Review: The Batman shines brighter than ever in the dark

After a couple of years of running with a Justice League-oriented Batman — one more geared to capitalized on the Marvel superhero boom that has taken over popular culture — Warner Bros. made what I consider to be a bold decision in The Batman, which returns the Caped Crusader to the black shadows of Gotham City. Like Shakespeare said of a good deed, it is in a dark world where Batman shines the brightest, and if any film proves that, it’s this one.

So let’s talk about DC’s latest Superhero blockbuster, The Batman. SPOILERS ahead.

Before we get to the nitty-gritty (emphasis on gritty), let’s get a quick story synopsis. Gotham City is suffering from one of its worst crime waves to date, despite attempts by mayor Don Mitchell Jr. (Rupert Penry-Jones) to tackle organized crime and it being two years since Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) stepped out as Batman. Something is up, and the Riddler (Paul Dano) has orchestrated a bloody puzzle book to lead Batman to the source of the corruption. With the help of Lieutenant Gordon (Jeffery Wright) and the club waitress by night/cat burglar by even-later-at-night Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz), Batman may discover not only the reason for the rise in crime, but also solve the greatest mystery of his childhood.

The Batman is a well-written movie

Hoo boy, there’s a lot to talk about. Where to start? Well, how about the story? I thought it was excellent, not just in substance, but also the choices made in the telling. For instance, the first establishing shot of the film is of the house of Mayor Mitchell, seen through the Riddler’s binoculars. Not only does this establish our location, but also the Riddler’s target. And this isn’t the last of the clever and fun choices the movie makes; I appreciated the thought put into every one of them.

The story itself is strong too. There are meaningful parallels between heroes and villains that give us a lot to chew on. In the first act, Batman is very dedicated to his crime fighting; he calls himself “Vengeance,” and claims he fights to protect his father’s legacy. This is a Batman who does what he does not just for the greater good, but as revenge against the criminals and corrupt officials who might have killed his parents. However, as the film moves along, it is revealed that the Riddler is essentially doing the same thing, and Batman has to confront the fact that the same emotions that drive him to fight crime drive others to commit it.

Structurally, the movie is a hybrid action film and procedural mystery. I liked that a lot. It gave us that detective aspect of Batman we rarely see in the films. The slower, thoughtful moments where Batman solves mysteries are just as suspenseful and engaging as the action scenes, which will test the integrity of your chair.

The movie pulls this off in part because the dialogue is strong. Going into The Batman, I was anticipating and fearing Marvel dialogue, with a lot of exposition and cutesy fluff. That fear was put to bed quickly by Batman’s opening monologue, which establishes the state of Gotham City, points out that Batman basically has no chance to truly fix the place, and yet still manages to have a glimmer of hope. It’s a fantastically written passage, one of many.

You’ll also be surprised to know that The Batman is funny. It’s not a comedy, but each moment of comic relief got a hard laugh out of me. The Batman continues one of my favorite, almost guilty pleasure traditions by giving the main character one-liners. You know those cheeky lines in The Dark Knight? When the Joker asked Batman, “You know how I got these scars?” and Batman replied, “No, but I know how you got these,” just before shooting him with blades? Snappy jokes like that always get me, and The Batman has them.

How is Robert Pattison as Bruce Wayne/Batman?

As I was sitting there in the theater waiting for the inevitable post-credit teaser (more on that later), I overheard some other critics talking, already writing their reviews aloud to each other. One of them said, “Robert Pattinson… You know, he was cute, but he had no charisma.” For whatever reason that stuck with me on the walk home. I guess charisma is one of those things you always want and expect an actor to have when playing a role, especially a main role. And in a way, I agree that Robert Pattinson had little charisma as Batman, but at the same time, I don’t think that was the goal.

What is charisma? I suppose as far as actors and characters are concerned, it might mean the ability to get people to like you based on mannerisms, attitude, or appearance. Then yeah, I suppose in that way this Batman has no charisma, but that doesn’t mean there is nothing to get attached to. This Bruce Wayne is a recluse; he’s distant, grim, and even has a bit of childish angst. Those are traits the movie highlights, and I think Robert Pattinson pulls it off really well. The appeal of this Batman doesn’t hit you right away; it’s in his journey of self-discovery that he becomes charismatic.

Okay, that was a lot on Robert Pattinson, but he isn’t the only character to talk about. There’s also Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman, and she does a fantastic job. I like her chemistry with Pattinson, which begins with hostility and apprehension and transitions into awkward bubbling sexual tension to full-on romance by the end.

Zoë’s standalone scenes are great too. The way she flips on the charm to get past guards, her emotional scenes with Carmine Falcone (John Turturro)…Kravitz really brings the character to life in a new way.

Ditto for Jeffery Wright as Lieutenant Gordon. Wright came on my radar after The French Dispatch, where he was my favorite narrator. He brings the same wonderful voice performance here. Wright suits Gordon very well; he’s a calm and friendly partner to Batman, but still plenty tough.

Finally we’ve got the big bad of the film, Paul Dano as the Riddler, who I also think did a wonderful job. He’s at his best when masked and in the shadows; he’s very intimidating when we can only hear his voice. Dano gives the often goofy villain a grim modernization as a Zodiac Killer-inspired psychopath. However, I will say that, once unmasked, he definitely loses it, with Dano releasing the tension with a few silly moments. However, I think this is another of those choices; it shows us that serial killers, while scary when free, are pathetic and sad when their anonymity is removed. So maybe that part of the performance was all part of the plan, and in that case, bravo, Dano.

A final note on the acting: If you want to know how good Colin Farrell was as the Penguin, all you need to know is this: I had no idea Colin Farrell was even in this movie until I started writing this. That’s how convincing he was.

The verdict

I want to touch on some negatives before signing off, although there weren’t many. The music was incorporated well for the most part, although the main theme might have gotten played once too often. The story, while again I thought was great, also ran a biiiit long. I was getting a bit anxious in the third act.

Overall, I was very happy coming out of the theater. I was especially happy because DC has clearly decided to correct course. Rather than constantly trying to mimic Marvel, they’ve provided something distinctively different and darker. I think they are waking up to the fact that they can’t and shouldn’t do what Marvel does, and that they have something that Marvel can’t do. The Batman is gritty, dark and emotional, a return to the throughline that started in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman and developed with Christopher Nolan’s trilogy years later.

I am genuinely excited for future installments in this Batman series. And as hinted at in the credits, chances are good this isn’t our last visit to the darkest Gotham City yet.

Grade: A

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