The Batman (*SPOILERS*)

[thwhtGuardian]

I am probably in the minority but I like this movie more than Batman Begins and Dark Knight Rises. Dark Knight Rises in particular is the weakest Nolan Bat film and in my opinion one of the worst Batman movies outside of the REALLY awful ones like Batman Forever. I didn't really like Rises when it came out in 2012 ( just thought it was okay) but as the years have gone on, my opinion of it has gone down further. The action/ fight scenes are pretty weak and for the most part the movie is pretty boring and feel long. I know this movie has a lot of dialogue but the detective story and characters like Paul Dano's Riddler, Collin Ferrell's Penguin, and and Zoe Kravitz Selina keep things interesting.

I'm in the same boat, although there are some flaws it's probably my favorite Batman film.

[j9ac9k]

I honestly just love that as much as there was going on in this film, and as serious as it was, they found a way for Farrell to do a penguin waddle. (when his legs were tied)

[Scott Taylor]

Its interesting seeing all the reactions to this film. One of the things I loved about it was that it made me think. About the characters, the motivations, the role of Batman in his world. It wasn't just another Batman film but one that tried to be more than that. Imho, of course. Its both a strength and weakness though because, as some have mentioned, the running length is because of this choice, in part.

Speaking of runtime, though, and too much going on - I felt the same way about TDK. Ledger's performance notwithstanding.

[Soubhagya]

Here are some of my thoughts after watching this.

I think the first third of this movie was excellent. Especially the first 20 odd minutes were pure perfection. The film lost some momentum when the focus turned to the murky history of the Waynes. I was really enjoying that crime investigation thing going on. They could have left out Bruce's own story and focused on catching the Riddler. I enjoyed it more after the investigation returned to focus on finding the rat and ultimately the Riddler. And while the final part gave some great visuals and a really good fight scene, it was kind of a waste. Overall a pretty good film. But i can't see it near any of the Nolan movies. Dark Knight Rises had many flaws. But i had a lot of fun watching it. And by that time i am so caught up in its world and characters that i turn a blind eye.

For one Nolan's characters were just excellent. Especially when they interacted with each other. But i didn't feel that here. Individually Batman and Catwoman were good. But when together their chemistry felt a bit off. That wasn't great even in Dark Knight Rises. But that was better. And none of them, did as good as Batman Returns. The relationship between Alfred and Bruce was even more lackluster. I hope they improve upon that. Their relationship is often the heart of these films. Even if i didn't like their movies, Jeremy Irons and Ben Affleck nailed their relationship in the first try. The exception was Gordon and Batman. I loved the dynamic duo here. And while Wright is no Oldman, he was pretty good.

And i think that's where the issue is. As Bruce Wayne, either Pattinson had very few scenes or didn't get enough to do. I wouldn't say that he nailed the Batman role. But he was really really good. Some of the stuff that he did was like a dream coming true. Like the scene in the beginning showing how he's a terror for the criminal element. Here's the advantage of having someone like Reeves. He is just such a good storyteller. Batman slowly walking out of the shadows when the music gradually builds up, is just 'chef's kiss'. Some of the scenes were just amazing. Batman in the first crime scene, with the cops looking on. The car chase and Penguin's capture. Batman in the police station. Riddler's first murder. Batman vs Riddler's followers was great too.

The other issue i have is with the Riddler. I think they did a really great job in re-inventing Riddler. But he was almost absent for most of the movie. His role in the mask was a bit odd. There were moments when he sounded playful. But that doesn't go well with a demoniac voice. The overall effect was that i didn't find him scary or weird or fun. Nor a clear personality. Without the mask he looked more promising. But then they tried to make him insane. As if there are not enough crazies fighting Bats? Lately it seems like they are trying to make every villain a Joker. Even Luthor. I have a bias here. As i tend to view Riddler either as a smug criminal genius or a maniac full of energy like Gorshin or Riddler. Crazy Paul Dano is good. But i didn't liked that 'overacting' or 'crazy' acting performance they were going for. Overall a great Riddler, but not enough personality to make him stand out as an instant favorite of mine.

