This is going to be a two-part article where the first one describes my experience with The Character of the Batman and Bruce Wayne. The second part is the elaborate and expressive review of The Batman.
The start of my journey with the iconic Batman started when I first saw him on Television when “The Dark Knight” premiered in India for the first time. I vaguely remember the details but it might also be the world’s first TV premiere. The TV channel was airing the Telugu Dubbed version first followed by the English version at midnight 12 A.M. I watched the Telugu version first as it was very late to watch the original. Even though I couldn’t play the entire night in my mind, I vividly remember a few moments where everyone in my family enjoyed the movie. They were moved by the character’s actions and interactions, they commented on the impactful performances and dialogues in movie too. The next day, I remember that everyone in my class were talking about the premiere of the Batman and were awestruck by the scene where “Batman and Joker” faceoff for the first time where Joker stands fearlessly knowing that Batman won’t hurt him. The best of the discussion was when I initiated the discussions about the Batmobile scene where Batman transforms his “Tumbler into Badpod”. Everyone were pumped recalling the moment and started going awe due to the awesomeness of the scene.
As a kid I just saw Batman as this Superhero Character without the knowledge of any character depth or backstory. I did not see any significant reason for his actions in capturing the bad guys in the animated series or movies. I certainly did not watch Batman to understand the character shades and philosophical tones but they came in surprise when I revisited the universe created by Christopher Nolan. I watched the movie just as a kid who loves to watch the superheroes win at the end of the movie against the super villain. As the time passed, and Christopher Nolan decided not to continue making more movies of the genre, the character of Batman slowly faded away in my memory as there were no projects on him which were coming up.
Almost 8 years later my first encounter, director “Zack Snyder” came out with “Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice” which I had no clue about. I certainly didn’t watch his previous movies, but one of my closest friend, who was a cinephile, introduced me his work. The point is I never got to know Batman personally and until my dad gifted me my very own home theatre set, where I revisited “The Dark Knight Trilogy” in the summer of 2018. I understood the depth of the character and what he really means. But, I understood more about the character only when I watched Snyder’s take on the Batman. As Christopher Nolan clearly presented what Batman Truly means, it was “Ben Affleck’s” Iteration of the character where I understood the greater value that the character brings through his motives and actions in bringing the “Justice League” together. I wanted to watch more of him and his character arc continue. But, it was again the Warner brothers who made me disappointed when they cancelled the Batffleck’s solo project due to the creative differences between them.
I followed comic book movies and started liking the superhero genre, but Batman was really “in the Shadows” for me. As a kid, I never really understood what batman really meant and his real life parallels. But as an adult, I started appreciating him more for his fullest potential. I also started noticing the different styles of filmmaking approach which was taken by each director who adapted the character to cinema. I started understanding how these directors interpreted Batman differently. As my first Batman exposure was Christopher Nolan, his “Hyper realistic” take of the Batman, really stuck hard on me. It was really hard not to believe that other forms batman can exist. The Zack Snyder’s version was more of a “Futuristic” Batman, with his Team, Tech and Story Telling. But it was The Batman, which presented the true essence of the world’s greatest detective in presenting the most “Realistic and Accurate” side of the Batman was never interpreted on screen before. With true emotion and confidence, I can say that “Robert Pattinson” portrayal and “Matt Reeves’s The Batman” is the best Batman ever depicted on live action cinema.
What a full life circle I had experiencing the movie. I watched the movie on the premier’s day, on March 3rd 2022 on an IMAX Screen in Bangalore. First, my closest friend who is a Hard-core DC fan, calls himself the lucky guy as he witnessed The Dark Knight on the world’s second largest IMAX screen in Hyderabad. He celebrates the fact that he was one of the few kids who were allowed to watch the spectacle on the large screen and got blown away by the movie, whereas most kids his age missed out due to the PG-13 age restrictions. But now, I’m the lucky few in India who witnessed the long awaited Batman Movie on its premiers, whereas my friend, as he is in Hyderabad, didn’t get a single IMAX screen to witness the epic. Hence the out of context Moral: “Life gives you something in return, you just have to wait for it patently”.
The Batman is such a beautiful piece of cinema and filmmaking, not only restricting to comic book movies in general but also across all genres of cinema. The movie is undoubtedly director “Matt Reeves” film. He did a phenomenal job with directing the movie. Like his franchise “Planet of the Apes”, he takes a similar approach in directing a commercial entertainer with electrifying moments and emotional stakes, which is set in a grounded and realistic world. This is a movie which is well made borrowing the blueprint laid by “David Fincher”. The idea of presenting a new “Detective Batman” who solves crimes along with the “GCPD” and also realistically presenting the “Crime Fighting Batman” who works in the shadows of the night was well balanced by Reeves. I can draw parallels from the movies “Seven” and “Zodiac” where a series of high profile murders haunt the city of Gotham and terrorize its citizens on who’s next. The “Zodiac Killer” approach of presenting “Riddler” made the movie made the movie a “Gritty Crime Drama” than a blockbuster even though with the potential of a regular superhero blockbuster.
