The Dryden will screen Batman Returns (Tim Burton, U.S./U.K. 1992, 126 min., 35mm).

Michael Keaton reprises his role as the Caped Crusader in Tim Burton's second, better, and final foray into the grotesque world of Gotham City. The twisted and deformed Penguin (Danny Devito), seeking acceptance into the society that cast him out, teams up with corrupt megalomaniac Max Shreck (Christopher Walken) to take over Gotham City not by force, but through political and social manipulation. Concurrently, Shreck's secretary, the docile Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer), transforms into the seductive Catwoman, embracing her sexuality and hunting down those who wronged her. As Batman challenges the Penguin and Catwoman—two individuals who, like him, masquerade as others—the film confronts the difficulties of social integration, the volatility of public perception, and the inherent insanity of dual identities. Never has Burton's admiration for German Expressionism been so overt, from his nuanced impressionistic depiction of Gotham City straight from Fritz Lang's Metropolis to the striking visual similarity between the Penguin and Dr. Caligari.

[source: George Eastman Museum website, 2016-Jul-25]