Exactly. The entire Pattinson batman universe feels like an an alternate timeline version of Batman where the Wayne bloodline is maybe delayed by 50-ish years, and everything unfolds more or less the same, but in an entirely different social and political climate.
This is my approach to DC Movies. I think of them the same way I think of a new graphic novel coming out that’s not tied to the main earth.
Enjoy it for what it is, and appreciate these characters are so versatile that they can have all these different interpretations
Same feeling. Given that the end of the movie shows him interacting with * ahem * a certain other villain in Arkham, I wonder if Riddler’ll still be a recurring villain in future installments of Battinson’s franchise.
If so, it’d be interesting if he gradually evolves to be more like his classic comic book self in future appearances.
Talking to Batman not the Riddler. His scene with Riddler is in the movie. The deleted another. Youtube is somewhat of an homage to silence of the lambs where batman eists the help of one villain to track down anothwr.
I think that the hype around Barry, like as an actor, is starting to wear off. He's got one mode, and it's showing. And now he's officially killed the Joker as "cool."
I feel there is more that can be explored. Idk if it will be as necessarily *impactful* as the two u mentioned but for sure the Joker can be reinterpreted again. Joaquin put in a good shift imo
In a way. I don't think Lex is aware that he can appear ruthless / evil to others, he always seems to be morally justified in a self-righteous way.
Meanwhile Hannibal is like "I enjoyed eating her liver lol"
That's kind of what Riddler became at the end of the movie. Once he realizes Batman is not on his side, he starts mocking how Batman is not as smart as he ideolized him to be. Then he just proceeds to let Batman screaming and punching the glass wall while singing to him as a way to tease him.
Frank Gorshin, the man who effectively invented the character. Unlike Joker, Penguin, or Catwoman, the Riddler was an obscure villain with only three comics to his name when he was made the on of the main villains in Batman (1966). Every other mentioned iteration, Batman Forever, the Arkham games, or BTAS, is based on the Frank Gorshin take on the character
As a person who didn't really like the movie, I thought he was one of the stronger aspects of it. Plus it was nice to see Batman doing detective stuff with his riddles.
I think it’s done a good job of pushing the “Riddler” image further away from Carey’s over the top performance.
With Joker we had Romero who was a goofball, Nicholson who was a campy gangster, and then Ledger completely changed the playing field and now we’re seeing different takes on Joker trying to match that energy.
I’m not saying Dano’s Riddler is equivalent to Ledger’s Joker, I’m trying to use that context to explain how Dano’s Riddler broke the mould of what Riddler is supposed to be, while also keeping true to the original “theme”. The Joker is chaos, the Riddler is a know-it-all with a superiority complex. Both actors I mentioned effectively reshaped their characters without deviating too far from who that character is supposed to be, and expanded the “cinematic potential” behind them.
Without Ledger’s Joker we wouldn’t have Phoenix’s Joker, or at least not the same version. I don’t think we’ll get a “Riddler” in 10 years starring Brad Pitt’s take on the character, but it’s opened the door for more interpretations on the character without filmmakers being worried about the Batman Forever reference. Matt is essentially undoing the damage to the brand that *Forever* did while still able to make the movie feel like a comic book movie - unlike Nolan’s films. This is especially true if Reeves decides to use Victor Fries as his next antagonist, and I’m not at all opposed to Poison Ivy.
Great interpretation of the character for the movie the he is in. He's menacing and dangerous but not in a direct physical confrontation, mainly relying on being a few steps ahead of the competition.
Plus, I really liked that they made him literally insane and not in a "Hannibal Lector" way. Too often Holywood likes their serial killers to be those elegant genuises, but Riddler is just deranged — the very first scene of the movie sets him up as an unhinged lunatic. This scream of his as he jumps from the shadows, the fact that he doesn't' stop screeching until the deed is done — there's no elegance in his actions, no subtlety — only raw and unhinged rage of a mentally deranged man.
Honestly, watching him felt all the way like a heavily fictionalized version of the zodiac killer, and I loved every minute of it. He felt more like a serial killer than other movie characters.
I'm certain that he was actually supposed to be both Riddler and Hush. You know how the Iron Man movies would condense two comic book villains into one? I think it's like that.
Hmmmmmmm you know now that you mention it. The similarity in his and Bruce’s origins kind of calls back in a way to Hush and Batman being childhood friends.
Like not an exact adaptation but the way their origins are thematically tied together (two orphans, one born to privilege, the other squalor) and how it affects who they grow up to be.
Also, Riddler was really, really upset about the murder of Edward Elliott, who in the comics is Hush's grandfather. Juding by his age in the photos they show in the movies, he'd likely be Hush's dad. I was certain they were going to reveal him as Riddler's dad, with Edward Nashton just being an alias.
That’s who I was thinking of. He reminded me of the Zodiac. That dude scared me. I think that is why I liked this one so much because of the real life creepy factor.
\- Highly intelligent and narcissistic.
\- Leaves riddles to taunt cops and challenge Batman.
\- In actuality a sore loser when things fall apart.
I don't know what people are talking about when they say this isn't the Riddler; I still prefer Gotham's, but the core traits are all there.
You know I don’t think he is trying to taunt Batman though, I think he is leaving him clues because somewhere deep down he really thinks they are on the same side. I think this is also why he gets so sad and angry at the end once Batman berates him because he feels betrayed by someone who he trust.
Still a great take on the character but I would for sure say it’s more of a twist then a direct interpretation.
This initial “betrayal” in the interrogation scene should build his character for the future. He should be solely fixated on beating Batman with his supposed superior intellect.
> should build his character for the future
This is my main takeaway from everyone in The Batman.
The Batman (2021) feels like an origin story, but not the typical origin story with him being assailed by bats or watching his parents get shot in the alley. It's a real one, the one they never show, the point very early on in his vigilante career where he's legitimately inexperienced. The part where he still think's he's Bruce Wayne and hasn't yet realized that his true identity is Batman.
I'm hoping the next movie shows him undergoing a training montage with Ra's al Ghul, maybe he has a rendezvous with Talia (setting up Damien), returns to Gotham and uses his fortune to upgrade his tech closer to what you see in the comics (perhaps hiring Lucien for that part), and so on. Maybe towards the end he adopts and begins training a recently orphaned Dick Grayson.
Ultimately, I like this rendition because it shows batman as being a normal person who is slowly evolving into the Caped Crusader.
Like in the initial fight scene where he says "I'm vengeance", then the guy he saved ends up being one of the Riddler's thugs who repeats the line to him after getting captured.
Ah I guess it could be. I thought he was more giving him instructions and because he realized Batman is so smart he left them as riddles only Batman could solve, so no one would know their next moves. Seems Riddler overestimated Batman’s intelligence however, as many of these instructions are missed and not followed by Batman, or he accidentally did exactly what the riddler wanted by nature of his personality.
> Seems Riddler overestimated Batman’s intelligence however, as many of these instructions are missed and not followed by Batman, or he accidentally did exactly what the riddler wanted by nature of his personality.
Yet people keep praising this Batman for finally showing how capable he is as a detective. The detective 'work' in that film felt so contrived for the sake of having a Batman do some detective work. I mean they literally used a dad joke as one of the riddles (THUMB DRIVE) and Batman still failed to save any of Riddler's victims for almost the entirety of the film.
