This post contains spoilers for "Metropolis" and Tim Burton's "Batman."

The colossal Gotham Cathedral, which stands more than 800 feet tall and towers over every other skyscraper in Gotham, is turned into a battleground towards the end of Tim Burton's "Batman." The director's distinct, often eccentric visual aesthetic directly informs the film's moody, noir-tinted visuals, the atypical camera angles and editing choices adding more palpable depth to the climactic Gotham Cathedral confrontation between Batman (Michael Keaton) and Joker (Jack Nicholson).

The cathedral's massive gargoyles, traditional symbols of warding off evil, take on new meaning as Joker toys with journalist Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger), who is forced to climb the rickety steps and play along with Joker's twisted game. There are many reasons why this scene feels singular — be it Batman stumbling over the pews and knocking them in his weakened, vulnerable state or the Joker dropping Vicki's shoe down the...