THE BATMAN REVIEW! (DC MOVIES SLATE - 2ND LOOK!)

Initial release date: March 4, 2022

Studios: Warner Brothers/DC Films

Tagline: Unmask the truth.

Plot: Batman ventures into Gotham City's underworld when a sadistic killer leaves behind a trail of cryptic clues. As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator's plans become clear, he must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit and being justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued the metropolis.

Cast

Robert Pattinson - Bruce Wayne/Batman

Zoe Kavitz - Selina Kyle

Jeffrey Wright - Lt. James Gordon

Colin Farrell - Oz/The Penguin

Paul Dano - The Riddler

John Turturro - Carmine Falcone

Andy Serkis - Alfred

Peter Sarsgaard - DA Gil Colson

Jayme Lawson - Bella Real

Gil Perez-Abraham - Officer Martinez

Alex Ferns - Commissioner Pete Savage

Rupert Penry-Jones - Mayor Don Mitchell Jr.

Writer(s): Matt Reeves (The Batman; War of the Plant of the Apes)

Peter Craig (Netflix's The Unforgivable; The Batman; Top Gun: Maverick)

Director: Matt Reeves (War of the Planet of the Apes)

Rated PG-13 for strong violent and disturbing content, drug content, strong language, and some suggestive material (176 minutes)

A few nights ago I gave The Batman another look, which was the first time watching it since I initially reviewed it for the Examiner last year. Since I'm taking a look at a few DC movies, I figured to start with one of the biggest (and best) DC releases recently released.

This film iteration of the Caped Crusader is probably one of my top favorites. The 2022 film dives into the detective aspect, which really doesn't get covered as much in the previous adaptations of the popular DC character. The Batman can also be dark and gritty, with a little touch of being twisted (due to a few Riddler scenes).

All of the characters are fleshed out quite a bit and the actors did a tremendous job! And, with the recently announced sequel now in development, I can't wait to see what else the filmmakers will accomplish for this Batman universe. I also liked how they gave The Riddler a new look, which really works for this cinematic universe .

The Batman can be streamed on HBO Max and various PVOD rental platforms.

Here are quite a few interesting tidbits for The Batman:

• Robert Pattinson revealed while auditioning for the role, he sneakily took a selfie in the batsuit as a memento "just in case it didn't work out."

• Colin Farrell stated that he went to Starbucks to try out his prosthetics and make-up for the Penguin for the first time. Nobody recognized him, but he got a couple stares from people.

• Matt Reeves stated that his version of the Riddler was partly inspired by the infamous serial killer Zodiac, who operated in California in the late 1960s.

• Reeves cites the Batman comics Batman: Ego, Batman: Year One and Batman: The Long Halloween as the main influences for the film.

• When Ben Affleck was set to star and direct, the villain of the film would've been Deathstroke, and the screenplay would've prominently featured in Arkham Asylum. Reeves had actually enjoyed the original script that Affleck had been preparing, comparing it to a Bond film. However, he opted not to use it as he wanted to make a more noir, detective-driven story and bring his own, completely new version to life.

• At 175 minutes, this is the longest Batman film to be premiered and the second longest comic book movie theatrically released, behind Avengers: Endgame at 181 minutes.

• The film simply and silently starts off with the WB logo and the title. The look and presentation of the title is done in a partially similar manner to the 1940s and 1950s serial films.

• The film had the second highest debut at the US box office during the pandemic era, earning $134 million domestically on its opening weekend, after Spider-Man: No Way Home.

• Three weeks after the film's release, WB released a deleted scene online where Batman visits The Joker in Arkham. During the scene, Batman interrogates the Joker about who the identity of The Riddler possibly is. The scene was well received and many people wondered why the scene wasn't in the film. Reeves stated that he deliberately left it out because the scene tells the viewer exactly what motivation The Riddler is acting on.

• Reeves debuted a teaser trailer during the virtual DC FanDome event on August 22, 2020, featuring a remix of the Nirvana song "Something in the Way" combined with the film's score. The trailer received 34 million views within a 24 hour period.

• Grossed $369 million domestic, and $401.6 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $770.9 million.

• The Batman is intended to be the first of a film trilogy and establish a Batman-focused shared universe separate from the main DC continuity.

• A sequel was announced at CinemaCon in April 2022 and in January 2023, the first sequel was revealed to be titled The Batman - Part II and is scheduled to be released on October 3, 2025.

https://youtu.be/FKGhtSCVovo