The Batman (2022)

Dripping in atmosphere and weaving together a complex, socially-relevant crime saga, Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” is a riveting thriller that perfectly captures the blackened soul of Gotham City. Featuring brutal, white-knuckle action set-pieces and multi-faceted renditions of iconic characters, this dark descent into the Batman mythos is as captivating as it is intense. It may not be the best incarnation of the Caped Crusader that we’ve seen (there’s a lot of heavy competition), but “The Batman” is an exciting start to a new era for the Dark Knight.

Arguably the most unique aspect of this adaptation of Batman is that this is a neo noir, mystery thriller through-and-through. He may be “The World’s Greatest Detective”, but most big-screen iterations of Batman prioritize spectacle over the search for clues. Here, Reeves and his team double down on the methodical approach, crafting a twisting tale full of treachery, misdirection and political corruption. With a serial killer plot ripped straight from “Se7en”, a twist on the Wayne legacy heavily inspired by “Batman: The Telltale Series” and a third act reminiscent of Tyler Durden’s grand plan in “Fight Club”, chances are you’ve seen something like this before. But it’s the way that “The Batman” draws you in with its grimy, hardboiled aesthetic that makes the film so engaging.

The general mood and feel of “The Batman” is pitch-perfect. The murky, suspenseful atmosphere is utterly absorbing; this is a brilliant late-night viewing experience! This is easily my favourite version of Gotham City we’ve seen in live-action, its gothic architecture and grotty, rain-soaked streets balance the City’s other-worldly ambience with events that could really happen. As much as I love Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, the Gotham of “The Dark Knight” and “The Dark Knight Rises” was always too generic for my liking. I understand that, by shooting them in Chicago and New York, the battle for Gotham’s safety was a battle for the safety of America at large, but the gleaming, unremarkable skyscrapers never thrilled me. In “The Batman” however, Glasgow, London and Liverpool give the place a rich texture that was lacking in previous instalments. The City now feels like a lived-in place, a once great metropolis now teeming with criminal scum.

“The Batman” is stunning with a capital S; the movie’s dark tone is matched beautifully by Greig Fraser’s eye-widening cinematography. The focus trickery creates a sense of claustrophobia, the muddy, washed-out colour palette highlighting the character’s place in a seemingly irredeemable world and the staging makes Batman look more epic than he’s looked in years. Make sure you see “The Batman” on the biggest screen you can find because this film looks truly amazing.

Michael Giacchino delivers an eerie, impactful score that harks back to the sweeping work of Danny Elfman and Shirley Walker. Giacchino refrains from his unfortunate tendency to copy-and-paste his previous scores (the “Doctor Strange” theme is distractingly similar to the “Star Trek” reboot fanfare), creating a menacing sound that complements this raw, vengeful take on Batman.

The action sequences in “The Batman” are absolutely terrific. The visceral, fast-paced choreography establishes why Batman is feared by criminals, the sound design making every impact reverberate painfully, whilst the camerawork immerses the audience in the middle of the action. My favourite set-piece is the incredible Batmobile car chase. This muscle car variant of the Batmobile looks fantastic and watching it rocket down a highway, dodging trucks as they topple over, with the roar of its engine making the seats rattle is an awesome sight.

“The Batman” is an extremely well-cast film, every actor is a memorable addition, regardless of screen time.

Robert Pattinson is an excellent Batman, at no point did it cross my mind that I was watching Cedric Diggory breaking bones and solving grisly murders. Pattinson effectively conveys the character’s deep-seated pain and rage through brief lines of dialogue and minute gestures. When he’s under the cape and cowl, you believe that Pattinson is this character, he’s an unstoppable force of nature focused entirely on terrifying the scum of Gotham into submission. But beyond that, this film gave me a character arc for Batman that I never knew I wanted, the journey that takes him from instilling fear, to inspiring hope. The finale features one of my favourite moments of heroism in a comic book movie from the last few years, it was inspiring, optimistic and poignant in a way that Christopher Reeve’s “Superman” movies or Tobey Maguire’s “Spider-Man Trilogy” were. To me, Pattinson’s Batman was a perfect adaptation of the Batman from the comics, the Animated Series and the Arkham games, the detective whose brain is just as formidable as his fists.

Zoë Kravitz was brilliant as Selina Kyle, she’s definitely my favourite Catwoman thus far (sorry Halle Berry!) She brought a femme fatale nature to the character that felt like something out of a Humphrey Bogart movie. The mix of vulnerability and strength kept me guessing as I tried to figure out whose side Kyle was really on. I sincerely hope we see more of Kravitz in this role because she truly made it her own.

