Robert Pattinson Opens Up On ‘The Batman’, Calling It Part Detective, Part Intense, Part Sad
Los Angeles, Feb 9 : Robert Pattinson has said that comic book movie fans will know that Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” is unlike any other live action depiction of the dark knight so far as soon as they see the opening shot. Reeves’ nearly-three hour Caped Crusader epic is inspired by New Hollywood classics from the 1970s, including “Taxi Driver,”
“The Conversation” and “Chinatown” and will feature a stylistic shift, focusing more on Batman’s detective persona in comparison to other adaptations. Pattinson told GQ magazine that viewers will feel these inspirations from the movie’s first frame. “I watched a rough cut of the movie by myself. And the first shot is so jarring from any other ‘Batman’ movie that it’s just kind of a totally different pace,” Pattinson said.
“It was what Matt was saying from the first meeting I had with him: ‘I want to do a ’70s noir detective story, like ‘The Conversation.’ And I kind of assumed that meant the mood board or something, the look of it. But from the first shot, it’s, Oh, this actually is a detective story.” Pattinson went on to say that he felt “like an idiot” for being oblivious to Batman’s reputation in the comics as one of the most renowned investigators of all time. “I feel like an idiot, because I didn’t even know that Batman was ‘the world’s greatest detective’; I hadn’t heard that in my life before—but it really plays. Just ’cause there’s a lot of stuff where he’s in amongst the cops.
Normally, when you see Batman he arrives and beats people up. But he’s having conversations, and there are emotional scenes between them, which I don’t think have been in any of the other movies.” Directed as noir action film “The Batman “ will feature a Gotham cast in the grips of criminal hell, overrun with chaos, darkness and despair. But, unlike other the Batman films, the character is not hailed as a hero or the answer to prayers as the movie is also an investigation into flaws of the dark knight, including a look into his twisted psychology.
Matt Reeves’ take on the hero is an edgier tale that skips the origin story and instead focuses on Batman’s persona as more of a vengeful crazed vigilante, rather than the dark and brooding symbol of justice that he is known to be in the comic books. Pattinson had earlier called his version of the character a “freak”, as the movie showcases a Batman who is into his second year of crime fighting, and is far more damaged than other versions. The vengeful crusader has been described as being rather morose and unhinged in his quest to tackle crime, with his quest an obsession than just a mission. Taking to GQ, Pattinson elaborated on the character.
“He doesn’t have a playboy persona at all, so he’s kind of a weirdo as Bruce and a weirdo as Batman, and I kept thinking there’s a more nihilistic slant to it. ‘Cause, normally, in all the other movies, Bruce goes away, trains, and returns to Gotham believing in himself, thinking, I’m gonna change things here. “But in this, it’s sort of implied that he’s had a bit of a breakdown. But this thing he’s doing, it’s not even working. Like, it’s two years into it, and the crime has gotten worse since Bruce started being Batman. The people of Gotham think that he’s just another symptom of how shit everything is.
“There’s this scene where he’s beating everyone up on this train platform, and I just love that there’s a bit in the script where the guy he’s saving is also just like: Ahh! It’s worse! You’re either being mugged by some gang members, or a monster comes and, like, fucking beats everybody up! The guy has no idea that Batman’s come to save him. It just looks like this werewolf.”
He added “ And I kept trying to play into that, I kept trying to think, and I’m going to express this so badly, but there’s this thing with addressing trauma.… All the other stories say the death of his parents is why Bruce becomes Batman, but I was trying to break that down in what I thought was a real way, instead of trying to rationalize it. He’s created this intricate construction for years and years and years, which has culminated in this Batman persona. But it’s not like a healthy thing that he’s done.” It’s like an extended crack-up. “Almost like a drug addiction,” he says. The actor noted “There’s a moment when Alfred asks Bruce what his family would think of him tarnishing the family legacy with his new side hustle. “And Bruce says: ‘This is my family legacy.
If I don’t do this, then there’s nothing else for me.’ I always read that as not like, ‘There’s nothing else,’ like, ‘I don’t have a purpose.’ But like: ‘I’m checking out.’ And I think that makes it a lot sadder. “Like, it’s a sad movie. It’s kind of about him trying to find some element of hope, in himself, and not just the city. Normally, Bruce never questions his own ability; he questions the city’s ability to change. But I mean, it’s kind of such an insane thing to do: The only way I can live is to dress up as a bat.” Shooting “The Batman” also resulted in Pattinson breaking his wrist and getting COVID. The actor told GQ that by the end of the shoot last year he was “really, really, really dead… I just looked at a photo of myself from April and I looked green.” Pattinson is joined in “The Batman” by Zoe Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Paul Dano as Edward Nashton/Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Peter Sarsgaard as Gil Colson, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth and Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin. “The Batman” is due in theatres on March 4, 2022.
