A comic book movie that makes sense!

Rating: 8/10 (18 July 2005)

Set in the fictional city of Gotham, Batman Begins tells the story of how Bruce Wayne became what he was destined to be. Jumping between Bruce's child-hood to his adult life, then to present time, this movie shows what influences and experiences affected his decision to become the Dark Knight of Gotham, a story which a lot of people don't know. This movie is for anybody who's ever wondered "Hey, how did this bat guy get to be so good at man to man combat? Or, where did he get all those gadgets and that bat mobile? Or, why did this guy just decide to dress up and fight crime? Or even, why choose a bat?"
Now, not being a huge fan of the Batman franchise (especially in the last 10 years) and even knowing that Christopher Nolan was directing, I didn't expect much from this movie. I was thinking to myself "Oh brilliant! Another Batman movie, another weak idea for a comic book movie, another excuse to make a high budget movie jammed with loads of CGI and explosions. How could anybody possible think they would be able to milk anything new and unique out of a franchise that has been squeezed dry by almost every star of Hollywood and still hasn't had any real success?" Very open minded I know, but how could you not be skeptical?
However, I was most pleasantly surprised. Unlike your typical comic book movie, Batman Begins avoids the temptation to include those cheesy awkward moments and one liners that make you nauseous. But, this movie was anything but typical; it was the most original and down to earth comic book adaptation in years. The storyline actually made sense and was believable, unlike the other movies, it never leaves you thinking "But why was he or But how can he" The acting was convincing, Christian Bale had just the right persona to give the effect of a man with a lot on his mind and a lot bottled up inside him. Morgan Freeman was his calm, cool, collected (and very smooth) self. Michael Caine did a good job in his type-cast role as Alfred the butler, and Katie Holmes' performance was better than expected. However, the most refreshing and skilled new actor in this movie, in my opinion, was Cillian Murphy in his role of Dr. Jonathan Crane, who seemed to be the wild card of the cast as he was the only actor who has previously only had cameo roles in films  but he did an astounding job of his role. I am positive we will be seeing much more of him in the future. The directing was superb; the use of lighting and camera angles really gave Gotham that gloomy and dark feel about it. The moral of the film: We fall down so we can pick ourselves up again seemed completely valid in any context and was completely relevant in the film. But the best part was No nipples on the bat suit!
Unlike previous installments in the Batman franchise, this is not a kid's movie. It is darker, deeper and more down to earth than all the rest. But it is welcomed by me and I'm sure the majority of the people in this large, movie loving world.
Overall I would give this movie 8 out of 10 stars, because at the end of the day, a superhero movie can only be so good. But it is great cinema and it is wished that skeptics (as I was), may give this film a chance.