A Presumed Dead Franchise Back with a Vengeance!

Rating: 10/10 (26 January 2008)

Let's be honest - Tim Burton's 1989 ubersuccessful Batman somehow fell short of its potential. Vicki Vale had far too great a role, Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne was disappointingly flat, and the contrived ending seemed to have been scraped together in the midst of a massive writer's block. There was hope with Batman Returns, however, which was a dark, compelling political satire with vivacious villains and sharp writing. By 1997, however, when Joel Schumacher's abysmal Batman & Robin infected the mainstream, I relegated myself to the fact that a once-interesting comic book character (and franchise, for that matter) was dead and buried. I accepted the fact that perhaps I should put my affinity for the Dark Knight in the same nostalgic storage facility that contains the likes of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the Thundercats, and Inspector Gadget. However, much like Alfred Pennyworth's reassurance to Bruce Wayne, I swore that I would never give up hope in rejuvenating my affection for Batman. And now, thanks to Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale (among others), my heretofore latent love of the Batman franchise is alive and well.
Perhaps the most refreshing and enthralling element in Batman Begins is the fact that we finally care about the character of Bruce Wayne. We are no longer impatiently biding time until a wooden, uninteresting billionaire puts on the Bat Suit to kick some butt. David S. Goyer's marvelously attentive script helps us understand Bruce Wayne's anger, ambivalence, disillusionment, and, ultimately, his unwaivering dedication to freeing Gotham from its shackles of corruption and decadence. The dark, disturbed nature of Bruce Wayne and his destiny has always been that which has made Batman one of the most compelling comic book characters of all time, and, by God, they finally got it right. If you want to see a larger than life, uninteresting, heroic juggernaut who beats criminals up and fights crime, then there's always Superman. With Batman Begins, director Nolan delves into the complexity of Bruce Wayne's inner conflict and his obsession with familial responsibility while delicately addressing the issue of the Dark Knight's intentions, and whether or not they are as noble as he claims they are, or if they are selfish and personal. On top of this, we follow him through his martial arts training which finally sheds some light on the question "How is this guy able to combat multiple adversaries at once?"
In short, this is the Batman movie for people who are not necessarily die hard Batman fans. It's a deftly written story which finally breathes some maturity, nuance, and humanity into the heretofore cartoonish, unrealistic comic book genre. Oh, and, by the way, the action scenes are as riveting as anything Michael Bay could hope to direct. Batman Begins just might be. . .dare I say it?. . .the best comic book movie ever made.