After many years of production fraught with rumors and creative changes, it appears photography for The Batman is finally underway. This movie will be the first standalone movie for the Caped Crusader in almost a decade.
Writer/Director Matt Reeves announced via his Twitter yesterday afternoon.
#DayOne #TheBatman cc: @GreigfraserD pic.twitter.com/kOgcsa6zX3
— Matt Reeves (@mattreevesLA) January 27, 2020
Also tagged in the post is Director of Photography, Greig Fraser. If you don’t know that name, you almost certainly know his work. Fraser has worked as Cinematographer/Director of Photography for movies like Let Me In, Zero Dark Thirty, Foxcatcher, Rogue One, and the series The Mandalorian. All of those movies manage a dark moodiness without sucking out the color and vibrancy of the scenes, which is a difficult tight rope to walk. I’m not sure I can think of anyone else who can do what Fraser does so consistently pitch-perfect and that pseudo-noir mood is perfect for a Batman film. Fraser is also Director of Photography on the upcoming Denis Villeneuve Dune film.
Reeves has promised that The Batman will be in the noir detective style, which should be a wonderfully fresh take on The World’s Greatest Detective (at least from a film perspective).
Although the cast list can give us some hints–Robert Pattison as Batman, Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as Riddler, Colin Farrell as Penguin (interesting choice)–there are still no plot details that have been officially made public. Many sources have speculated that the film will draw heavily from The Long Halloween storyline. This story arc finds The Dark Knight spending a year tracking a serial killer who only kills on holidays. Batman has brushes with many members of his rogue’s gallery, and the story also ties into his friend Harvey Dent becoming Two-Face (which may be Peter Sarsgaard’s undisclosed role in The Batman).
The Batman currently has a release date of June 25th, 2021, so we will have plenty of time for further speculation and giddy reactions to official announcements.
Wash your hands.
