The Batman review: Robert Pattinson’s brooding, bruised hero helps messy movie fly

metro.co.uk:

Batman has finally swooped its way into cinemas with moody new leading bat Robert Pattinson, and it’s a lot to process – both good and bad.Over nearly three hours, director Matt Reeves delivers tension, explosions, noir nods through almost exclusively rainy shots and a whole host of Gotham’s most recognisable characters, performed by an exquisite cast that is by far this film’s best asset.Impressively, the movie doesn’t feel its length nearly as much as it should, with Reeves hanging his and Peter Craig’s screenplay off some pretty decent bones.

However, although the film’s pretty relentless pacing means it may not drag, it is still longer than it needs to be. It also highlights the slightly chaotic and messy nature of the movie, not all of which can be put down to the Riddler’s alarming killing spree.One of the most interesting choices Reeves makes is the decision to follow Bruce Wayne/Batman (Pattinson) two years into his career as Gotham’s crime-fighting vigilante detective.

It’s not a clichéd origin tale, but it’s still clearly a younger, angier and more vulnerable Batman than we’ve seen before – despite his tough exterior.Pattinson excels as Batman, brooding and menacing where appropriate, as he goes on his vengeance-driven missions.

His emo-kid black eye make-up and batsuit bovver boots work with the vibe of this more raw character, and the actor amply fills out the iconic suit (and don’t worry, that jawline measures up too).Bruce Wayne, however, feels a little less anchored than Batman, with all of his character growth (not that there’s much of it) confined to one emotional scene with butler Alfred.