Batman Returns - Plot

Plot

A deformed baby boy is thrown into Gotham City's river by his terrified parents (Paul Reubens and Diane Salinger). Thirty-three years later, the child, Oswald Cobblepot (Danny DeVito), resurfaces as a criminal, the Penguin, who kidnaps millionaire industrialist and business tycoon Max Shreck (Christopher Walken). With evidence of his corporate crimes, Cobblepot blackmails Shreck into helping him leave the sewers to become part of Gotham's elite. The Penguin arranges for the Mayor's child to be kidnapped, whom he then "rescues" in order to set himself up as a heroic figure.

Max Shreck later pushes his secretary, Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer), out of a window from his company's building after she discovers that his proposed power station for Gotham actually will drain electricity from the city. Selina survives the fall, but it causes a psychotic break and her personality changes. Having an affinity for cats, Selina returns home and designs a costume, becoming Catwoman and focusing on revenge against her boss.

Shreck then hatches a plan to recall Gotham City's current mayor (Michael Murphy) and elect Cobblepot in his place, in order to cement his control over the city and complete his power plant project. The Penguin's gang of circus performers cause chaos around Gotham to reduce the popularity of the Mayor. Meanwhile, Batman (Michael Keaton) continues to have confrontations with Catwoman as well as the Penguin's gang.

Selina, meanwhile, falls in love with Batman's alter-ego Bruce Wayne, a situation complicated by Catwoman's teaming with the Penguin in an effort to rid Gotham of Batman. They kidnap the Ice Princess (Cristi Conaway), a woman chosen to turn on the Gotham Christmas Tree lights, and frame Batman for the crime. Batman finds her tied up in a nearby building. He learns that the Penguin kidnapped her, but Catwoman then takes her to the top of the building. The Penguin causes the woman to fall off the building, killing her, with a crowd seeing Batman and believing that he killed her. Catwoman is upset because she did not intend to kill the Princess, and then rejects the Penguin's advances on her, whereupon the Penguin tries to kill her. In the midst of Batman's attempt at rescuing the Ice Princess, the Penguin's henchmen sabotage the Batmobile. When Batman returns to the Batmobile, the Penguin takes control of it and wreaks havoc on the streets of Gotham City until Batman manages to disable the Penguin's control while recording the Penguin's taunts about framing Batman and fooling the city.

When Bruce exposes the Penguin's villainous ways, thereby ruining his election chances, the Penguin initiates a plan to kidnap all of Gotham's first-born infants. He personally attempts to take Max's son, Charles "Chip" Shreck (Andrew Bryniarski), but agrees to take Max instead. Batman foils the Penguin's kidnapping scheme, whereupon the Penguin then decides to launch missiles around Gotham using mind-controlled penguins. However, Batman is able to jam the frequency used to control the penguins and has missiles launched at the Penguin's base. Batman confronts the Penguin, which culminates in the Penguin falling into the toxic waters in his lair.

Batman tries persuading Catwoman to turn Shreck over to the police, even unmasking himself in the process, but Shreck draws a gun. Catwoman claims that she still has six of her nine lives remaining, and stays standing up after Shreck fires his gun at her four times. Catwoman uses a taser to cause an explosion, electrocuting Shreck and apparently sacrificing herself (using up her penultimate life). The Penguin then emerges from the toxic water and tries to kill Batman, but he succumbs to his wounds. His body is taken by his penguins into the sewer waters as a final resting place.

Later, Bruce is being driven around the city at night with butler Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Gough) and thinks he sees Selina's shadow on a wall. Alfred stops the car, and Bruce finds a cat, which he takes with him and leaves. As the Bat-Signal lights up the night sky, a silhouette of what appears to be Catwoman is seen gazing at it.