The Batman (15)
Directed by Matt Reeves

“I’M vengeance,” warns Batman to a gang of Joker lookalikes after beating up one of them to within an inch of his life, as he sets the tone for the darkest and most troubled incarnation of the caped crusader to date — if that’s possible.

Co-writer-director Matt Reeves’s reimagining is a deliciously sinister neonoir detective murder mystery in which Batman (Robert Pattinson) teams up with Lieutenant James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright), in his pre-Commissioner days, in the hunt for sadistic serial killer the Riddler (a disturbing and spine-chilling Paul Dano), who is murdering key political figures in Gotham.

The pair uncover a pool of corruption that is permeating the city from the bottom up. This is very much Batman the early years — Bruce Wayne is struggling with his inner beast, aka his alter ego, who is in the driving seat and is uncontrollable. He also has father issues and a strained relationship with his butler and mentor Alfred Pennyworth (the wonderful Andy Serkis)

Pattinson captures this brooding and tortured soul to perfection in a standout performance as the masked vigilante, while his angst-ridden Wayne looks more like an anaemic vampire without the sparkles, instead of a powerful billionaire.

Rather than being Batman’s own origin story, this film explores the beginnings of a rogues’ gallery of villains, including Catwoman (a formidable Zoe Kravitz) and the Penguin (an unrecognisable and outstanding Colin Farrell), as well as Batman’s fascinating role in their creation.

Starring a superlative supporting cast who all deliver, this is a gritty and complex adult crime thriller reminiscent of the Zodiac, which happens to feature Batman.

The longest ever Batman film at almost three hours, it certainly feels it — particularly as wants for light. Unlike its predecessors, this reboot stays firmly in the shade, which proves unrelenting and exhausting by the bitter end — even Christopher Nolan’s trilogy contained some humour.

The good news is that, according to Reeves, there is no director’s cut. It needs to be seen on the big screen anyway, to appreciate Greg Fraser’s stunning cinematography.

Maria Duarte

In cinemas