Batman
By: Anton Massopust III
“Who you supposed to be?” – Thug
“I am vengeance!” – Batman
Batman returns to the big screen in “The Batman”. Batman/Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) dons the cape and cowl in this detective story in the tradition of film noir such as “The Maltese Falcon” and “The Big Sleep” and the modern classic thriller, “Seven”. A serial killer is on the loose attacking and brutally murdering Gotham’s elite including the police commissioner, district attorney, mob bosses and anyone who is connected to the corruption in Gotham City, even the woman that is currently running for mayor. To solve this mystery was not going to be easy. There are clues within clues, riddles within riddles. Batman and Lieutenant Gordon (Jeffery Wright) are trying to figure out why the Riddler (Paul Dano) is doing this. The two mob families: the Falcone’s and the Maroni’s are connected to the corruption in Gotham City. What is their connection to Bruce Wayne’s mother and father? The Riddler keeps leaving little notes on his victims for Batman starting on Halloween. Connected to all this is well is Catwoman (Zoe Kravitz) who is after something that the Maroni’s or the Romans have over her.
The Penguin (Colin Farrell) steals every scene he is in and he vicious and funny at the same time. The actor is unrecognizable, even his voice is changed. What I really loved about this movie was the influence from the comic books and the famous nineties’ animated TV series. What I was glad about it was it was not another origin story. We get Batman already established right away after two years slowly working with Gordon to end crime in Gotham. I also liked the fact that criminals did not know where Batman is. He can be anywhere. Batman’s motivation right now is seeking vengeance for the death of his parents, so he has to change from being just a vigilante to becoming more of detective and more of a hero. Everyone is afraid of him. Besides a really clever mystery we also get lots of action and probably one of the craziest car chases you’ve ever seen in the movies that would even rival the car chase in “The Dark Knight”. There is a brand new Batmobile which is a muscle car. The musical score is awesome, dark and haunting while the cinematography and the use of being filmed London to give it a dark look is chilling. We also get Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth who reveals slowly more about Bruce’s parents and why and how they died.
It’s always great to see director Matt Reeves who previously directed the reboot of the Planet of the Apes. He is a huge comic book fan and Batman fan and really gets and understands him. We also get a little bit of cameos from other villains, but I won’t say who. I’m sure that we’ll see more of this Batman because this is great start, but at the same time, it is dark brooding and a fascinating from beginning to end. I was not bored for 1 minute, but I don’t think kids will find this interesting because it’s a lot of talking and it’s a lot of clue and mystery solving. There is action, but kids might be bored. We probably will see more of these characters because HBOMax is already planning a Penguin TV series and a Catwoman TV series.
Is this the best Batman movie ever? Well, it’s really good. Check out the graphic novels or trade paperbacks Batman: Long Halloween and Batman: Year Zero and Batman: Year One to look for the inspiration. Go see “The Batman”.
