The antagonists in Batman Returns are the blueprint for what comic book movie villains should be.
Batman has been at the center of the comic book movie scene for decades now. One of the most consistent movie headliners, the Caped Crusader hasn’t looked back since Michael Keaton brought him to life in Tim Burton’s revolutionary 1989 classic Batman.
Few expected Michael Keaton to be as good as he was in the film but he ended up delivering one of the very best portrayals of Batman of all time – one that many still consider the greatest to this very day.
But it isn’t just the Caped Crusader that brings people to the movies. His villains have a huge part to play in each of his movies’ successes (and failures). Keaton and Burton’s 1992 sequel, Batman Returns, showed us all just how important villains are to the Dark Knight. This writer will go as far as to say they helped redefine what it means to be a comic book villain.
On that note, let’s celebrate Batman Day by breaking down Batman Returns‘ three antagonists and looking at how they became the measuring point for villains in all comic book movies – especially those with more than one antagonist.
Catwoman
Eartha Kitt will forever be one of the best performers to portray Catwoman. She epitomized everything that makes the character was she is. She was powerful, clever, sexy and dangerous. She used Batman’s emotions against him and not even the World’s Greatest Detective was immune to her games. Decades later Michelle Pfeiffer added to this legacy with a dark twist.
Pfeiffer’s Catwoman was darker than Eartha Kitt, Julie Newmar and Lee Meriwether. Being thrown out of a window and left for dead will do that to you. This Catwoman showed audiences that women can be just as formidable and powerful as (if not more than) any male villain. We can go as far as to say she was the most terrifying character in this movie – and remember this is a movie with The Penguin in it (who certainly had his moments).
She was able to match Batman in the fight department, setting the stage for more female heroes and villains to shine in their own on-screen adventures. It’s a movement that is still growing to this day and hopefully we will see more complex characters like her in the near future.
Something else we’ve seen a lot of recently are the villains that aren’t quite evil. Batman Returns’ Catwoman was one of the first to do this. She did a lot of things that made her look bad (and she was) but there was compelling motivation behind her actions. She was out for revenge, broken and possibly a little bit unhinged because of what the twisted city (and, more specifically, her boss) had done to her. Again, you get thrown out of a window, die, be revived by cats and see how you feel.
The underrated mastermind Max Shreck
Some comic book villains are relatable. Their plans may be harsh, but at least they have good intentions (and we know where those lead to). Then there are people like Max Shreck . He’s easily one of the most despicable people in any comic book movie. He was everything people hate about corrupt men in power. He’s an uncaring monster who smiled for the public, but didn’t care about anyone but himself. He may have saved his son towards the end of Batman Returns, but did he care about his kid or his legacy continuing?
Throughout Batman Returns, Max Shreck showed why we need more villains like this. Watching a villain get what they deserve makes their demise that much better. When he pushed Selina out of the building, we couldn’t wait for his reckoning. When it finally happened, it was done perfectly. Only Catwoman should’ve been able to take him out.
While it was easy to detest him, Shreck was good at what he did. He knew how to play the game better than anyone. He employed Penguin to do his dirty work and continued looking good while someone else got their hands dirty. It was masterfully done and Christopher Walken was a revelation.
DC Comics should do more of this. We don’t always need Joker or Bane. Sometimes a Shreck will do.
The new terrifying and driven Penguin
Oswald Cobblepot is evil, plain and simple. Batman Returns nailed that aspect of the character but, just like Burton’s twisted sequel did with Catwoman, it also made him a more complex and compelling villain by giving him a very human backstory.
His parents couldn’t wait to discard him, using their own fear of him as an excuse to get rid of him. As a result, he was raised in the sewer. Who knows the kind of horrors he had to endure, the things he had to eat, and the harsh lessons he had to learn.
What’s funny is, despite all of that, Oswald became an articulate villain with a genius criminal mind, setting up complicated and shady undertakings and always managing to divert attention to someone else when it came to accepting responsibility.
There aren’t many people who fit the role like Danny DeVito did. He took the part of The Penguin and has become the person we associate with the character for years to come. He was the Robert Downey Jr. of the role years before RDJ even became Iron Man. To this day, no one can say anything bad about DeVito’s role in Batman Returns. He took this character and became a classic villain.
Multiple villains didn’t ruin Batman Returns
We’ve seen enough movies to know that too much of anything can ruin it. This is particularly clear in superhero movies when there are too many villains in play. One of the biggest critiques of Iron Man 2 is that there were too many characters being introduced. The same critique applied to movies like Spider-Man 3, Batman & Robin and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Batman Returns, however, didn’t have that problem. The Penguin, Catwoman, and Max Shreck blended well together. Each of them served a purpose to the story, influencing each other’s character arcs and ultimately adding to the movie.
What was equally as important was how well the actors worked with each when bringing these characters to life. That was the key. Michelle Pfeiffer and Danny DeVito had amazing chemistry together. As did Christopher Walken and Michael Keaton – both of whom also worked incredibly well with each other and the movie’s other stars. And then there is the incredible chemistry between Keaton and Pfeiffer, as their Batman and Catwoman is widely regarded as one of the best portrayals of any comic book romance.
This doesn’t work well in a lot of movies. Actors in their prime (or coming into it) will try to outdo each other instead of working together to create a memorable moment. Not here. Each of the performers here did a fantastic job working to create unforgettable moments. Without this chemistry, Batman Returns just wouldn’t be the classic film it continues to be.
What do you think? Does Batman Returns define what a villain is? Let us know in the comments below.