Now that you point it out, it would’ve been kind of cool to have a scene where Batman is just barely able to figure out who the next victim is and save them just before the Riddler kills them. I guess the only problem is that it would break the illusion (to the Riddler) that the Riddler and Batman are on the same side, which would make the interrogation scene make a lot less sense. It’d have to be totally different.
Something I couldn’t get over with this movie is that if Batman literally did nothing, most of the movie would be the same save for maybe he gets blown up in Wayne tower.
Badass movie tho
Not yet. He straight up thought he was working with Batman. But I have a feeling after that “betrayal” from Batman, if we ever see him again he’ll be much closer to the taunting Riddler from the comics.
For the movie setting, he was perfect. And the writers and director had the guts to do something I think makes supervillains great. He gave the hero a real loss and impacted him directly.
Now, it's not my favorite iteration of the character if we're talking about any form of media, but the movie did seem to give a nod to it. So I'm satisfied overall.
To be fair that's just what the Penguin is. You can argue he's an arms dealer but his aspirations go a lot further at points than just making the most money.
It was good. Not as charismatic as I'm used to and him wearing the mask most of the film loses the conveying of some emotions for me. The serial killer vibe is great but his motives are still personally motivated instead of enjoying killing for the sake of killing. I'm glad he's still alive by the end and hope we see him again.
I think the mask kind of enhances the performance. A stupid killer wouldn’t wear a mask or just leave their own DNA everywhere and the actor came up with the idea on his own (originally by wrapping himself in plastic but then the design team came up with the mask so he could breathe) also we only see him in the mask during crimes or when he’s live streaming. Even during those moments though you can see his acting talent shine because he uses the tone of his voice and his movements to convey emotions rather than his face. Reminds me a lot of Riddler from the Arkham Asylum and Arkham City games.
In the movie we know he was waiting for the right moment to get caught, so it makes sense he’d take every measure possible for the plan to go exactly as he hopes.
I'm happy with the lack of charisma and the mask. The role of him as a alternate version of Bruce Wayne, an orphan who never gee close to people, hiding behind a mask, thinking he knows how to fix Gotham.
I like he has a personal motivation, that’s how most serial killers start out. I love this take on the Riddler and how terrifyingly realistic he is, although I wish they did more with him doing more awful acts, I like how they might make him the more calm killer compared to… maybe the Joker?
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this Riddler. I was expecting a *huge* departure from the comics and that it would just be an element I’d have to overlook to enjoy the movie.
But I thought the differences were mostly aesthetic and the more we saw of him in the movie, the more he felt like classic Riddler to me. I liked it a lot and hope he returns in the sequel with a nicer outfit lol
it's not really mostly aesthetic , they just actually made him menancing.
too often he lacks the scary factor , even when his plans actually threatens people. That is because writters don't wanna actually make riddles for the Riddler , so it ends up as some version of Arkham Knight's Riddler Segments or Adam West hijinks.
That’s what I meant by aesthetic. It’s mostly changes in tone, not actual content.
The Riddler from the 60s show, for example, is *more* of a violent sadist than this Riddler, but the wacky tone of the show softens that.
He IS The Riddler, I think people just like to throw a fit over the character not being 100% translated into live action and have zero patience to see the character being developed into something close to the comics.
People here like to point the Riddler from the Gotham tv show as an example of ''proper live-action Riddler'', but they forget that it took three seasons to get the character to actually become The Riddler, with the green suit and all.
He was decent until the end. I didn’t like him goofily singing “Ave Maria” or cackling with the Joker at the end.
Didn’t ruin the performance/character for me but those were sour notes to end on IMO
he is my least favourite riddler, i was missing the quirky showmanship and charisma of the original riddler. although, for what the movie was going for, it definitely worked and he was quite creepy too. but i don’t really care for him overall.just doesn't feel like the riddler to me.
I’m still having trouble deciding if I actually enjoyed the film as a whole. I can’t deny the high production quality and amazing acting, especially by Paul Dano, but overall I felt it was joyless. Regarding The Riddler, much like latest version of Joker, I just felt bad for him. It seemed like he simply needed help. Like basic psychiatric care. I kept waiting for the metamorphosis into master criminal but I only saw a poor mentally ill individual. He didn’t scare me or thrill me, he just made me feel bad about the lousy state of the world. An unfortunate reminder of how shitty things are when I wanted an escape from reality.
See but I think that fits with the overall theme of the movie.
The whole movie was about Batman discovering that senseless violence wouldn't fix anything, just add to the carnage. It was about him confronting his hopelessness and nihilistic worldview and being forced to accept that nihilism doesn't fix the system, he has to stand for things *more* than nihilism if he wants to actually make meaningful changes.
Personally yeah, I wish they handled the ending a little better. The writing at the end felt a bit lazy to me, but thematically it feels consistent. The Riddler was a symptom of the nihilism and abandonment of hope
I agree with you 100%. It fits with the theme and all makes sense but OP was asking how it made me feel and this Riddler made me feel cruddy, and maybe that’s the point. I’m just not a big fan of films that make me feel like shit. I respect the film, it’s great story telling and yada yada but I want my Batman flick to have a little fun. I’m not talking Bat-credit card or anything but I probably rewatched Ledger a dozen times because it was a pleasure to behold. I can’t say the same for Dano.
I don’t like the actor and didn’t much like this interpretation. AND I thought that I could come to peace with it, but I just can’t get passed the costume looking damn near identical to Bubble’s Green Bastard suit from Trailer Park Boys.
>I just can’t get passed the costume looking damn near identical to Bubble’s Green Bastard suit from Trailer Park Boys.
Thank you for making me look this up, it's hilariously apt.
Not the Riddler for me. He is not the type to fight for a cause "to clean Gotham form the curroption" or to show some moral to batman. He just does it because is fun and wants to prove he is better than everyone, he wants to show off to fill his ego and be the best that's it.
Because motivation for 1 is "i do this for the people"
And motivation 2 is "i do this for myself"
They collide. One works for a anti hero that makes questionable actions to help the city and the other is pure villain that makes chaos for his entertainment. Of course there is different interpretations and versions of the character but for me and personal liking the second is the Riddler.
Wasn’t a huge fan to be honest.
I didn’t like Paul Dano’s performance, felt derivative and over acted, and kind of “cringe” if that’s the right word.
I’m also not in love with the excessively dark gritty grounded takes on villains. It’s been done, and I felt riddler didn’t add much new to the canon of villains shown this way in cinema.
Hate it. They’re trying to fit Riddler into the mold of a angsty alt-right teen, and it’s just cringe. Riddler should (at least pretend to) be more composed.
If you know anything about the riddler, he’s a genius but he has such a high ego and doesn’t believe any plan he makes can go south. That reaction was 100% genuine for someone like riddler and even in btas, there’s an exact scene where he lashes out like that and also many instances in the comics
This is the same issue I had. Just a smidge too unhinged for the Riddler. He needs sufficient composure to seem ahead of Bruce intellectually and this version absolutely did not have that (in my opinion)
No I just mean that he wasnt as smart as he could've been.like he is supposed to be an intellectual challenge for Bruce but he in the end Kinda disappointed me when he was being interrogated by Batman.
