The Batman franchise is saved.

Rating: 10/10 (15 July 2005)

I am not a comic book fan. However, as a non-comic book fan and as somebody who judges superheroes from just their outside appearances, I have to say that Batman is my favorite (followed closely by Spiderman and Superman). The reason is that Batman is human without any real "upgrades." Every other superhero has had something happen to him/her to make them special (Spiderman got bit by a spider, Superman is not human, etc..). I have always liked Batman because he is human without any character advantages that the others have (other than those "wonderful toys" of course).
That is also one reason I enjoyed Batman Begins so much. This Batman is a very flawed human who becomes Batman through a conscience choice (another thing that most superheroes don't have, choice). The only thing that he has going for him is a very powerful corporation that can produce all the tools he needs to become Batman.
Here are some of the other reasons I enjoyed this movie.
1. This Batman takes place in the "real" world. True, it's a modified world, but the real world none the less. Gotham in this episode does not seem to be otherworldly like the other Batman movies. In addition, everything Batman does to become his alter-ego seems to be at least slightly possible.
2. I loved the explanations of how Batman became Batman and how he makes use of his company to produce the tools he needs. In the other Batman movies, we just assumed that Wayne had the resources to become Batman from some mysterious place. Here we know where the batsuit and Batmobile, and everything else comes from. I also really liked the backstory.
3. The acting was also very good. Christian Bale was the biggest surprise. I haven't seen him in many movies, and I was not entirely sure how he would do. But, he was very good as BOTH Bruce Wayne AND Batman. He had a very dark quality that Batman MUST have (in my opinion). Morgan Freeman was also a very good choice. He is good in just about every single movie he is in no matter how good or bad the actual movie is. Michael Cane as Alfred was just a genius move by the producers. He has a classic quality in his acting. But he also provides some of the best comic relief in the movie (there is some, but not a lot). Garry Oldman as Gordon is another genius move. I have enjoyed him since he was in The Fifth Element. He is a great actor who provides the low-key attitude that Gordon should have. I really liked that Gordon has a central role to play in this movie, and Oldman is good at it. The ONLY actor I did not like all that much was Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes. I understand this character is simply to give Batman a female character to play with (all Batman movies should have at least one female in it). But, Holmes is just not very good. She seems to be very plastic and not very believable.
Well, that is it. There are many other reasons to like this movie, but I have covered the important parts. There are some minor plot holes and such in the movie, but they never take away from the overall fun of the movie. This is without a doubt (at least in my mind) the best in the series. I really liked the first Batman, but this one is better. A must see for anybody even if you are not a comic book fan.