Batman Returns (1992)
Directed by Tim Burton
Once again we find ourselves in the beleaguered city of Gotham—only this time it’s steeped in Danny Elfman rhythms and Tim Burton’s sepulchral Christmastime. Gotham City faces some familiar socioeconomic problems this time around: a billionaire mogul dumping environmentally hazardous waste, high-society parents discarding their avian child, and agoraphobic thirtysomethings dressing up as pointy-eared, leather-clad animals. Michael Keaton returns as Bruce Wayne—and the titular avenger—this time alongside the luscious Michelle Pfeiffer as Selina Kyle/Catwoman and the rotund, pun-spewing Danny Devito as Oswald Cobblepot, or the Penguin. Their portentous stories interlace, and despite the archetypal fights and comic-book raillery, Burton enraptures us with the characters’ dueling selves and leaves us saddened by a sense of abandonment. Samantha Vacca (Mar 23, 8pm at IFC Center’s Queer/Art/Film)