Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 5.0
The Dark Knight has truly returned
You've got to hand it to Warner Bros.; they finally got it right. With Memento director Christopher Nolan at the helm, Batman is finally given the right treatment that the classic DC Comics icon has deserved as Nolan and co-screenwriter David Goyer take the Dark Knight back to his roots. There's no major celebrity villains that take up most of the film, there's no fourescent colors, there's no Bat-nipples, and there's no Robin; this is the way Batman should be. Christian Bale wonderfully cast as the brooding Bruce Wayne, searching across the world for a means to battle crime as he is haunted by the death of his parents. He meets a man named Ducard (Liam Neeson), who trains him and offers him a place in the League of Shadows led by Ra's Al Ghul (Ken Watanabe). After a spectacular action sequence, Bruce returns to the crime ridden Gotham City which is under the fist of crime lord Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson); and with the assitance of his faithful butler Alfred (Michael Caine, perfectly cast), technical genius Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), and honest cop Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman, wonderfully cast against type), Batman is born. Unlike the other Batman films, Batman Begins really gets to the heart and soul of the character, and Bale couldn't be better as the Dark Knight. The cinematography is superb, the fight scenes are nicely orchestrated, and the rest of the cast is great as well, including Cillian Murphy who is perfectly creepy as the vile Scarecrow. The only weak point of Batman Begins is Katie Holmes as the Gotham DA/love interest, but her she doesn't have a significant amount of screen time. All in all, Batman Begins is a magnificent return to form for the character, and it's one of the best comic to film adaptations ever.