We are living in the golden era of superhero movies and comic book adaptations. In the past year alone, between big-budget movies and premium streaming television series, we’ve gotten over a dozen live-action adaptations of our favorite comic book heroes and villains. So why is it in this day and age where we seemingly have endless superhero options to entertain ourselves with, we always seem to find ourselves coming back to Batman?
The first true live-action Batman film was released over three decades ago with Tim Burton’s simply titled Batman (1989). The film took the world by storm, imbuing itself into the pantheon of popular culture in a way that few superhero films ever have. Over the next decade, it was followed up by three sequels (one more from Burton and two from Joel Schumacher). The franchise took some time off and eventually was rebooted for another trilogy of films, this time from visionary director Christopher Nolan. Once that series wrapped up with The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Warner Bros wasted no time in recasting the Caped Crusader and rebooting him once again for the big screen. This time, the Dark Knight faced off against Superman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2015). After several issues arose in developing a solo project for that version of Batman, Warner Bros. decided to focus their efforts on an entirely new iteration of the Dark Knight for audiences, which brings us to The Batman (2022).
Coming from director Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, The Planet Of The Apes trilogy), The Batman (2022) brings us to a whole new take on the city of Gotham, its criminal underworld, and its most infamous masked vigilante. But how exactly is it different from what has come before? And is different always better?
Today we’re taking a look at the latest chapter in the Batman film franchise and talking about what works, what doesn’t, and how it holds up to the legacy of the Batman franchise.
Staying completely spoiler-free for the length of this review, The Batman (2022) is a masterfully crafted mystery-suspense-thriller that also happens to star DC Comics’ most popular hero. You can take away the capes and masks and it would still be one hell of a film. That said, it is without question the best live-action Batman film we have gotten to date.
Yes really.
I realize what a big statement that is, but I will not waiver on this. The Batman films that came before are beloved by countless fans the world over, but Reeve’s The Batman (2022) is the first one to really capture the essence of what it is to be Batman on screen. The film is, by far, the most a live-action Batman has actually felt like the Batman fans know from the comic books. It is simply breathtaking to behold.
While it is still unknown if director Matt Reeves will be sticking around for a few sequels or not, the tone set here is something that will define the next era of Batman films for years to come. Based on what we were given in this first outing, we would all benefit from Reeves staying on to do more. The Batman (2022) is beautifully shot and edited from start to finish. Even with its whopping three-hour runtime, it never feels “long.”
The story was written by Reeves in collaboration with Peter Craig (The Town, Bad Boys For Life) and pulls inspiration from iconic comic book storylines like Batman: Year Two, The Long Halloween, Ego, and even more surprisingly the somewhat recent Zero Year storyline. It picks and pulls some of the best aspects of these stories and manages to churn out something that both feels new and very familiar at the same time. This movie is the Batman movie that fans of the Batman comics have been waiting their whole lives to see; a film that isn’t afraid to embrace where it came from and lean into the absurdity of it all in the dim lighting of this new Gotham City.
While the visuals are superb, composer Michael Giacchino’s beautifully haunting score deserves neverending accolades for setting the mood. This world is downright grim. The music provided ensures you know it and feel it in the pit of your stomach with each passing scene. Giacchino is a master of his craft and brings this world to life, making the score feel like a character all its own.
Our lead, Robert Pattinson (The Lighthouse, Tennant), is a force of nature in the Batman costume and quickly takes the crown as our best live-action Dark Knight. The way he moves in the suit is fluid and visceral, taking down street thugs and clearly having a blast in doing so. He is brutal without hesitation but also sticks to his own “rules” (which is something most movie Batmen have often failed at in the past). Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne left a little to be desired, but his Batman is flawless. Maybe that was all a part of the act? Batman is his true identity, with his public persona as Bruce Wayne being the real mask he has to wear. This is something that the majority of Batman films have attempted and often struggled with, but The Batman managed to capture it well.
