Batman is here to stay!

Rating: 10/10 (19 July 2007)

O what a tragic tale it is of the Batman film series! Batman was at its peak in the late 80s and early 90s with Tim Burton's dizzying incarnations of the Dark Knight. Two films that inhabited the darkest recesses of the character in ways I never thought could be possible. In 1995 it all came crashing down when Burton was dismissed and that most terrible of filmmakers took the directors chair, Joel Schumacher.
And the decline in quality was shocking. His two outings stripped Batman of all his shadowy mystery and intrigue, and replaced it with camp theatrics, empty-headed plots and snazzy visuals with nothing underneath. It seemed Schumacher had managed to do what Batman's enemies never could. He had killed the Dark Knight.
For eight years it seemed Batman was buried in a grave even he couldn't claw his way out of. But all that changed with Christopher Nolan. Nolan emerged on the film circuit with the astonishing Memento, a beautifully crafted murder mystery that scaled impressive heights by telling the story in reverse. Memento established Nolan as one of the most promising filmmakers today.
When it circulated he was directing a new Batman film, Batman Begins, that took the whole story back to its roots, it made me wonder if even a director of Nolan's talents could salvage Batman. And the answer is...yes, absolutely!
Batman Begins is a film that really flies high. Nolan gets right inside the dark psychology of the character, and turned out one of the most intelligent and thought-provoking superhero films ever made.
This is a film that takes Batman back to his beginnings. We learn everything about him. How he became obsessed with bats. His parents' murder when he was a child. Watching him grow consumed by vengeance. Travelling the world searching for answers. And finding his true calling.
Batman Begins is a film of two distinct halves. The first half details everything about Batman's origins and its this part of the film where Christopher Nolan seems the most at home. The part where the orphaned Bruce Wayne has to find his direction in life. So it was important that they find the right actor who can embody tightly controlled anger and channel it into the persona of Batman. And Christian Bale is that actor.
Bale has always been an actor worthy of notice. After I saw The Machinist, a part that required him to lose half his body weight I was convinced he is an actor with an almost obsessive desire to embody a role. And its this quality that makes him perfectly suited as Bruce Wayne/Batman.
Its a good solid hour before we even see Bale in the cape and cowl. This allows enough time to explore Bruce Wayne's struggle with his dark half. Never has Batman's origins been told in such detail. Something not even Tim Burton's Batman films can attest to.
There are wonderful scenes in this part of the film with the conflicted Bale and his teacher, Henri Ducard (an excellent Liam Neeson), a member of the League of Shadows. An organisation that wants to harness Bruce's need for justice (or revenge). Neeson gets to play a bit of an Obi-Wan Kenobi, and gets a lot of rich dialogue to spout:
"A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification."
The first half of Batman Begins is beautifully constructed. Each part of his origin falls into place a piece at a time. Bruce wants to kill his parents murderer, and is beaten to it by somebody else, robbing him of his revenge. And I particularly loved the way Bruce comes to embody the symbol of the Bat. In an ingenious twist, bats are what he fears most, but Ducard teaches him to embrace his fear and use it against those who prey on the fearful.
When Bruce returns to Gotham City, now the origins are out the way, the story really takes off. And the way Bruce rediscovers himself as the Batman is very satisfying. There are scenes right out of a comic book, like when Bruce discovers the Batcave beneath Wayne Manor, and is enveloped in a swarm of bats and just stands there.
When Bale becomes the Batman, he seems for all the world a truly unearthly creature. Nolan makes sure he cuts a striking figure against the Gotham skyline. And Bale's piercing eyes and voice ensure this is one Batman you won't forget.
Also worthy of mention is the really exceptional cast Nolan has put together. Just look who we have here! Aside from Bale and Neeson, we have Michael Caine who makes a wonderful Alfred. Gary Oldman's a revelation as a young Commissioner Gordon. The always excellent Morgan Freeman as Bruce's weapons designer. And even Rutger Hauer and Tom Wilkinson are here too.
Cillian Murphy is a fine young actor but I think he was a little too young to be playing the part of a criminal psychologist, and one of the film's villains, the Scarecrow. But nonetheless he's totally professional, and infuses his performance with his trademark intensity.
Really the only black mark on BB is Katie Holmes, who's a thoroughly unconvincing assistant DA. She only gives one of her insipid performances, and she's just shoehorned in as the token love interest.
Fans of Tim Burton's Batman sagas may be disappointed this Gotham City has none of the dark psychological atmospherics he brought to the table. It could be any city in the world. And I was disappointed the Batmobile is a tank instead of its usual streamlined self. But remember, they're still sorting things out, and hopefully the Batmobile will metamorphose into its true form as time (and sequels) go by.
Overall though, Batman Begins is a triumph. It's a wonderfully told story. Brilliantly directed, acted and wondrous to behold. Batman is back, and he's better than ever!