The Batman (2022)

★★★½
Matt Reeves has a wonderfully creative mind. While a Batman reboot might normally be cause for alarm in this era of reboots, Reeve’s deft hand and clear vision guide this character into an exciting new direction. Clocking in at a sprawling 176 minutes, The Batman ditches any semblance of an origin story and gets straight to the point, much to our benefit. Rather than a protracted training and equipping sequence, the movie dives right into an intriguing narrative involving high-profile murders, police corruption, mobsters, detective work and a long-overdue appearance by The Riddler, who gets a serious upgrade from his previous incarnations. He’s meaner, more menacing and more threatening than he’s ever been.

Gotham City is as we’ve always seen it: a dark, foreboding city with endless dark alleys and a high crime rate. Batman (Robert Pattinson) battles Gotham’s criminals by night, motivated by the murder of his own parents and using his wealth to fund his nocturnal activities. When several high-ranking city officials are killed, Batman is on the case, but he discovers that the corruption runs deep. One of his few allies, Lieutenant Gordon (Jeffrey Wright), can always be trusted, as can butler Alfred (Andy Serkis) and Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz), to an extent. Batman’s investigation brings many of Gotham’s underworld figures into view. There’s Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), a crime boss who has friends in high places. There’s The Penguin (Colin Farrell, unrecognizable), who runs the Iceberg Lounge and hopes to rise in the ranks of mob-infested Gotham, but for now has to settle for his role as a club owner who caters to mobsters and off-duty cops.

Manipulating everyone is The Riddler (Paul Dano), who carries over his comic counterpart’s penchant for leaving riddles for Batman to solve but getting a 21st century makeover with his techy outfit and use of livestream technology to broadcast his crimes. He’s made it his mission to expose the city’s corrupt and compromised leadership. He starts with the mayor and police commissioner and leaves messages for Batman as part of his game. The path leads to the Iceberg Lounge, where Selina works. Her roommate is Annika, whom Batman discovers is the mayor’s mistress but has disappeared. Batman recruits Selina to help determine Annika’s whereabouts, though their partnership is built on shaky ground and soon Selina cuts him off. The Riddler continues his reign of terror, abducting District Attorney Colson and strapping a collar bomb to his neck before sending him to crash the commissioner’s funeral. It’s a very tense moment, as Batman tries to help the D.A. answer a series of riddles sent by The Riddler, until a question comes along that Colson refuses to answer, lest the response uncorks a stream of revelations concerning the police and mob in business together.

The Batman goes deep into this story. It goes down many paths and involves many figures in the Gotham City underworld as well as those in broad daylight. We don’t get an origin story of how Bruce Wayne became Batman, but we do learn about his parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. The movie sees corruption everywhere and doesn’t spare the Wayne family. Thomas ran for mayor many years prior and was not immune to dealing with Carmine Falcone, who agreed to put a journalist in his place for attempting to expose Martha’s mental illness. Falcone took it too far and killed the man, angering Thomas, who was determined to turn in the gangster before he himself was killed. Alfred knew the story. Everyone has a secret. Selina has one two. She didn’t just happen to be working at the Iceberg Lounge. She had a reason to be there. There’s a lot going on here, yet we never get lost. The storytelling is masterful. Director Reeves juggles all these plot threads and brings them all together at the end, where all roads lead to The Riddler, manipulating everyone with ease.

It's a long movie with a few false endings. I’ve read a comparison or two to The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. I wouldn’t equate the two. Peter Jackson’s epic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s stories was a long journey full of emotional highs and lows. The characters grew on us with each installment. They became familiar. When the time came for the story to end, Jackson must have found it difficult to let go. I understood that sentiment as I watched Return of the King’s hesitation to end. It was like the movie took on a life of its own and aspired to keep existing. The Batman uses its false endings to highlight The Riddler’s cunning intellect. Like Heath Ledger’s Joker, Paul Dano’s Riddler has an ace in the hole. He ensured his plan would continue unabated after his capture, which he may have anticipated was inevitable. His online followers, attracted to his videos posted online, carry out his deeds, much like how Saw’s Jigsaw Killer ensured his work continued long after his demise. The movie keeps going because The Riddler was smart enough to have a long-term plan, and what a plan it is. He brings Gotham to its knees, with the only thing missing is a view from his cell at Arkham to watch the madness unfold.

Watching this movie is a breathless experience. It’s tight, tense and nerve-wracking. The soundtrack by Lost composer Michael Giacchino heightens the experience a great deal. His score lends itself well to the numerous fight scenes, expository scenes and the thrilling climax. Robert Pattinson’s dual performance differs from his predecessors, in that his Bruce Wayne is as much a mystery as Batman. Pattison is physically fit enough to be a credible threat during fights, but his mental acumen is his biggest asset. This Batman is the world’s greatest detective and is a worthy counterpoint for The Riddler, played by Paul Dano with ferocious intensity. Take what was left of Dano’s character from the end of There Will Be Blood and leave him out in the sun until he’s delirious, and you have The Riddler. Pattison and Dano complement each other perfectly in a movie that promises big things to come. Before then, I will see this again. It’s that good.

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