Batman Begins

Now its been a while since my reviews of the old Batman series. I was planning for a long time to review this film and compare it side by side with the earlier Batman series. Unfortunately, I got a job, I started watching other movies, I kind of needed a break from Batman for a while.

But now its time. Its time to review The Christopher Nolan Batman movies.

I think this review will also give a great culmination of all the adaptations of Batman and give a good clear picture of what Batman should look like in the next adaptation, played by Ben Affleck.

Oh and for those who haven't been in touch with the recent news for Batman Vs. Superman, apparently Warner Brothers is delaying the Man of Steel sequel for another 10 months.

I was going to do a post mentioning this delay and how I feel about it. I'm not quite sure if I will or not but knowing this, we have over a year until this movie comes out, we have a lot of time to tell Zack Snyder and Warner Brothers what they need to do to get this right.

So we begin.

Batman Begins begins focusing on the origins of Bruce Wayne and how he eventually becomes Batman. In contrast with the 1989 Batman where Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne had been Batman for a while, Batman Begins is a full fledged origin story. Bruce Wayne, after drifting through a life trying to understand crime finds his way to an ancient ninja order bent on rooting out injustice in the world.

The childhood of Bruce Wayne is told in flashbacks showing the iconic death of his wealthy parents after they leave an opera, being orphaned.

Right off the bat, this movie gives us a brilliant explanation of how Bruce Wayne becomes Batman. Bruce Wayne is already dead set on fighting crime but its not until he is approached by Liam Neeson's character, a man by the name of Henri Ducard. From that, Bruce begins being trained in stealth training by a secret crime fighting group, the League of Shadows.

After he is trained and has a falling out with the organization, he returns to Gotham to dawn the cape and cowl of Batman in order to strike fear in the hearts of his enemies.

He fights to root out the heavy presence of organized crime in Gotham City with the help of honest cop, Jim Gordon (played by Gary Oldman) and childhood friend, now lawyer, Rachel Dawes (played by Katie Holmes). His ego of Batman is facilitated by an employee of his father's corporation named Lucius Fox (played by Morgan Freeman) and his longtime Butler, Alfred (played by Michael Caine.)

Batman is pitted against layered villains in this movie. Starting simply with Carmine Falcone (played by Tom Wilkinson) but moving up to the fear inducing Scarecrow (played by Cillian Murphy), and finally the man behind it all Ra's Al Ghoul.

The plot of Batman Begins is a phenomenal origin story and a great way to begin this new revitalized Batman franchise.

I really have to give Christopher Nolan props for this movie. A lot of people claim that The Dark Knight is the crowning jewel of this trilogy and while that's true, this movie was a phenomenal introduction to this new gritty, realistic franchise while still giving a nod or two to the old series. It didn't just throw its audience straight into the realistic setting that was actualized in The Dark Knight, it still made the movie seem like a comic book with a more crime drama feel to it.

The Nolan Batman films are really an interesting set of films especially for me because they were my first exposure to Batman on film. As I've mentioned before, Batman and Robin came out when I was really young and I never really watched it.

Christian Bale is the "original" Batman from my perspective and the very fact he was able to hold onto the role for 3 films, making him the longest running Batman actor, he really gives a precedent for anybody else looking to take on the role (i.e. Ben Affleck)

So what about his performance in Batman Begins was good?

Well I think he did a great job as Batman. He looked good in the batsuit. Not only that but he looked natural in the suit. The only other person I think that pulled off the Batsuit as well was Val Kilmer. Yeah he wasn't a phenomenal Batman but at least he looked alright in it. I always thought Keaton looked really silly in the suit and Clooney... well he was Clooney.

The problem with giving a point of reference as Bale for Affleck is the fact that the times in Batman's careers are very different. Rumors of Man of Steel 2 have stated that Ben Affleck is going to be a more seasoned Batman, one who is getting tired of wearing the cowl and has been at it for a long time. Bale's Batman is actually an origin story, where he starts from. The parts of Batman Begins that really work are just the building up of Batman from "humble" beginnings.

There's a part in this movie where Katie Holmes mentions that Batman isn't the alter ego of Bruce Wayne but almost the other way around. That Bruce Wayne never really came home from his seven years of drifting.

So while Christian Bale gives a convincing and charismatic Bruce Wayne, I feel as though the point of the movie was to make Bruce Wayne more of his facade. Bruce Wayne's activities really aren't towards anything else rather than furthering his activities as Batman so while Christian Bale does a phenomenal Batman, I'm not quite sure his Bruce Wayne is really compelling after he returns to Gotham and starts fighting crime.

Its mainly due to the events of his early life that make his entire life about being Batman and those are some of the greatest parts of the movie, the flashbacks of his relationship with his father. And its those moments and interactions that create Batman.

I may be rambling now, but I think Christian Bale's Batman is a little bit better than his Bruce Wayne. Sure he's charismatic, but he's not really a compelling character.

All of that being said, I love Christian Bale's Batman.

Then there's the supporting cast. Gary Oldman is a brilliant choice for Commissioner Gordon. Morgan Freeman is just having fun and enjoying the hell out of the role.

And of course there's Michael Caine as Alfred.

I'll try to refrain from going on a ramble but Michael Caine as Alfred is just one of the best choices ever made in any comic book movie. Michael Caine is such a brilliant actor and does an amazing job at showing a man who does nothing but care about Bruce Wayne.