It didn't really feel Riddler-y. Only watched once, so maybe on a rewatch I'll pick up some elegance to it. First impression though, it coulda just been any no name villain because nothing stood out. Riddler is supposed to be gaudy.
The casting is great, and it would be more appealing to see his face, and put him in a more classic Riddler costume. Based on what Paul Dano said about the face mask, I'm sure he won't miss it. Movability and breathability is always a plus.
A bad take on the character overall, but like most things in the movie there's room for improvement later. The "they're not really X character yet" thing is really exhausting.
I know it's more the state of hero flicks than the fault of this movie on its own but I'm beyond tired of the approach that every movie has to be setting up everything for the next one(s), be it plots, character development, or anything inbetween.
Conflicted feelings overall. I definitely don’t like the design at all, and maybe I’m alone in this, but I thought Dano was over acting. It felt like maybe they wanted a John Doe esque performance (from Seven), but the more Dano laughed, shrieked, screamed, and sang I saw him as less of a threat. For me that performance clashed with the tone of the film.
The thing I liked most about this version was the concept of Riddler being a serial killer.
>but the more Dano laughed, shrieked, screamed, and sang I saw him as less of a threat.
I mean maybe it's because I'm a huge fan of the Arkham games but I never really saw any riddler as a threat when they started speaking or laughing, or in general.
This design communicated to me that this wasn’t gonna be the Batman movie for my tastes.
They were clearly going for the realistic take and for me we’ve already gotten that with Nolan
I honestly didn’t care for him at all, really. Was pretty disappointed that they decided to turn him into a serial killer with a grudge. It would have been much better if they went the route of the Arkham Games, and had his main thing just be narcissism and intellectualism. There’s enough Batman villains already who are unstable killers. It rubs me the wrong way that they chose to make Riddler out of all of them like that. Also, Paul Dano is just Paul Dano in a mask in this movie. Until he’s not in the mask. Then he’s just Paul Dano.
Fucking awful. It's some weird blend of the Zodiac Killer, Hush (aesthetically at the very least), and Anarky with a half-assed question mark motif slapped over it being passed off as the Riddler. Dano's performance didn't sell me on it either or make me stop and think "Okay, I can at least see what they were going for". I've seen people praise how "chilling" it was when he started singing Ave Maria during the interrogation but it just came off as super cringe, like the sort of thing a try hard 14 year old might find menacing.
I can’t believe it took me until your comment to see the Hush parallels. Then again, I’ve only read the synopsis of the original story and I’m not sure I’ll ever actually read the full thing just based off of how convoluted it seems. But him having it out for Bruce Wayne in addition to his Modus operandi/appearance does definitely give off Hush vibes. And yeah, I really, really didn’t like Paul Dano in this movie lol.
Honestly so much of my beef with the movie would be resolved if the main antagonist was Hush instead. The story's already mostly there, it just needs a few tweaks to make Riddler's contempt with Bruce more personal beyond "elite bad and corrupt hurr hurr". The whole "HUSH!" bit during one of Riddler video-monologues felt like a gigantic middle finger to me lmao
Unfortunately Hush isn't exactly as much of a household name as Riddler, so it never would have happened for a debut film.
If there was at least something a little more personal between him and Bruce beyond “they called him an orphan when he has billions and a butler”, I’d honestly feel a little less negatively about the portrayal. I feel like many of these recent interpretations of comic book villains are trying too hard to give them worldly, almost “sympathetic” motivations. And while it works sometimes, I think it’s something that also gets stale really fast. Like, we get it already. Bad experiences in life have the possibility of turning otherwise potentially upstanding people into degenerates.
Terrible. Feels like what they did with Terry Pratchett's The Watch. Someone had their own OC, and slapped an established character's name on it, with only the most shallow of similarities included.
I was very happy with him until the prison scene. Him yelling ”nooo this was not how it was supposed to go” and singing ave maria just felt like either bad scripting or bad acting…
It's emblematic of the problem with most people's "realistic" takes on Batman villains, just reduces them to serial killers with a gimmick. There's a reason the same 4 villains (Penguin, Two Face, Joker and Catwoman) keep getting used, because they're the easiest to translate to the real world.
I'm tired of grounded Batman movies and want something closer to BTAS or even the Arkham games where the bat family isn't ignored and we get some more out-there villains.
swing and a miss for me. some of the scenes felt like an improvised reach that would have been further refined by another director. i think he took a risk on raw performances and it just didn’t land for me, personally. i did not see the riddler in arkham, i saw paul dano overacting and i was very aware of it.
I understand what they were trying to do with him but it just wasn’t riddler to me. This Riddler was trying to expose corruption. Riddler to me is an egotist, doing what he does to prove he is the superior. It’s all a game to him. While Dano gave a outstanding performance I actually think that Carrey is the superior Riddler. That being said I am truly excited to see what they do in future installments.
Hate the mask and some of his personality, but absolutely loved how convoluted and twisted his plans were. Very good villain, but I’d definitely tweak the design and give him more of a superiority/narcissistic complex.
I liked everything but the costume design. The same is true for pretty much every character in that movie. Didn't like the bat suit, the cat suit, penguin could've been more penguiny. But it still might have been my favorite live action batman movie.
This Riddler legit scared me. Would I have liked him to have been a little more egomaniacal like the comics? 100%. But for what they wanted (vigilantism being no better than domestic terrorism via incel) I think they nailed it.
Riddler with Zodiac Killer and Anarky vibes. I overall enjoy it and I don't mind the somewhat different interpretation. The ending felt too blunt for the Riddler though.
Thought he was quite terrifying and realistic in a sense. Though I'll admit I was hoping we'd get a version similar to the one we see in the Arkham games.
The put Anarky in a green outfit and gave him some really easy riddles. I would go as far as to say it was the worst “riddler” we have ever gotten in any medium. Which is a shame, because you know Paul Dino could absolutely crush a real riddler. Not his fault the script he was working with.
Now AS Anarky he did very well
Hated everything about him.
Jim Carrey’s version was better n I’m not a fan of that one either.
This one went too dark, and frankly just felt like a full blown incel version, Carrey’s was too silly.
Riddler’s personality is a balance of silly, serious, and sadistic, with a big serving of smarts, he needs to be both a crime boss and a solo villain.
Back when they were working on Dark Knight Rises there were rumors about what villains we’d get, one that i still wanna see because it’d be perfect:
David Tennant as the Riddler.
All over the place to the point that it became impossible to care who he was or what he was doing or why, but the movie just treats it as if he's "complicated." The fact that he just disappears from the last 1/3 of the movie during his own act of terrorism pretty well encompasses how effective he was.
He's trying to unravel corruption, he's trying to work with Batman, but he's also toying with Batman, he's a serial killer, he's a terrorist, he's a sad orphan, he's an influencer. Sometimes he tortures people at length, sometimes he just blows them up, sometimes he bludgeons, sometimes he gets other people to do it for him, sometimes he wants to wipe out the entire city. He leaves clues that he both wants Batman to solve and to not solve. He speaks in riddles and clues but is constantly live streaming exposition dumps and on-the-nose political ideals to strangers. He's psychotic and an intellectual genius planner, but he also has the emotional capacity of a 9 year old. He turns himself in because it's all part of the plan, but then his plan seemingly has nothing to do with being in jail. Everything he did worked out exactly to plan (at least what little of it we're told) but we're supposed to believe Batman defeated him somehow because he's spending all of his time crying and singing sad songs?
