Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 5.0
Holy Reinvention Batman!
Coming 8 long years after the debacle that was 1997's "Batman And Robin", the franchise with the man in the bat costume gets a new shot at life, and what a rebirth it is. The project brings back the integrity, dignity, and all around excitement that the first film, under the director of genius Tim Burton, brought back in 1989. While some people might consider it one of the two or both, this latest installment is neither a sequel or a prequel. Just as the title says, it's beginning anew. Something totally new, different, and something that is starting it's own seperate franchise. Director Christopher Nolan, with a script from David Goyer(known mostly as the man behind the "Blade" movies), brings the dark moodniess back to the dark knight, and makes it darker than anyone has seen on film yet. Bruce Wayne(now played by the excellent Christian Bale), is recruited by a man named Ducard(Liam Neeson), from a prison where he was kept for theft, and trained to be a warrior in the League Of Shadows. When he has fulfilled his training, Wayne heads back to Gotham City to clean out the trash, go home to trusted butler Alfred, and meet up with childhood sweetheart Rachel(Katie Holmes). Bruce takes on the disguise of 'Batman', which is explained in the film's early flashbacks to the death of his parents, and just why he chose bats as his symbol. As this new persona, he plans to take on the mob underworld, but gets a surprise when Scarecrow(Cillian Murphy), and a fellow villain, plan to release a poison to bring everyone's fears to life and ruin the city. As the new Batman/Bruce Wayne, Bale brings the character to life in ways that no one has ever seen before. I have a soft spot for Michael Keaton, but Bale is Batman. But better yet, he is Bruce Wayne. Bringing to full fruition the the dark, angry, and brooding side of the character. I liked Michael Gough, but Michael Caine just takes the role of Alfred as his own and he is the best Alfred anyone has seen. He is funny and warm, and the relationship with him and Bruce is fantastic. The movie also boasts one great actor after another popping up. Morgan Freeman, Rutger Hauer, Gary Oldman, and Tom Wilkinson. Holmes does well with her role, but in the end, it becomes nothing more than a typical heroine. Cillian Murphy as Dr.Crane/Scarecrow is just fine, but there seemed to be less screen time for him to really have a solid impression. It can also be said his Scarecrow part can be pretty frightening for young kids. In fact, there are some scary/frightening things here that may not be well suited for young children. It is rated PG-13 after all. As with most Batman films, it's pretty dark. In the sense that it's hard to see sometimes, and you are not sure what you are seeing during some of the fights as well. While the movie is much more serious and darker, it does have a nice dose of humor to lighten things up a bit. The movie does a great job of explaining the origins of the character and just how he got to be who he is today. Not just as Batman, but as Bruce Wayne too. The movie may have the images and cool fights and all that, but this one is much more a character piece than any that has come before. I mean, why would a grown man dress up as a bat and capture bad guys?. The look of the film is magnificent. Gotham City is not the gothic place it was with Burton's films, or the comic book metropolis of Schumacher's films. It does have a distinct look to it tho. Like New York City a little bit in the future. The movie runs a longer than any other Bat film, and drags in some spots, but the end result is incredibly satisfying and entertaining. The way they structured it is perfect. You don't even see Batman until like 40 minutes or so into the movie. It breaks the comic book/superhero mold just by doing that alone, but also because it is not a typical comic book-y type superhero movie at all. This is not "Spider-Man", although I loved both films. Batman Begins is a brilliant, dazzling, and influential film, and will no doubt raise the bar for future superhero movies. It's the best movie I have seen in a while. Let's hope next summer's "Superman Returns" will be just as worthy as this one.