The Batman

The Batman is my favourite, and arguably the most interesting comic book character in existence. As a fan, I grew up watching the classic Batman: The Animated Series and followed almost all major adaptations including comic books (e.g. Year One), movies (like Michael Keaton’s Batman, The Dark Knight trilogy), and video games (notably the Arkham and Telltale series). Over many years, I saw many interpretations of the masked vigilante: some were spectacular, while others were forgettable. This time, director Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson, the Twilight actor as I know him, took on the challenge to bring their vision of the character onto the big screen. And my opinion is that this movie, The Batman (2022), is by the far the iteration that respects its source material the most.

Robert Pattinson’s Batman is noticeably much darker, grittier, more cerebral than previous movies that liked to portray the character more as a mythical "super-Chad". The Batman here is more “flawed”, a billionaire orphan and a tragic hero with no superpowers, which are unique traits that make this character very recognizable in mainstream comics. For this reason, I was used to separating Batman and Bruce Wayne as two personas. However, this movie makes a smart choice to blur the distinction between the two. It highlights how human Batman is, as someone with great inner conflicts and still figuring out this vigilante game, rather than a charismatic celebrity like Iron Man who has mastered his dual personalities. Consequently, the credibility of the movie comes from how Batman carries himself: his body language, eye movements, and silence that told so much about his dubious place in the crime-ridden cesspool that is Gotham City. These complex characteristics of Batman is why the role is tough to fulfill as an actor. Yet, I think Pattinson acted out with flying colours. His version brought the most mysterious yet imposing presence in every scene, with subtleties of his tragic background that make him emotionally vulnerable. It is everything I’ve known Batman for.

Figuratively and literally speaking, The Batman is a very dark movie. I remember my friend hilariously groaned, “Man, I couldn’t see shit!” because of the underlit cinematography. For me though, I found it easy on the eyes and more importantly, a fitting choice for the Batman’s night vigilante character as well as the hopelessness of Gotham City. However, a good Batman film is not complete without a good villain. I would have never thought the Riddler, traditionally known as more of a comic-relief gamemaster, would work beautifully as the harbinger of evil in this movie. I ultimately credit Paul Dano for successfully delivery this re-imagined version of a lesser known Batman villain. I was utterly sold on his performance especially when he confronted the Batman in the interrogation room. He captured almost every angle of the character from his theatrics, intelligence, and pure arrogance whilst giving him a darker edge that is perfect for a modern Riddler.

In terms of performance, Paul Dano’s Riddler is a definite third place all time behind Heath Ledger’s Joker and Tom Hardy’s Bane. I also cannot forget Colin Farrell performance as The Penguin that was so phenomenal that you couldn’t even recognize him! He deserves to be in more future Batman projects. All these excellent villains lack flashy superpowers, but they embody a systematic evil in a lawless city that very well (probably) exist in our own world. These kinds of grounded characters are extremely unique to the Batman-verse. Though the Nolan trilogy is by far the most grounded iteration of Batman on screen yet, I felt that The Batman (2022) strike a better balance between mythos and realism. It was enough to know it is fiction, yet enough to see a reflection of our society.

I am a sucker for Batman content. However, there were three major drawbacks to this movie that prevent it from being my favourite. Firstly, the overarching mystery plot overcomplicates itself in trying to highlight Batman’s detective qualities. Often times, the puzzles that Batman solve felt like a writer embellishing a simple Sherlock Holmes story that ends up wasting time rather than being smart. Secondly, though I liked the deeper explorations into Bruce Wayne’s family history, I did not appreciate how it was resolved in the movie, if at all. As intriguing as it was to involve the Wayne family in the murder case, their role became more of a frustrating headscratcher; it just wasn’t integrated well enough to feel significant for solving the case or adding more complexity to Batman’s character. Lastly, fitting so many twists and turns to the murder case left little space to develop important side characters like Lieutenant Gordon, Catwoman, and Alfred. With a bunch of sequels and spin-offs planned, however, I expect their development to continue, whereas this movie was a mere taste of a bigger motive to create a Batman cinematic universe.

Though Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy are better crafted movies overall, the way Matt Reeves directed The Batman makes it the truest "Batman" movie to date. Despite issues with some messy plot points and pacing, it ranks as the one of the most thrilling live-action outings that accurately captures the psychologically gripping nature of the Dark Knight in the horrifyingly bleak setting of Gotham City. Generally, I become nervous when new directors and actors try to reinvent the character, fearing they may get it "wrong". With this movie, I can let out a sigh of relief. It even has my blessing to expand into a whole cinematic universe.