I think one of the best things about the new batman movie is that rather than go the route of past adaptations where bruce is just this lone savior figure who stands apart in this sea of terrible heartless criminals, it makes it a point to show him as someone with deep roots within gotham and for whom the city’s degradation and the acts of cruelty that go on within it are deeply felt. it shows him as someone who has been the victim of incredible violence, as someone who is still carrying and processing that trauma (while also taking the time to explore his positions of privilege and how that privilege comes into play here) as someone who is able to empathize with other victims of similar trauma and who ultimately comes to understand that perpetuating a continuing cycle of violence is getting all of them nowhere. it takes a look at both the characters of bruce wayne and batman and gives us a hero who is able to look at a devastated city filled with devastated people and decide they’re all worth trying to save. this is a movie that says, “hurt people hurt people, but sometimes, hurt people can help each other too” and I think that’s brilliant.
