Editing Batman Returns (section)

===Modern reception===
In the years since its release, ''Batman Returns'' has been  positively reappraised.<ref name="CBRLegacy"/><ref name="ScreenRantReappraised"/> It is now regarded as among the best superhero films ever made,{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="BestSuperheroTheRinger"/><ref name="BestSuperheroRS"/><ref name="BestSuperheroEmpire"/><ref name="BestSuperheroEsquire"/><ref name="BestSuperheroSFXMag"/><ref name="BestSuperheroParade"/><ref name="BestSuperHeroPaste"/><ref name="BestSuperheroTechRadar"/>}} the best sequels,{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="BestSequelEmpire13"/><ref name="BestSequelRT95"/><ref name="BestSequelEmpire16"/><ref name="BestSequelVulture41"/>}} and the best ''Batman'' films made.{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="BestBatmanCollider2"/><ref name="BestBatmanPolygon2"/><ref name="BestBatmanVulture3"/><ref name="BestBatmanWrap3"/><ref name="BestBatmanTHR3"/><ref name="BestBatmanSlash4"/><ref name="BestBatmanEmpire4"/><ref name="BestBatmanTime5"/><ref name="BestBatmanIGN6"/><ref name="BestBatmanRT6"/>}}<ref name="BestBatmanEsquire10"/> ''[[Screen Rant]]'' called it the best Batman film of the 20th century<ref name="ScreenRantBestBat20"/> and, in 2018, ''[[Total Film]]'' named it the best Batman film.<ref name="TotalFilmBestBat"/> ''Batman Returns'' was number{{nbsp}}401 on ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]''{{'}}s 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time.<ref name="Empire500"/> Some publications have identified ''Batman Returns'' as part of Burton's unofficial Christmas trilogy, bookended by ''Edward Scissorhands'' and ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'', and it has become an alternative-holiday film along with films such as ''[[Die Hard]]'' (1988).{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="Escapist2020"/><ref name="TheRinger2022"/><ref name="CBRLegacy"/><ref name="ColliderRetro"/>}} Some publications have also listed it as one of the best Christmas films.{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name="XmasVariety"/><ref name="XmasEmpire"/><ref name="LastingRTXmas"/><ref name="XmasCountry"/><ref name="XmasTimeOut2019"/><ref name="XmasTimeOut2023"/><ref name="XmasTelegraph"/>}}

The film's writer Daniel Waters recalled being told that ''Batman Returns'' was a "great movie for people who don't like Batman".<ref name="VultureWaters"/><ref name="ColliderRetro"/> Although the film was criticized for depicting Batman killing people, Waters said, "To me, Batman not killing [the [[Joker (The Dark Knight)|Joker]] (played by Heath Ledger)] at the end of ''The Dark Knight'' after proving he can get out of any prison, it's like 'Come on. Kill Heath Ledger.{{'"}}<ref name="THRReturnsat25"/><ref name="DOGBatmanRetro"/> He believed that the reception to ''Batman Returns'' was improving with time, especially after the release of ''The Batman'' in 2022.<ref name="VultureWaters"/>

Critic Brian Tallerico said that the elements which originally upset critics and audiences are what makes it still "revelatory{{nbsp}}... It's one of the best and strangest movies of its kind ever made."<ref name="Ebert4k"/> Review aggregator [[Rotten Tomatoes]] has an {{RT data|score}} approval rating from reviews by {{RT data|count}} critics, with an average score of {{RT data|average}}. According to the website's critical consensus, "Director Tim Burton's dark, brooding atmosphere, Michael Keaton's work as the tormented hero, and the flawless casting of Danny DeVito as The Penguin and Christopher Walken as, well, Christopher Walken make the sequel better than the first."<ref name="RottenTomatoesScore"/> The film has a score of 68 out of 100 on [[Metacritic]] (based on 23 critics), indicating "generally favorable" reviews.<ref name="MetacriticScore"/>