Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 5.0
Best Batman so far
Why? Lots of reasons. For one, it's got Christian Bale in the lead role, Michael Caine as the strongest Alfred ever, Rutger Hauer as a Donald Trump lookalike, Morgan Freeman acting about like James Bond's Q, and a bunch of other good talent. That cast just won't let a movie go down the tubes.Except for Batman himself, this doesn't look like a comic book movie, and I mean that in the best way possible. It opens on a grey and gritty prison, then turns into a Himalayan trek, then flirts with Ninja stuff before returning to Gotham. The fight scenes are good, but oddly indistinct. It's not always clear who's doing what to whom, but that's even more effective than standard fight choreography - it reinforces the sense of Batman swooping in unseen on the bad guys, taking them down before they know they've been hit.And Gotham City is good, too. It appears in earlier and later times, with a clear display of decay in between. It's a good vision: tall, sweeping Art Deco lines, especially in that monorail. Other parts looked like Cubist landscapes, in their organic sprawl. The Plot Device was a disappointment. I won't give it away, but when you see it, think: people are mostly water, too.This one's really good, even if you don't usually like comic book movies. It's got good, varied action, and good characters, or good enough. In a summer of good summer movies, this is about the best so far. Enjoy!//wiredweird