30 years ago, Tim Burton and Michael Keaton ran it back to bring the Dark Knight back to the big screen, after the colossal success the two had with 1989’s Batman. In the 1992 sequel, Batman Returns, writer Sam Hamm was joined by Daniel Waters (Heathers, Demolition Man), and the two wrote a story far more intricate than the predecessor. This time though, there wouldn’t only just be multiple, emotionally deeper villains for Batman to deal with. Still, Bruce Wayne would also receive a level of complexity to his character, causing him to be consistently reflective of his choice between a normal life, and one of fighting crime, as well as focusing more on his need for intimacy and to be loved.
While Jack Nicholson’s portrayal of the Joker was iconic, the only way to up the ante was to bring in more villains and focus on making their performances arguably better. With all due respect to Nicholson, and of course Heath Ledger’s brilliant showing in The Dark Knight, I don’t believe anyone before or since Batman Returns, has come to the table as dedicated to their villain role in a Batman film as Danny DeVito, when portraying the Penguin.
Ignoring the absolute masterful physical transformation in makeup and costume design, DeVito really had to play multiple characters in one. While the Joker has mostly always been just a crazy person doing whacky things, Oswald Cobblepot had to delicately balance himself between being a composed man of the people, and a psychotic sewer-dwelling shut-in. The two separate (but not split) personalities could never overlap as part of his plan, and when they finally did, that was when Penguin’s world would ultimately fall apart. He could never fully embrace his dark side in front of the people and the press, and he could never truly get away from his anger and shame in front of his criminal lackeys. The few times he was able to let loose, he did so in smaller, private moments, like biting the nose of an image consultant, after devouring a raw fish, and threatening to stab Selina Kyle’s cat.
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Joining the mix, was Michelle Pfeiffer, who had already been nominated for two Academy Awards at the time. While there were some great moments from both Anne Hathaway and Zoë Kravitz, no live-action Batman film has dived deeper into the character as Batman Returns did. Like Bruce, Selina battled with her vulnerability, as before her transition into Catwoman, she was meek, timid, and easily bullied. The film was very much about personal character transitions. While Penguin struggled to keep his character traits perfectly balanced, Selina struggled from making the full move from one personality type to another. It isn’t until the film’s end that we feel like Selina’s vengeful ideas have taken her to places too far gone.
Conversely, Christopher Walken’s character, Max Schreck, had no questions or trouble knowing exactly what type of person he was. He was a liar, an abuser, a stone-cold killer, and an all-around evil man; not because he was psychotic or vengeful, but because he was powerful, and he thought that using that power to destroy people he thought were lower than him was fun and without consequence. Schrek has an incredible talent for smoothly moving from plot to plot as they change, quickly figuring out what would benefit him the most. Walken’s slimy performance in this film gets overshadowed by the big-name villains throughout the franchise, but it’s one of the best.
Michael Keaton’s Batman was developing as well. Where, as Batman (1989) felt like a deeply personal battle between him and Joker, Batman Returns forced Bruce to think of Gotham City’s people more, as protecting the city became the priority. There was never a personal vendetta between any of this film’s characters, as there was when he faced off against the Joker. Batman Returns was when Batman finally decided that Gotham City came first, and his own personal feelings would have to wait. This wasn’t just evident in his feuds with the film’s villains, but also in the relationship he desperately wanted to make work with Selina Kyle. She was right there. All he had to do was say the words, and he couldn’t because he knew millions of lives depended on him.
One of my favorite things about the Burton films (and just Burton’s work in general) is the attention to detail that went into the set design. Gotham City was built to look like it was pulled directly from a comic book. The sets combined whimsical features with a 1920s noir feel that was never captured again, aside from in Batman: The Animated Series. Gotham City felt like it was its own character in Batman Returns, and the only other film in the franchise to even come close to that, was the grimy feeling of Gotham in Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Each scene felt like a macabre playset; the town hall; the frozen zoo; the sewers. They all looked so incredible.
Along with the sets, everything else felt a lot bigger. Batman’s suit and gadgets were cleaner, we were introduced to the Batskiboat, and even Danny Elfman’s fantastic score swelled more and accompanied the characters with more purpose. The Batmobile looked sleeker and more sinister, a perfect counterweight for Penguin’s absurd duck vehicle.
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Sometimes I think about the alternative reality where the world was a little more ready for Batman Returns. Critics and audiences were confused about the tonal shift of the sequel, as many critics and fans weren’t pleased with the darker path the Batman franchise was going down. Regardless of it being an incredibly successful film ($266 million against its $80 million budget), Warner Bros. wanted to go lighter with Batman Forever. Michael Keaton was replaced by Val Kilmer, and that was enough for Tim Burton to step away, and be replaced by an eager Joel Schumacher.
We’ll probably never get a Tim Burton and Michael Keaton partnership in the Batman universe again (though Legacy sequels seem to be on the rise). However, I can still fondly go back to Batman Returns every December (Yes, it counts as a Christmas movie), and enjoy the best Batman film ever made.