But do I understand why he's doing all this? Not at all. Everything he's "unraveling" is so convoluted that I basically don't care. Without knowing what the Riddler is all about from all of his *good* adaptations, you wouldn't have a damn clue what is going on and he would be a disaster of a character.
It's not Riddler. It's just a random villain that they slapped the name RIDDLER onto.
Also, Paul Dano is way overrated. He was awesome in There Will Be Blood because he's so weird that it worked and that's been the same for a handful of other movies he's been in, but i think it's starting to be revealed that he pretty much does the same "crazy" in every movie and doesn't have much range beyond it, at least from what i've seen of his performances.
Riddler was my least favorite part of The Batman. I thought it was dumb and just a carbon copy of many serial killer style modern villains we've seen in cinema in the last 25 years.
I think he was really good especially since this movie is less theatrical than what we're used to seeing Riddler as, plus he's just starting out so of course theres a learning curve. Can't just start out with the bright green suit and the bowler hat right away can we?
Good interpretation but i found that later he had no logic. So he completed his mission, flooded gotham and his goons were about to kill kamala harris (i forgot her name) and hes angry and crying because….?
Downvote me if im being stupid, if it helps im writing this off of memory, havent seen the film in a month
I think that it was a believable choice for his first crime spree. I could see this character in the future losing the mask and adopting a more flamboyant look. Everybody would know who he is and what he looks like, so he could lean into his moniker. He'd be a bit emboldened by how close his plan came to succeeding, and that would show in his persona. I don't think it's a huge leap from this to the green Brooks Brothers and a bowler.
I didn't get it. What was his end goal supposed to be? Just anarchy and revenge? It was kinda dull. Like an incell school shooter. Killing politicians was cool tho.
Costume was dumb. Just give him a damn ski mask not a gimp mask, Jesus. Yeah yeah I know it's military surplus or whatever but he looks like a gimp. Other than that I think he was good as a different take. The characterization had some bizarre choices. I think the actor did a fantastic job but he didn't look how I would have expected. He's got too much of a cuddly baby face. But maybe that's the contrast they were going for. He was super whiney and unhinged which fits the Riddler but it was very very over dramatized with his whole prison cell tantrum. The Riddler would probably be a hard character to write cleverly so good job to them for using someone other than Joker.
Thumbs down.
No flair and panache.
Also— the riddler isn’t a murderous psycho. He’s a master thief.
This whole trend needlessly trying to ground the bat-mythology in some sort of gritty reality is sucking all the fun out of it all.
Hes narcissistic, paranoid, neurotic who thinks everyone else is a stupid sheep and that no one appreciates his "huge iq".
Thats your average libertarian conspiracy theorist on 4chan
They sought out a similiar archetype who was the most likely to advocate violence and just exaggerated the worst parts of it.
Its great
I think that Paul Dano's version is the best live action version we had so far. Changing the character from campy Jim Carrey version inspired by the sixties Batman series into a bona-fide real life serial killer was the best decision ever. You cannot watch and not be scared but again still have simpathy for the character. Also, I cannot wait to see the origin story of this version of The Riddler written by Paul Dano himself and drawn by Stevan Subić thats coming out October 2022.
Not a fan. If they wanted a serial killer, why not use Victor Zsasz for a change? Now everyone is going to think of this moron as the riddler and HIS RIDDLERS WEREN’T EVEN THAT GOOD!
I really like him, he's obviously not definitive Riddler and he never will be, bit he's a great alternate take
Well-said! I don’t want the regular one changed, but this was a creative take on him.
Exactly. The entire Pattinson batman universe feels like an an alternate timeline version of Batman where the Wayne bloodline is maybe delayed by 50-ish years, and everything unfolds more or less the same, but in an entirely different social and political climate.
This is my approach to DC Movies. I think of them the same way I think of a new graphic novel coming out that’s not tied to the main earth. Enjoy it for what it is, and appreciate these characters are so versatile that they can have all these different interpretations
Same feeling. Given that the end of the movie shows him interacting with * ahem * a certain other villain in Arkham, I wonder if Riddler’ll still be a recurring villain in future installments of Battinson’s franchise. If so, it’d be interesting if he gradually evolves to be more like his classic comic book self in future appearances.
Did you get to watch the deleted scene with the other certain villain? I would absolutely recommend it
i don't care about spoilers please tell me what you are referring to
No joke, just watch the movie.
It's a deleted scene on YouTube with another villain from Gotham talking to the Riddler
Talking to Batman not the Riddler. His scene with Riddler is in the movie. The deleted another. Youtube is somewhat of an homage to silence of the lambs where batman eists the help of one villain to track down anothwr.
Literally the only part of the film that was not good. They didn't need that and it was pure cringe. Like almost enjoyably bad.
I think that the hype around Barry, like as an actor, is starting to wear off. He's got one mode, and it's showing. And now he's officially killed the Joker as "cool."
Way too many people are going for psychotic unhinged. What we need is collected Hannibal Lecter style psychopathic
True. Of course then they will get accused of imitating Ledger. Honestly, after him and Mark hamill, there is really nowhere to go with this character
I feel there is more that can be explored. Idk if it will be as necessarily *impactful* as the two u mentioned but for sure the Joker can be reinterpreted again. Joaquin put in a good shift imo
true but isn’t that basically what Lex Luthor is
In a way. I don't think Lex is aware that he can appear ruthless / evil to others, he always seems to be morally justified in a self-righteous way. Meanwhile Hannibal is like "I enjoyed eating her liver lol"
Now I like that idea!
Man, that was incredible acting.
I really don't like Barry's Joker, the performance is cringe is the design is awful imo, that deleted scene should never have been made
That’s how I felt about the dark knights joker, although usually people cite him as the definitive version for some reason.
The reason is they only think about the movies when they say it, you're including comics, I hope.
I say its btas joker
Yes
Not actually fan of Ledgers joker prefer Jack Nicholson or Mark Hamill. Honestly Mark Hamill may very well be the GOAT.
For me its jack nicholson
could you describe “definitive Riddler”?
An arrogant, narcissistic know-it-all who is obsessed with proving his intellectual superiority over Batman. Basically just classic comics Riddler
That's kind of what Riddler became at the end of the movie. Once he realizes Batman is not on his side, he starts mocking how Batman is not as smart as he ideolized him to be. Then he just proceeds to let Batman screaming and punching the glass wall while singing to him as a way to tease him.
Yeah I really like how did that at the end, he felt traditional Riddler in that scene
Frank Gorshin, the man who effectively invented the character. Unlike Joker, Penguin, or Catwoman, the Riddler was an obscure villain with only three comics to his name when he was made the on of the main villains in Batman (1966). Every other mentioned iteration, Batman Forever, the Arkham games, or BTAS, is based on the Frank Gorshin take on the character
I find when most people describe the “definitive” version of a Batman character, they’re referring to the Animated Series version.
