The Batman

Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman follows Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader as he sets out to find and apprehend a vicious serial killer targeting Gotham’s elite. Filmmaker Reeves, armed with a script written with Peter Craig, offers up an exceedingly deliberate yet mostly compelling blockbuster that benefits from its stylish atmosphere and raft of above-average performances, as, in terms of the latter, Pattinson offers up often astonishingly absorbing work that both anchors the proceedings and effectively compensates for Reeves’ periodically padded-out sensibilities – with the actor’s stellar efforts unquestionably matched by a first-class roster of such compelling periphery performers as Peter Sarsgaard, Colin Farrell, John Turturro, and Jeffrey Wright. (Paul Dano’s impressive, terrifying turn as the Riddler remains an obvious highlight, ultimately.) It’s clear, as well, that The Batman‘s ongoing emphasis on its central character’s low-key investigation into the aforementioned serial killer’s exploits heightens the movie’s perpetually watchable vibe (ie the whole thing is just so refreshingly grounded), although there’s little doubt, certainly, that Reeves does a superb job of peppering the narrative with exciting, enthralling action sequences and set-pieces (eg Batman must escape from a jail cell and dozens of cops) – which, when coupled with an unexpectedly engrossing climax, cements the picture’s place as an above-average comic-book adaptation that admittedly (and undeniably) should’ve been trimmed down from its 176 minute (!) running time.

***1/2 out of ****