The movie isn’t a typical superhero movie, even though it has all the elements of the Rugged Suit, the Gadgets, The Glider, the Batmobile, unpredictable action, epic Hero-Villain faceoff, and the Third Act Fight sequence. The movie proved the fact that a good compelling story can be presented within itself of a superhero movie without compromising on the electrifying fan service moments. The script “Reeves” and “Peter Craig” offers the right balance as just discussed. The story not only makes us experience the days of Gotham city but also makes us question how corruption can lead to a society that was presented rhetorically. It was a daring attempt to reinvent a character which was presented either in a “Hyper Realistic” and “Futuristic” in the previous iterations to a more Grounded and Realistic setting. The movie will have its own place in pop culture and will set the standards for good quality storytelling in comic book movies which not only acknowledges the source material but also reinvents itself into a crime thriller noir style of storytelling. The script is also incredibly well balanced with Crazy, Cyclical and Uneasy moments to Humorous Action Packed and Cheerful moments.
The music composed from the veteran composer “Michael Giacchino” elevates the movie. The heart-pounding Batman Intro and the car chase sequences make everything awesome. The Cinematographer “Greig Fraser” pulls off the same visually stunning Oscar-nominated magic from “Dune”. The elaborate car chase sequence followed by an upside down crash were batman walks off flaunting his cape made everyone hoot in theatre. The thumping nightclub fight scene and the hallway fight scene made me made me feel every punch and spark of light. The silent cues offered at the "Arkham Asylum" where Riddler and Joker interact with the lighting was pure cinematic brilliance.
Robert Pattinson as batman was a Brilliant casting decisions as he portrays Batman with hunger and fully prepared with enough passion for sequels to come in the future. His Batman was dark, gritty and with a dapper Batsuit. His batman symbol is just like a "Handwritten drawing" which was made to submit to meet a short deadline. And this holds true because he is just into his second year as Batman and justified through his narration he says, he doesn't have enough time where he thinks about anything else other than vengeance. Pattinson's "transformation" is truly a character arc stitched for a superhero who calls himself vengeance to be coming true Batman that we know of. Just was brilliantly presented through the incredible writing. Batman not only has to rediscover his past but also should live with it and change his "vigilante identity" so that no other criminal gets inspired of what he does. Pattinson's version of Batman really built some great "Wayne Tech” with Batcave, the Lens Camera, Glider, Batarang, Batmobile, Motorcycle, and the Grapple Gun. His iteration also presents the "Wayne Tower" which is isolated from the rest of societya. He not only lets loose of the "Playboy" attitude of Batman and becomes "Rockstar Esque Detective" who is the talk of the town. The screen time of "Bruce Wayne" was less compared to that of the Batman but it is justified as the story was a detective drama. Hoping to see more of Pattinson's Bruce Wayne in the sequels. Having said all of that I would say Robert Pattinson’s version of batman has the best potential to become the “Best Batman” as it overtakes “Christian Bale” with striking action scenes and the clear voice. He still has time to confirm and make his mark as the best batman with the coming sequels.
Zoe Kravitz as “Selina Kyle” is a fierce match to Pattinson’s Batman as she is a fighter, survivor, loyal and a strong heart. She clearly knows what is right, and I would like to see her character grow with the sequels and spinoff’s. She plays a major part in the investigation and is a great supporting role. Jeffrey Wright as “Inspector Gordon” is on his way to become the commissioner and was a great casting choice. Andy Serkis as “Alfred Pennyworth” role was limited but he too will grow on us with more screen time in the sequels like the rest. The crime boss “Carmine Falcone” played by John Turturro was just chilling. Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot, better known as “The Penguin” completely makes us believable, and is probably the takeaway character for me. Paul Dano as “The Riddler”, who has his own motive for seeking vengeance after getting inspired by the batman was terrifying. There was nothing special about his performance as we have watched characters like these before, but the tension that he brings during the prison sequence was breath taking. The best moment from his performance was when he yells out “Bruce Wayne” while speaking to the batman. Even though his unmasked screen time is less, the intense performances and the dialogue delivery make you unexpectedly laugh which breaks all the tension, but still makes you feel that you are watching a disturbed man.
Even though it was not a ten by ten movie, the movie is close to perfect. The fan that I am, the anticipation that I had and the amount of joy I had after waiting through the DC Fandom event to finally get to the trailer made me book one of expensive movie ticket purchases that I ever made to witness the epic drama on its premiere day even with a bad stomach. Overall all these factors make the movie a ten by ten in my book.
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