only one important thing to improve on

Rating: 9/10 (23 October 2005)

There are a lot of good things you can say about Batman Begins. I suspect they've already been said. Though I loved the movie, I'll be honest enough to say there were also somethings that weren't so great. (e.g. Katie Holmes) But in my opinion, the only place where the movie failed was in the lack of consistency for how the Scarecrow's drug affected people and the general pointlessness of the drug as the movie progressed.
Our first introduction to the drug makes the drug appear to be unsettlingly powerful. The victim (whom I won't mention to avoid spoilers) essentially goes nuts, instantly whacked out of his gourd. Anyone who wasn't taken back a little bit by this excellently and frighteningly well done scene, our first view of the scary Scarecrow, must be somewhat numb. The next victim, who isn't affected nearly as strongly because he's already experienced it in a more mild form (and because he's less susceptible to fear in general), is also handled quite well. But after that, the drug hardly seems to do anything to anyone except make them see other people's eyes glow red. We have a victim who is able to see what's happening outside her vehicle clearly enough to warn the driver to be careful (don't forget that she supposedly got a concentrated dosage). A kid who gets hit by it seems largely immune, only about as scared as he ought to be considering the encroaching mob, and is clear headed enough to tell the lady with him to not worry because "Batman will come." Why do people who are affected with the drug approach and attack the scary things they see? They should be running away screaming unless they've already fallen down and are frozen with fear. Not once did I see any affected person in the Narrows do anything meaningful enough to be cause for concern. The maniacs and criminals roaming the streets, yes, that's scary, but the drug, it does nothing. It seems, ironically, that some characters are aware of this. The main bad guy doesn't bother to put on his gas mask until after the drug has already been released into the air. Pretty much, after all the build up about the drug, even including its origins in Batman's back story, the only real danger once all the badness is released is the water mains blowing up (that's not a spoiler, it was in the trailer). And Batman isn't even directly involved in preventing that.
In summary, well done lads (Nolan,Goyer,Bale,Murphy), but next time don't forget to keep the scary things scary all the time.