Despite the major success and popularity of Batman (1989), one person who was not a fan of the film was its director, Tim Burton. Burton called his earlier film boring and was unhappy with how much control the studio had over it. Because of this Burton was not excited about returning to the Caped Crusader and only agreed to do so when he was promised more creative control over this sequel. The original script for the film was written by Sam Hamm, who had written the script for the first movie. This script was in many ways much more of a direct sequel to the first movie and much more faithful to the comic books. That script would have introduced Robin to the mix and continued Bruce Wayne's romance with Vicky Vale (the final version of the film has a couple passing mentions of Vicky but never actually shows her on screen and makes it clear the two broke up). Burton instead wanted to distance himself and this movie from its predecessor. Hamm was let go from the film and Daniel Waters was brought on as the main writer. Waters' script bared little resemblance to either the previous film or the comic books. The result is a movie that is much more of a Tim Burton film than it is a Batman film. This movie is 100% Burton. It finds the filmmaker fully in his element and in the tradition of many of the best Burton movies, this is a wild and very fun ride.
The film opens with a wealthy couple putting their deformed baby into the sewers to fend for himself. He is then adopted by a family of penguins. One Christmas season, with the deformed child having grown to adulthood, this man (Danny DeVito) raised by penguins decides it is time to go to the surface and return to Gotham City. With the help of wealthy businessman, Max Shreck (Christopher Walken), he decides to run for mayor of Gotham City. Meanwhile a former employee (Michelle Pheiffer) of Shreck gets too close to finding out the dark truths about her boss and he kills her. When she is brought back to life as the dangerous femme fatale Catwoman, she seeks revenge upon her former employer. Batman seeks to stop both The Penguin and Catwoman, who in turn team up to get rid of him. All the while a romance is blooming between Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle (who is really Catwoman).
In a very Burton-eque film, The Penguin is the most Burton-eque part. This take on the classic villain bears little to no resemblance to his comic book counterpart. Instead he becomes a perfect example of a Tim Burton type of character. Burton has always associated with and cared deeply about the outsiders, the outcasts and the people who are looked upon by society as freaks. Though the Penguin is definitely eviler than most of these types of characters in Burton's films, he fits in perfectly. Though the character is pure evil, there is still part of us that sympathizes with him as an outcast rejected by society. We recognize and relate to his want to be loved and treated as a human being. At the same time we are horrified when he nearly bites off a man's nose and when his ultimate plan for Gotham City is revealed. This is the sign of a great villain. One who's motives we can easily understand and relate to but never enough to excuse the horrific and violent acts he does. Adding to this is a truly grotesque look to the character and a wonderfully animalistic performance by Danny DeVito. The character may not resemble his comic book counterpart but he is a very memorable and well written villain.
Catwoman is also a very interesting take on the classic villain. Again it is one that bears little resemblance to her comic book counterpart but one that is still a lot of fun to watch. Admittedly the supernatural element added to this character is never explained, but the idea of Catwoman actually having nine lives is still explored in an interesting way. The idea of coming back from the dead and realizing just how much you have been pushed around and seeking revenge on those who used you is simply a great idea for a movie character. While Catwoman has always been a character with more than a bit of sexuality to her, in this film she is at her most overtly sexual. In fact nearly every line she speaks with her in costume is some sort of double entendre. This is something that could have easily work against the film if it wasn't for Michelle Pheiffer playing the character. She delivers each one of these lines absolutely perfectly (or purrrr-fectly) and her sexy drawl really gets the most out of each line. Out of her Catwoman costume, Michelle Pheiffer and Michael Keaton (who once again returns as Batman and once again is perfect in the role) have wonderfully romantic chemistry. You can fully see each one letting their usual guard down when meeting out of costume.
While the first film introduced movie fans to a darker take on Batman, this film took it to a whole new level. While the first movie showed some glimmers of hope at the end, there is no such luxury here. There is a feeling that even if Batman can stop the villains here, Gotham can't truly be saved. Even the Christopher Nolan and Matt Reeves Batman films showed that there was an element of good beneath the people of Gotham City. Not here. Gotham here is simply full of people who are either corrupt or incompetent. There is no way for such a city to every redeem itself and this gives the film a much bleaker and darker feel than its predecessor. In a city like this even Batman cannot truly stand as a figure of hope in a dark world. Instead he is simply fighting a long and endless battle, where he can save the day, but can't save the city. This creates a darker and more brooding Batman. While in the previous movie, Bruce Wayne hosted social gatherings and met with people, here he is a solitary figure, that spends most of his time completely alone. The only people he lets into his heart are Alfred and Selina Kyle, but the latter is a romance that is doomed from the start. All this gives this movie a unique atmosphere and feel that works beautifully.
This is also a very good-looking movie. The look of Gotham City and the sewer world (where The Penguin dwells) are both beautifully realized and take one immediately into these worlds. The look of Gotham City is enhanced here by the Christmas setting. The Christmas setting allows for an even more stylized look and one that plays very cleverly with the contrast between the beautifulness of Christmas and the darkness of Gotham City. The result is simply wonderful and makes this movie a joy to look at.
As much as this movie has a darker feel to it, it also enjoys some of the cornier aspects of superhero stories. This movie is filled with the types of one-liners and delightful types of over-the-top moments that one may more associate with the 1960's Batman played by Adam West. Yet this pure campy fun is never at odds with the darkness of the story but instead enhances it with its own brand of playfulness.
The movie definitely divided audiences. Some were pulled into its unique charms while others (espically those with kids) were turned off by the film's dark tone, grotesqueness, violent moments and overtly sexual moments. There was more controversy caused when McDonalds had Happy Meal toys based off this not even slightly kid friendly film (this was back when PG-13 really meant something). Because of this the next live action Batman film, Batman Forever (1995) was a much more lighthearted and family friendly affair. Because of disagreements with the more family friendly direction of the movie franchise, Batman Forever would not be directed by Tim Burton and Michael Keaton would not be playing Batman. Unlike the previous movie, this film did not receive many imitators and there is not another mainstream superhero movie even remotely like Batman Returns. Luckily for us though we have this one very delightful film.
