10/12 ForReel Score | 4/5 Star

Holy smokes Batman! In an oversaturated market for superhero filmmaking, director Matt Reeves breathes new life into the genre by simply going back to basics. At his core, Batman is more detective than he is a superhero. On par with grade-A David Fincher films, The Batman is an authentically grounded and gritty murder mystery, feeding audience everything they want and deserve.

Only in his third year as the caped crusader, Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson, The Lighthouse) is still defining what it means to be the Batman. On Halloween night, a brutal murder exposes the latest threat against Gotham: The Riddler (Paul Dano, There Will Be Blood) who is keen on playing with police and Batman as he exposes the rampant corruption running through the city's government. Similar to the Zodiac, the killer leaves a trail of riddles and cryptic clues to his master plan. “No more lies.” Anyone with political power who has been dipping their toe in Gotham's unruly underworld is left on edge.

Reeves is able to pack in an arsenal of Batman’s rogue gallery of villains without it feeling overcrowded, with appearances by Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz, Kimi), the Penguin (Colin Farrell, After Yang), and Carmine Falcone (John Turturro, The Jesus Rolls). Every character plays an integral part in unraveling the mystery and bringing the truth into the light. But it’s Robert Pattinson in this lead role as the titular caped crusader who stands out.

Pattinson gives a career defining performance. He is unafraid to take risks and make weird character choices - but this is Pattinson we’re talking about, for crying out loud. This is not the Bruce Wayne audiences are used to. He is edgier, moodier, very emo, offering a performance that will be talked about for decades to come. Kravitz, who ironically also played Catwoman in the oppositely toned The Lego Batman Movie, delivers the best Selina Kyle since Michelle Pfeiffer in Batman Returns. She exudes this subdued influence and sensuality, generating audible gasps and moans from the audience. Almost unrecognizable, Colin Farrell portrays the Penguin as the Tony Soprano of Gotham. A stellar performance, but there are actors out there that don’t need to wear pounds of prosthetics to look a certain weight. And then, there’s Dano as the Riddler. He plays the perfect loner sociopath to the letter, with eyes that can tell horrifying wonders when hidden behind his mask; a shocking contrast to the comics and Jim Carrey’s performance.

Technical aspects of The Batman are also laudable. Aesthetically speaking, the film fits with the darker, grungier, more realistic tone, with a set design that’s lavished in 1970’s New York atmosphere and a touch of today’s technology. Nirvana’s “Something In the Way” sets the tone right out the gate and melds with the franchise’s new theme music. For costume design, David Crossman, Glyn Dillon, and Jacqueline Durran craft magnificent outfits for these characters - in particular, Catwoman’s and the Riddler’s are minimal, yet sexy. And thematically, The Batman expresses social political ideas such as white privilege, the authority of the wealthy, and male entitlement, without trembling.

Cinematography, however, comes with its pros and cons. Greig Fraser offers the same care for cinematography as he did for Dune and Rogue One; a feast for the eyes, some might say. But there are scenes - two in particular - where the green screen is so obvious it’s loathsome. They are brief, forgivable, and forgettable in the grand scheme of this three hour cinematic experience and don’t upstage what I would consider otherwise to be a nearly perfect film.

It’s become easier for fans to appreciate DC’s new approach to storytelling, with the studio pushing forward with more compelling stories rather than worrying about a connected universe. Pattinson is already expressing interest in the crime organization Court of Owls to make an appearance in the near future. Their secret society would meld well with the world Reeve’s is building.

Meanwhile, I am simply dying for a sequel to The Batman. Whether you’re a fan of superheroes movies or not, The Batman is undoubtedly a must watch in theaters. And with the film already overcoming MCU installments Black Widow and Shang-Chi as the second highest preview night since the pandemic started, it seems audiences are ready to return to cinemas for this kind of blockbuster experience. The Batman steps out of the shadows of its predecessors. The hype this film has received is well deserved because this is the new Batman that fans deserve.

REVIEW: "The Batman"; The New Origin of Vengeance