Falcone was another weak link. He was okay here. But even with a small role, Falcone was great in Batman Begins. Joker was a waste. I liked the deleted scene even less. Nolan's films managed to nail the characters. Almost all of them. Talia Al Ghul maybe the one exception. That's where this film was lacking. However it looked and sounded great. And this focus on crime solving was just excellent. Do more of this please. Hopefully we would get a good Robin in the future. Can you make Robin work in a gritty setting? Nolan didn't even try in his grounded approach.

[j9ac9k]

Random reactions:
-- I was a bit underwhelmed by the whole "Gotham is a cesspool of corruption and needs to be razed" theme. We've seen it several times before and this movie didn't necessarily add a lot to that.
-- Colin Ferrell did a great job, but Penguin was a bit of a waste for being just a red herring.
-- Script was odd for leaving out Riddler for a big chunk when he just disappears. They were cramming together a Catwoman movie with a Riddler movie. Same old song for these movies, trying to add too many characters.
-- Overall I thought it was really good. Not amazing, but it was fun and exciting and got kinda epic for the finale in a way I wasn't expecting.

[Iron_Legion87]

I'm in the same boat, although there are some flaws it's probably my favorite Batman film.

Same here! This and The Dark Knight are the best Batman live action films to date in my opinion. Batman 89 comes in third Batman Begins is fourth. Dark Knight Rises is like a 6/10 for me and near the bottom of the list.

[PCN24454]

Gotham being a cesspool is too big an elephant to ignore, so it’s easy to make a big movie plot around it.

[Jim Kelly]

With most Batman movies there are things I liked and things I didn't like. There's no perfect Batman movie, but if I could take parts from all the different movies and put them together, I could come close to perfection.

[Robotman]

Watched it last night and really enjoyed it. During the buildup to the movie I had pretty much zero interest in seeing yet another Batman flick but I was pleasantly surprised. We finally got the Dark Knight DETECTIVE.

It was definitely too long but a damn good movie regardless.

I really want to see them attempt to bring in Robin. This Batman so clearly needs a partner to watch his back. Now that he’s learned that “vengeance” doesn’t work as the driving force of his mission and actually helping people needs to be a focus, it would be a good next step for Bruce to take in a certain circus orphan.

[Scott Taylor]

I really want to see them attempt to bring in Robin. This Batman so clearly needs a partner to watch his back. Now that he’s learned that “vengeance” doesn’t work as the driving force of his mission and actually helping people needs to be a focus, it would be a good next step for Bruce to take in a certain circus orphan.

We can dream. I hope this does happen with this Batman. For me, I think the former mayor's kid could work in the role.

[j9ac9k]

I don't really want to see a Robin in this version of Batman, but if they do it I hope they jump ahead another few years, maybe move in real time so we can dispense with the origin and just have Robin already established as Batman's sidekick, even if he were still fairly new at it.

[Jim Kelly]

Without giving a spoiler, I have to say one part of the movie had me wondering if Gotham twenty years ago was Dickensian London. Sometimes it seems to be based in the worlds of OLIVER TWIST and LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE--not in a grounded modern world.

[Kirby101]

I liked it too. Paterson was excellent. I am embarrassed to say, I never read The Long Halloween. How much of this was based on that series?

[thwhtGuardian]

I liked it too. Paterson was excellent. I am embarrassed to say, I never read The Long Halloween. How much of this was based on that series?

All most none of it was based on the Long Halloween. All it really took was that the first murder started on Halloween and the idea of killing people to unveil the corruption of Gotham was sort of similar to the motivation of Holiday.

[Kirby101]

All most none of it was based on the Long Halloween. All it really took was that the first murder started on Halloween and the idea of killing people to unveil the corruption of Gotham was sort of similar to the motivation of Holiday.

Thanks for that.