Review: ‘The Batman’

Are there any good people left? This is the question that invades your mind while watching the people of Gotham who have abandoned all hope. Corruption has spread like a disease, with lies being fed to the people. Even when there is little to no hope, from the dark shadows fear creeps in for the criminals when the light of the bat signal hits the sky. As it’s not just a call. It’s a warning. To beware of Batman. 

It has been two years since Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) first donned the mask in pursuit of inflicting his idea of justice on the streets of Gotham. But things haven’t improved, rather they have gotten worse. When the serial killer who calls himself the Riddler (Paul Dano) starts to murder key political figures in Gotham, Batman, alongside Lieutenant James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright), investigates the city’s hidden corruption which may be linked to the Wayne family.  

With The Batman, director Matt Reeves explores the caped crusader’s early days as a vigilante. He’s still learning how to balance being Bruce Wayne and Batman. He is frustrated and angry at how he’s not able to change things. This is reflected in his rage, which he struggles to control at times while fighting criminals. He calls himself vengeance as he still seeks the truth of who killed his parents. When we are first introduced to Batman and Bruce Wayne, we see him roaming the streets at night like a nocturnal, pushing himself to the extreme to instill fear in those who break the law. His relationship with Alfred (Andy Serkis) is on the rocks to the point where Bruce makes it clear to Alfred that he’s not his father. So, when Riddler challenges him every step of the way, Batman has to find hope not just for himself but in the city he is fighting for. 

The great thing about The Batman is how formidable Riddler is as an antagonist. From the moment we see him lurking in the shadows and murdering the mayor of Gotham, we know Batman has to fight tooth and nail to catch him. Reeves plays on Batman’s detective skills, which is one of his biggest strengths to peel off the layers behind Riddler’s motives. This not only shakes Batman to his core, but brings Bruce out into the light. 

Another point newly explored by Reeve’s Batman is that Bruce spends so much time being the caped crusader that he forgets to be Bruce Wayne. He has to play the role of the billionaire, but he says that he doesn’t care about being Bruce Wayne, and he can’t escape that. Most importantly, Bruce needs to realize the importance of his family’s legacy, which Alfred tries to make him understand throughout the film.

Reeves takes a deep dive into how deeply rotten Gotham is. Why has Batman been unsuccessful in his pursuit to clean the city up? Gotham has always been run by white privileged men, who only catered to their own interests. The subject of privilege also takes a spotlight on Bruce, his family, and how his father’s renewal project to help those in need never took off after his death. And, how Bruce took all the sympathy by being the billionaire orphan, which Riddler was envious of. This becomes the central conflict of the movie and the motivations behind Riddler’s unmasking of Gotham’s reality for the people to see. He believes that in order to make Gotham great again he has to get rid of the current corrupt powerful people, who for years have done nothing for Gotham’s development and lied to the people about everything.   

Coming in as an ally for Batman is Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Zoe Kravitz), who has her own personal stakes in her pursuit against fighting Falcone (John Turturro). She sees a friend in Batman, someone who will help her also get vengeance. Their partnership helps them get clarity on who they are. Catwoman comments on Batman’s privilege and how he must have grown up rich to say people had it coming for the choices they made. Kravitz shines bright as Catwoman/Selina Kyle. She and Pattinson share great chemistry which only makes the partnership between the Bat and the Cat even more intriguing to watch.

Pattinson knows the character of Batman inside and out. He embodies Batman’s frustration and anger to the core, especially in the fighting sequences where we see how he is struggling to gain control at times and is this close to breaking his moral code of not killing. His scenes as Bruce Wayne are very grounded. Pattinson grasps Bruce as a young man who has lost a part of himself and turns to his other, stronger persona as Batman to cope with that. 

Giving Batman a tough fight as the antagonist is Dano’s Riddler. Every scene with him is thrilling to witness as he presents Riddler with a sense of purpose and an emotional drive. In supporting, Wright as Lieutenant James Gordon plays his role quite mellow, like the cool dude of the bunch. His partnership with Batman is based on trust and the similarities they have in matters of justice. He is also Batman’s point person and at times helps him when he is about to lose control. Colin Farrell as Penguin is phenomenal with humor in his bones. Even with limited screen time, Farrell manages to make his mark. And finally, Turturro pulls off a powerful performance as the crime lord Falcone. 

Reeves and cinematographer Greig Fraser manage to pull off a great neo-noir look. Every frame of the movie is awe-striking. The way Riddler’s introduction scene is captured is quite chilling and brings a level of uncomfortableness that puts an audience on edge. Especially in his first appearance and the way he lunges on to the mayor with a carpet tucker. But the most breathtaking sequence in the movie is the car chase sequence between Batman and Penguin. It’s exhilarating from the moment the batmobile springs to life. Along with Michael Giacchino’s wondrous score, that scene is for the ages. 

It has been ten long years since the last solo Batman movie, but the wait has been worth it. Reeves stitches a refreshing image of a young Batman trying to find his footing as the crime-fighting vigilante. He plays the story like a crime drama which might find comparisons to movies like Seven, Zodiac, and Chinatown. Another thing Reeves makes sure of is having a formidable villain who can shadow Batman’s ideology and let him go through a cathartic personal situation to find the hope he needs to keep going. 

The Batman is a thrilling ride that questions the nature of heroism and features a superhero who is more flawed, unable to control himself, and trying to work out his rage in order to help save his city from the deep ends of corruption and crime.