If Alfred shows up in the next Batman movies, its going to be really hard to recast him because Michael Caine is just soooo good. The same can be said about Gary Oldman I think.

Nolan did such a good job at making characters that lasted for the entire franchise and just made you care about them and their dreams became your dreams. Its simply true, Michael Caine is going to be very hard to replace... if they decide to replace him... and I would be totally fine if they kept him in the role. Thought they probably won't.

And then there's Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes.

I'm still kind of confused on why Katie Holmes didn't reprise her role as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight. I think she did an alright job. I wasn't incredibly heart broken, the change in the role was just odd. The way I understand it is that she had scheduling conflicts with other movies... movies I've never heard of.

I definitely thought she provided a good love interest for Christian Bale while not overly the most essential character in the movie. I don't know, my gut reaction to Batman Begins is that Katie Holmes did a good job. Again, not so great that I was heart broken when she didn't come back, but I thought she did an alright job.

I suppose the only other supporting character I can mention is Bruce Wayne's parents. They're only shown in flash backs but in the short time they are shown, they show the true loss that Bruce feels when they die just because the relationship is so well done.

The villains of Batman Begins really give a great start to the franchise. They're not maniacal villains looking to take over the world, they're thrown into a realistic setting and have realistic motivations.

Sorry to "spoil" the ending but Liam Neeson ends up coming to Gotham in the mission to wipe it off the face of the Earth. The League of Shadows is an ancient organization that wipes out a place that has hit its peak and is nothing but corrupt. The way this is portrayed in the film is less of an evil villain plot and more of an ancient organized ritual.

It has elements of the comic book to it and yet feels tangible and something that, in the right circumstances, could happen. Ras Al Ghul is more of a terrorist rather than a supervillain.

The weapon that drives this entire story is a fear inducing gas that shows people what terrifies them the most. This is the part that really bridges that gap between where Batman has been in the past and where Nolan wants to go.

The nerve toxin while portrayed realistically, still gives off that comic book feel to it and it does it ever so carefully to give a great blend of the realistic Nolan feel and the original source material of Batman.

Scarecrow is just a psychopath but is so cool and calculated that he gets buy under the radar. He's a very good villain.

There's just so many good things about this film that its hard to point out any flaws. Its just a great reintroduction to a beloved character and a great testament to the creative genius that is Christopher Nolan. I can't really think of anything, its just really well put together.

I guess the only problem I see with the movie is with Bruce Wayne.

And its not really a complaint. So the majority of his development is done in the beginning through flashbacks. Showing how he grew up wanting revenge for his parents death. So much that he almost killed the man who killed his parents himself.

For the first forty-five minutes or so of the movie, its just Bruce Wayne really finding himself and leading up to the conclusion of being Batman.

The problem is, the minute he pulls Falcone out of the car and simply says, "I'm Batman" that's really the end of development for Bruce Wayne. Sure there is allusions to problems he'll have down the road with Rachel and the fact she will only be able to truly love him in a world that doesn't need Batman. But that plot line isn't really resolved until The Dark Knight. So really once he becomes Batman, everything is pointed towards creating that superhero, which makes sense for an origin story, the character is developed in the beginning and the hero is developed in the second act. So again, not really a complaint, the tension of Bruce's character just isn't the focus anymore as much, its more on the plot... which is a good thing.

So as you can tell, I really like Batman Begins. Its a great introduction to the character, its got great villains, great supporting characters just waiting to flourish in future movies.

This is how a D/C comic book movie should be made. I love Man of Steel and luckily it has the same writer. I want that series to be as good as this trilogy and I think David S. Goyer is off to a good start with his script writing.

So what lessons can be learned from Batman Begins that can be passed onto the next man to dawn the cowl of the Dark Knight?

Like I've stated before, its a little hard because Affleck's Batman is rumored to be a more seasoned, veteran Batman. One who has had a long career, and has been around the block once or twice when it comes to crime fighting and being a superhero.

I think the important part is to not forget his origins. I think this reboot of the character is close enough that people know his origins story, there's no need to go full Batman Begins in this movie or really any of the new Batman movies to come after.

But don't forget where Batman started. Don't forget the events that brought this seasoned veteran to where he is now. I think knowing exactly where this Batman came from and where he is now is a good way of making this version really good in my opinion. This will be a Batman we've never seen before and he's got a big pair of shoes to fill. But luckily, he's coming at it from a different angle.

Also, an important part about it is developing Bruce Wayne as a character as well as Batman. Man of Steel 2 will have Batman already doing his thing and so the development as Bruce Wayne as Bruce Wayne and his development as Batman don't need to be totally synonymous. They can affect one another but they don't have to be one and the same. MAKE BRUCE WAYNE A CHARACTER. That was something that was really developed well in the first part of Batman Begins and there will be a challenge as Man of Steel 2 is not an origin story. But Batfleck is not the same Batman, he needs to be a character, not an assumed persona that Warner Brothers assumes we know. I want to see this done right, and by that Ben Affleck needs to act and make me care about Bruce Wayne.

So that's my thoughts on Batman Begins. What do you think? Where does it stand in the Christopher Nolan Trilogy? Let me know and comment below.

I'll leave you with this. There's a lot of spoofs of Batman out there, my favorite it probably Pete Holmes' from the College Humor videos. The thing about Batman Begins is that the voice where Christian Bale sounds like he's chewing marbles isn't that prevalent. But still here's a spoof of one of the scenes where Batman chooses his voice. Enjoy.