense, but it never adjusts the pickup window or shows a signal to reschedule. The length and height presented on screen strain the announced timeline, which the scene resolves by having the aircraft show up exactly when the fight needs it.

Perfect Sense: Armor and gadgets that match the threats

Batman’s suit is built as rigid body armor that deflects handgun fire and spreads impact. The cowl, chest plating, and gauntlets are shown absorbing blows, while tools like the grapnel gun and smoke devices let him control distance and visibility in tight spaces.

Vehicles and handheld tech are consistent with that approach. The Batmobile’s armored shell, remote functions, and onboard weapons give Batman entry and exit options in hostile terrain. The set of tools explains how he survives close range fire and melee encounters across the factory, the museum, and the streets.

Zero Sense: Lethal force during major set pieces

The Axis Chemicals raid and the street battles depict Batman using explosive charges, vehicle mounted weapons, and destructive tactics that cause visible casualties. The Batmobile plants bombs during the factory sequence and the Batwing fires on parade targets in the crowd’s vicinity.

Within the world of ‘Batman’, these choices are presented as necessary escalations, but the film does not explore alternatives or show containment plans when civilians are nearby. The scenes establish a version of the character whose tactics risk bystanders and adversaries alike without an on screen rule to limit collateral damage.

Perfect Sense: The Bat Signal and official cooperation

The ending shows Gotham unveiling the Bat Signal with the Mayor, Commissioner Gordon, and the press present. This public act recognizes Batman as a call on standby for emergencies, which matches the partnership glimpsed during the Smilex crisis and the cathedral incident.

The signal provides a communication channel that does not expose identities or rely on chance encounters. It fits the city’s need for rapid response when specialized equipment and intimidation are useful, and it formalizes the cautious alliance the story builds across the investigation.

Share your favorite head scratching moment and your most convincing scene from ‘Batman’ in the comments.