In place of the original’s art deco noir aesthetic, Batman Returns goes full baroque fairytale. The director exercised it from top to bottom. To lure Burton back to the world of the caped crusader, Warner Bros had to offer him greater creative control over the sequel. It’s certainly a more idiosyncratic movie than its predecessor, Tim Burton’s record-breaking popcorn sensation Batman, released to teeming, cheering crowds in the summer of 1989.
