Best Batman Film Ever

Rating: 9/10 (23 June 2005)

"Batman Begins" has a few forgivable flaws and a climax that doesn't necessarily make sense but overall this will make you a Batman fan all over again (especially if you never were one). I really wasn't in the mood to see this movie not after enduring "Batman and Robin," but I thought I would go see it anyway on the big screen.
What makes this film work are the supporting characters. Never before have Alfred and Jim Gordon ever been used as more than decoration (at least not in the live actions). Michael Caine is the best Alfred ever and Gary Oldman is the best Jim Gordon ever. And they actually do something in this movie too. Liam Neeson is great as ... well ... I won't give away what exact he does. Let's just say he's the type of anti-hero I root for in hopes he will beat up the good guy (like Bull's Eye in "Daredevil"). Oddly enough, I was rooting for Batman the whole time.
Christian Bale is, well, the best Batman ever. Best Bruce Wayne ever. The two best scenes are when he first meets Katie Holmes (an under-rated talent who really needs to ditch Tom Cruise before he converts her to his flaky Bowfinger religion and so she can play in the sequel) after his self-imposed exile and when he terrifies information out of a crooked cop. But Bale has always been great. I've been a fan of him since his title role in "American Psycho."
"Batman Begins" is actually a "Spider-man" movie in disguise. All the elements used to make "Spider-man" spiffy are used here as well. In previous Bat-movies, Bruce Wayne is a prop. The audience could wait for him to put on his cowl. But in this installment, the audience can't get enough of Bruce Wayne.
I'm already eager for the sequel, especially if it's who is hinted to in the end. I figured "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" would be the best summer film this year had to offer but "Batman Begins" thankfully proves me wrong.