Tim Burton’s
signature style of violence with a dark theme makes this movie a masterpiece,
standing right beside the first film and arguably surpassing it. As usual,
Burton doesn’t focus solely on the lead character. In Batman (1989),
The Joker was the lead, and Batman was there to make him interesting. In Batman
Returns, Batman is the lead, but with three villains to make his day—and our
viewing experience—even more entertaining.
Only Burton
could take a character who survives an attempted murder, turns insane from a
fall, and then transforms into Catwoman.
Before diving
into the plot, the movie has something for viewers to watch out for: fantastic
acting from the cast.
Michael Keaton (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Michelle Pfeiffer (Selina Kyle/Catwoman),
Christopher Walken (Max Shreck), and Danny DeVito (The Penguin) all hit the
mark with their performances. They made the movie awesome to watch whenever
they were on screen, whether together or with supporting cast members.
The movie starts
with the introduction of the Penguin, explaining how he ended up living
underground. From there, we meet Max Shreck, a ruthless businessman who’s as
evil as they come.
The Penguin plans to rejoin the human world with a diabolical scheme, and he
decides to present himself as a hero with Max’s help. Max, however, has his own
plans for Gotham and the Penguin. He repeatedly interrupts the Penguin’s
schemes to push his own agenda and manipulate the Penguin for his own gain.
Bruce is
convinced both are up to no good but struggles to prove it. He has his
suspicions about their plans and wishes he had the evidence to tie it all
together.
Selina Kyle is Max’s clumsy, overlooked assistant. While preparing Max for a
presentation, as she usually does, she stumbles upon his files without
permission and discovers his plan to rob Gotham of its electrical power.
Max tries to
silence her by throwing her off his skyscraper, but her fall is broken multiple
times on the way down, and she survives. She returns to work the next day after
a night of dressing up as Catwoman, claiming she has no memory of the scar on
her head or how she got it.
Bruce/Batman is
now on high alert, watching everyone and trying to stay one step ahead of the
trio.
The movie boasts
better visual effects and citywide destruction than the first Batman, as
it had twice the budget. Its visual style is more pronounced, and the dark,
gothic Tim Burton vibe is even stronger. Batman has more—and
better-choreographed—fight scenes, as you’d expect from a master martial
artist.
Burton maintains the same level of violence as the first movie but improves
Batman’s suit, gadgets, and automobile.
Burton’s
dark-themed Batman may not have made as much money as the first, but I believe
they should have let him continue his vision before the franchise was ruined by
a new director.
Joel Schumacher took over, working with Val Kilmer in Batman Forever and
ultimately killing the franchise with George Clooney in Batman & Robin.
If this movie
were made today, there would likely be an uproar from feminists, as Batman
strikes Catwoman more than once during their one-on-one fights.
One memorable
scene is when Selina Kyle and Bruce Wayne discover each other’s secret
identities as Catwoman and Batman, respectively.
One issue with Batman Returns is the overabundance of characters, which ends up diluting the focus of the story. The dark, gothic thing, works for the most part, but I felt at times it did not give room for lighter moments or more emotional depth. The pacing also struggles at times, with some subplots, like Selina’s transformation into Catwoman, coming off as rushed and feels underdeveloped.
This is a movie
you should own, just like Batman (1989)
and Nolan’s The
Dark Knight (2008).
