Editing Batman Returns (section)

==Thematic analysis==

===Duality===
<!-- Didn't check Crow's quote, but "duality" is a mathematical term; think the appropriate term here is "dualism". -->
Critic David Crow called duality a major aspect of ''Batman Returns'', and Catwoman, Penguin, and Shreck represent warped, reflected aspects of Batman.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/><ref name="ReviewWaPoKempley"/> Like Wayne (Batman), Selina (Catwoman) is driven by trauma and conflicted about her principles and desires; unlike Batman (who seeks justice), however, she seeks vengeance.<ref name="Vulture2017"/><ref name="ReviewTribuneKehr"/> Although Catwoman agrees with Batman's appeal that they are "the same, split right down the center", they still differ too much to be together.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/> Critics Darren Mooney and Betsy Sharkey suggested that Penguin reflects Batman's origin; each lost their parents at an early age. Shreck says that if not for his abandonment, Cobblepot and Wayne might have traveled in the same social circles. Batman is content in his loneliness, however; the Penguin wants acceptance, love and respect, despite his quest for revenge.<ref name="Escapist2020"/><ref name="NYTimesWelch"/> To Mooney, ''Batman Returns'' hints that Batman's issues with Penguin are personal rather than moral; Batman is quietly proud of being a "freak" (unique), and resents Penguin for displaying his "freakishness".<ref name="Escapist2020"/> Shreck represents Wayne's public persona if it was driven by greed, vanity, and self-interest: a populist industrialist who wins favor with cheap presents tossed into a crowd.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/>

===Commercialism and loneliness===
Crow saw ''Batman Returns'' as a denouncement of Batman's real-world cultural popularity and merchandising (especially in the wake of the previous film), and noted that a scene of a store filled with Batman merchandise being destroyed was removed from the film.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/> Crow and Mooney wrote that ''Batman Returns'' is "saturated with Christmas energy"; it rejects the season's conventional norms and becomes an anti-Christmas film, however, critiquing its over-commercialism and lack of true goodwill. Shreck cynically exploits Christmas tropes for his own ends (falsely portraying himself as selfless and benevolent), and the perversions of Penguin's Red Triangle gang are a more overt rejection of the holiday.<ref name="Escapist2020"/><ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/>

The film focuses on loneliness and isolation during Christmastime; Wayne is introduced sitting alone in his vast mansion, inert until the Bat-Signal shines in the sky. He makes a connection with Kyle, but what they share cannot overcome their differences and he ends the film as he began it{{snd}}alone.<ref name="Escapist2020"/> Critic [[Todd McCarthy]] identified isolation as a theme common to much of Burton's work, which is emphasized in the three main characters.<ref name="ReviewVarietyMcCarthy"/>

Rebecca Roiphe and Daniel Cooper wrote that ''Batman Returns'' was not [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]], but had antisemitic imagery. The Penguin, they believed, embodied [[Jewish stereotypes]] such as "{{nbsp}}... his [[Jewish nose|hooked nose]], pale face and lust for herring" and was "unathletic and seemingly unthreatening but who, in fact, wants to murder every [[Firstborn (Judaism)|firstborn]] child of the [[gentile]] community." The character joins forces with Shreck (who has a Jewish-sounding name) to disrupt and taint Christmas and Christian traditions.<ref name="ScreenRantAnti"/><ref name="NYTimesAnti"/>

===Sexuality and misogyny===
''Batman Returns'' has overtly sexual elements. Critic Tom Breihan described Catwoman's vinyl catsuit as "pure [[BDSM]]", including the whip she wields as a weapon. The dialogue is replete with [[double entendre]]s, particularly by Penguin and Catwoman; in her fights with Batman, she sensuously licks his face.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/><ref name="AVClub2022"/> Selina / Catwoman is marginalized by the central male characters, however; Shreck pushes her out of a window, the Penguin tries to kill her when she spurns his advances, and Batman attempts to capture her. She fashions a catsuit to regain order, sanity, and power, but it is gradually damaged over the course of the film and her sanity decays with it. Catwoman's final choice is to reject Batman's offer of a happy ending by 
abandoning her revenge against Shreck; to surrender herself to Batman's will would allow another man to control her.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/>

===Power and politics===
Power is a central theme for several characters; Shreck says, "There's no such thing as too much power; if my life has a meaning that's the meaning."<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/> He uses his money to gain power, and Batman uses his fortune to fund his war against crime (unlike Penguin, who was abandoned because he did not fit the image expected by his wealthy parents).<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/> Kyle gains power by donning the Catwoman costume and embracing her anger and sexuality.<ref name="ReviewEWBurr"/><ref name="ReviewTribuneKehr"/>

Shreck convinces Penguin to run for mayor to further his own goals, and the Penguin seeks out the acceptance and respect it would give him. Critic Caryn James wrote that ''Batman Returns'' has "sharp political jabs" which implies that money and image are more important than anything else.<ref name="NYTimesCarynJames"/> In ''Batman'', the Joker buys citizen support by throwing them piles of money; in the sequel, Shreck and Penguin gain the support of the populace with spectacle, pandering, and corporate showmanship. The Penguin describes how he and Shreck are both seen as monsters, but Shreck is a "well-respected monster and I, to date, am not." James said that the Penguin wants to change the superficial perception of himself because he wants to be accepted, but has no interest in being lovable.<ref name="TheRinger2022"/><ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/><ref name="NYTimesCarynJames"/> Only when the fickle voters turn on him, however, does he resort to his plan to kill infants who had the chances he never had. Crow believed that Burton was the most sympathetic to Penguin, and spent the most time on the character.<ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/>