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Kapow!
A new documentary is set to reveal the fighting techniques used by stars Chirstian Bale and Liam Neeson in the Batman films.
Director Daniel McNicoll (Reclaiming the Blade) is teaming up with Galatia Films for a documentary revealing the secret fighting techniques behind a much loved superhero.
That's right Gotham-ites, this new exploration of Hollywood martial arts will chronicle the Keysi Fighting Method (KFM), the martial arts techniques utilised by actors Christian Bale and Liam Neeson in the Christopher Nolan directed new Batman franchise. It will also take an intimate look into the lives of KFM creators and Batman choreographers, Justo Dieguez (pictured in action) and Andy Norman, and the rise of KFM on the mean streets of Spain.
Catching the eye of Batman producers in 2004, the use of KFM in the films began when Christian Bale's stunt double - Jujutsu world champion, Buster Reeves - introduced the martial arts technique to the stunt coordinators and director Christopher Nolan on the set of Batman Begins.
The method was born in 1957 in a small mining town on the outskirts of Seville in Spain. Dieguez grew up fighting on the streets from a very young age. "The town where I was born and lived as a child was just a very deprived and harsh place to live. You learnt how to fight and defend yourself or suffer the consequences," he says.
Searching to find the essence of Batman's technique, director Christopher Nolan auditioned a series of expert martial artists for the role of training Bale. Many different martial arts styles and instructors were considered.
However, once the director met Dieguez, it was obvious that he was the ideal choice for involvement in the Batman films. The streamlined and practical moves of KFM distinguished itself from all the fancy flourishes of other martial arts systems. It intrigued the writers as they wanted to go for a more gritty and real Batman.
"When the filmmakers set out to reinvent the new Batman character they wanted a definite departure from the highly polished Batman of the eighties and nineties," remarks Director Daniel McNicoll. "This is evident in not only the visual elements of the films' style but also in the writing as well."
While the feature length documentary will be thrilling for Batman fans the world over, McNicoll hopes to impart something more than entertainment. "The truth is I'm not the martial arts expert, I tend to leave that to the pros. My talents are in telling the stories of these great marital artists and how they relate to the world and entrainment culture that we live in.
"The protection of the downtrodden and disenfranchised is a theme we find in all great stories, after all, is not that the great purpose of the comic book hero? Whether it's Batman, a street fighting vigilante or a simple martial arts student, they can help protect those around them. Masters or teachers can help wayward children find purpose and meaning among great adversity in a system of training that empowers them not only to help themselves but to teach others that they too are not alone the universe."
The documentary is set to start shooting later this year for a release in early 2011. For more information on KFM, visit the website.