Matt Reeves, director and co-writer of "The Batman," may be about to experience his greatest
success to date as the film delivers justice to the box office.
A character like the Caped Crusader can be difficult to translate to the screen, and
there are more than a few examples of it not going well.
However, Reeves has a rich history of elevating mainstream blockbusters into something more
than the sum of their parts.
Audiences didn't need much convincing to watch the director's "Planet of the Apes" movies.
The promise of seeing monkeys toting machine guns on horseback was more than enough to
draw a crowd, but Reeves nonetheless transformed the material into a sweeping commentary on
the nature of humanity itself.
Though not without its detractors, early reviews of "The Batman" suggest Reeves has once again
pulled off that trick, with critics praising its ambitious storytelling and surprising
cast.
Perhaps the most eyebrow-raising choice Reeves made was his early decision to place Robert
Pattinson under the cowl as the titular hero himself, a decision he made after watching
the actor's performance in the harrowing Safdie brothers' crime thriller "Good Time."
But that belief in his star appears to have paid off, as Pattinson has reflected fondly
on their working relationship in interviews.
Asked by Rotten Tomatoes about Reeves' on-set instruction, Pattinson reaffirmed his trust
in the director and the rapport they built while filming "The Batman."
"When you felt it, Matt always felt it ... It was a kind of an unspoken language that we
developed quite quickly."
The actor also explained that he doesn't always know what his performances will be like because
he relies on an immersive acting style, telling Rotten Tomatoes,
"Once you get on to his rhythm, you can kind of feel — because I'm kind of quite intuitive
about what I'm doing, it's a roll of the dice.
Every take, I don't really have that much control over it."
Luckily, Matt Reeves' directing style turned out to be suited for Pattinson's acting techniques,
giving him space to experiment.
"I really like the way Matt directs in a kind of super minutiae, and does a lot of takes."
Pattinson has been open about the struggles that came with taking on such a beloved and
iconic character while still hoping to put a fresh spin on the material.
It's now clear, though, that Reeves always knew how to help him understand the role.
At one point, after doing over 40 takes for a scene, Pattinson described himself as nearly,
quote, "having an embolism" and called it his worst day on set.
However, he also said the director still guided him through it by showing him what was working
and what wasn't.
It's no surprise that Robert Pattinson has figured out how to get in tune with a director.
Pattinson spent the decade after his breakthrough role in "Twilight" acting in a series of projects
with a plethora of celebrated filmmakers, from David Cronenberg to Claire Denis.
Before "The Batman," Pattinson co-starred in Christopher Nolan's long-delayed "Tenet"
alongside John David Washington.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly from 2020, Nolan said,
"Having worked with Rob, I can say with total confidence that he can do absolutely anything
he sets his mind to, and I could not be more excited to see what he does with Batman."
That's high praise coming from the director of "The Dark Knight," and belies the strong
working relationship the pair developed on set.
Of course, professional relationships cut both ways, and it takes a great director with
the ability to use their actors' natural talents in order to coax out a good performance, even
from a seasoned pro like Pattinson.
Those who have worked with Matt Reeves in the past say he's exactly that kind of director.
Andy Serkis starred as Caesar the ape in the recent "Planet of the Apes" trilogy before
being cast as Alfred Pennyworth in "The Batman."
Serkis sang Reeves' praises in an interview with Collider, saying,
"No matter what he touches, everything is considered.
It has intention.
It has emotion.
It is powered by great storytelling."
Coming from Serkis, whose previous work has included everything from the "Lord of the
Rings" trilogy to "Black Panther," that sort of admiration means a lot.
But Serkis didn't stop there, saying of Reeves,
"He is definitely one of the greats and world-class directors that we have at the moment."
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