Batman whips out his bat-balls!

Rating: 9/10 (27 September 2005)

Well, it's official. Batman has gotten his balls back. This film is dark, extremely dark. So dark in fact, there are a great number of scenes filmed, I kid you not, exactly like a horror film. Now, I'm a huge fan of the "real" Batman movies. You know, "Batman" and "Batman Returns" which were done by Tim Burton, starred Michael Keaton, and were carried along by Danny Elfman's rousing musical score. Let's not forget, that old Batmobile from those films. This tank-like monstrous new Batmobile may very well be the coolest car I've personally seen in a movie in ages. Of course, if you're a fan of those rather putrid, embarrassing "other" Batman films (Forever & Robin), then you may very well not like this movie. Because it doesn't totally suck like those films did.
Basically, this is the story of how Bruce Wayne thought of, created and became Batman. In a nutshell. However, it also tells, in the most personal way, of his struggles with the concepts of justice and vengeance. It shows us how he trained to become the ultimate fighter of evil and corruption. It introduces us to a different villain from the previous four filmsand does a mighty good job of it, too. Even as a side notewe're introduced to good old Commissioner Gordonbefore he's police commissioner. So then, it also tells a bit of his "beginnings." We see the beginning of the Batcave and find out just how Bruce Wayne was able to, to quote the Joker, "get those wonderful toys." On top of it all, if you ever thought Michael Keaton was the only person who could adequately, correctly portray Batman on screen, you just may change your mind hereI never imagined Christian Bale would do such a remarkable job.
Here's the breakdown:
The Good:
--The action is fast and brilliantly choreographed.
--The dark mood is finally backthe way Batman is supposed to beit has even less "camp" value than Burton's films!
--The Batmobile, as I said, is incredibleand has some great sound effects to boot. Supposedly, it was designed by the same person who created Keaton's Batmobile.
--Christian Bale is so good, he almost causes you to forget about Kilmer and Clooneythank god!
--Michael Caine's powerful performanceshe's the major player keeping Bruce Wayne's humanity in check. More so than Katie Holmes, whose performance, while good, was a tad weaker than Caine's in this respect. She did an interestingly good job as a tough lawyer, however.
--Bits of comic relief here and therethat don't ruin the movie!
--Brilliant atmosphere.
--Excellent acting all around.
--Not claustrophobically over-crammed with "Batman" villains like the last two films. The only major villain is the Scarecrow, and another character whom I'll leave up to you other movie goers find out.
--Excellent tension.
--Fantastic cinematography.
Didn't Hurt It, Didn't Help:
--The music is good, but for those of you out there like meyou may miss Danny Elfman's beautiful score.
--Gotham City is not as Gothic as it should be. However, the film has slightly more modern twist that makes it more "believable" than the previous films. Especially those last two, which, if you haven't guessed it by now, I hated.
--Early on, the story deals a lot with flashback sequencesa couple are a bit confusing as to where they belong chronologically. They may have indeed been chronological, but only seemed like a steady story with flashbacks. Still, it gets the point across.
--The film seems to be set-up as either a new Batman series, or a prequel to Tim Burton's original Batman. I guess I'd be happy with eitherso long as they keep Christian Bale and don't sell out to that campy crap again.
The Bad:
--Scarecrow seems a bit underused.
--We had to endure "Batman Forever" before we got to this brilliant piece.
The Ugly:
--We also had to endure "Batman & Robin" before we got to this. "Har har, ICE to zee youuu!!" Ugh!
Memorable Scene:
--Batman and Scarecrowtalking "face to face."
Acting: 10/10 Story: 10/10 Atmosphere: 10/10 Cinematography: 10/10 Character Development: 9/10 Special Effects/Make-up: 9/10 Nudity/Sexuality: 0/10 (there is none) Violence/Gore: 8/10 (a lot of violence, yum yum) Dialogue: 9/10 Music: 8/10 Direction: 10/10
Cheesiness: 0/10 Crappiness: 0/10
Overall: 9/10
I finally went with a "9" over a "10" for these reasons alone: Scarecrow, to me, was a little underused; and I missed Danny Elfman's music. If you loved the first two films, you'll love this. If you loved the third and fourth films the most, well then, you sir, belong in Arkham Asylum and apparently hate movies. Everyone elsego see it.
(www.ResidentHazard.com)