The Batman Review

Synopsis
When the Riddler (Paul Dano), a sadistic serial killer, begins murdering key political figures in Gotham, Batman (Robert Pattinson) is forced to investigate the city’s hidden corruption. (via IMDB)

Review
After Warner Bros. failed attempt at creating a cinematic universe (DCEU) to rival Marvel’s, I’m excited for the approach they’ve taken with their recent movies where some still exist in that universe while others exist on their own. It proves that not every movie needs to be connected to another. Matt Reeves’ The Batman is a perfect example of how this approach gives filmmakers greater freedoms to display their takes on the characters. While I’m sure this movie could have been shoehorned into the DCEU, because it wasn’t, Reeves was able to tell his own tale about the dark knight, or rather, a tale about Gotham itself.

Batman is often referred to as “the world’s greatest detective.” Outside of The Dark Knight, the majority of Batman movies have failed to properly show this side of the character. The Batman focuses primarily on this facet of the character. The bulk of the film follows Bruce as he solves The Riddler’s puzzles and simultaneous tries to unravel the mysteries of Gotham’s criminal underworld. It’s refreshing to see this side of the character so predominately showcased.

Also unlike previous cinematic incarnations of Bruce Wayne, Reeves’ Bruce is much the opposite of previous versions. Whereas most Batman films portray Bruce as a charismatic playboy, Reeves’ Bruce is more of a recluse, rarely making public appearances. Instead, Bruce Wayne is the mask. To go with that, Batman is in the movie more than Bruce. Again, this is an invigorating approach to the character that I am intrigued to see explored in future films.

The cinematography in The Batman is some of the best in the genre. Every shot was breathtaking, whether it was in close quarters or out in the open. One prime example of this is a chase scene that happens about halfway through the film. The camera switches between an overall view of the chase and close ups of either the Penguin or the Batman. It’s hard for me to put into words how exciting this toggling back-and-forth and the camera angles made the scene. It has quickly become one of my favorite chase scenes in cinema.

For all of the praise I have given the film so far, there is one glaring drawback to it and that’s the length. I have a hard time justifying when a movie’s run time is nearly three hours long and that holds true for The Batman. There are two factors I see that have led to such a long run time: 1) every scene, and I mean every scene, could lose several seconds, and 2) everything deliberately moves slow. For the first observation, at almost three hours long, there are many scenes in the film and each and every one of them feels like they last just a moment or two too long. If every scene was edited down just a few second each, the film could easily lose several minutes of run time. As for the second remark, I’m not referring to the script but more the characters and camera; each character doesn’t move with any urgency. This is particularly true in the first two acts. To go along with this, the camera also moves slowly as it moves towards or way characters, or lingers on them to align with my first point. All in all, the film could shave off several minutes if the characters moved quicker and if scenes didn’t idle longer than necessary.

I thought The Batman was GOOD 🙂 This film embraces Batman’s “world’s greatest detective” moniker unlike any version before. The great cast and beautiful cinematography also help it to stand out from previous Batman movies. However, its biggest flaw is that it is longer than necessary and moves slow (physically moves slow, not the script is slow). I enjoy director Matt Reeves’ take on the character and I cannot wait to see where he takes Bruce Wayne and Gotham City in the future.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Matt Reeves – Director / Writer
Peter Craig – Writer
Michael Giacchino – Composer

Robert Pattinson – Bruce Wayne / The Batman
Zoe Kravitz – Selina Kyle / Catwoman
Jeffrey Wright – Lt. James Gordon
Colin Farrell – Oz / The Penguin
Paul Dano – The Riddler
John Turturro – Carmine Falcone
Andy Serkis – Alfred
Peter Sarsgaard – District Attorney Gil Colson
Jayme Lawson – Bella Real
Alex Ferns – Commissioner Pete Savage
Rupert Penry-Jones – Mayor Don Mitchell, Jr.
Hana Hrzic – Annika
Oscar Novak – Young Bruce Wayne
Luke Roberts – Thomas Wayne
Stella Stocker – Martha Wayne

Black Panther Review

Synopsis
After the death of his father, T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) takes his place as king of the technologically advanced and secluded country of Wakanda. His succession is in jeopardy when the mysterious Erik ‘Killmonger’ Stevens (Michael B. Jordan) challenges T’Challa for the throne.

