I like how this "Begins"

Rating: 9/10 (22 July 2005)

With the exception of Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, no other comic book film franchise has gone into hibernation with as weak a final entry as the Batman series. 1997's Batman & Robin, filled with camp, bad one-liners, an overstuffed cast and just general corniness seemed to have felled the Caped Crusader semi-permanently. Eight years later, director Christopher Nolan and screenwriter David Goyer have breathed new life into Batman with Batman Begins, the best entry in the Batman series yet and one of the best comic book adaptations to date.
Jettisoning all the baggage of the previous Batman films, Nolan and Goyer have started fresh, electing to focus on Batman's origin. They succeed brilliantly in placing the film's focus on the title character for the first time, and also follow in suit of X-Men by treating the material as seriously as possible.
As Batman Begins opens, Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), a millionaire heir to his late father's fortune, is traveling the world, attempting to learn as much about the criminal element as possible by acting as a criminal. He is approached by Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson), a lieutenant of Ra's Al Ghul (Ken Watanabe), the leader of the League of Shadows, an organization dedicated to eradicating crime in the world. While training with the League, we are treated to flashbacks of Bruce as a child, living near crime infested Gotham City, discovering a large cave under his family's elaborate mansion, Wayne Manor, and being attacked by bats, which Bruce quickly develops a fear of. Shortly thereafter, Bruce's father and mother are killed in a mugging and Bruce is raised by his faithful butler, Alfred (Michael Caine). Robbed of an opportunity to shoot his parent's killer, and intimidated by the local crime boss, Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson), Bruce begins his trek. Upon completion of his training with the League, he discovers that they are a little more ruthless than he realized and splits with them, returning to his home city of Gotham to fight crime his own way. With the assistance of Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman),the head of the special research division of his father's company, Wayne Enterprises, Bruce discovers some advanced technology that he fashions into a suit that he wears to combat crime in the guise of his greatest fear, bats. As Bruce unveils his crime-fighting persona, Batman, Gotham City is being threatened by a hallucinogenic drug being imported to the city by psychiatrist Johnathan Crane (Cillian Murphy), also known as the Scarecrow. Assisted by honest Gotham detective James Gordan (Gary Oldman) and his childhood sweetheart, Assistant D.A. Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes), Batman determines he must unravel the plot the Scarecrow is weaving before it destroys Gotham.
Since the release of the first Batman movie in 1989, one character in the franchise has remained a mystery on the big screen: Bruce Wayne himself. The prior films always focused on the outrageous villains and elaborate production design, relegating Batman to the background. Here, he is center stage. Batman Begins is very much a character study of Bruce Wayne, as learns to take all the fear, hatred and guilt that he has pent up since he saw his parents die and transform himself into a force of justice to combat the crime that is engulfing Gotham City. He struggles with his guilt, leaving everything he knows behind to immerse himself in criminal culture to eventually learn why the criminal ticks. However, despite his desire to see criminals brought to justice, he still maintains a sense of mercy that prevents him from going too far.
Another strong point is the creation of a recognizable reality. Sure, a world where a man dresses in a suit designed to look like a bat is not what I would call realistic, but Batman Begins comes as close as possible. Gotham City is based off of real-world Chicago, and passes for a real, living, breathing city. There are plausible explanations created for Batman's hardware and equipment. Nolan and production designer Nathan Crowley's realistic approach lends a greater weight to the story.
The villains and their plot also have a strong connection to the character development of Bruce Wayne, not just some random goal that sounds as if it was concocted by a screenwriter just so there could be some excuse for the film to exist. While some of the details of the overall scheme are a bit shaky, the overall plot is integral to the film, not just an afterthought. Also, Batman is depicted working at solving a mystery, not just reacting to the events going on around him. He is something of a detective here, unlike before where he seemed to be a bit player.
However, the film has weaknesses. While I enjoyed the focus on the character of Bruce Wayne, the villains are somewhat underutilized, at times seeming almost inconsequential. Unlike Spider-Man 2, where Doctor Octopus was a fully-realized, three-dimensional character on par with Peter Parker, here the villains for the most part service the plot and little else. Cillian Murphy is very effective as the Scarecrow, no doubt, but doesn't quite stake out a claim to fame in the comic villains hall of fame. The character of Rachael Dawes is also a weak link in the chain, proving to be a generic love interest and little else. Katie Holmes does her best, but the chemistry between her and Nolan is nonexistent.
Christian Bale gives the strongest performance yet for the character of Bruce Wayne. He brings intensity and drive to the character, and fills out the various aspects of Bruce Wayne. Instead of just serving as a placeholder, Bale gives Bruce Wayne presence. The rest of the supporting cast, especially Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, perform admirably, giving Batman Begins a memorable cast overall.
For those who could not believe that a franchise as hobbled as Batman could be rescued, Batman Begins is good evidence that anything can be saved with the right approach.