What do you get?

Rating: 10/10 (16 November 2006)

What do you get when you get a good group of actors and actresses, toss them together with a big budget and lots of special effects? Well that depends. If you have a wonderful script and an amazing director, you get a movie like Batman Begins.
When I heard about the movie coming out and all the hype during its pre-release, I expected it to be a bomb (like Batman & Robin turned out to be). I didn't go see it until a few weeks after it was released, because I wanted to go see for myself just what it was like. Even while waiting for the movie to actually begin, I was still expecting it to be a disappointment. I sat there, throughout the movie, watching as the plot built up from the beginning, from where you learn why Bruce Wayne became the Dark Knight. Small doses of comedy, certain mysteries explained (such as the Batcave and his source of his 'toys'), along with extreme realism tossed in, and I left the movie amazed.
Without spoiling the movie with details, I will comment this: The technology shown in the movie is actually realistic. True, how it's used and the events are still fictional, but that realism is one of the reasons I think this movie turned out as well as it did. If you haven't seen this movie yet, I recommend that you go out, buy (NOT rent!) it, then watch it. Make sure it's widescreen too, even if you hate the black bars on top/bottom, because you don't want to miss ANYTHING. If you don't like the concept of Batman too much, don't worry. Just think of it as a action/drama where a guy dresses up as a bat. It's less about Bruce as a hero, and more about his life, what he does with it, the world he is living in and how he tries to change it for the better.
With its realistic style and having the Batman storyline being a part of the overall story (instead of having it be the entire point), it's very easy to forget that you are watching a super-hero movie. The characters are nicely developed considering the time given, the mood is well done and the world you are introduced to feels quite real. Nothing seems out of place, too far fetched nor made up. The reason I point this out and even detail it a little (on what I mean) is because of how much I think this made a huge difference in how successful the movie became. Anyone who has seen the movie knows what I am talking about and will agree with me completely that the lack of an imaginary world helped to make the concept of Batman more believable than ever before.
As for the cast of the movie, they were wonderful and chosen perfectly.
Christian Bale was an excellent choice. He has that charm as a regular guy, the wit and charm to handle "being rich", and did a wonderful job with being in character as though he was being himself instead of being someone else.
Katie Holmes is as beautiful as ever, with her quirky but lovable smile, but gets you past the whole "Dawson's Creek" image you try to associate with her.
Morgan Freeman, I could go on and on about this wonderful actor. I remember him from the days of "The Electric Company" and the movies "Lean On Me" and "Deep Impact", to only name a couple. The authoritative but yet relaxed attitude he displays works beautifully, as always.
Gary Oldman blew me away. I remember him from "Lost In Space" and "The Fifth Element", and didn't recognize him neither in looks nor in his acting style. He is such a versatile actor that he fits himself to his role.
The other cast did an amazing job as well, but I couldn't possibly go over each and every one of them without taking up a whole page just for compliments.
In summary, this is one of those movies that I believe is a "MUST SEE!". The bonus "Tankman" parody video on the DVD is also worth watching. Anyone who does NOT like this movie has problems. If you haven't seen it yet, definitely make it a point to see it, and soon too! I didn't vote a 10 because of being some sci-fi nut. I vote 10 because of the quality of the movie and how real they made Batman (almost) become.