Jakuvious Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 7 hours ago, MikeT14 said: Was anyone else not thrilled with Johns take on Falcone? One of my few gripes. Not that it was bad, it just stood out to me as weaker. Serkis gets a pass. He wasn’t given much. That one struck me as the one odd casting. I didn't buy it as soon as they said in the movie who he was. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jakuvious Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 I really liked it. Either #1 or #2 for Batman movies for me. Still processing a bit, and I'm not sure how to compare it with The Dark Knight, in some ways. TDK was far more entertaining in a popcorn flick kind of sense, but this one just felt like watching a full Batman comic to me, which feels very unique. Like, my fiancée was taken back by the lack of any humor or levity to break the tension, as she's mostly seen MCU stuff, or even like Alfred's quips in the Nolan trilogy, and my response to her was that it was literally a Batman comic book, and that tends to stay pretty serious throughout. Anyway, more specific, spoilery thoughts, below: Spoiler Gonna comment first on some complaints I've seen. I think the lack of Bruce Wayne was actually perfect. It represents precisely where Batman is at at this stage of his career. He's cold, cynical, and withdrawn. His parents tried charity, they're dead, the city is still terrible, so he's just going for basic vengeance against the types of crime and criminals he thinks killed his parents. It makes sense to have a fully committed to Batman iteration of the character at this stage in things. Aligns with a lot of the comics that show early stages of his career. Batman Begins even kind of tried this too, it just abandoned it waaaaay faster. I've also seen some comment on Batman being stupid, and yeah, he's in the early stages. He clearly hasn't mastered some of his tech, he isn't subtle at all, he fails repeatedly to get the actual important information from Ridder's riddles. He's in that year one stage of his wealth and strength masking him not 100% knowing what he's doing quite yet. That said, his suit is a touch too bulletproof for me in this. Zoe Kravitz was absolutely fantastic as Catwoman. The bit where she rappels down, cracks the safe, and then has the characteristic fight/dance with Batman was like the ideal scene to bring the costumed side of the character in. I liked the balance of her clearly being overpowered by Batman, but her easily holding her own physically and mentally with anyone else, barring beating caught by surprise. The villains were awesome as well. I'm excited to see more of this Penguin. His rise to power is definitely imminent, and he'll get more of a shot to be the proper crimelord going forward. Dano was fantastic as the Riddler. It's so hard to compare anyone to Ledger's joker, and this sort of script I don't think gives the same opportunity to be charismatic and entertaining, but Dano nailed it. The range from lonely outcast to masked psychopath to the unhinged unraveling in the cell were all done excellently. I think Serkis's Alfred and Turturro's Falcone were definitely the weaker performances acting wise. Though Serkis wasn't given a ton to do quite yet, especially with the early stages and Alfred not exactly being as fond of Bruce's mentality. As he opens up to Bruce Wayne, I could see there being more room for warmth there, and Serkis will have a shot to play an Alfred closer to Caine's. I kind of just think John Turturro was a bad casting. I do not see him as the intimidating puppet master mob head. I wasn't blown away by Pattinson's Batman or Wright's Gordon, but I didn't take issue with either. I think both performed appropriately. I liked the dynamic between the two a lot, though. And I think they nailed some really key aspects of Batman, but I attribute that more to writing and choreography than anything Pattinson did crazy well. The intro was great, with the street villains being afraid of the shadows. Gordon and Batman working out an escape from the GCPD. Batman being non-lethal but incredibly brutal. Gordon had a bit too much unnecessary dialogue for me, though. Too many times he was standing beside Batman to say "Jesus, he strangled her" or "Who would do that to someone?" Like, just unnecessary moments popping in to say how serious things are. I feel they did a much better job showing Gotham from street level in this. TDK trilogy had a lot of overhead panoramic shots, and Batman looking down on the city, and news reports talking about how good or bad things were. But this one did a better job of getting inside clubs and subways and street corners, and showing that the city is in disarray. I really think they did a great job making the Riddler a relevant villain to Batman's development in this. Like, part of why TDK's Joker went over so well is the whole schtick about it being a battle for Gotham's soul. It's a cheesy concept at times, but it worked. This has the internal struggle of him pushing away his normal human role as Bruce, and just going for brutal vengeance, played out by Riddler thinking they're working together, and ultimately showing him what true vengeance is really going to look like. Sets up well for a turnaround of him opening up to Bruce Wayne more in a sequel. And he actually learns something through the conflict and the villain, which not every superhero movie does a good job of. The Riddler does more from a character development and plot progression standpoint for Batman than just be a bad guy killing people. I do think it was unnecessary to tease Joker. Though the potential tease to Hush is more interesting to me. Additionally, did anyone have thoughts on what Batman injected himself with at the end? Could just be adrenaline, but it looked green, right? Any chance of it being venom? Oh, and THANK GOD we didn't have to watch his parents die again. I've gotten so sick of watching pearls fall on wet concrete in slow motion. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeT14 Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 @Jakuvious - Great post. To simply answer one of your questions, I just took it at face value. Adrenaline. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August4th Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 movie made me go back and watch the 90s Cartoon show. I have not watched since I was a kid and man does it hold up. its a really well done kids show thats fun for kids but mature enough that adults can enjoy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jakuvious Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 1 hour ago, August4th said: movie made me go back and watch the 90s Cartoon show. I have not watched since I was a kid and man does it hold up. its a really well done kids show thats fun for kids but mature enough that adults can enjoy. FWIW, the Justice League cartoons that followed hold up quite well as well. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fresh Prince Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 I would say this #1 Batman movie at the moment. I’ve never been that big a fan of TDK besides ledgers joker, would even say begins is a better movie as whole the TDK. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
43M Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 6 minutes ago, Fresh Prince said: I would say this #1 Batman movie at the moment. I’ve never been that big a fan of TDK besides ledgers joker, would even say begins is a better movie as whole the TDK. Begins hasnt aged well IMO. Editing at certain parts was so messy and rushed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
43M Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 1 hour ago, Jakuvious said: FWIW, the Justice League cartoons that followed hold up quite well as well. All of those 90s/early 2000s DC shows and movies were gold standard. Anything DC that Timm, Dini and Burnett made back then was top notch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deadpulse Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 4 minutes ago, 43M said: Begins hasnt aged well IMO. Editing at certain parts was so messy and rushed. you see this flick yet? I am waiting on pins and needles to see what you think 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August4th Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 The first 5-10 minutes was one of the hardest starts to a film I've ever seen. The dialogue, music and scenes were at a 10. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
43M Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 22 hours ago, MikeT14 said: Was anyone else not thrilled with Johns take on Falcone? One of my few gripes. Not that it was bad, it just stood out to me as weaker. Serkis gets a pass. He wasn’t given much. I hated that casting as soon as I hmsaw it, but Ill give it a chance. Turturro should stick to comedic roles. Dont buy him much as a serious actor. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
43M Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 2 minutes ago, Deadpulse said: you see this flick yet? I am waiting on pins and needles to see what you think Not yet. Might be awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deadpulse Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 Just now, 43M said: Not yet. Might be awhile. Pretty sure April 18th is the date it will be on HBOmax 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
43M Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 1 minute ago, Deadpulse said: Pretty sure April 18th is the date it will be on HBOmax I may break down and go before that, but not sure yet. I really wanna see it. Im encouraged by most reviews and trailers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August4th Posted March 7, 2022 Share Posted March 7, 2022 (edited) surprise people didn't care for Turturro in this. His role in this film was one of my highlights. He might be one of the most cruelest villains to appear in a live action batman film Edited March 7, 2022 by August4th 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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