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Most of the movie is based on the graphic novels "Batman: Year One" and "Batman: Year Two". The flashback to Batman's first night of crime-fighting, donning a jacket and ski-hat is parallel to book one of "Year One". The design and concept of the Phantasm was derived from the Reaper, the primary villain of "Year Two".
Most of the movie is based on the graphic novels "Batman: Year One" and "Batman: Year Two". The flashback to Batman's first night of crime-fighting, donning a jacket and ski-hat is parallel to book one of "Year One". The design and concept of the Phantasm was derived from the Reaper, the primary villain of "Year Two".
Late in production, Warner Bros. decided to make the movie a theatrical release with major cooperation and granted the filmmakers a large amount of creative control. While the animators were thrilled and extremely grateful for this decision, this left them with less than a year of production time and scrambling to convert the aspect ratio to widescreen.
One scene depicts Bruce Wayne at his parents' tombstone saying "I didn't count on being happy." According to writer Michael Reaves, this scene was to be a pivotal moment in Bruce's tragic life, as he denies himself the opportunity to live a normal life. Reaves also stated, "When Bruce puts on the mask for the first time, [after Andrea breaks their engagement], and Alfred says 'My God!' he's reacting in horror, because he's watching this man he's helped raise from childhood, this man who has let the desire for vengeance and retribution consume his life, at last embrace the unspeakable."
Paul Dini intended each of the flashbacks into Batman's love life to "Have a tendency to get worse, when you hope things will get better."