Batman and Me review: Obsessive collector, meet judgmental director

The history of documentary filmmaking has seen a lot more philosophical disputes over intent and method. But one of those points that was once the center of much of this contention feels as though it might have lost its way to the mobile phone and buggy whip. The Maysles Brothers released their tragic, beautiful mother-and-daughter portrait in 1975. Grey GardensThe pair were frequently accused of being oblivious to their subjects and befriending them before putting them up for ridicule. Chris Smith, for his hilarious 1999 video was subject to similar criticisms. American MovieThis film, which easily outdoes Mark Borchardt, an indie filmmaker, by simply watching Borchardt work, is called “The sloppy amateur”.. But these days, that particular complaint seems to come up far less often, whether it’s because filmmakers are more sensitive about how their subjects might be perceived, or because it’s so common for people to expose their own lives online that we’re collectively beyond the idea that public visibility is invasive or embarrassing.

Michael Wayne’s doc Batman and MeThis might spark a new debate. He is only a gentle squirmier than his low-key view of an obsessive Batman paraphernalia collector. Grey Gardens. It unfolds with a fascinating specificity that goes well beyond the Batman details, and unlocks a lot of conversation-starting thoughts about the various ways and reasons people associate with different fandoms.

But Wayne’s mildly adversarial, even dismissive attitude toward his subject is notably off-putting, and seems designed to lead viewers into a similar mindset. It occasionally feels as though he’s elbowing the audience in the ribs, with a “Get a load of this guy!” message — and in the process, possibly misunderstanding that audience, and why they might be watching.

Wayne first made contact with Australian collector Darren “Dags” Maxwell online, after perusing Maxwell’s self-deprecating webpage devoted to individual items in his startlingly overstuffed collection of Batman toys, promo items, and other merch. Maxwell invited Wayne into his home and his life, and sits down with him for frank, in-depth conversations about how and why he ended up with an entire room in his house dedicated solely to Batman gear, much of which he claims he didn’t even want or like. It’s an extremely small-scale movie: Wayne interviews two of the most significant people in Maxwell’s life, and he uses action figures to play out some adorably cheeky flashback scenes of Maxwell interacting with friends, family, and the public. But mostly, it’s an intimate portrait that feels a lot like spending a few hours in Maxwell’s company.

Along the way, Maxwell tells some funny stories: He describes how he literally bought a shirt off a man’s back at a convention, and how he avenged himself on an ex-girlfriend, first by eating the Batman cookies she gave him for his collection, then by buying his own box to replace it. He also drops some startling revelations about the depth of his mania for Batman merch: Among other things, he’s still storing Batman ice-cream bars from the 1980s in his freezer, and he has a taped-shut dairy bin in his refrigerator, devoted to an old chocolate Batmobile that he’s protecting from bloom.

Other reveals cover what goes into the collector’s mindset. Maxwell describes Maxwell’s insatiable desire to acquire things of any quality and use. This is Maxwell’s story. He explains what brought him to collecting and how that made it a passion. And what ended his collection. He stopped buying new merch in 1997 because he found Joel Schumacher’s Batman & Robin so off-putting: His entire collection focuses on the four Batman movies from Tim Burton’s 1989 feature up to Batman & Robin. Now, it’s just a static museum. It was, however, his main financial goal when building the collection.

Maxwell describes his collection phase as his attempt to find a community that will compensate for his past. Maxwell is open and honest about his childhood and struggles with family relationships. He also has a strong desire to be an authority on Batman memorabilia and impress others collectors. Openly, he discusses the role of fandom and his collection-obsessed circle of friends as a surrogate family that enables him to be valued and respected.

“Fandom and the science-fiction genre as a whole, it’s the only thing I’m good at,” he tells Wayne. “Outside of that community, I’m a nobody. I’ve got nothing to contribute. I can listen to conversations that people have, and I say, ‘You know what? I’ve got nothing to offer to be a part of the conversation.’ I’m living a very limited life, I guess.”

Such extreme levels of self-dismissal can lead to despair. Batman and Me a fairly depressing film, if Maxwell didn’t deliver it with such cheery aplomb, and if he wasn’t in a stable, supportive, happy relationship, with friends who share his interests and can speak with equal calm self-awareness about embracing and exploring their geeky sides. Even Maxwell’s candor about his hobby and its downsides feels like a boon for the film: He understands why people might see him as “a loser,” but he also recognizes where his comfort zone lies, and what it brings him. For a man who at one point wishes out loud that he could punch the little kid who previously owned and wrote his name on one of the used collectables in Maxwell’s collection, he seems remarkably well-adjusted.

All of which makes Wayne’s palpable distancing from his subject feel odder. It isn’t aggressive, but his offscreen narration betrays open judgment and dismay about Maxwell’s life. And he specifically suggests that Maxwell’s self-analysis is too pat and prepared, and that he’s deluding himself about the depths of his mania, given that he’s kept his collection rather than selling it off. When Maxwell laments that he’s never seen what one of his toys looks like, because if he peeked at the contents, it’d no longer be considered “mint in box,” Wayne buys one himself and haphazardly unboxes it and slaps it together for the camera, in a move that feels like the equivalent of a gloating sneer. A striking shot over the closing titles, with action figures slowly dropping into a garbage can one by one, feels like a pointed editorial commentary on Maxwell’s life and the whole movie.

Photo by Freestyle Digital Media

All this makes it possible to: Batman and Me Feel condescending and more censorious than necessary. Wayne conveys some very telling divisions in fandom. Maxwell is judging of cosplayers while some collectors are just as critical. (Lore Sjöberg’s classic Geek Hierarchy comes to mind, with its rundown of which subsets of fandom consider themselves superior to others.) The film also touches on a wealth of worthwhile topics, including the way merchandising has vastly changed to exploit nostalgic nerds with money, instead of targeting children, and the ways some people use purchased objects as physical bulwarks against the accusation that they aren’t “real” fans. And it does truly capture the tension in Maxwell, between the version of himself that intellectualizes, rationalizes, and downplays his need for his room full of untouched toys, and the version that’s still hungrily clinging to it, 25 years after he stopped adding to it.

But the audience that’s most likely to be drawn to those topics is an audience that’s already invested in some form of fandom, whether it’s related to Batman, collectibles, or something else entirely. This cozy little doc is likely to be too small and too specific in focus for gawkers and rubberneckers, but it’s exactly the kind of blend of familiar interests and unfamiliar execution of those interests that might draw other fans. Comic-Con fans will be able to recognize this mirror. Batman and Me, complete with a guided tour from one of their own, who’s come to terms with his own extraordinary geekery and what it’s meant in his life. It just feels strange that Wayne is talking down to that audience more than he’s talking to it.

Batman and MeIt is also available to stream rental and purchase. Amazon, VuduThese platforms are similar to those found on other digital platforms.