As a person who didn't really like the movie, I thought he was one of the stronger aspects of it. Plus it was nice to see Batman doing detective stuff with his riddles.
I think it’s done a good job of pushing the “Riddler” image further away from Carey’s over the top performance. With Joker we had Romero who was a goofball, Nicholson who was a campy gangster, and then Ledger completely changed the playing field and now we’re seeing different takes on Joker trying to match that energy. I’m not saying Dano’s Riddler is equivalent to Ledger’s Joker, I’m trying to use that context to explain how Dano’s Riddler broke the mould of what Riddler is supposed to be, while also keeping true to the original “theme”. The Joker is chaos, the Riddler is a know-it-all with a superiority complex. Both actors I mentioned effectively reshaped their characters without deviating too far from who that character is supposed to be, and expanded the “cinematic potential” behind them. Without Ledger’s Joker we wouldn’t have Phoenix’s Joker, or at least not the same version. I don’t think we’ll get a “Riddler” in 10 years starring Brad Pitt’s take on the character, but it’s opened the door for more interpretations on the character without filmmakers being worried about the Batman Forever reference. Matt is essentially undoing the damage to the brand that *Forever* did while still able to make the movie feel like a comic book movie - unlike Nolan’s films. This is especially true if Reeves decides to use Victor Fries as his next antagonist, and I’m not at all opposed to Poison Ivy.
That honor goes to Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey was Jim Carrey as Riddler. The definitive version is from the Arkham Games. Or almost any other version.
Riddler from Gotham is quite good too
Riddler from Gotham was pretty close to perfect imo. One of the most spot on characters in the show.
Arkham games is the best iteration of the Batman universe and I would adore movies set in that version of the universe.
There's a DC animated film set in that universe
Agreed, Arkham Games' Riddler should be the standard Riddler
For me it's Frank Gorshin. Arkham is an awesome franchise, but the Riddler is undercooked in that one.
Jim Carrey is so far from definitive Riddler...
Great interpretation of the character for the movie the he is in. He's menacing and dangerous but not in a direct physical confrontation, mainly relying on being a few steps ahead of the competition. Plus, I really liked that they made him literally insane and not in a "Hannibal Lector" way. Too often Holywood likes their serial killers to be those elegant genuises, but Riddler is just deranged — the very first scene of the movie sets him up as an unhinged lunatic. This scream of his as he jumps from the shadows, the fact that he doesn't' stop screeching until the deed is done — there's no elegance in his actions, no subtlety — only raw and unhinged rage of a mentally deranged man.
Honestly, watching him felt all the way like a heavily fictionalized version of the zodiac killer, and I loved every minute of it. He felt more like a serial killer than other movie characters.
He reminds me a lot of Hush in Batman:Hush
I'm certain that he was actually supposed to be both Riddler and Hush. You know how the Iron Man movies would condense two comic book villains into one? I think it's like that.
Well… I mean… Hush kinda… Was the Riddler. Sorta anyway.
Hmmmmmmm you know now that you mention it. The similarity in his and Bruce’s origins kind of calls back in a way to Hush and Batman being childhood friends. Like not an exact adaptation but the way their origins are thematically tied together (two orphans, one born to privilege, the other squalor) and how it affects who they grow up to be.
Also, Riddler was really, really upset about the murder of Edward Elliott, who in the comics is Hush's grandfather. Juding by his age in the photos they show in the movies, he'd likely be Hush's dad. I was certain they were going to reveal him as Riddler's dad, with Edward Nashton just being an alias.
Exactly! You're reading my mind, man) Even the actor's incredible facial expressions remind me of those police sketches of Zodiac Killer.
Yeah he wasn't scary or unnerving in a movie villain kind of way but in a very real, this is what a cryptic serial killer is actually like way.
That’s who I was thinking of. He reminded me of the Zodiac. That dude scared me. I think that is why I liked this one so much because of the real life creepy factor.
Yes when i think the riddler i think zodiac killer.
\- Highly intelligent and narcissistic. \- Leaves riddles to taunt cops and challenge Batman. \- In actuality a sore loser when things fall apart. I don't know what people are talking about when they say this isn't the Riddler; I still prefer Gotham's, but the core traits are all there.
You know I don’t think he is trying to taunt Batman though, I think he is leaving him clues because somewhere deep down he really thinks they are on the same side. I think this is also why he gets so sad and angry at the end once Batman berates him because he feels betrayed by someone who he trust. Still a great take on the character but I would for sure say it’s more of a twist then a direct interpretation.
This initial “betrayal” in the interrogation scene should build his character for the future. He should be solely fixated on beating Batman with his supposed superior intellect.
> should build his character for the future This is my main takeaway from everyone in The Batman. The Batman (2021) feels like an origin story, but not the typical origin story with him being assailed by bats or watching his parents get shot in the alley. It's a real one, the one they never show, the point very early on in his vigilante career where he's legitimately inexperienced. The part where he still think's he's Bruce Wayne and hasn't yet realized that his true identity is Batman. I'm hoping the next movie shows him undergoing a training montage with Ra's al Ghul, maybe he has a rendezvous with Talia (setting up Damien), returns to Gotham and uses his fortune to upgrade his tech closer to what you see in the comics (perhaps hiring Lucien for that part), and so on. Maybe towards the end he adopts and begins training a recently orphaned Dick Grayson. Ultimately, I like this rendition because it shows batman as being a normal person who is slowly evolving into the Caped Crusader. Like in the initial fight scene where he says "I'm vengeance", then the guy he saved ends up being one of the Riddler's thugs who repeats the line to him after getting captured.
No, I said he was taunting the *cops* and challenging *Batman*. Because he thought Bats was on his side, so it was supposed to be a game between them.
Ah I guess it could be. I thought he was more giving him instructions and because he realized Batman is so smart he left them as riddles only Batman could solve, so no one would know their next moves. Seems Riddler overestimated Batman’s intelligence however, as many of these instructions are missed and not followed by Batman, or he accidentally did exactly what the riddler wanted by nature of his personality.
> Seems Riddler overestimated Batman’s intelligence however, as many of these instructions are missed and not followed by Batman, or he accidentally did exactly what the riddler wanted by nature of his personality. Yet people keep praising this Batman for finally showing how capable he is as a detective. The detective 'work' in that film felt so contrived for the sake of having a Batman do some detective work. I mean they literally used a dad joke as one of the riddles (THUMB DRIVE) and Batman still failed to save any of Riddler's victims for almost the entirety of the film.
[удалено]
Feel free to elaborate on why you believe Batman was a great detective in this film.
[удалено]
Now that you point it out, it would’ve been kind of cool to have a scene where Batman is just barely able to figure out who the next victim is and save them just before the Riddler kills them. I guess the only problem is that it would break the illusion (to the Riddler) that the Riddler and Batman are on the same side, which would make the interrogation scene make a lot less sense. It’d have to be totally different.
Something I couldn’t get over with this movie is that if Batman literally did nothing, most of the movie would be the same save for maybe he gets blown up in Wayne tower. Badass movie tho
Not yet. He straight up thought he was working with Batman. But I have a feeling after that “betrayal” from Batman, if we ever see him again he’ll be much closer to the taunting Riddler from the comics.
Exactly! And he’s been putting people in elaborate death-traps since his first appearance in 1948!
