Review of The Batman (2022) by Michaelxu — 07 Mar 2022

• The Batman (8/10 stars).

◦ User Review Addition.

▪ Text: Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy are praised as one of the greatest superhero movies, as its prestige set an unsurmountable standard for later productions. After a decade, The Batman is agreeably the most successful resurrection of the icon.

 Suppressive close-ups, contrasting lighting, and ceaseless soundtrack all display the palpable tension of Gotham city and its humid hellholes. Where the neon light couldn’t reach, even a silent frame of lurking shadow could instill fear into the audience.

Regarding characters, Andy Serkis’ veteran version of Alfred, Colin Farrell’s perfidious Penguin, and Jeffrey Wright’s faithful Gordon all provide new vibes that are unique from the previous movies. With a pair of nerdy glasses, Paul Dano performs a lethally menacing sociopath, child of solitude and envy, who’s distorted wish for a purge of corruption can only be expressed by bloodshed and grotesque riddles. Zoe Kravitz on the other hand, presents an audacious but righteous Catwoman with lineage that motivates her vengeance, as her relationship with Batman develops from enmity to mutual attraction.

 Robert Pattinson nailed his character, through the detailed investigation and powerful punches, introducing an uncompromising, reckless, but dutiful vigilante. Even masked, every glimpse and stare of Pattinson fully demonstrates the Batman’s hesitation, fury, and vigilance. Bruce Wayne lacks affection, and Batman lacks recognition; Bruce grows by heartfully loving Selena and accepting the sin of his family, Batman grows by becoming a savior, a fearsome symbol, a stray of light that wades through murk and leads the people. Whether frantic mobs or hypocritical politicians, it is convincing that the city’s depravity can be arbitrated by our hero. 

The only things I have to complain: firstly, can we not whisper through all our dialogues? It’s extremely tiring to completely understand the plot especially for a detective movie. Secondly, because of the singular narration, the pacing of the film is slightly slow. This can be resolved by combining conversations with ongoing events to increase tension and speed up storytelling (which is what Nolan did to earn 9.1 for Dark Knight on imdb).

 Overall, Batman meets my expectation and impresses me with a different tone from the other DC movies. An absolute must-see.