a pointless myth

Rating: 5/10 (14 November 2005)

Any psychological imperatives that drives Batman to be Batman are irrelevant, because the idea of the Superhero as depicted in life-action movies is too absurd to swallow. The rules of the Superhero and his world are best suited to the drawn page and animation where the art grants the material an imaginative substance; it is its conceptual ideal. Proceed to superimpose such myths on the life-action format and you lose this ideal. Ironically, the life action movie comicbook adaptations are always striving for that ideal but are unfortunately flawed from the outset. The result is almost always just a tad beneath Power Rangers in absurdity. In "Sin City" director Rodriguez understood that any attempt to translate Frank Miller's ultra-pulpy material into traditional life action would undermine and expose just how absurd it all is. In "Batman Begins" (and in all Batman films) the absurdity of the material is exposed and painfully apparent.
Moreover, there's the fact that Batman and Superman all the other heroes arose at a time when America and Americans could unite in common causes. These heroes didn't merely fight mad villains but fought Nazis and communism. In those times the threats were real. In addition to the fact that all superheroes of DC/Marvel are corporate entities, we are faced with the sad fact that Batman and Superman are awful anachronisms. Their logos live on but their characters remain irrelevant. Consequently, any attempt to make us care about Batman on genuine human terms is undone by the fact that we don't culturally yearn for these characters and their stories. The world of "Batman Begins," despite its pathetic allusions to a depression in Gotham city and people suffering (a fact which undoubtedly goes over the audience listening to their shiny Ipod's as they bought their $10 tickets), has no relevance to ours. Consider the corruption at the heart of Gotham--gangsters pulling political strings, corrupt cops, etc. How quaint. Perhaps the League of Shadows can be considered a terrorist organization--yet their ultimate aim conveniently remains a bit abstract: they are lunatics who believe to rid the world of evil one must essentially be evil. They are driven by a petty intellectual point rather than passionate human hatred. Surely there's a problem when we deprive even our cartoon villains from hating like humans?
The film reminds one of 2003's "Hulk." Both try to insert a bit of serious dramainto the origin story of the Superhero but unfortunately "Batman Begins" does not carry out the plot to as respectable a peak as "Hulk" did. Indeed, "Hulk" -- despite its murkiness of plot--managed to sustain a superior sense of intensity throughout. Only the highly respectable cast prevent Batman Begins from total mediocrity. Perhaps the film works as a traditional action film, but it never soars thematically. At the end, Batman remains a logo.