The Batman2022

Verdict: 🥈 SHOULD SEE | Orphans v. Orphans Matt Reeves hasn’t yet had many opportunities to wow us, but he’s shown himself to be highly capable with established properties. His two entries in the Planet of the Apes series were exceptional, and that’s especially true with the 3rd (something that’s almost never the case in trilogies). The Batman is no different, in that it is exceptionally well made.

• All the actors bring their A game, but especially Jeffrey Wright’s tired yet flabbergasted Gordon, John Turturro’s dominating Falcone, Andy Serkis’ loyal Alfred, and Paul Dano’s “cranked to 11” Riddler. And how could you not be shocked by Colin Farrell’s Penguin 🐧?! He’s unobjectionably unrecognizable, while creating the absolute best portrayal of the character on the silver screen to date.
• The long runtime was masterfully laced tightly. Nothing felt too superfluous or excessive, and the story kept moving in an ever-imperative direction.
• Michael Giachino once again created a pitch-perfect score, a not-so-easy feet when creating another new Batman theme.
• The cinematography, set design, costumes, lights, sights, and sounds were all matched the viscosity of Reeves’ vision.

But for all The Batman brings to the table, it ends up diluted by the mixtape of influences scattered throughout. Everything from Se7en and Zodiac to Nolan’s Batman trilogy and even Saw. From the very first teaser trailer, my first thought was, “this looks like a high budget fan film.” What we eventually got was an expertly-crafted fan film that, while bringing some new ideas to the table, leans too heavily into its dread-bathed influences. It’s 2022 and we’re watching a darker, grittier Batman than before. Again. And the world is cheering for it, clawing for it. Just as Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker before it, The Batman’s hard and violent take will rake in the cash and, most likely, bring out the worst in all of us. The Batman is a detective, The Batman is noir. The Batman is crime drama. The Batman is dark. But The Batman isn’t heroic. Not until about 2 hours and 45 minutes in, that is. And that might be the biggest disappointment for me. I was rooting for The Batman in part because of his unrelenting quest for justice with the Gotham cards stacked against him, but mostly out of habit. His journey isn’t a joy to watch, but a shared burden we bear with Bruce. And maybe that was what Reeves was going for. If so, I applaud him and hope we can see him further explore his ideas now that we’ve crossed the threshold. I’m just hoping that we now, as does Gotham, have an ally on our side to root for rather than revile.