The film wears its themes at surface level even though it does attempt to explore them at depth-the corruption in politics, classism and the balancing act of two great motivators in fear and hope-I feel like many of the Batman is laser-focused on building a foundation for the future of Reeves' Batverse and it is exciting to examine in which the next instalment might take us.
Robert Pattinson thrives because the Batman-or a minimum of this form of him. Cast in the role from the back of his performance as Connie early enough, Pattinson brings exactly the same unhinged, self-destructive energy in what is really a focused, one-step-short-of-nihilistic performance as a hero who desperately wants to think that nobody is beyond redemption. His reclusive Bruce Wayne might not be sailing shirtless on a yacht having a dozen supermodels like Bale's-and he doesn't smile much-but the gossamer-thin tightrope he walks throughout his crisis of identity creates a terribly compelling performance that's only made better when you consider he spends most of the film masked.
Paul Dano's Riddler is played to terrifying effect and it is truly menacing. Unlike other interpretations of the character who are garishly dressed in spandex, Dano's look is cobbled together out of cold-weather gear, cling wrap, and his signature bifocals. I loved what he did having a character who, for all of his methodical scheming, appeared like a scared kid who'd startle himself as much as his unsuspecting victim. I still can't forgive the issue mark latte art, that is probably the film's most cartoonish moment, but Dano is electric.
The remaining cast lose themselves in their respective roles. Zoe Kravitz shines as the sticky-fingered Selina Kyle, while Colin Farrell literally disappears in to the role of Oswald Cobblepot within mountain of prosthetics. The only role I felt would be a small waste was Andy Serkis as Alfred-the make an effort to make him a psychological foil in Bruce's narrative fell flat because he was simply used so sparingly, which is a shame for an actor of his calibre.
The Batman is superbly shot, and contains been completed with experience that has such a respect for that source material. Although it seems like every single one of their near 180-minutes, it's a film filled with soon-to-be-classic moments of cinema past the superhero genre. It is a shame the cash shot was spent up in the film's trailer because the second-act car chase is one of the coolest fucking things That i have ever observed in my entire life. From the moment the Batmobile roars alive, spitting blue flames from its exhaust and searching like Christine ready to devour all in the path, the next five minutes has got to be the best 5 minutes of action in decades.
There's a vocal minority who'll forever pledge that the warehouse brawl in Batman v Superman is the greatest fight put to celluloid, but The Batman is unflinching in the brutality. Not just are the fights well-choreographed, but their rawness also serves to focus on the fledgling ability of the imprecise, raging bull crimefighter. It's implied that this film's Bruce was educated to fight by Alfred so, as such, he's hardly a scalpel forged through the League of Shadows.
Michael Giacchino's operatic score, like Bruce himself, dances the skinny line between fear and hope. There is the obligatory darkness in “The Batman” theme that seems like an accompaniment to Bruce's pain and isolation, there is however an unexpectedly sweet optimism that's weaved throughout and it actually jogs my memory a lot of Giacchino's work on Lost-one of my all-time favourite scores. It may sound like the polar opposite of any Batman theme we've had before, it's full of pleasing major chords, it has a romanticism about it, and evokes a really human response.
It shouldn't come as an unexpected that the director who helmed the sorely-underrated Planet from the Apes trilogy has created something truly special here. It is the second-longest superhero film available also it seems like it, there is no getting around that, but ultimately the stories told, along with the stories set up, make the time spent in this sumptuously shot film worthwhile.
And if he hadn't already-he had-Robert Pattinson proved that he's a lot more than Edward. He's vengeance.
