The Batman: A Welcome Return to Gotham City

The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves (Cloverfield) is the thirteenth theatrical, live-action outing of the DC Comics’ superhero and seventh so far this century. Audiences could see these films as a genre unto itself, with its own conventions and expectations. And the expectations are certainly high. After Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight  trilogy, the bar was set remarkably high for superhero cinema., Everyone wondered if any subsequent Batman movie could be as great. Reeve’s film is outside the uneven DC Extended Universe and returns to a rancid Gotham City. Thankfully for fans, he delivers an engrossing escapade that does the classic characters justice and is of the same pedigree as Nolan’s films.

The story begins as Batman (Robert Pattinson) is in the second year of his crusade against crime. His presence has caused uneasiness in criminals, the police, and civic leaders. Gotham City leaders then become the target of the sadistic Riddler (Paul Dano), who also leaves ciphers to communicate with those on his trail. His victims are among the city’s most corrupt, and his crimes seek to expose and punish those involved in Gotham’s underbelly.

Batman joins Lieutenant Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) in the investigation, bringing him to the Iceberg Lounge, an underworld hangout run by the Oz Cobblepot (an unrecognizable Colin Ferrell). He enlists Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz), a server at the club who also knows how to pick a lock, to help explore the city’s gangland and to stay one step ahead of the Riddler. Batman also discovers secrets that could tarnish his family legacy and sees that Bruce Wayne, his public persona, is a target of the Riddler.

At nearly three hours in length, The Batman could have benefitted from a slightly shorter running time. This and other flaws are redeemed on several fronts, including casting. Pattinson stands among the better Batmans. Though he is tough and relentless, he is also demented and vulnerable. His Batman lives for taking up the mantle and has no interest in keeping up appearances as Bruce Wayne, the businessman. Pattinson has great chemistry with Kravitz, whose Selina is fierce but softens as she becomes smitten with Batman. Dano is exceptionally creepy as the Riddler, who grounds a traditionally campy character and takes inspiration from the Zodiac Killer and Unabomber. He makes for the most horrific villain in the rogues’ gallery since Heath Ledger’s Joker.

The Batman is also a story about why a virtuous population is a necessary precondition for a just society. If honesty, justice, and peace are to be reflected in the civic institutions, those values must first be held in the people’s hearts. They must also be vigilant, engaged, and only delegate power to those who are earnest in defending those values. If the people become apathetic and aloof, their leaders will be destined for corruption and will hold the citizens for ransom. This is what has happened in Gotham City.

The film reminded me of the corruption in Chicago, a real-life Gotham City in my backyard, and other municipalities. Crooked cops, crooked lawyers, and crooked politicians do not allow for the administering of true justice—consequently, society suffers. Unfortunately, there is not going to be a superhero to come in and clean things up. Instead, people must instill virtue in themselves and their children, and ceaselessly demand it from their leaders. A free and thriving society requires it.

Part of why Batman has been so enduring of a character is because he is a symbol of true justice. We can forgive him for being a vigilante because his whole crusade is to initiate a return to virtue. Maestro Reeves’s The Batman continues that legacy. He also reminds us why the Dark Knight stands apart from other superheroes and shows us how pulp can be elevated into art.