Batman Returns

A Batman movie? Only this one. That’s because a celebration of fascist aesthetics, cut with art deco perfection, is a union of love. This is refined filmmaking with an admiration for the perfection of sculpture. This is the story of Catwoman and The Penguin. In the early 1990s, Hollywood was refreshed by a very interesting wave that drew inspiration from the 1930s, and as kindly as the remakes were with their return to the roots of Universal's classic monsters, Burton's team understood where to get the true delights. If they needed something comic for the decadent world of New Expressionism, they chose the Ice Queen, inspired by 1940s clowns such as Betty Grable. They clearly defined the beginning of bad taste and the end of goodness. I love Michelle Pfeiffer for her ambivalent Selina and Danny De Vito for the bird-like Oswald. Michael Keaton definitely entertained here more than he did in the first film. If you have a soft spot for Batman Returns, feel free to pick up the 2 DVD release. (03/02/2009)

A traditional Burton film for sight and Elfman for sound. The spice of the second Batman is definitely the atmosphere of Christmas, in which Tim Burton recalls his memories of his legendary godson The Nightmare Before Christmas. Dazzling cynicism, destruction of symbols and especially a yellow duck in the service of evil, this time with huge proportions... Magnificent, cynical, extraordinarily watchable. But looking at the scenery alone is not enough, so there are two key characters - Penguin and Catwoman. Both are much more prominent title heroes, which is not really a bad thing, because rather than the heroic deeds of Batman, the film is about the double-edged nature of these two characters. Batman Returns is able to make do without straightforwardness and in places, unfortunately, without storytelling flair. Burton tells the story incredibly colorfully and easily, but a few times I caught myself thinking: What about, actually? In short, I would expect a little more emotion and experience, but maybe it was just messed up for me by bad dubbing and a bad translation. Otherwise, this a good Burton film with everything it should have. Even with a filling that smells intoxicatingly of German expression. (23/07/2006)

The incredibly dark atmosphere together with Danny Elfman's music deliver a true comic book experience. I dare to say that the second Batman movie is not only more skillfully directed, but also visually more impressive, more atmospheric, and far darker. There isn't as much action, with more emphasis placed on the characters. Batman's gadgets are once again presented in full glory and for the entire two hours, there’s no chance of getting bored. The magnificent production design makes us forget about Joel Schumacher's later colorful escapades. (24/12/2005)

I like Burton, but he should never touch comics again. Besides, he didn't choose very good actors. Keaton annoyed me from the beginning, DeVito's Penguin is not a villain, but a desperately bizarre character, and Michelle Pfeiffer is a rather discouraging example of how to ruin a cult character of the series with Catwoman. And although Elfman's music is great and saves the atmosphere and to some extent the whole movie, this combination doesn't fit me at all. Depression and grotesqueness in the redrawn gothic setting do not equal a quality spectacle for me. I would rather watch the overacting duo Carrey-Jones in Batman Forever. 50% (25/03/2007)

The second part of Batman by Tim Burton is even better in terms of its atmosphere than its predecessor. The only thing missing is music by Prince, which managed to lift my mood a couple of times. But on the other hand, it offers Catwoman wearing a latex suit and a man-penguin and that’s not too bad, either. (21/02/2017)