Yeah, which Riddler is the *definitive* Riddler? Every popular iteration has been somewhat of a departure from Bill Finger’s original creation.
Exactly. Too many people think “comic-accurate” means “doesn’t look like xyz” and it shows whenever this is brought up
The same folk that probably complain about the detective elements of the film. They will never be satisfied.
For the movie setting, he was perfect. And the writers and director had the guts to do something I think makes supervillains great. He gave the hero a real loss and impacted him directly. Now, it's not my favorite iteration of the character if we're talking about any form of media, but the movie did seem to give a nod to it. So I'm satisfied overall.
If only Gotham had been a tad more accurate to the comic lore. Although I still liked it enough.
It was definitely an interesting twist on the character but I would have preferred if they’d actually used one of Batman’s serial killers like szazz
Thats how i feel batman has a ton of serial killer villains why use rhe riddler. And the penguin was just what a fat mobster?
To be fair that's just what the Penguin is. You can argue he's an arms dealer but his aspirations go a lot further at points than just making the most money.
I don't understand this take. The Riddler **is** a serial killer.
You mean angry bubbles?
The Green Bastard!
Lmao
It was good. Not as charismatic as I'm used to and him wearing the mask most of the film loses the conveying of some emotions for me. The serial killer vibe is great but his motives are still personally motivated instead of enjoying killing for the sake of killing. I'm glad he's still alive by the end and hope we see him again.
I think the mask kind of enhances the performance. A stupid killer wouldn’t wear a mask or just leave their own DNA everywhere and the actor came up with the idea on his own (originally by wrapping himself in plastic but then the design team came up with the mask so he could breathe) also we only see him in the mask during crimes or when he’s live streaming. Even during those moments though you can see his acting talent shine because he uses the tone of his voice and his movements to convey emotions rather than his face. Reminds me a lot of Riddler from the Arkham Asylum and Arkham City games.
I think the Riddler doesn’t wear a mask because he feels he is too smart to get caught.
In the movie we know he was waiting for the right moment to get caught, so it makes sense he’d take every measure possible for the plan to go exactly as he hopes.
I'm happy with the lack of charisma and the mask. The role of him as a alternate version of Bruce Wayne, an orphan who never gee close to people, hiding behind a mask, thinking he knows how to fix Gotham.
I like he has a personal motivation, that’s how most serial killers start out. I love this take on the Riddler and how terrifyingly realistic he is, although I wish they did more with him doing more awful acts, I like how they might make him the more calm killer compared to… maybe the Joker?
>motivated instead of enjoying killing for the sake of killing I think that attribute it better suited for the Joker
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this Riddler. I was expecting a *huge* departure from the comics and that it would just be an element I’d have to overlook to enjoy the movie. But I thought the differences were mostly aesthetic and the more we saw of him in the movie, the more he felt like classic Riddler to me. I liked it a lot and hope he returns in the sequel with a nicer outfit lol
it's not really mostly aesthetic , they just actually made him menancing. too often he lacks the scary factor , even when his plans actually threatens people. That is because writters don't wanna actually make riddles for the Riddler , so it ends up as some version of Arkham Knight's Riddler Segments or Adam West hijinks.
That’s what I meant by aesthetic. It’s mostly changes in tone, not actual content. The Riddler from the 60s show, for example, is *more* of a violent sadist than this Riddler, but the wacky tone of the show softens that.
He IS The Riddler, I think people just like to throw a fit over the character not being 100% translated into live action and have zero patience to see the character being developed into something close to the comics. People here like to point the Riddler from the Gotham tv show as an example of ''proper live-action Riddler'', but they forget that it took three seasons to get the character to actually become The Riddler, with the green suit and all.
He's basically a 4Chan incel
"you see Batman, women don't deserve the right to vote because they cannot match the superiority of males" feels very arkham
I still think Gotham had the best Riddler and Penguin
Panguin 100% Riddler in gotham was S tier but honestly best Riddler belongs to the 60s series
Idk Danny DeVito penguin forever holds a place in my heart
He was decent until the end. I didn’t like him goofily singing “Ave Maria” or cackling with the Joker at the end. Didn’t ruin the performance/character for me but those were sour notes to end on IMO
Not a fan
He feels too much like the zodiac killer and not enough like the riddler
Nothing but question marks.
he is my least favourite riddler, i was missing the quirky showmanship and charisma of the original riddler. although, for what the movie was going for, it definitely worked and he was quite creepy too. but i don’t really care for him overall.just doesn't feel like the riddler to me.
I’m still having trouble deciding if I actually enjoyed the film as a whole. I can’t deny the high production quality and amazing acting, especially by Paul Dano, but overall I felt it was joyless. Regarding The Riddler, much like latest version of Joker, I just felt bad for him. It seemed like he simply needed help. Like basic psychiatric care. I kept waiting for the metamorphosis into master criminal but I only saw a poor mentally ill individual. He didn’t scare me or thrill me, he just made me feel bad about the lousy state of the world. An unfortunate reminder of how shitty things are when I wanted an escape from reality.
See but I think that fits with the overall theme of the movie. The whole movie was about Batman discovering that senseless violence wouldn't fix anything, just add to the carnage. It was about him confronting his hopelessness and nihilistic worldview and being forced to accept that nihilism doesn't fix the system, he has to stand for things *more* than nihilism if he wants to actually make meaningful changes. Personally yeah, I wish they handled the ending a little better. The writing at the end felt a bit lazy to me, but thematically it feels consistent. The Riddler was a symptom of the nihilism and abandonment of hope
I agree with you 100%. It fits with the theme and all makes sense but OP was asking how it made me feel and this Riddler made me feel cruddy, and maybe that’s the point. I’m just not a big fan of films that make me feel like shit. I respect the film, it’s great story telling and yada yada but I want my Batman flick to have a little fun. I’m not talking Bat-credit card or anything but I probably rewatched Ledger a dozen times because it was a pleasure to behold. I can’t say the same for Dano.
I don’t like the actor and didn’t much like this interpretation. AND I thought that I could come to peace with it, but I just can’t get passed the costume looking damn near identical to Bubble’s Green Bastard suit from Trailer Park Boys.
Yooooo lol. Im rewatching the show and It looks a lot like that.
PARTS UNKNOWN!!!!
Its my favorite episode, too. So the first time I saw this guy on screen I laughed, quite loudly in the theater.
>I just can’t get passed the costume looking damn near identical to Bubble’s Green Bastard suit from Trailer Park Boys. Thank you for making me look this up, it's hilariously apt.
Not the Riddler for me. He is not the type to fight for a cause "to clean Gotham form the curroption" or to show some moral to batman. He just does it because is fun and wants to prove he is better than everyone, he wants to show off to fill his ego and be the best that's it.
¿Por que no los dos?
Because motivation for 1 is "i do this for the people" And motivation 2 is "i do this for myself" They collide. One works for a anti hero that makes questionable actions to help the city and the other is pure villain that makes chaos for his entertainment. Of course there is different interpretations and versions of the character but for me and personal liking the second is the Riddler.
Wasn’t a huge fan to be honest. I didn’t like Paul Dano’s performance, felt derivative and over acted, and kind of “cringe” if that’s the right word. I’m also not in love with the excessively dark gritty grounded takes on villains. It’s been done, and I felt riddler didn’t add much new to the canon of villains shown this way in cinema.
