This article contains spoilers for The Batman.Batman has one of the greatest rogues’ galleries in comic history, including such iconic villains as Scarecrow, Bane, Ra’s Al Ghul, Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, Two-Face, and many, many more. And while not every big-screen adaptation of the Dark Knight’s deadliest foes has been a hit with the fans, plenty of Batman movies manage to do their villains justice.
Sure enough, The Batman (directed by Matt Reeves and starring Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne) is no exception. But while most Batman movies have limited themselves to one or two antagonists, the new film features three different comic villains in major roles — four if you count Catwoman, though Zoe Kravitz’s Selina Kyle is hardly villainous. And while Reeves’ take on some of Batman’s most iconic enemies may seem like a wild divergence from the comics at first, he manages to capture the heart and soul of his villains better than nearly any Batman film has done before.
Riddle Me This
The main antagonist of The Batman is of course Edward Nashton, aka the Riddler. But while he shares the name as past incarnations of the character, this new Riddler — played by Paul Dano — is far from the campy quizmaster of previous adaptations. Instead of a melodramatic trickster in a suit covered with question marks, Dano’s Riddler is a chilling hybrid of the Zodiac Killer and Jigsaw of Saw fame, ensnaring his victims in deadly and macabre traps. It’s a much darker take on the character than any previous iteration, to say the least. However, this isn’t a case of gratuitous edginess for its own sake, but rather an instance of a character being reimagined to better suit the tone and themes of a new story.
Indeed, die-hard fans need not worry about Dano’s Riddler being inaccurate to the comics. While the look of the character may be vastly different than what fans are used to, the core traits of the character are kept perfectly intact. Riddler is still a brilliant criminal mastermind who taunts Batman with cryptic puzzles, always staying one step ahead of his deductions. He’s every bit as smug and condescending as he’s always been, maintaining absolute confidence in the perfection of his schemes. And of course, he’s a natural showman, constantly hamming it up for the camera whenever he’s addressing the public. This Riddler may not look like his comic book self, but he definitely feels familiar all the same.
One notable change Reeves makes to the character is giving him a specific target in his crimes — the wealthy elite of Gotham City, from the mayor to the DA to Bruce Wayne himself. It’s revealed towards the end of the film that Riddler grew up in an orphanage that was meant to be funded by Wayne Enterprises, but after the death of Thomas and Martha Wayne, Carmine Falcone took the project’s funding for himself, leaving Edward and his fellow orphans in squalor. Lonely and bitter towards the city that abandoned him, Edward was inspired by Batman to seek out vengeance, becoming a symbol of fear to strike terror into all of Gotham. Initially, Riddler limits his targets to the city’s leaders, even earning public favor for exposing their corruption. But in the end, it becomes clear that Riddler doesn’t care about justice at all — he just wants to hurt the city that hurt him, and he doesn’t care how many innocent people die in the process.
All in all, Paul Dano’s Riddler is a perfect foil to Robert Pattinson’s Batman. He reflects Bruce’s worst flaws back at him in their most exaggerated form, taking his obsession with fear and vengeance to its logical, violent extreme. But while the film makes it clear that Riddler is very much a product of the broken system he grew up in, it also shows that he’s hardly someone to root for. Underneath his tragic backstory and lofty rhetoric, this Riddler is just a petty, spiteful man-child who’s desperate for attention. In that respect, he’s no different from his comic book counterpart.
The Emperors Of Gotham
Speaking of Gotham’s broken system, The Batman is also notable for exploring the deep-rooted corruption that plagues the city in more depth than any previous film. Every seat of authority in the city is crooked, from the cops to the mayor’s office. In a way, it isn’t Riddler who’s the ultimate villain of the film, but the corrupt establishment that’s turned Gotham City into a crime-ridden cesspool. And there’s no better embodiment of that corrupt establishment than the man who profits from it the most — Gotham’s most powerful crime lord, Carmine Falcone, played by John Turturro.
While Falcone doesn’t receive much screen time in the film, he makes the most of the scenes he does get. Turturro has always been a stellar character actor, and he plays Falcone with a perfect balance of authority, menace, and sleaze. And while Falcone isn’t the most complex antagonist, his actual character isn’t as important as what he represents. Falcone is a man who rules the entire city from the shadows, keeping Gotham’s politicians, police, and courts in his pocket to make sure he stays in power. Even Thomas Wayne, Bruce’s father, couldn’t escape from his influence. And of course, his cruelty is the entire reason Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman, endured her own traumatic past.
And finally, special mention must be made of Falcone’s right-hand man: the Penguin, played by Colin Farrell. Farrell’s Penguin lacks the top hat, monocle, and umbrella of his comic self, but like Riddler, he still encapsulates the spirit of the character. Like in the comics, Penguin is the proprietor of the Iceberg Lounge nightclub, and is knowledgeable of all manner of underworld goings-on. Most of the time, he’s not a direct antagonist, but his powerful place in Gotham’s hierarchy makes him a prominent player nonetheless. And while he may try to pass himself off as a sophisticated gentleman, Penguin can never hide how loathsome he truly is. He may not be the big bad of the film, but Farrell still steals every scene he’s in, and he’s more than earned his upcoming spin-off series.
In every instance, The Batman gets its villains right in every way that matters most. Not only are they all portrayed by fantastic actors, they’re utilized in a way that enriches the world and themes that the film attempts to weave. They may look like a far cry from their comic roots at first, but despite the new aesthetic, the traits that made these antagonists so enduring in the first place are still very much present.