Classic Superhero, Fresh Story-Telling = A New Classic

Rating: 10/10 (18 February 2006)

Batman has come a long way since the "Pow & Bang" days of Adam West and company. Lucky for us, the Batman evolution has proved to beautify and deepen the character. Not so lucky is that we had to sit through all the rubbish before a writer struck gold.
In a decade where most of the blockbusters are unoriginal story lines or remakes, you have to be impressed with what looks to be a new trend: changing our superheroes. Like Spiderman's Peter Parker who started out as a wimpy boy-next-door, 'Batman Begins' takes us to a place we never imagined Bruce Wayne would be: prison, a strange Asian training grounds, and finally a darker, more realistic Gotham. Indeed, almost everything becomes "realistic" for Batman  from the psycho logicality that helps Bruce Wayne find his purpose in life to the creation of the 'Batman'  we are made to believe that a Batman could actually exist.
What impressed me was discovering the heart and soul of Bruce Wayne, (played flawlessly by Christian Bale). He is a real person with people issues and must do the right thing, the best thing, to succeed. Not the wrong thing - so many new movies are prominently displaying that wrong actions are OK so long as you do them for the right reason. Or even the wrong reason.) Not even the "good" thing  settling for second best or compromising to come to a solution that will please everyone. Bruce Wayne must give of himself and become a true hero. An old-fashioned type of a hero who actually didn't get the somewhat annoying Katie Holmes in the end.
Having seen most of the 'Batmans' over the years and allowing myself to become accustomed to their cheap entertainment, I excitedly applaud 'Batman Begins' for taking Bruce Wayne, Gotham, and Superhero movies to a new level.
by~ TMT