THE BATMAN (2022)

The written companion

Draft companion · Awaiting editorial review

The Batman: Strong Praise, with a Longer Argument Underneath

The Batman gives the group a film they want to discuss before their reaction has completely settled. Its differences from earlier versions leave them both excited and conflicted, which is more interesting than a simple declaration of a new favorite.

The final scores show both the group's enthusiasm and the differences within it: Cayla gives The Batman seven out of ten, Dan nine-and-a-half, Matt ten, and Seth nine. On the website's five-star scale, those become 3.5, 4.75, 5, and 4.5 stars, respectively. Matt's perfect score still leaves room for choices he would change. He thinks the later escalation can feel like another movie beginning just as the main pursuit seems ready to end, and some of the romantic teasing works less well for him. Those reservations do not outweigh the overall force of the experience.

He also places the film in conversation with The Dark Knight. For him, a new interpretation can challenge the earlier benchmark while still benefiting from the tone and expectations that benchmark helped establish.

The group is conscious that this is not the most casual family version of Batman. Its atmosphere and approach ask for a different kind of engagement. The appeal is in being given a familiar character through a world that feels sufficiently different to demand another look.

Can The Batman be your favorite version while still feeling too long in its final stretch? What made the strongest impression: the mystery, the atmosphere, or the character behind the mask?

Watch their Batman discussion ↗

Based on auto-generated captions. Matt's score uses the episode's original ten-point scale. The full conversation contains major spoilers.