The Comic Book coming-of-age

Rating: 8/10 (18 June 2005)

The comic strip hero turned into celluloid has long had a bad press. Line-drawn fantasy heroes, recreated with all the emptiness of fathers whose only knowledge of the comic strip and its characters is something that amuses their children, the cinematic contribution from this source has almost entirely been superficial, banal, aimed at the intelligence of cosseted pre-teens, underdeveloped, undervalued, and essentially patronising.
Remarkably, Batman Begins release date was very close to the seminal movie Sin City, in which the original creator was a co-director and was able to imbue the finished film with the depth, understanding and artistic integrity that is lacking from a cursory examination of the comic strip genre. Batman Begins does not have the deep respect for provenance that Sin City evinces, does not rise to the same cinematic heights, and is frankly not in the same club; but it is nevertheless in a league way above most of the Marvel Comic adaptations that have beleaguered our screens with very few objectives other than holding the attention of the family brood (with sugar and artificial flavourings) on the one hand, and (more honestly) making movie moguls Very Rich without even a nod to artistic integrity on the other.
The film presents two visions of Gotham City. The first, as young Bruce Wayne (who later becomes 'Batman') is still a boy, and the second during his adult, fighting-of-evil incarnation. The first, some time in the near future, shows us a beautiful metropolis where Bruces' father (one of the city's rich and famous) is an altruistic entrepreneur that has successfully completed projects such as a cheap transport system for the city to help its poorer inhabitants. Later, we see it in its more nightmarish vision, a natural progression from the greed of the wealthy (the 'haves' and the 'have-mores' as George Bush once put it, and without a hint of compassion), and a massive underclass - unified only by corruption, drug cartels and organised crime (The influence of Bladerunner is very apparent). If you take the contrasts of present day Los Angeles and ratchet them up a bit - use the horrific and almost uncontrollable differential seen in cities like Rio de Janeiro for example - this bleak future outcome seems quite logical. It has been the staple of many science fiction films for years and the reason for its popularity may lie with the instinctive reality it suggests to the underclasses.
Batman Begins may attract many viewers who wouldn't dream of seeing the old Batman and Robin or Superman movies - and so it should. Although it is unashamedly a money making exercise by Warner Bros (and a re-creation of the franchise - it bears no connection to the other 'Batman' movies), it has been delivered with commensurate style and artistic aspiration. The strong cast and crew give some inkling of what to expect: director Christopher Nolan is known mostly for his critically acclaimed modern-art style film Memento (about a man with short term memory loss and told in episodes equivalent to the length of his memory); the supporting actors - Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Tom Wilkinson - are largely known for their astute choice of acting roles rather than sell-out trash.
Batman is essentially a realistic character. As a young boy, the deep trauma of witnessing his parents' murder motivates him to become half vigilante, half hero. He spends his early years in extreme and unusual forms of training, mastering his body and emotions. Falling back on his family fortune later on, he is able to avail himself of cutting edge scientific developments (developments rather than gadgetry - for all the discreet nod to James Bond, his equipment is an essential and carefully constructed element of his operating persona, not cutesy add-ons). Towards the end (and it is perhaps a slightly over-long film), we enter the more stereotypical good-versus-evil battle, but it is well constructed, blending original action scenes with the inner pain of needing to conceal his true identity.
The film is not without its flaws. Like many lesser comic-book adaptations, the characters are imbued with little emotional depth, and the script is often more of the level of Blade (which the scriptwriter previously worked on) than Bladerunner. But there is a very restrained use of CGI effects, a clear departure from dumbing down throughout, and all in all a film that adds to and ennobles the original vision rather than downgrading it. Batman Begins is one of the best mainstream movies of the year so far and highly recommended.