The best comic book movie since "Superman"

Rating: 10/10 (17 August 2005)

It's been eight years since the Batman franchise was left in inescapable ruins. Finally, the WB has brought Batman back to its roots - a dark, gritty, gloomy atmosphere. Although Tim Burton was known for his dark Batfilms, he relied on Gothic architecture and fantastic skylines. "Batman Begins" is dark in the sense that the city looks like it exists in the real world, overrun with crime and ramshackle buildings. Chris Nolan has not only revived the Batman franchise, but he will inspire future comic book movies to come.
Chris Nolan takes a new approach to not only a Batman film, but a superhero film in general. Instead of relying on supernatural imagery and special effects, this film focuses more on character development and a plot - something all of the previous Batman films lacked.
"Batman Begins" uses up the most villains than any other Batman film, but somehow Batman, or I should say Bruce Wayne, remains the main focus of the film. The main plot is the struggle Bruce Wayne has to face to become Batman, and the villains are all involved in minor subplots, whereas in previous Batfilms, the villains dominated the screen, even more than Batman himself.
Do not expect colorful, vibrant villains we've seen from previous Batfilms. Here, Director Chris Nolan aimed for a realistic approach, and succeeding in every way possible. When we watch "NYPD Blue" we don't expect whimsical and colorful villains, we expect normal people without harmonious outlandish costumes.
Watching the first hour of "Batman Begins" seems like an episode of "NYPD Blue" or "CSI." If someone who despised comic books and was unfamiliar with the Batman mythology were to watch "Batman Begins," s/he would never guess it was a comic book film until Batman makes his appearance during the second hour. That is how realistic this movie plays.
The cast is excellent in their roles. I had doubts about Michael Caine at first, being how he is such a well known star, but he plays his part of Alfred so well that one would forget he's Michael Caine and start believing him as Alfred right from his first lines of dialogue. Cillian Murphy is creepy and compelling as the loony psychiatrist Jonathan Crane, a man who you know is hiding something devious behind those eyes. Let us not forget Christian Bale, who is the second actor only to Michael Keaton to portray Bruce Wayne with sincerity, and he's more physically fit for the role, which helps.
The Cinematography is something we haven't seen in many superhero movies. Unlike the usual colorful superhero movies such as "Spider-man" and "Batman & Robin," this movie was filmed dark and artistic. It's as if the cinematographer thought he was making a sequel to "Lost in Translation." Trust me, it works. It's about time a serious Batman film was made.
Kudos, Chris Nolan and David Goyer, for not only reviving Batman, but for creating groundbreaking material which would improve superhero films to come. This is one comic book movie in which the actors, direction, and the screenplay take its source material seriously, which has not happened since Richard Donner's Superman.