One Of The Best Superhero Movies Of All Time Is Dominating Streaming But Not Where You Think
Fans of the Caped Crusader had reason to celebrate when Matt Reeves‘s The Batman ended up being a critical and commercial hit. The movie is so good that it’s worth re-watching (and even re-rewatching), but it can be difficult for fans to find this film on streaming.
You might expect to steam this movie on Max along with other Warner Bros. content, but in order to watch it, you’ll need to stream The Batman on Amazon next time you fire up your own Batcomputer.
The Batman is on Amazon Prime rather than Max where most Warner Bros titles stream
It’s not immediately clear why The Batman is streaming on Amazon rather than Max, but it follows a pattern that started back in April 2023. As Inside the Magic reports, that was when it was announced that the films Merry Little Batmen and its spinoff Bat-Family would be released on Amazon first.
The same is also true of the upcoming Batman: Caped Crusader series, and while we can only speculate, it seems that releasing new Bat-content as well as The Batman on Amazon may be an attempt to reach more fans and possibly even convert some Amazon subscribers into Max subscribers.
It may sound like one hell of a gamble, but in all fairness, The Batman is a good enough movie that it likely will win over skeptical fans hungry for good superhero content. In fact, this movie is notable for rejecting the over-the-top characters and world-building of other movies like Batman v. Superman or Wonder Woman 1984.
It’s arguably even more down-to-earth than movies like The Dark Knight, though this Matt Reeves film clearly takes more than a bit of inspiration from Nolan’s popular trilogy of Bat films.
The main reason that The Batman is a more grounded film is that director Reeves intentionally explores something that previous movies have often overlooked: his actual detective skills. Rather than solving everything with fancy equipment, this superhero has to linger over crime scenes, all while freaking out the police who (rightfully, perhaps) consider him a costumed freak.
His only real ally is Lieutenant Gordon, but he is low enough on the police totem pole that he can only offer Batman so much protection.
Robert Pattinson, Zoe Kravitz, Jeffrey Wright, Paul Dano, and Colin Ferrell lead The Batman
Gordon, incidentally, is perfectly acted by Westworld star Jeffrey Wright, and the supporting actors are rounded out by John Turturro (playing sleazy mob boss Carmine Falcon), Colin Ferrell (nearly unrecognizable as The Penguin), and Andy Serkis (cast delightfully against type as Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred).
Paul Dano plays The Riddler as you’ve never seen him before: a deranged serial killer more at home in the world of Se7en than the world of Batman. Finally, Robert Pattinson is a revelation as Batman, playing the character with a cool monomania that turns red hot in his sultry scenes with Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman.
With a great director, cast, and a solid script, The Batman does something that is all too rare in Hollywood: it provides a great kind of prequel story showcasing the early days of Batman doing the costumed hero thing. Matt Reeves strikes an impressive balance between doing something new (so it doesn’t feel like a lame retreat of Batman Begins) and paying homage to the Batman movies and comics that have come before.
In short, it’s a love letter to the franchise that goes beyond simple nostalgia and actually creates a compelling story that could only be told with this eclectic collection of heroes and villains.
The movie was certainly popular when it premiered: on Rotten Tomatoes, The Batman currently has an 85 percent from critics and an 87 percent from audiences. Those audiences came out in force to the theater, helping this film earn $771 million against a budget of no more than $200 million.
The Batman earned $771 million dollars at the box office
The film was successful and popular enough to get the studio to greenlight not only two more sequels (giving us a new Batman trilogy to rival Christopher Nolan’s) but various television shows as well, including a spinoff focusing primarily on Colin Ferrell’s Penguin character.
Ultimately, The Batman can be summed up as one of the best superhero films ever made: it has style and swagger while still focusing on everything from the crunchy detective beats to quiet character moments that make this franchise such a success.
After watching it, you’ll join us in counting down to the sequels, spinoffs, and any other opportunity to explore this universe. Of course, beginning such an exploration is easier than turning on the Bat-Signal: you just have to click “play” and watch The Batman on Amazon today.
