rljd:
It’s been a minute since I’ve been as taken aback by a film’s values as I am by the new Batman.
I just don’t feel about cops, criminals, white people, parole, violence, “organized crime,” euphemisms, national anthems, the supposed bourgeoisie or the purported…
#spoilers
I think she was in it about as much as Batman himself was in it. It is implied she came up from nothing and she is basically waging a one woman war on the rich. Where Batman goes to the streets and beats up the poor, Catwoman is waging the same war with the same zeal against those most responsible for the problem.
She shows how disconnected Batman is from what’s really going on. I think her big scene which shows her brand of crimefighting is toward the end when she saves the boy who has stolen a piece of fruit. She saves him as almost a patron saint of thieves, and rather than admonish him for stealing as Batman might do, tells him not to steal things he’s not fast enough to get away with. It’s a completely different message. And I think made in deliberate contrast to Batman. And in the end, he realizes her mission is the more righteous one, and he cedes his role of Batman to Blake and Kyle. (there’s a great moment when Blake calls out Wayne for losing track of his funding to the orphanage—and you see just how isolated and above everything Bruce is, just because of his wealth and status)
I think it’s all notable because it’s one of the rare times when one of the iconic heroes whose job it is to uphold the status quo, is shown to be holding up a broken evil status quo. And I don’t think the film runs from this awkwardness but seeks to explore it. And that’s why it worked for me.
