The Batman (2022)

[Podunkparte]

liked The Batman. Very dark and brooding. All villains were done well. Definitely a lot of Zodiac/Seven feels and it works perfectly. Understated score, but it was effective at mood setting. Even a little Animated Series influence in some of the score during the car chase.

Don't know about the hint at the end. That's the one part that didn't feel like it fit in the same universe, but I'm willing to see them explore it. Batinson is great. His Bruce wasn't, but I could really give 2 shits about Bruce Wayne when I could just have more badass Batman instead.

John Turturro needs more gangster roles.

 

[CarlSr]

Enjoyed it.

They leaned into the detective aspect of Batman and that made this a unique Batman film, in a good way. I'm not so sure I would put it over The Dark Knight, but I do think it's one of the better Batman films, and certainly a top 3 candidate.

I do wish they got Bruce Wayne right. They went for something, and I get it, but that wasn't Bruce. Hopefully we see Bruce in the sequel. Also, that short scene of the potential antagonist in a sequel felt a bit underwhelming to me. The character seemed more like an awkward, pathetic impressionist more so than someone to be feared down the line. I would have been fine without that scene in the movie and I honestly hope it's not a sign of things to come.

 

[returnofjakedog]

A good flick. Generally very well done.

The good:
*"Beautifully" shot and edited. I say "beautifully" in quotes because it is intentionally very dark, gritty and wet. But it has the desired affect.
*Character development and acting are both pretty solid. John Turturro doesn't really get fleshed out much, and neither do the Riddler (but he is only exposed late in movie).
*Pattinson did a good job as Batman. Not only did they humanize him by showing him regularly taking damage, but they also make you feel empathy for him by showing the effect his parent's deaths have on him via emotional damage. We've heard/seen the Waynes get killed a dozen times before but this is the first time that they have really emphasized the damage it did to Bruce realistically.
*Good story and dialogue.

One shot in particular, where Batman fights down a dark hallway that is only illuminated by the gunfire as he progressed was awesome. I'd like to know how they did it (I'm assuming it was filmed bit by bit, pieced together, and the darkness and the gunfire added to get the fx but.....????)

The bad:
Mostly nitpicking stuff.
*Too long. They could have easily shaved a half hour and it would have helped the viewing experience.
*As always, the desired PG-13 rating hurts the film quality. Batman not killing people is fine but when he lets the gang of killers just run away after fighting them at the start instead of doing permanent damage (he should have at least busted some limbs to at least disable them for awhile). Another example is when he beats the crud out of the guy's face with his armored gloves after taking the adrenaline shot, and they pull off the mask and there isn't even a speck of blood, let alone a mangled lump of flesh that it should have been. Stupid!
*The love interest seemed a bit contrived, though you could argue that she was just trying to manipulate him.

I'll go 7.5 outta 10. Could have been in the 8.5 range if it were a bit shorter and rated R elements added back in.

 

[returnofjakedog]

Another gripe is the standard Superman complaint:
Batman wears a costume that doesn't cover his full face. He talks exactually the same (very distinctive) as both Bruce and Batman, is the same stature, has all of this expensive gear, yet no one can figure out who it is.
Standard superhero complaint though.

Also, maybe someone can answer this one for me:
When Selena Kyle confronts Jesus (John Turturro) near the end, she gains access to him because she is his daughter (she had to get in past the guards). She has stated she grew up in the club so she is well known and Turturro calls her daughter. She then goes "Marie Kyle was my mother" to him (as if it were a big reveal?).
It seemed that he already knew she was his daughter, but he didn't know who the mother was?? That seems ridiculous.

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

A good flick. Generally very well done.

The good:
*"Beautifully" shot and edited. I say "beautifully" in quotes because it is intentionally very dark, gritty and wet. But it has the desired affect.
*Character development and acting are both pretty solid. John Turturro doesn't really get fleshed out much, and neither do the Riddler (but he is only exposed late in movie).
*Pattinson did a good job as Batman. Not only did they humanize him by showing him regularly taking damage, but they also make you feel empathy for him by showing the effect his parent's deaths have on him via emotional damage. We've heard/seen the Waynes get killed a dozen times before but this is the first time that they have really emphasized the damage it did to Bruce realistically.
*Good story and dialogue.

One shot in particular, where Batman fights down a dark hallway that is only illuminated by the gunfire as he progressed was awesome. I'd like to know how they did it (I'm assuming it was filmed bit by bit, pieced together, and the darkness and the gunfire added to get the fx but.....????)

The bad:
Mostly nitpicking stuff.
*Too long. They could have easily shaved a half hour and it would have helped the viewing experience.
*As always, the desired PG-13 rating hurts the film quality. Batman not killing people is fine but when he lets the gang of killers just run away after fighting them at the start instead of doing permanent damage (he should have at least busted some limbs to at least disable them for awhile). Another example is when he beats the crud out of the guy's face with his armored gloves after taking the adrenaline shot, and they pull off the mask and there isn't even a speck of blood, let alone a mangled lump of flesh that it should have been. Stupid!
*The love interest seemed a bit contrived, though you could argue that she was just trying to manipulate him.

I'll go 7.5 outta 10. Could have been in the 8.5 range if it were a bit shorter and rated R elements added back in.

Hollywood, we don't blink an eye when every single hero suffers a life changing concussion and wakes up a half hour later just fine.

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

Full thoughts;

The Batman is NOT an action movie. Don’t go in thinking it is. It has a lot of great action set pieces, but the action takes a back seat to a constantly unraveling mystery that just keeps you riveted for the entire three hour running time. There are no wasted frames. You can’t go to the bathroom without missing something.