He was exceptional in “No Time To Die” (my favourite movie of the last two years), and now Jeffrey Wright is a highpoint again, this time as gruff but entertaining Jim Gordon. Wright expertly provides the film with much needed moments of levity that stem from his unlikely pairing with Batman, whilst also reminding the viewer what a horrendous workplace Gotham is. I loved that Gordon was Batman’s partner throughout the story, watching the two investigate crimes together was an inspired spin on the mismatched cop duo trope.

I can’t remember the last time an actor disappeared into a role quite like Colin Farrell did when playing the Penguin here. The make-up prosthetics on him are award-worthy, they completely alter his look without ever detracting from his comedic yet powerful performance. I look forward to seeing more of Farrell’s Oswald Cobblepot in his upcoming TV spin-off.

The only cast member given the short end of the stick was Andy Serkis as Alfred. Despite being a key player in Bruce’s emotional journey, this Alfred barely does anything throughout the three hour runtime. It’s a shame because Serkis is a great choice for the character, but by the end, it’s easy to forget that he’s even in the film.

Batman movies have a long and varied history when it comes to their antagonists, ranging from the historic to the woeful. Thankfully, Paul Dano as the Riddler is a horrifying threat, one grounded in a somewhat sympathetic desire to shine a light on political deceit. From the disorientating opening sequence onwards, the audience is instantly afraid of the character, his haunting livestreams touching a nerve in a way that 2019s “Joker” (a film which tried desperately to comment on “SOCIETY!”) failed to do. Dano’s unhinged, frightening performance is absolutely electrifying.

Unfortunately, “The Batman” is not on the same level of quality as the first two chapters in “The Dark Knight Trilogy”, as I do have my fair share of issues with the film.

Firstly, there’s no way of getting around it, “The Batman” is just too long. Unlike recent franchise conclusion epics (such as “Avengers: Endgame” or the aforementioned “No Time To Die”), this movie doesn’t fly past. There aren’t any obvious subplots that feel out-of-place, but during the dense middle act, you can feel the weight of the movie as it chugs along. The main problem with the hefty runtime is that certain characters get lost in the shuffle along the way. As previously stated, Alfred has a pivotal moment towards the end of Act 2, but he doesn’t reappear for the rest of the story. Despite being the main villain, Riddler is nowhere to be seen in most of the film’s middle section, making it easy to forget that he is the antagonist of the narrative, rather than John Turturro’s Carmine Falcone. It wouldn’t be an easy edit, but “The Batman” would certainly benefit from having some of the fat trimmed off of it.

They may be poles-apart in terms of style, but “The Batman” is very similar to “The Dark Knight Trilogy.” It’s a gritty, grounded take on the Caped Crusader that places the character in a version of a classic 90s crime film (“The Batman” is “Se7en”, “The Dark Knight” is “Heat”). There’s a car chase with a Batmobile, set against the dull orange of a night-time Gotham road (which featured in the first two Nolan films). The hero faces-off against the villain in an interrogation room, where the villain tells the hero that they’re the same (“The Dark Knight” did it better). The idea that Bruce Wayne is the mask and Batman is his true face is addressed (Rachel Dawes said it first). The final action sequence features swarms of acolytes dressed like the villain and Batman must attach them to wires before throwing them off an industrial structure (he did this to the SWAT team in “The Dark Knight” but you get the idea). I get it, Batman has been around for a long time, of course it’s difficult to take the character in new directions, but as I watched “The Batman”, I couldn’t help but think of the immortal words of Biff Tannen: “There’s something very familiar about all this.”

My final criticism with “The Batman” concerns the film’s biggest spoiler, so I’ll do my best to tread carefully. Exactly like the ending of “Batman Begins”, this movie concludes with a tease of where the story could go next, but unlike “Batman Begins”, it wasn’t a low-key yet chill-inducing moment that improves the finale, rather, it feels shoehorned in and totally unnecessary. Obviously this moment was well-acted and superbly shot, but I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Batman is renowned for having the greatest rogue’s gallery in the history of fiction, yet the movies refuse to give up on one villain in particular. We all know he’s iconic for a reason, but I for one am so sick of re-treading the same dynamic over and over again. Give us a serious take on Mr Freeze or Poison Ivy next, or perhaps go full monster movie and make Man-Bat the villain of the sequel, or Clayface, or Killer Croc, or literally any of the other dozens of nuanced antagonists that we either haven’t seen before on the big screen, or those who haven’t been adapted correctly yet. Maybe it’s just me, but I’d be perfectly happy if they benched the villain who cameos here for at least a decade, maybe more.

In summary, “The Batman” may not reach the highs of the best stories featuring DC’s flagship icon, but this is still a great film. With hard-hitting action, tremendous performances and a narrative that reflects the paranoia of the era, whilst also remaining hopeful that together, we can endure dark times, this is a timely and enthralling experience!