The Penguin Rescues The Mayor’s Son
After one of the Penguin’s men kidnaps the mayor’s son and dives into the sewer through the manhole, it sets the stage for Oswald to “rescue” the child. The shot of the villain rising up to the surface on his giant yellow duck is simply marvelous to behold and a perfect example of Burton’s abstract filmmaking style at its finest.
It’s also in this moment that we first see Oswald as the great manipulator of events and his any-means-necessary attitude. Sure, he wants to know more about his birth parents, but he isn’t afraid of twisting the truth to suit his needs, either.
Speaking of this scene, has anyone else wondered if Warner Bros. still has the giant yellow duck lying around somewhere? It’s not exactly something that you can store away in a closet.
Catwoman Lives On
At the end of the film, Alfred drives a somber and beaten-up Bruce home. On the drive, Bruce spots a shadow that resembles Catwoman and tells his butler to stop the car. He steps out and follows the shadow, discovering that it’s actually a stray black cat, which he decides to take home with him.
Like clockwork, the Bat-Signal appears in the night sky and Bruce answers its call, as we spot Catwoman watching on from a distance. It’s a moment that lights up all our hearts, knowing that Selina didn’t meet her demise after all and there’s still a chance for her and Bruce to be together one day. That is, until Joel Schumacher came along and gave us two middle fingers in the form of Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.
It’s not a flashy sequence or even the best part of Batman Returns by any means, but it concludes the film on a happier, heartwarming note. If Burton had done it differently, we would’ve left the movie with heavier hearts and sheer disappointment.
See? Despite what you may think, Timmy B isn’t all doom and gloom in his flicks.