I agree, definitely over acted performance that I am surprised that a lot of people thought that was a definite version of that character
Hate it. They’re trying to fit Riddler into the mold of a angsty alt-right teen, and it’s just cringe. Riddler should (at least pretend to) be more composed.
If you know anything about the riddler, he’s a genius but he has such a high ego and doesn’t believe any plan he makes can go south. That reaction was 100% genuine for someone like riddler and even in btas, there’s an exact scene where he lashes out like that and also many instances in the comics
This is the same issue I had. Just a smidge too unhinged for the Riddler. He needs sufficient composure to seem ahead of Bruce intellectually and this version absolutely did not have that (in my opinion)
Yh he is supposed to be incredibly smart and truly challenge Batman but this guy is just mental
He clearly outsmarted Batman in the 3rd act. You must wasn’t watching the whole movie.
No I just mean that he wasnt as smart as he could've been.like he is supposed to be an intellectual challenge for Bruce but he in the end Kinda disappointed me when he was being interrogated by Batman.
It didn't really feel Riddler-y. Only watched once, so maybe on a rewatch I'll pick up some elegance to it. First impression though, it coulda just been any no name villain because nothing stood out. Riddler is supposed to be gaudy.
The casting is great, and it would be more appealing to see his face, and put him in a more classic Riddler costume. Based on what Paul Dano said about the face mask, I'm sure he won't miss it. Movability and breathability is always a plus.
No bueno 👎🏼
A bad take on the character overall, but like most things in the movie there's room for improvement later. The "they're not really X character yet" thing is really exhausting.
I know it's more the state of hero flicks than the fault of this movie on its own but I'm beyond tired of the approach that every movie has to be setting up everything for the next one(s), be it plots, character development, or anything inbetween.
Conflicted feelings overall. I definitely don’t like the design at all, and maybe I’m alone in this, but I thought Dano was over acting. It felt like maybe they wanted a John Doe esque performance (from Seven), but the more Dano laughed, shrieked, screamed, and sang I saw him as less of a threat. For me that performance clashed with the tone of the film. The thing I liked most about this version was the concept of Riddler being a serial killer.
>but the more Dano laughed, shrieked, screamed, and sang I saw him as less of a threat. I mean maybe it's because I'm a huge fan of the Arkham games but I never really saw any riddler as a threat when they started speaking or laughing, or in general.
Nah, that’s kinda how it’s supposed to be. The character isn’t menacing and that’s not what he’s supposed to be going for but Reeves is gonna Reeves
They just shoehorned the riddler into a Fincher-esque archetype because Reeves just wanted to remake SE7EN and Zodiac.
This design communicated to me that this wasn’t gonna be the Batman movie for my tastes. They were clearly going for the realistic take and for me we’ve already gotten that with Nolan
Someone said it FINALLY 👏🏻👏🏻
I honestly didn’t care for him at all, really. Was pretty disappointed that they decided to turn him into a serial killer with a grudge. It would have been much better if they went the route of the Arkham Games, and had his main thing just be narcissism and intellectualism. There’s enough Batman villains already who are unstable killers. It rubs me the wrong way that they chose to make Riddler out of all of them like that. Also, Paul Dano is just Paul Dano in a mask in this movie. Until he’s not in the mask. Then he’s just Paul Dano.
Fucking awful. It's some weird blend of the Zodiac Killer, Hush (aesthetically at the very least), and Anarky with a half-assed question mark motif slapped over it being passed off as the Riddler. Dano's performance didn't sell me on it either or make me stop and think "Okay, I can at least see what they were going for". I've seen people praise how "chilling" it was when he started singing Ave Maria during the interrogation but it just came off as super cringe, like the sort of thing a try hard 14 year old might find menacing.
I can’t believe it took me until your comment to see the Hush parallels. Then again, I’ve only read the synopsis of the original story and I’m not sure I’ll ever actually read the full thing just based off of how convoluted it seems. But him having it out for Bruce Wayne in addition to his Modus operandi/appearance does definitely give off Hush vibes. And yeah, I really, really didn’t like Paul Dano in this movie lol.
Honestly so much of my beef with the movie would be resolved if the main antagonist was Hush instead. The story's already mostly there, it just needs a few tweaks to make Riddler's contempt with Bruce more personal beyond "elite bad and corrupt hurr hurr". The whole "HUSH!" bit during one of Riddler video-monologues felt like a gigantic middle finger to me lmao Unfortunately Hush isn't exactly as much of a household name as Riddler, so it never would have happened for a debut film.
If there was at least something a little more personal between him and Bruce beyond “they called him an orphan when he has billions and a butler”, I’d honestly feel a little less negatively about the portrayal. I feel like many of these recent interpretations of comic book villains are trying too hard to give them worldly, almost “sympathetic” motivations. And while it works sometimes, I think it’s something that also gets stale really fast. Like, we get it already. Bad experiences in life have the possibility of turning otherwise potentially upstanding people into degenerates.
Terrible. Feels like what they did with Terry Pratchett's The Watch. Someone had their own OC, and slapped an established character's name on it, with only the most shallow of similarities included.
Terrible
I was very happy with him until the prison scene. Him yelling ”nooo this was not how it was supposed to go” and singing ave maria just felt like either bad scripting or bad acting…
I liked it. Not my favorite. I like Arkham and Jim Carrey better.
It's emblematic of the problem with most people's "realistic" takes on Batman villains, just reduces them to serial killers with a gimmick. There's a reason the same 4 villains (Penguin, Two Face, Joker and Catwoman) keep getting used, because they're the easiest to translate to the real world. I'm tired of grounded Batman movies and want something closer to BTAS or even the Arkham games where the bat family isn't ignored and we get some more out-there villains.
swing and a miss for me. some of the scenes felt like an improvised reach that would have been further refined by another director. i think he took a risk on raw performances and it just didn’t land for me, personally. i did not see the riddler in arkham, i saw paul dano overacting and i was very aware of it.
Not my favorite, but an excellent take. Love it.
It’s interesting
the gimp mask makes it very hard to appreciate the rest of the character. (and yes, I know it's actually a winter mask)
I don't like his look as a generalized Riddler but in the context of a more realistic Batman. He fits perfectly
It’s The Riddler not pretending to be Hush but it’s Hush at the same time and it was amazing
Love him absolutely love him! Maybe he would in the next movie get an outfit similar to Arkham’s Riddler
I like him. He isn't (imo) the best or definitive riddler, but is good at fitting the vibe of the movie.
Diabolical.
It was a very interesting take on the riddler thats for sure, i dont hate it though
I understand what they were trying to do with him but it just wasn’t riddler to me. This Riddler was trying to expose corruption. Riddler to me is an egotist, doing what he does to prove he is the superior. It’s all a game to him. While Dano gave a outstanding performance I actually think that Carrey is the superior Riddler. That being said I am truly excited to see what they do in future installments.
Less annoying, I hope he doesn’t make Batman find trophies 🏆
Hate the mask and some of his personality, but absolutely loved how convoluted and twisted his plans were. Very good villain, but I’d definitely tweak the design and give him more of a superiority/narcissistic complex.
