Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
The monstrous Penguin, who dwells in the sewers beneath Gotham, joins up with corrupt mayoral candidate Max Shreck to topple the Batman once and for all. But when Shreck's timid assistant Selina Kyle finds out, and Shreck tries to kill her, she's transformed into the sexy Catwoman. She teams up with the Penguin and Shreck to destroy Batman, but sparks fly unexpectedly when she confronts the caped crusader.
Batman Returns is Tim Burton at his most unhinged and personal — a genuinely strange, operatic Gothic fairy tale masquerading as a superhero blockbuster. The production design and Danny DeVito's grotesque Penguin make it visually distinctive in a way few comic book films match. Cinematography earns a 4 for the expressionist Gotham snowscapes and Burton's sumptuous dark palette. Novelty is similarly high — this is a singularly weird studio tentpole, far more interested in freakish pathos and German Expressionist imagery than action. The plot is serviceable but overstuffed with three villains and tonal lurches that undercut coherence, landing at 3. Acting is uneven: Pfeiffer is iconic, DeVito committed, but Keaton is underused and Walken coasts. The ending is bittersweet and tonally consistent but not especially surprising or resonant.