As does any Batman movie, The Batman is currently talking the world by storm and it's all anybody can talk about. And as is only natural, audiences can't help but compare the dark movie to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, which was hugely influential and the last solo Batman movies that were released.
There are things in those movies that will never be topped, such as the portrayal of the Joker and the dichotomy between Batman and Bruce Wayne, two things that the 2022 release fails at. But between the gothic setting and the mystery-thriller approach, there are tons of things that Matt Reeves' gruelingly dark reboot did better than Nolan's trilogy.
Gotham
The Gotham is the Dark Knight trilogy changes drastically with each movie to the point where it raises several questions. Where Wayne Enterprises was more of a gothic-looking building in Batman Begins, it changed to an ordinary-looking skyscraper in The Dark Knight. Though Batman Begins does a decent job of depicting Gotham as a crime-ridden city that's rainy and gothic, the two following movies essentially looked just like Chicago, which is where the two sequels were shot.
However, the Gotham in The Batman is the most gothic the city has ever been portrayed, and even Wayne Enterprises is candlelit. It goes so far with the rain to the point where it's almost comical. But the rain is what adds to the suspense of some scenes, such as the shot of Gil Colson being attacked by the Riddler, as the rain hides what actually going on, leaving audiences to imagine the worst.
Catwoman
While Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises was imperative in helping Batman hang up his cape and cowl, the depiction didn't quite capture the character as fans know her. There are plenty of comics that explore Catwoman and Batman's relationship in unique ways, but the 2012 movie failed on that front. However, The Batman sees Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz) working in the Iceberg Lounge, cracking safes, and using expert combat skills, everything the character is known for. She even has her own story arc with her father, Carmine Falcone.
Interestingly, Kravitz actually tried to audition for DKR's Catwoman, but she was turned away for being too "urban." However, it worked out for the best, as it's likely that Kravitz will return as the character in the future, whether it's in an HBO spin-off series or a The Batman sequel.
Detective Work
Though Pattinson didn't know this about Batman when he was auditioning for the role, the Caped Crusader is also known as the World's Greatest Detective. But the actor and audiences would hardly know that based on the movies. Batman has never been depicted as solving crimes and following clues left at crime scenes in the films, especially not in Nolan's trilogy, which was more action-oriented.
But in The Batman, the masked vigilante is hopping between crime scenes, the Iceberg Lounge, and the Batcave, as he's decoding ciphers and interrogating gangsters. And though watching Batman read through endless files doesn't sound riveting, it's a fresh take on the Dark Knight.
Batman As A Hero, Actually Saving People
It seemed like Reeves was momentarily getting his superheroes mixed up, as the end of the movie saw Bruce explaining that he now thinks Batman is a symbol for "hope." While hope is Superman's thing, it led to Batman actively saving people's lives and connecting with the citizens of Gotham instead of simply giving thugs the beatdowns of their lives.
And though the beatdowns came in spades, The Batman saw the Caped Crusader literally pulling civilians out of wreckages and putting them on stretchers. In the Dark Knight trilogy, Batman's only ever seen saving himself and his loved ones. And while getting the bomb six miles away from Gotham at the end of The Dark Knight Rises may be heroic, there were no real interactions with the people he saved.
Club Brawls
The Iceberg Lounge is an iconic landmark in the Batman franchise, as it's an infamous mob hangout owned by the Penguin, and it's usually blaring techno music with strobe lights shooting every which way. While it's extremely brief, there is a sequence where Batman storms into the club in The Dark Knight when he's searching for Salvatore Maroni. Amidst the music and lights, Batman can be seen knocking out Maroni's men, and it's an exciting but short 20 seconds.
A similar scene takes place in The Batman, but it lasts much longer and the fight choreography is far superior too. Batman is jumping over rails, using the grappling hook to pull enemies closer, and whacking henchmen with their own guns. There are tons of great nightclub scenes in movies, whether it's the shootout in John Wick or the very realistic scene in The Social Network, and The Batman joins those ranks.
Carmine Falcone
Batman Begins is one of the best superhero origin movies, and that's partly because of the way it sets up Gotham's criminal underworld full of gangsters. And in that respect, The Batman owes a lot to the Nolan-directed origin movie. Tom Wilkinson's portrayal of feared gangster Carmine Falcone in Batman Begins is one of the best performances of the movie, and he really makes audiences believe he shouldn't be messed with.
But compared to John Turturro's depiction of the character in The Batman, Begins' portrayal looks like a cartoonish caricature of a 1940s gangster. Falcone is the most sadistic character in the movie, as he killed Selina's mother by choking her and tries to do the same to Selina.
The Batman's Hand-To-Hand Combat
While Nolan is great at many things, especially action sequences that have many different working parts to them, his fight scenes leave a lot to be desired. In The Dark Knight, the final fight scene literally has Batman going up against dogs, and in The Dark Knight Rises, the fight choreography is so bad that one henchman is left with nobody to fight and falls over on his own accord.
On the other hand, The Batman features some of the best fighting choreography in a blockbuster movie. Along with the club brawl and the way Catwoman fights like a ballerina in combat, every hand-to-hand combat scene in The Batman is simply jaw-dropping. It joins the ranks of modern movies like John Wick and The Raid as being one of the most impressive fighting movies.
The Batman's Score
Han Zimmer is one of the best film composers of all time, and his work with Nolan alone is a career any musician could only dream of, not to mention his other work. But Michael Giacchino's The Batman score is haunting and on such a huge scale that it makes Zimmer's scores look so understated by comparison.
It isn't just Batman's theme, but Catwoman and the Riddler's themes perfectly reflect their characters too. The soundtrack is a full two hours of haunting music that builds suspense, and the movie also expertly uses "Something in the Way" by Nirvana throughout its three-hour runtime.
The Batmobile
The Batmobile in the Dark Knight trilogy and The Batman have one thing in common, and that's that their Batmobiles totally subvert expectations and are unlike anything that anybody would have imagined. There's no doubt that the Tumbler is one of the most battle-ready Batmobiles, but there's also no doubt that Bruce's muscle car in The Batman is easily in contention for the best Batmobile ever.
The Tumbler is an interesting take on the iconic vehicle, and while it's entertaining seeing it tearing up rooftops in Batman Begins, the souped-up 1970 Plymouth Barracuda has a life of its own. The moment when Batman revs the engine, the Caped Crusader becomes the second fiddle to the car for the next ten minutes.
Batman's Relationship With The GCPD
Few Gotham City police officers are outspoken about Batman in the Dark Knight trilogy, and, if anything, they're excited to "see a show," as one of the cops puts it in The Dark Knight Rises, and watch him in action. But, in reality, the police department is divided on their feelings towards Batman, and that's depicted perfectly in the 2022 movie.
This is shown in one of the earliest scenes when an officer stops him from entering a crime scene and then calls him a freak. And then there's the epic scene of the officers brawling with Batman and trying to take off his mask in the station. And by extension, Batman's relationship with Commissioner Gordon is far more interesting too, as, at times, it often feels like a buddy-cop movie.