I think it is fair to say that Tim Burton’s stock has decreased in recent years with a handful of films that have not been particularly well received. However, there was a time when his reputation was extremely high and almost all of his films were critically well-received. However, I have never been a huge fan of Tim Burton. Sweeney Todd (2007) aside, none of his films have ever connected with me. One of those films is Batman (1989) which is a pretty beloved film and I think is just fine. Its sequel, Batman Returns (1992), is quite possibly even more beloved and also happens to be set around Christmas and so fits into these reviews brilliantly! Let’s see if this film can stop my Tim Burton rut. The film sees us return to Gotham where a new villain is terrorising the streets in the form of the Penguin (Danny De Vito) who has teamed up with the city's ultra-megalomaniac, Max Shreck (Christopher Walken). Attempting at first to win the minds and hearts of the city, it is up to Batman (Micheal Keaton) to expose their true colours, but he also needs to contend with a third party in the shape of Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer).
Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the film to turn my vie on Tim Burton around and I think I may just be ready to say that his style just doesn’t work for me. However, I should also say that there are a lot of things that I appreciate and admire about this film even if it isn’t exactly my cup of tea. First of all, despite the Tim Burton visual style not being for me for the most part, when it comes to Gotham city his style has huge benefits. In the more recent films, Gotham is pretty characterless and could really just be substituted for any metropolitan city in the US. But in this film, it has a real personality due to Tim Burton’s visual style. It is filled with funky architecture, huge gargoyles and statues, and has an overall German expressionistic look to it which is a clear inspiration for Burton. His blend of being over the top but also being dark in tone also fits in well with this Universe. Comic books are mostly over the top and Batman is seen as being one of the darker heroes, so this lends itself to Burton’s style. And I can have absolutely no complaints about the cast. Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken and Danny DeVito are all great throughout and have remained pretty iconic representations of their characters.
And yet, there is still something that just doesn’t quite click for me with this film. I think it is all just a bit too over the top for me. Take the character of the Penguin for example. In pretty much all other versions of the character, he is just a mob boss gangster, but this film has him abandoned at birth because he is deformed. He is subsequently raised by penguins, he has hands are fused into the shape of flippers, and he has a penchant for raw fish. Now, I don’t mind different interpretations of characters, and Danny DeVito absolutely brings the heat with his performance. But for me, the whole character is just a little too much, and this is a general issue I have with Tim Burton’s style in general. Another issue is that the film effectively has three villains that it needs to introduce and pay off in the course of the film and it means that some characters get left behind. The main focus of the film is on the Penguin and Max Shreck, with Catwoman being second in terms of focus, and it means that Batman feels quite a lot like a side character in his own film. The film also tries to set up a romantic relationship between Catwoman and Batman which is set up decently well for the majority of the film, but then needs to wrap up really quickly and the payoff to all of it doesn’t feel particularly earned. It’s another instance where I think style wins over substance and seeing as I don’t like Tim Burton’s style that is an issue for me.
Despite the fact that this film didn’t do much for me I also have to recommend it. If you are into Tim Burton at his most extravagant then this is right up there. It is very ambitious and has a great cast all doing good work. For me, it is a bit much, but it is beloved by so many and I can see the reasons why despite my own issues with the film.
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