I am not really a fan of superhero things. I haven't really watched any of the DC and Marvel films that seemed to come out of nowhere, receive massive amounts of interest, and then sort of died and disappeared. I have a few reasons for mostly skipping them all, the main reason being that these family film superhero epics just aren't really my thing. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy a superhero film, however. In fact, I want to be able to enjoy these things. I don't read comicbooks, but I do sometimes read the odd graphic novel or manga if I find the story and art style appealing. Now, I find myself disinterested in most modern superhero films due to the fact that they don't really have that comicbook magic to them. I enjoyed the animated Spider-Man film quite a lot for its style and story, for example. But outside of the animated world, these films seem lacking, too close to reality and lacking the fantasy and art direction that makes these fantasy characters and worlds so engaging.
A few weeks back, I tried to give The Batman a chance. I watched the first half, but I think that perhaps I just wasn't quite ready for it at the time. Growing tired of lengthy runtimes and not quite wanting to sit around watching films, more enjoying shorter television series over anything else. That first attempt had me noticing a few things with the film, mostly strengths that surprised me quite a lot. But at the same time, I felt that it was lacking something. And whatever it was lacking led to me putting the film aside and almost forgetting about it, until now. I admit I had a little bit of a comicbook interest appearing lately, and The Batman deserved a second chance as I was looking for content and characters that I may want to explore a bit more.
Having finally managed to sit through the whole film, I'm a little bit disappointed with it. It had incredible potential, but multiple issues that led to it being a rather forgetful experience. While I'm very late to the party here, I won't mention any major spoilers for those that may not have seen the film.
The Batman
There have been a few attempts at more artistic superhero films in recent years. With the Joker title, Zack Snyder's more serious attempts at superhero flicks, and Matt Reeves' The Batman. While I have only seen The Batman, I appreciate that Hollywood is realising that there is demand for more serious looks into this fantasy genre, after many decades of neglect. I'm quite surprised that I ended up watching this in the end, but The Batman certainly surprised me for what it is. This is a film that really puts the directing and cinematography of superhero titles into a new standard, with heavy emphasis on worldbuilding and atmosphere to really make the audience feel the weight of their beloved comicbook characters. This is a very stunning film visually, with beautiful lighting and colours, and a use of music that just really sets the tone. The camera utilises very engaging angles that range from low angles and being attached to vehicles, to being wide and cinematic, watching from afar in various compositins. Somewhat copying that comicbook style of the camera being free to show conditions from any angle imaginable. It emphasises the events more for sure. The way it handles Batman as a character is tremendous, shrouding him with mystery and having his interactions with citizens seem almost threatening. Characters beg him not to hurt them. People look down upon him. They don't trust Batman. The way he walks into a room results in silence, the heavy weight of his footsteps being all that can be heard alongside a score that emphasises his nature. I actually loved all of this. We see his character frowned upon and giving us this idea that maybe he isn't as good as he aims to be; or maybe he's just totally misunderstood. Regardless, this Batman portrayal displays him with weight, making him seem like a danger to everyone.
The way it builds the world and atmosphere through all of this really works. I found myself really wanting to learn more about it and see more of Batman's interactions with the environment. It's a mixture of high technology, old and dated, with a little mixture of gothic in typical Batman fashion. My problem with the film starts with the fact that it just doesn't really explore it much more. There are some beautiful shots of Batman, played by Robert Pattinson, as he rides through the city, but again it more just teases the world rather than giving us more depth to it. Quickly I want to add that I found Robert Pattinson's performance to be really good. I think his character as some beaten-down, relatively depressed rich kid just sulking around the city with a rough expression on his face helped add weight to the threat of Batman. By far the strongest casting in the film, to which the rest sort of fall flat. Now, I'm a big Paul Dano fan. But I don't think he's suitable for superhero films, more particularly superhero villains. He's a phenomenal actor, but painfully miscast here. Especially when Riddler's character is just written terribly. Making his agenda seem confusing or just pointless and hard to connect with. As a villain, Riddler doesn't seem very threatening as he conducts actions from afar; of course leaving riddles as part of his game to connect crimes together. This part is fine, but it's still just hard to understand motive or care. Unfortunately, as the film continues, it begins to rely heavily on Riddler.
Before the film's story takes a big dive, the most fun to be had takes place in the first half, as Batman runs around investigating. Some of the early action scenes are very cool. And the characters he's chasing down have far more interesting actors and designs that had me wishing the film would remain on those. The fact that Batman's interactions are more physical with other characters rather than Riddler means that the whole thing with Riddler just doesn't seem so serious. Especially when it comes on the later part of the film as it struggles to come to a conclusion and sort of gets a bit generic, pursuing a climax that seemed almost forced as to please fans that wanted and expected more action. I don't think it was necessary, though. The whole pacing of the film was off due to the pursuit of style over substance. Don't get me wrong, I love the directing in this film, but it just doesn't work with the story it tries to tell. And substance naturally suffers greatly. Everything storywise feels thin, despite such a strong atmosphere that is built almost immediately. Just so little is done with it, despite the film having such a long runtime.
Again, the runtime becomes a problem for me! Over two hours in length but so little of the time is really utilised. It just felt far too long when it really wasn't necessary. Almost stretched out as to justify its more artistic style and attempts to be a more serious superhero flick. I can see why before with my first attempt to view the film, things just didn't work out. At times I felt I had to take breaks, grab some water or stretch my legs, but also mentally prepare myself knowing there was another hour to go. Perhaps this is just also my own preference these days in runtime, but I also feel it wouldn't have been much of an issue if it utilised things better. This all said, The Batman was the first superhero film (not animated) that I have seen in a very, very long time. I liked the direction it was going in, and it holds a ton of strengths to it. But it just didn't do more beyond being pretty.
