STARRING: Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Colin Farrell

It’s the third month into 2022 and the movie season kicks back with its first major blockbuster of the year! The flick that got people off their seats at home to a movie theater is about one of the most popular superheroes in the world. The superhero film called The Batman has been released this past month and it’s being met with much praise and critical acclaim! 

An iconic character created by Bob Kane that has been appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, Batman is a crime-fighting vigilante that uses all of his power to clean out the filth and corruption of the dangerous city that he protects. Batman, himself, is known to be a symbol of fear so that he could strike terror in the hearts of criminals. He fights and captures the bad guys: killers, mobsters, rapists, etc. And, this is all due to the fact that when he was just a young boy, he witnessed his parents get murdered in the city. Their deaths paved the way for him to lead a very painful, yet empowering life as the city’s guardian. 

Going into the film without giving any spoilers, The Batman is a very dark and gritty crime thriller directed by Matt Reeves that takes place in the fictional city of Gotham. In the film’s plot, Batman has been protecting Gotham for two years as a controversial vigilante among the people. However, a psychopathic serial killer known as the “Riddler” emerges, and begins murdering the elites that control the city. This leads to the Caped Crusader to go on a hunt to find his new enemy and stop him. But as his investigation into stopping the Riddler continues, Batman uncovers the secret lies and corruption that have been polluting Gotham, which connects to all the murders being committed.

In this film, actor Robert Pattinson plays Batman and he is absolutely frightening as the protector of Gotham City! Throughout this entire movie, the character is a very intimidating and brooding vigilante. Whenever his presence is felt hiding in the shadows or standing out in the rain, Batman continues to show how inflicted he is as the depressed hero. Pattinson was very good at expressing his facial expressions as the character to show that deep inside, he is a damaged man that only has one goal: Abolishing crime from Gotham. As the Dark Knight states in the movie, “When that light (the Bat-Signal) hits the sky… It’s not just a signal, it’s a warning.” Whenever darkness falls in the city, the murderers and thugs of the streets feel terrified to be standing outside. They’re even afraid to walk into a shadowy alley. They know that if they’re committing a crime, “Vengeance,” as Batman is nicknamed in the film, would come out and hunt them down. The movie’s antagonist, the Riddler, is played by actor Paul Dano, who also did an amazing job! The Riddler in this film is insane and very sadistic when he commits his horrific murders. He locks his victims up in traps that, ultimately, lead to their death. Some of his kills could be very disturbing, despite being on or off camera. Nevertheless, Dano was very good at acting like a ruthless killer with deep mental issues. 

The other two actors that also did a terrific job playing their roles were actress Zoë Kravitz, who played master cat burglar and Batman’s love interest named “Catwoman,” and Colin Farrell, who played the infamous mobster named the “Penguin.” The gorgeous Zoë Kravitz played Catwoman very smoothly, as her character represented the low-income class of the city. Kravitz did a great job at showing how Catwoman works in order to survive; Catwoman is very poor, but she makes a living by being a cunning master thief and drug dealer in the night. She was also really good at showing how Catwoman uses manipulation and flirtation in order to get what she wants from others. However, despite all those traits and being a thief, Catwoman is a very caring person, and has strong romantic feelings for Batman. The Penguin in this movie was the most “likable” villain because of the way that Farrell played him. The prosthetics and makeup they put on the actor to make him look like the gangster were outstanding! Farrell looked nothing like himself when he was the Penguin. The way he played the role was very cool and even humorous at times, which actually didn’t feel out of place in such a serious film like this.

The Batman’s story overall is awesome and very intense, as it digs deep into its juicy twists and turns. As everything started to unfold and connect, the story got even more complex the more it went on. Due to this, it felt very grounded and realistic at times. However, the best element of the film’s story is that it shows you why Batman is the world’s greatest detective, as he is in the comic books. The people that wrote the story of the film are the directors, Matt Reeves, and Peter Craig. In the movie, Batman does a large amount of detective work, investigating more of the Riddler’s tenacious acts and understanding the killer’s psyche. The Riddler always leaves riddles at his crimes, which Batman has to solve to find more clues. The Bat also discovers more about the city’s organized crime families that run the underworld. Furthermore, the plot of The Batman was based on different Batman storylines from the comic books, including Batman: The Long Halloween (1996-1997) and Batman: Ego and Other Tales (2000).

Despite this being more of a neo-noir detective tail, there was action and it was totally epic! Batman was absolutely brutal in this movie. Whenever he fought criminals, he would violently beat them into extreme pain, leaving them with broken bones. When Batman started driving the Batmobile, chasing the Penguin in his car, it left me on the edge of my seat. The Batmobile chase sequence was one of the best action pieces of the movie, due to the excitement and intensity of the scene! When we first saw the Batmobile, the sounds from the speaker of the engine roaring on the street gave me goosebumps!

Last, but not least, is the cinematography! Watching this movie in IMAX with Laser, the cinematography was gorgeous! The way the filmmakers pictured Gotham City made it look stunning. It felt like I was looking into how the city looks in the comic books! Majority of the scenes take place during rainy nights. This made it look very gothic and eerie, which matches the overall mood of the movie. Whenever they showed the lights of the buildings or the Bat-Signal lit up into the sky, it was purely artistic. The Batman‘s cinematographer Greig Fraser showed how Gotham City would look if it was brought into the real world!

Concluding this review, I was completely amazed at witnessing how Matt Reeves gave his interpretation of Batman. I was waiting for this movie for two years. I remember when the very first look of Robert Pattinson as Batman was revealed right around this time of the year in 2020. Then, they released the very first trailer in the summer of 2020. I was so excited to watch this film. Batman is my favorite superhero of all-time and for me, this was the character’s best movie to date! The gothicism, the darkness, the mature themes, everything about this film totally blew me away. Again, without giving spoilers, Reeves also did a jaw-dropping job at establishing the Batman mythos and his rogues’ gallery. This film slowly sets up “The Batman Universe,” in which there will be more stories of him and his villains in upcoming movies and TV shows! Everything about this movie really made me feel like I was reading a comic book about the Caped Crusader! However, going back to the main star himself,  Pattinson was incredible at playing the wrathful protector of Gotham City! He is vengeance. He is the night… He is Batman!

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One of the comic book storylines the movie was based on, Batman: The Long Halloween (1996-1997)