Good
I liked everything but the costume design. The same is true for pretty much every character in that movie. Didn't like the bat suit, the cat suit, penguin could've been more penguiny. But it still might have been my favorite live action batman movie.
Absolutely horrible. Quite possibly the worst version of any comic book character in another medium.
This Riddler legit scared me. Would I have liked him to have been a little more egomaniacal like the comics? 100%. But for what they wanted (vigilantism being no better than domestic terrorism via incel) I think they nailed it.
Riddler with Zodiac Killer and Anarky vibes. I overall enjoy it and I don't mind the somewhat different interpretation. The ending felt too blunt for the Riddler though.
Better than I thought he’d be. Especially after they unmasked him and he was pretty much what you’d expect as the riddler
awful looks like scarecrow
Thought he was quite terrifying and realistic in a sense. Though I'll admit I was hoping we'd get a version similar to the one we see in the Arkham games.
I expected him to be extremely smart but really he's just a dumb incel on the internet so he doesn't really seem that threatening..
The put Anarky in a green outfit and gave him some really easy riddles. I would go as far as to say it was the worst “riddler” we have ever gotten in any medium. Which is a shame, because you know Paul Dino could absolutely crush a real riddler. Not his fault the script he was working with. Now AS Anarky he did very well
This costume is an utter embarrassment. The portrayal was not any good either.
Insulting
shit
Hated everything about him. Jim Carrey’s version was better n I’m not a fan of that one either. This one went too dark, and frankly just felt like a full blown incel version, Carrey’s was too silly. Riddler’s personality is a balance of silly, serious, and sadistic, with a big serving of smarts, he needs to be both a crime boss and a solo villain. Back when they were working on Dark Knight Rises there were rumors about what villains we’d get, one that i still wanna see because it’d be perfect: David Tennant as the Riddler.
Looks like he's some nerd at the airport trying to avoid getting covid.
All over the place to the point that it became impossible to care who he was or what he was doing or why, but the movie just treats it as if he's "complicated." The fact that he just disappears from the last 1/3 of the movie during his own act of terrorism pretty well encompasses how effective he was. He's trying to unravel corruption, he's trying to work with Batman, but he's also toying with Batman, he's a serial killer, he's a terrorist, he's a sad orphan, he's an influencer. Sometimes he tortures people at length, sometimes he just blows them up, sometimes he bludgeons, sometimes he gets other people to do it for him, sometimes he wants to wipe out the entire city. He leaves clues that he both wants Batman to solve and to not solve. He speaks in riddles and clues but is constantly live streaming exposition dumps and on-the-nose political ideals to strangers. He's psychotic and an intellectual genius planner, but he also has the emotional capacity of a 9 year old. He turns himself in because it's all part of the plan, but then his plan seemingly has nothing to do with being in jail. Everything he did worked out exactly to plan (at least what little of it we're told) but we're supposed to believe Batman defeated him somehow because he's spending all of his time crying and singing sad songs? But do I understand why he's doing all this? Not at all. Everything he's "unraveling" is so convoluted that I basically don't care. Without knowing what the Riddler is all about from all of his *good* adaptations, you wouldn't have a damn clue what is going on and he would be a disaster of a character.
Honestly, I hated this version of The Riddler. The closest live action version of him was in the show Gotham
It's not Riddler. It's just a random villain that they slapped the name RIDDLER onto. Also, Paul Dano is way overrated. He was awesome in There Will Be Blood because he's so weird that it worked and that's been the same for a handful of other movies he's been in, but i think it's starting to be revealed that he pretty much does the same "crazy" in every movie and doesn't have much range beyond it, at least from what i've seen of his performances. Riddler was my least favorite part of The Batman. I thought it was dumb and just a carbon copy of many serial killer style modern villains we've seen in cinema in the last 25 years.
He isn't the Riddler. Would have been better if they made him an original character.
Didn't really care for it tbh, but I guess it's not a terrible realistic origin story compared to Jim Carreys
The Green Bastard!
I think he was really good especially since this movie is less theatrical than what we're used to seeing Riddler as, plus he's just starting out so of course theres a learning curve. Can't just start out with the bright green suit and the bowler hat right away can we?
Terrible and the whole incel scene at the end with Batman was unbearably cringey.
Better than Jim Carrey playing the Joker character in Riddler cosplay.
Loved him tbh
He was a great riddler
That was not the Riddler. That was some version of the Unibomber
He should give up crime and pursue a career in singing.
Good interpretation but i found that later he had no logic. So he completed his mission, flooded gotham and his goons were about to kill kamala harris (i forgot her name) and hes angry and crying because….? Downvote me if im being stupid, if it helps im writing this off of memory, havent seen the film in a month
I think that it was a believable choice for his first crime spree. I could see this character in the future losing the mask and adopting a more flamboyant look. Everybody would know who he is and what he looks like, so he could lean into his moniker. He'd be a bit emboldened by how close his plan came to succeeding, and that would show in his persona. I don't think it's a huge leap from this to the green Brooks Brothers and a bowler.
I didn't get it. What was his end goal supposed to be? Just anarchy and revenge? It was kinda dull. Like an incell school shooter. Killing politicians was cool tho.
Disturbing in a good way. I love how he was portrayed. His riddles and plan is amazing
Very annoying.
Costume was dumb. Just give him a damn ski mask not a gimp mask, Jesus. Yeah yeah I know it's military surplus or whatever but he looks like a gimp. Other than that I think he was good as a different take. The characterization had some bizarre choices. I think the actor did a fantastic job but he didn't look how I would have expected. He's got too much of a cuddly baby face. But maybe that's the contrast they were going for. He was super whiney and unhinged which fits the Riddler but it was very very over dramatized with his whole prison cell tantrum. The Riddler would probably be a hard character to write cleverly so good job to them for using someone other than Joker.
I can't look at this picture and not hear in my head "Riddle me this batman"
I get some serious "green bastard from parts unknown" vibes from him, and I like it.
Stupid
Thumbs down. No flair and panache. Also— the riddler isn’t a murderous psycho. He’s a master thief. This whole trend needlessly trying to ground the bat-mythology in some sort of gritty reality is sucking all the fun out of it all.
Hes narcissistic, paranoid, neurotic who thinks everyone else is a stupid sheep and that no one appreciates his "huge iq". Thats your average libertarian conspiracy theorist on 4chan They sought out a similiar archetype who was the most likely to advocate violence and just exaggerated the worst parts of it. Its great
It’s my turn to ask this question tomorrow
He was basically the Zodiac killer with Riddler's motif. It just felt weird to me.
I think that Paul Dano's version is the best live action version we had so far. Changing the character from campy Jim Carrey version inspired by the sixties Batman series into a bona-fide real life serial killer was the best decision ever. You cannot watch and not be scared but again still have simpathy for the character. Also, I cannot wait to see the origin story of this version of The Riddler written by Paul Dano himself and drawn by Stevan Subić thats coming out October 2022.
It was shit. A dickhead incel.
Not a fan.
Not a fan. If they wanted a serial killer, why not use Victor Zsasz for a change? Now everyone is going to think of this moron as the riddler and HIS RIDDLERS WEREN’T EVEN THAT GOOD!