Let’s also make another thing clear, this is NOT a family film. The tension rivals an old noir and the violence rivals a horror movie, with an uncompromising sound design that plays every crack and every crunch loud and clear. I can’t remember there being any score during the fight sequences (at least not the initial two), so the fights sound painful.

This movie is DARK, and I mean TONALLY dark. Darker than any live action Batman film yet. I can see how this portrayal of The Riddler could legitimately frighten smaller children. This isn’t a fun Spider-Man romp, this is dark and gritty, and a Batman film made strictly for adults.
I’ll have to watch it again, and that won’t be an issue for me because I wholeheartedly love this movie. It’s a film that rewards you for paying attention to details.

How did I get this far without mentioning Matt Reeves? I have loved his work since I first saw Let Me In, and this is his most accomplished film yet.

Definitely see it. It’s one of the best Batman movies ever. Is it the best? Time will have to pass, and I’ll have to see how it holds up before I form my opinion, but it’s certainly one of the top two.

I’m not sure it’s better than any of the Nolan movies. It was really good, but I wouldn’t say it’s great.

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

Hollywood, we don't blink an eye when every single hero suffers a life changing concussion and wakes up a half hour later just fine.

He got shot like a hundred times too. I’ve never been shot before, but even with a bullet proof suit I have to imagine it is still able to break bones on impact. It provided for cool effects though.

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

I’m not sure it’s better than any of the Nolan movies. It was really good, but I wouldn’t say it’s great.

I heard it's good. I'm gonna go see it. My son saw it and said it was solid, but ignore the hyperbole. I'll take his word all day, every day.

 

[PackJason.]

Just got back from the theater about 2 hours ago. It was a good movie, but should have been an hour shorter. Some of the scenes were way too drawn out and there were about 4 endings.

 

[Duffman]

He got shot like a hundred times too. I’ve never been shot before, but even with a bullet proof suit I have to imagine it is still able to break bones on impact. It provided for cool effects though.

It looked like after he took that shotgun blast to the chest he used Miraclo or Venom??? to give himself an adrenaline boost(which would be very interesting if they explored that in the second movie).

 

[Podunkparte]

Also, maybe someone can answer this one for me:
When Selena Kyle confronts Jesus (John Turturro) near the end, she gains access to him because she is his daughter (she had to get in past the guards). She has stated she grew up in the club so she is well known and Turturro calls her daughter. She then goes "Marie Kyle was my mother" to him (as if it were a big reveal?).
It seemed that he already knew she was his daughter, but he didn't know who the mother was?? That seems ridiculous.

I'll look out for it on a 2nd watch, but my assumption was she found out he was her father, but he never knew. I don't remember him ever referring to Selina as his daughter.

 

[Beengay fudgepackers]

It looked like after he took that shotgun blast to the chest he used Miraclo or Venom??? to give himself an adrenaline boost(which would be very interesting if they explored that in the second movie).

True. That was a little random as well. We walked out due to full bladders when Batman and cat woman were talking about cat woman staying or not. Did we miss any terribly vital scenes?

 

[michaeljordan_fan]

Another gripe is the standard Superman complaint:
Batman wears a costume that doesn't cover his full face. He talks exactually the same (very distinctive) as both Bruce and Batman, is the same stature, has all of this expensive gear, yet no one can figure out who it is.
Standard superhero complaint though.

Also, maybe someone can answer this one for me:
When Selena Kyle confronts Jesus (John Turturro) near the end, she gains access to him because she is his daughter (she had to get in past the guards). She has stated she grew up in the club so she is well known and Turturro calls her daughter. She then goes "Marie Kyle was my mother" to him (as if it were a big reveal?).
It seemed that he already knew she was his daughter, but he didn't know who the mother was?? That seems ridiculous.

John Turturro had no idea she was his daughter until she told him.

She did not gain access to him because she was his daughter.

This was not obvious as I had a similar expectation going into that scene.

 

[Duffman]

True. That was a little random as well. We walked out due to full bladders when Batman and cat woman were talking about cat woman staying or not. Did we miss any terribly vital scenes?

I don't believe so as it ends pretty much right after that.

 

[redseat]

I guess I'll check it out.. Especially considering I caved a while back and got the AMC Stubs account thing. 3 free movies/week

 

[Duffman]

Watched it again yesterday, still amazingly good.

I have to add I love what they did with Bruce in this one. I'm stoked for a hopeful next movie to be him coming into being Bruce as well. It makes total sense that he wouldn't find importance in being both immediately. The renewal project being taken advantage of as a direct result of him not overseeing his family's legacy is a gut punch he will take seriously, since it so gravely affected his work as Batman.

 

[wazzu31]

Really good movie, nowhere near the Nolan ones and Pattinson sucks as an emo Bruce. But outside of that no real complaints. This is how DC needs to be not like the garbage pandering Marvel does.

 

[wildturkey]

Yeah, so...this was awesome. Best Batman film since The Dark Knight and could really go either way on which one is the best.

 

[Sparhawk]

Saw it last night.
Really good.

Some really good parallels with the Riddler spying on someone before he kills them, then having Batman spying on folks in the same way.

There's a lot to unpack, but we get Batman the detective in this one and no so much Batman the super hero.

I also liked the fact that this is early into Batman's existence and there is fear in his eyes when he uses a gadget for the first time in a daring escape attempt.

 

[calsnowskier]

I have seen this yet and have been avoiding this thread to avoid spoilers, but…

It will hit HBOMax next month. I will be waiting.