Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 5.0
"Why Do We Fall Down?"
So that we can learn to pick ourselves back up.As many know, the Batman franchise tumbled after Schulmacher took over. That's not to say Tim Burton was absolutely fantastic either, but at least the first Batman film made in the late 80's, despite not being true to the comic, was still a fairly good film. Unfortunately, all the Batman's to follow didn't have the same flair. Once Batman and Robin came, however, that was the end of Batman as we knew it. Or so we thought.Christopher Nolan, the man behind such films as Memento, decided to revive Batman. Just about everything done in the movie is right, with only a few minor issues that some probably won't be too upset about.The movie, like many of Nolan's films, beings by jumping around a bit. We alternate between Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) as a child and as an adult a little bit in the beginning. Most of you know the story of Bruce Wayne. His parents were murdered, and its a moment Nolan and crew capture extremely well. As well as why Bruce Wayne becomes Batman in the first place. The plot itself centers around Gotham City. A city Bruce Wayne believes isn't beyond saving. Years after Bruce Wayne was declared dead, he resurfaces after having gone undergo some training. With the help of Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) he soon gets all the gadgets and gizmos he needs to become the dark knight.At first the movie centers on Falcone (Tom Wilkinson) and the corrupt system of Gotham. Falcone has been able to get his thugs into the asylum because of the helpful Dr. Crane (Cillian Murphey) who makes everyone believe they are merely insane. This upsets Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes) who will stop it nothing to put him behind bars. Wayne decides to clean up Gotham and to do that he becomes Batman. But he'll soon discover that there's much more going on in Gotham City than Falcone, and that Falcone himself is nothing more than a puppet.The movie is dark and intriguing. Put simply, this is one of the finest super hero movies ever produced. Bruce Wayne, in particular, is built up extremely well. The way everything comes together in the end is nearly flawless. With some other fine and believable performances by the likes of Liam Neeson and Gary Oldman, Batman Begins is fantastic. In part because the story manages to be extremely well fleshed out without overdoing too much.The only real problem the movie suffers from is that it takes nearly an hour before Christian Bale dawns the bat suit. It's forgivable considering the absorbing story, and it surely won't upset too many folks in the long run.This is Batman done right. A fine movie with a fine director and an unbeatable cast.