Review
I think it’s safe to say that Black Panther is one of Marvel Studios’ most anticipated movies to date. Chadwick Boseman stole his scenes in Captain America: Civil War, a lot of time and effort was put into researching different African cultures for inspiration for Wakanda, and the cast consisted of fan-favorite black actors including Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gunra, and many others. Black Panther had the world’s eyes on it. It stood its ground, didn’t falter, and brought one of the most compelling experiences to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

One thing Marvel films have always been good at, in my opinion, is having great action. Black Panther is no exception. Whether it’s a car chase through the streets of Korea, a large-scale battle on the plains of Wakanda, or a one-on-one battle between Black Panter and Killmonger, every action piece is well choreographed and well shot. The camera does a good job of staying on what’s important in the scene and framing the action. At no point did I feel lost or didn’t understand who was where and doing what.

This film really stands out because of its cast and their chemistry. Letitia Wright played T’Challa’s genius little sister, Shuri. She and Boseman felt like siblings. They had this playful banter that felt natural and didn’t feel like it was written in a script. The same can be said for whenever Boseman, Nyong’o, and Gunra shared a scene. I had a smile on my face when these three were together.

Going into Black Panther, I was most interested in seeing Michael B. Jordan as the villainous Killmonger. I haven’t seen him in an antagonistic role before so I wanted to see how he would do in the part. Needless to say, I was not disappointed. Jordan oozed swag. His character was intelligent, cold, and calculating and Jordan pulled it off with ease. Admittedly, Marvel has had a bit of a villain problem. Outside of Loki, not many have been compelling. Killmonger is a perfect foil to T’Challa. The two of them have similar goals but approach them different ways, much like Professor X and Magneto in the X-Men franchise. For being unsure what to expect, it’s hard to imagine another actor filling the role as well as Jordan did. He might have stolen the entire movie for me if it wasn’t for one actress: Letitia Wright.

Wright hands-down made this movie several times better than if she wasn’t in it. Her take on Shuri was better than I ever could have imagined. She was witty, sassy, strong, and intelligent. I mentioned it before but her and Boseman’s chemistry was uplifting. She wasn’t afraid to give the king a hard time and to ground him when necessary. She brought a lot of the film’s humor. I can’t wait to see what is in store for Wright in the future.

Wakanda is a technologically advanced country located in the heart of Africa. Director Ryan Coogler vision for the country is breathtaking. I know this sounds like a cliché but the country is almost a character unto itself. It is this mix of futurism and African tradition. Clearly, a lot of time was spent visualizing this “character.” Whether in the Golden City or on the country’s plains, you won’t believe your eyes.

With the MCU consisting of nearly twenty films, there is a lot of interconnectivity between the films and it can be daunting to jump into one of these movies “in the middle.” However, Black Panther does a great job of standing on its own. Yes, the death of T’Chaka, T’Challa’s father, that essentially kicks of this story happens in Captain America: Civil War, but this movie recaps the events nicely. Other than that, there is very little that new viewers won’t understand. This film can stand alone but if you have seen the other movies, it will help you understand its place in the series overarching story.

Since The Avengers, most of the movies proceeding it have had a similar style of humor. I brought it up in my review of Thor: Ragnarok because it was almost too much in that film that it undermined many of the more serious moments. This movie has that trademark Marvel humor but it uses it much more effectively than most MCU films. There was only one time that I really felt it was interjected at the wrong time.

As much as Killmonger didn’t fit the traditional MCU villain mold, Ulysses Klaue, aka Klaw, did. He feels extremely underutilized. As someone who knows his significant history with Black Panther, it’s disappointing to see him not used to his full potential. And Andy Serkis does wonderful in the part. It probably would have been hard to have two well-built villains in this movie but it hurts a little that Klaw had to end up shorted.

I thought Black Panther was GREAT 😀 As Chadwick Boseman made a great impression as a supporting character during his debut in Civil War, many of Black Panther‘s supporting cast have unforgettable roles. The action is well shot and choreographed and the villain is actually complex and empathetic. Black Panther shows that even ten years later and eighteen movies in, the MCU still has plenty of steam.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Ryan Coogler – Director / Writer
Joe Robert Cole – Writer
Ludwig Goransson – Composer

Chadwick Boseman – T’Challa / Black Panther
Michael B. Jordan – Erik ‘Killmonger’ Stevens
Andy Serkis – Ulysses Klaue
Lupita Nyong’o – Nakia
Danai Gunra – Okoye
Martin Freeman – Everett K. Ross
Daniel Kaluuya – W’Kabi
Letitia Wright – Shuri
Winston Duke – M’Baku
Angela Bassett – Ramonda
Forest Whitaker – Zuri
Florence Kasumba – Ayo
David S. Lee – Limbani
Nabiyah Be – Linda
John Kani – T’Chaka
Sterling K. Brown – N’Jobu
Atandwa Kani – Young T’Chaka
Ashton Tyler – Young T’Challa