Reviewing The Batman (****1/2)
There’s just something about the caped crusader that never gets old.
The Batman has everything that makes a great Bat-flick – great costumes, a fiercely gritty and gothic landscape, an awesome Batmobile scene, twisted villains, and tons of action. But despite ticking all the familiar boxes, it simultaneously does something else too – it makes its story feel fresh. We’ve seen the Dark Knight in action before, but not once in this film did I get bored or feel like I was wasting my time. Director Matt Reeves took the iconic hero and made him his own, giving us a story that walked the narrow line between too new and too old. In short, this is a virtually perfect Batman film.
First and foremost, Robert Pattinson did a terrific job playing the titular hero. He’s got all the brooding darkness that the character needs, and you believed every word that came out of his mouth. There wasn’t really an actor who dropped the ball – Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman, Jeffrey Wright’s Commissioner Gordon, John Turturro’s Carmine Falcone – everyone was dripping with charisma. They all totally owned their roles. Colin Farrell is positively unrecognizable as Penguin – I didn’t even know who he was until I looked him up. And of course, Paul Dano gave us a compellingly twisted Riddler. That said, he didn’t get nearly as much face time as previous Batman villains have received. That’s likely because he was so heavily masked for much of the film, but I have to say that he managed to work up a terrifying performance even though we couldn’t see his face. Andy May-He-Live-Forever Serkis’ Alfred was also denied much spotlight, though he did the best he could with the time and script he’d been given. Out of all of them, though, Pattinson and Kravitz are the stars of the show. The Batman/Catwoman relationship has been a gold mine for storytellers over the decades, and it certainly hasn’t run dry here.
You can’t have a good Batman movie without a hefty amount of punching, and this film did not disappoint in that area. Within the first few minutes, we get a powerful reminder of exactly what kind of hero Batman is. It’s a quintessential Batman scene, watching him take down a couple of street-level thugs with his fists and aura alone. The climactic battle is similarly action-packed and adrenaline-inducing, but the best action scene by far is the Batmobile chase. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The Batmobile may have been at its most subdued form yet, compared to the hyper-stylistic days of the Burton-Schumacher era or the literal tank used in The Dark Knight trilogy. But even so, this was a pulse-pounding chase – and perhaps it was because the Batmobile didn’t seem to have many of its former tricks up its sleeve. It was closer to a battle of wills than of tech – and to that end, the delicious turn of fortune at the end of the chase was the kind of moment that the movies were made for. I loved every second of it.
All of the action and all of the performances were heightened by the incredible cinematography of Greig Fraser, who’s received considerable praise for his work in Rogue One and more recently Dune. Everything looked amazing. You couldn’t help but drop your jaw at the beauty of an exploding vehicle, or the sight of Batman working his way through a head-throbbing nightclub. There’s so much to look at here, and I can’t wait to watch the film again on the basis alone of taking in more of the visual artistry.
And to top it all off, superstar composer Michael Giacchino brought us a killer superhero score – reminding us that hero flicks don’t have to have forgettable music. I love the MCU and definitely prefer Marvel over DC on a normal day, but I can’t deny the power and class that Giacchino’s score provided this film. Batman’s central motif was simple, much like Hans Zimmer’s from Nolan’s trilogy – but in both cases, it was wonderfully effective. Throughout the film, the soundtrack intensified the scenes it accompanied. I’m literally re-listening to it right now as I write this review. I loved it.
I know I said the car chase was my favourite part of the movie, but the best narrative moment was the long-awaited meeting of Batman and the Riddler. This was where Paul Dano really got to sink his teeth into his role, and it’s the scene he shines brightest in. The way the scene was constructed was brilliant in the way that information makes its way to the audience – but what I loved most was how it highlighted the similarity between Batman and his foe. In many ways, Batman is just as mad as his enemies. Many Batman comics and films have examined this idea; how the only real difference between Batman and many of his opponents is that he refuses to admit he’s insane.
“All it takes is one bad day,” the Joker says in Alan Moore’s The Killing Joke. “To reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. That's how far the world is from where I am. Just one bad day.”
The Riddler expects Batman to almost be on his side when it comes to the upending of society. After all, it’s clear that both of them feel that the system is fundamentally broken and that only their intervention can set it right. And what I love about this scene is that Batman doesn’t say anything about why the Riddler is wrong or why what Batman is doing is justified. Instead, when the Riddler opens the parallels between them, Batman turns into a rage monster and just starts hurling insults. Because at the end of the day, Batman can’t admit that there’s not much that separates the two of them. Sure, the Riddler’s a murderer, but Batman is forcing his own will upon the people of Gotham simply on the basis that he feels his will is right. I loved that scene.
One more thing I have to say before I wrap this up. This film, like so many Batman films before it, dives into the dark world of criminality. Drugs, corruption, and sexual wickedness are all things that Batman walks past on his way to work. What I really appreciated is how the sexual element was never really used as visual appeal. A lot of filmmakers try to have it both ways – condemning the objectification of women while blatantly doing it in the way they shoot their film. Here, it’s pretty clear that prostitution is an element of Penguin’s criminal business. There are scantily clad dancers in his club. But to the best of my recollection, they’re never zoomed in on or even in focus. They’re there because that’s what happens in evil places like the one Batman’s entering, but they’re not there to glamorize the moment. The movie makes clear that many (if not all) of these women are being taken advantage of, or that they’re stuck in a system that seems to have no other place for them. We never really highlight the vulnerability of these women in a way that invites the viewer to take advantage of that vulnerability. I think that’s great. In filming these women with respect, they highlighted the evil that these women were serving without celebrating it.
Honestly, I can’t wait to watch this film again. It was everything I want a Batman movie to be. Thrilling, menacing, horrifying, and full of top-tier action and style. Just as Catwoman found out at the end of the film, it’s clear to me now that the Batman isn’t going anywhere.