@scarletdadspidr
Having literally sat through and finding myself thoroughly entertained by DC FanDome’s exciting array of announcements all day yesterday, I signed up to review The Batman panel– the closer of this massive online event. The presentation itself was really more of an intimate conversation between two people. The Batman was hosted by Aisha Tyler (my favorite and yours!), with an intro by Brucie himself, Robert Pattinson. It then segued into Director Matt Reeves and Tyler diving into the film with plenty to saturate on, with reveals of the plot as well as the cinematography…
Reeves sets up the story for this latest incarnation of Batman, which is adamantly described as “not an origin story.” Which, for me, was never the issue with bringing a new Bruce Wayne into the cinematic fold but rather redundancy. Instead, Reeves tells of a story in which Bruce is in his second year as The Dark Knight. It is a story with Bruce broken with a promise that he is going to live up to. Wayne is still in the time when he can only rely heavily on himself with the foundation of Batman, from his cave, costume, and even the batmobile. There is intricate detail in the design of the bat costume and the time it has endured during the first year, and the visual of year two in which this film takes place.
Reeves did not just focus on speaking about the Caped Crusader, but also the counterparts of the film. Keeping in mind that this is Year 2 for Batman, it also means that the others are also in the early stages: Zoe Kravitz (Selena Kyle/Catwoman) is also getting into her form during the same time as Bruce; John Turturro (Carmine Falcone) is the mobster that is relative to Batman’s early dive into being the Knight of Gotham; Jeffrey Wright (Commissioner Gordon) looks to see the pair working together against Paul Dano’s Riddler. Reeves also pointed out that Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth in this film will not be reflective of other versions filmed but a new way to see the character.
After the heavy lifting of getting through the trudges of the panel, Reeves leaves the conversation of what the movie is, to what inspired the film. He does not shy away from showing his knowledge of the source material: the comics. Reeves pointed out the past incarnations of Batman in all forms of media, television, film, and print. It was a welcoming breathe of air knowing that this iconic character is getting treated to a film, by a fan. The Batman is a film in the sense of the word, not just a “comic book movie.” Matt Reeves connects his film to Darwin Cooke’s Ego, if that was not enough he also connected the film to the movies: Chinatown, The French Connection, and Taxi Driver. There is no reason not to be excited for this film, and it is only 25% filmed with plenty of time to fine-tune (thanks Rona).
After this panel I changed my mind. I am a believer now. You could say, I have been converted.
Panel = 4/5
Trailer = 5/5
Overall Presentation = 4.5/5 Bibles
-Frank Simonian