Certification. 15
Running Time. 2 hours 55 mins
Cast. Paul Dano, Colin Farrell, Zoë Kravitz, Robert Pattinson, Peter Sarsgaard, Andy Serkis, John Turturro, Jeffrey Wright.
The Batman is dark. Very dark. Literally, metaphorically and psychologically. Matt Reeves' reboot, The Batman, is an intense neo-noir thriller for the emo generation. This is a very different Batman from what we’ve seen on the big screen before. This one is personal to Matt Reeves.
The Batman is no origin story. Reeves knows we know Bruce Wayne is an orphan, and he correctly assumes we don’t need to see Thomas and Martha Wayne gunned down again. Instead, with no exposition or explanation, we're thrust straight into the action - a violent gang fight on a desolate railway station platform. From here, writer and director Matt Reeves respectfully lifts elements from various storylines from the original DC Comics to produce an entirely unique offering to previous iterations, but one that remains consistently loyal to the source material.
Robert Pattinson is an anaemic, emaciated emo Bruce Wayne. Gone is the charismatic playboy, instead replaced with a reclusive, awkward character more suited to front up a band like My Chemical Romance.
But it is Paul Dano that steals the show as The Riddler. Disaffected and unhinged. Angry at the city, angry at his circumstances and angry at the Wayne family. His performance is simply mesmerising.
Despite the sombre colour palette, The Batman is visually striking. There is a near dark fight sequence, which is only illuminated by repeated gunfire. A spectacular chase sequence concludes with The Penguin's view from an overturned vehicle of The Batman emerging from the flames. These sequences are perfectly accompanied by Michael Giacchino's sweeping, foreboding and dramatic score and the appropriately haunting 'Something in the way' by Nirvana.
There are gripes - the pretentious opening narration is an unnecessary distraction and yes, the film could have been trimmed by 10-15 mins - but the biggest compliment I can pay The Batman is that it felt like a stand-alone film. For almost three hours, The Batman gripped my attention, and I never once wandered off to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy.
A beautifully constructed detective story with some excellent cinematography. Can’t wait for a sequel.
ReplyDelete