Batman Returns: My Good, Bad, and Ugly

Rating: 7/10 (25 May 2019)

The Good:
Much of what makes this film unique is wrapped up in Tim Burton's aesthetic that was still somewhat new upon release, and yet to be as defined as Burton's films have done in the decades since. But, as I address below, because this film is more a Burton film than a Batman film the stylistic choices detract from the film's tone and content rather than complement them. Danny DeVito's performance is the only real bright spot of this film. While critical reviews vary on his turn as The Penguin, it was even, committed, and criminally lecherous. DeVito really delivers on Burton's intent for the character even if Burton doesn't finish with his own delivery for the film as a whole.
The Bad:
Burton's choice to replace Furst as Production Designer for this film, Bo Welch, continued with the established German Expressionism aesthetic of Batman (Tim Burton, 1989) in a much bigger way as might be expected of a sequel. The film goes as far as making literal nods to the film and art movement of the early 20th century in the character and costume design of the film's chief villain, Max Shreck. Visually, this film benefits in the same ways as its immediate predecessor, but fails in that it's more a Tim Burton film, as had been and would continue to be established, than it is a Batman film. And, the detachment is more than the film can sustain beyond its initial box office run.
The Ugly:
The easy choice for a film that's done it better is The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008), and it's the easy choice for a reason. It did everything a sequel needed to do, and it did everything a Batman sequel needed to do. Christopher Nolan's trilogy grounded Batman in reality, which hadn't yet been done, and that added level of excitement to the narrative as it unfolded that the fantasy and stylized nature of previous films negated. With the right director finally at the helm of a Batman film the cast really shines, Heath Ledger in particular. The debate on the better Joker can rage for eternity, but there's no real comparison between Ledger and Nicholson. Ledger is the darker and more convincing psychopath that Batman's conflicted duality needs as its opposition.