Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 4.0
A great movie hampered by a lack of memorable villains
I think it's obvious by now that the majority of Batman fans are declaring "Batman Begins" as the best film in the franchise. I'll second that. Tim Burton's first 2 Batman films were good in their own right, but oftentimes too twisted and bizarre. And I won't even comment on the piles of excrement that were "Batman Forever" and "Batman and Robin." But Christopher Nolan has awaken this franchise from the coma it was in with "Batman Begins." His vision of Batman, Gotham City, atmosphere, etc. is what we've all been waiting for. I knew very little about Christian Bale prior to seeing this movie, but I thought he did a fantastic job as Batman, while playing the superhero as well as playing Bruce Wayne. All of the supporting cast were impressive as well although Morgan Freeman was rather underused.But despite my high praise for this movie, I did have an issue with something, which bothered me enough to knock off a star from my review...no memorable villains. The majority of the bad guys in this movie are either corrupt crime bosses or average-citizen slimy thugs. This is a Batman film after all...we want to see villains with novelty superpowers, powers that equal those of Batman. Powers that will challenge Batman. Unfortunately, Batman is able to get rid of all villains (or should I say, thugs) in this movie way too easily. Most of them don't even put up a fight! The only somewhat-memorable villain is of course The Scarecrow, and his character is definitely cool. The special effects used in his fright scenes were magnificent. However, he is given very little screen time. I also found his character highly under-developed and one-dimensional. He is gotten rid of too easily, and Batman isn't even the one who does it. We also have Batman's former trainer (Liam Neeson) showing up at a later point in the movie and becoming a villain, but that doesn't go anywhere other than an obligatory fight sequence that's uninspiring. I really think this movie short-changed us in the villain department. But I have high hopes for the sequel, now that we know that The Joker will be making his appearance.But I will reiterate that "Batman Begins" is an all-around awesome movie. The PG-13 rating is very appropriate; the kiddies will probably be scared by many scenes. And this movie is LOUD. Then again, that's one of the thrills of seeing it on the big screen. All in all, a great film.