For the last two decades, DC has always been proud of the Batman character in their comics. After the tremendous success of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, many actors have been scared to take on the Batman role after Christian Bale’s stunning performance and one of the best acting performances ever by the late Heath Ledger in the role of the Joker. The release of The Batman, however, drew the attention of nearly every comic book movie enthusiast to see if actor Robert Pattinson could meet their expectations.
Senior Amrit Sian ‘22 explained that, “Batman is such a unique character that actors can do like a lot of different approaches. It was weird to see that the Twilight guy got the role but I think that it was still good and he acted surprisingly well. He is definitely better than that one Ben Affleck guy from the Justice League movie, but I don’t know about the guy from The Dark Knight.”
Since the release of Nolan’s movies, there have been only two actors who have been brave enough to take on the role: Ben Affleck and now Robert Pattinson. Affleck was generally disliked by DC and Marvel audiences as his performances just could not live up to Bale’s. Now, with the release of this new Batman movie, Robbert Pattinson showed audiences that this was possible.
When asked about Pattinson taking on the role, Bale explained that it is “very good for him, just make it his own. Don’t listen to the naysayers at all.” He went on to explain how “everybody protested when Heath was cast as the Joker, look what an absolutely brilliant performance he gave. Don’t listen to those guys; do his own thing; he is a fascinating actor; he’s a great choice.” After offering such encouragement, fans received this well as there was no condemnation or critiquing of this new approach to Batman.
In terms of how both characters played the role, Robert Pattinson exemplified the best Batman character with his epic fight scenes and the dark vibe that comes with his character. Christian Bale’s performance was still outstanding of the Batman but he played the Bruce Wayne character much better. In Pattinson’s movie, he plays a dark, gloomy Bruce Wayne while Bale performs the playboy billionaire character which is much more enjoyable to watch. Both characters gave outstanding performances, however, and it is merely a question of who did it better? The answer to this is entirely subjective and based on preference.
At the moment, the hype surrounding Batman has been put on a pedestal in the DC world. In the last years, DC released The Suicide Squad and then followed with The Peacemaker show streaming on HBO Max. Both of these pieces were received very well by all audiences. With Matt Reeves’s new approach to The Batman, fans have shown that this movie qualifies as one of the best comic book movies of all time. One that could potentially compare to The Dark Knight.
Director Reeves clarified his intentions in a recent interview, “Well, I have a vision for a way to do something with that character that feels like it resonates with me personally, and a perspective that can grow out into other things. When they [Warner Bros.] approached me, what they said was ‘look, it’s a standalone, it’s not part of the extended universe.”’
Ever since 2008, there has always been competition between DC and Marvel. The one trilogy that DC fans like to hold on to the most is the Dark Knight trilogy. Ben Affleck’s role is usually shoved underneath the carpet. Matt Reeves is hoping to reshape the entire Justice League universe and bring back the hype that once surrounded Christian Bale’s Batman.
Based on the original reactions from audiences that have seen the movie, this is not a movie to miss out on. With an audience score of 89 and critic score of 85, DC has outperformed their expectations and it is questionable to see if they decide to continue the character’s story or not.
