Burton's dark vision of Batman's Gotham City is impressive...

Rating: 7/10 (10 February 2007)

Tim Burton creates a dark vision of Gotham City and its inhabitants with BATMAN RETURNS, which begins with a stunning opening sequence with a freakish infant being disposed of by cruel parents, all to the pulsating and powerful score by Danny Elfman that sets the mood for the rest of the film.
MICHAEL KEATON returns for his second turn in the Batman role, convincing whether he's playing Bruce Wayne or the masked crusader; MICHELLE PFEIFFER has a grand time in her dual role as Selena, the mousy secretary afraid to express an opinion or the aggressive, sensuous and sinewy Catwoman who finds a willing opponent and lover in Batman, a love/hate relationship that builds to a frantic finale. The wonderful MICHAEL GOUGH is Alfred, Batman's faithful, wise and all knowing manservant. And, of course, DANNY deVITO gets a huge share of the spotlight as the villainous Penguin, conspiring with power hungry Max Schreck (CHRISTOPHER WALKEN) to get rid of their opponent, Batman.
While all the performances are right on target, it's the special effects and sets that dominate the story with its mean and twisted nature sharply accented by the dark foreboding appearance of Gotham City, its Herald Square resembling a bleak counterpoint to New York City's Rockefeller Center. MICHAEL MURPHY and PAT HINGLE are present in minor roles but the film is carried by Keaton, Pfeiffer and DeVito.
The screenplay is about as dark and mean spirited as you can get with comic book material, but it's the dazzling production design that gets the attention all the way through, usually on the sinister and somber side. There's a nightmarish quality to some of the action scenes and Burton, of course, is a master at this sort of thing.
All told, a very enjoyable take on the Batman legend, dark to be sure but never dull with lots of juicy dialog for clever exchanges between Batman and Catwoman in their game of oneupmanship. MICHELLE PFEIFFER is especially good at capturing the dual nature of her role--and makes a stunning Catwoman with a whip. MICHAEL KEATON is not an actor I personally would immediately think of casting as Batman, but he does extremely well in the role.
Summing up: Dazzling sets, good script and Danny Elfman's mesmerizing score are a solid combination to make this Batman a worthwhile viewing experience.