This film also takes its time to ensure it gives us a key ingredient that many of the other Batman films either forgot or left to the side: Batman is a detective. Not just a quick “I’ve found clues” but actually having him digging through evidence and completing deductive detective work. It’s all there for once, and it is refreshing to watch the man work out the puzzles, figure out the clues, and solve the crimes. Batman has always been much more than a guy in a cape that sneaks around and punches people. It is fantastic to finally see him portrayed the way we know him from the comics. This Batman is the Batman fans have been waiting for.
As someone who chronically complains about how these movies keep getting the villains wrong or that they change them too much, I have to praise The Batman (2022) for giving us three of the film’s four villains as fantastic adaptations of their comic counterparts. Colin Farrell (Fright Night, Phone Booth) is exquisite in his portrayal of Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot (aka The Penguin) in a way that I don’t think anyone else would have nailed quite right. I love that they cast him against type rather than just going for an actor who had the short stocky build. Farrell pulled it off exceptionally well — and he did it through a substantial amount of prosthetics!
Much like her character, Zoë Kravitz (X-Men: First Class, Mad Max: Fury Road) also steals. And by that, I mean she steals every scene she appears in. While we didn’t quite get the full-on cat-ear cowl and goggles, we’re still provided with the most comic-accurate live-action portrayal of Catwoman we have ever seen. I had low expectations for her, but absolutely loved Kravtiz’s performance and greatly anticipate her return in future chapters of this saga. She felt like she stepped directly out of the comic and onto the screen, oozing with swagger while still walking the fine line between vigilante and criminal. She simply was Catwoman in a way no one else ever has been.
Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood, Little Miss Sunshine) is downright vicious as The Riddler. Dano hands in a truly stunning performance as this masked killer that comes across as a mashup of Jigsaw of the Saw films and the real-life Zodiac Killer. That said, as horrifying as his performance was, he never quite FELT like The Riddler to me. In a world where we’re getting such flawless versions of these legendary comic characters, it’s a bit of a letdown. In a lot of ways, it felt like the script was written with Anarchy (another Batman villain from the comics) in mind and that it was rewritten shoehorning Riddler in his place. It isn’t BAD by any means and was an interesting enough take on the concept of the character, but it just never feels like The Riddler. That’s a pretty big mark to miss if he’s your film’s lead villain. Still, Dano’s performance was absolutely astounding.
I don’t want to get into the film’s final villain because to do so feels spoilery. It isn’t a big twist or a surprise or anything, so don’t get too amped up. I just don’t want to delve too deep and take away from any potential enjoyment you may get out of it. While Dano gave a great performance in a drastically different take on an old favorite, both Farrell and Kravitz have redefined their iconic characters and will be near impossible to ever top in their respective roles.
The rest of The Batman‘s cast were all excellent pieces in a larger puzzle. Andy Serkis (Black Panther, Lord Of The Rings) seems like an odd choice for the role of Alfred, Bruce Wayne’s butler and surrogate father figure, but he did a serviceable job as the character. Likewise, the always-excellent John Turturro (Transformers, The Big Lebowski) was clearly having a blast as crime boss Carmine Falcone. His role isn’t a big one, but it ends up being important. He wisely makes sure to use every second he’s on-screen.
The real standout among the supporting cast, though, was Jeffrey Wright’s (Westworld, The Hunger Games) turn as Police Lt. James Gordon, Batman’s ally in the Gotham City Police Department. Wright hands in a strong performance in the role that feels true to the character in all the right ways. If you want to talk about perfect casting, he is hands down the best imaginable choice for this future Police Commissioner.
Overall, The Batman (2022) is a must-see film. In addition to being the best Batman film made to date, it’s also one of the best comic book adaptations ever put to film. This movie is going to absolutely kill at the box office and likely won’t divide the fan base too much outside of some Snyder-Bros that are still holding onto hope for more films in the Snyder-Verse (which technically could still happen, so calm down). The Batman (2022) FEELS like a real Batman movie in a way nothing else ever has. That alone is worth the price of admission. The film is a thrill ride from start to finish with very few moments in between to catch your breath before it takes it away again. Don’t wait to see The Batman (2022), it is not just a film to be watched, but rather an event that needs to be experienced.
