Product: Batman Begins (Two-Disc Deluxe Edition) (2005)
Rating: 5.0
Totally Worthed The Anticipation!
I was so thrilled that Christian Bale was cast as Batman/Bruce Wayne in this prequel, because he's such a great actor, and he's work in The Machinist was amazing. I think he's portrayal of Batman is more impressive than the previous actors'. He's very attractive as Bruce Wayne, and he's so captivating as Batman. He deserves extra credit for being a British actor playing an American superhero, and he had to regain more than 50 lbs of lean muscles for the role right after he finished The Machinist.In this movie, we get to see the Bruce Wayne having flashbacks of the killing of his parents in the alley when he was a kid. His father Dr. Thomas Wayne is played by another British actor named Linus Roache(Wings of The Dove), who is perfectly cast for the role, especially he looks similar to Bale. The man who killed his parents never got convicted, and years later, it was upto Wayne to take justice into his own hands, despite the lack of support from his friend Rachel Dawes(Katie Holmes), who was a D.A. assistant to her corrupted boss Carmine Falcone(brilliantly played by Tom Wilkinson). Bruce Wayne abandoned Gotham City and embarked on a journey in Asia.He eventually met his mentor, Henry Ducard(Liam Neeson) and the ninja warriors that formed The League of The Shadows, whose mission was to wipe out the corrupted Gothem City. Liam Neeson looks rather unattractive in a wierd beard, and he's probably the most outstanding supporting player in this film. When he completed his training, he headed back to the Gotham City seven years later.With the help of his housekeeper Alfred Pennyworth(Michael Caine), and Lucius Fox(Morgan Freeman), who was a weapon specialist, Wayne was able to transform into full Batman gear for the first time. He teamed up with Lt. James Gordon(Gary Oldman in a rather lowkey role) to battle the evil forces including The ScareCrow/Dr. Johnathan Crane(Cillian Murphy) who conspired to spread massive "fear hullucination chemicals" to destroy mankind. Wayne eventually reunited with Rachel when she was in danger and rescued her from the toxic chemicals. Just when he thought he had defeated all the bad guys, Ducard and the Ninjas arrived at his birthday party.....The sets are very elaborate, both the structure of the Gothem City and the remote landscapes were quite an eye candy. The fight scenes were great, especially the car chase scene when the Batmobile was crossing over rooftops. The cast is irresistable, but there is not enough screentime shared between Rachel and Bruce to allow them to develop enought romantic momentum. Overall, this movie is very entertaining, and it's the first time to see so much of Bruce Wayne that isn't depicted in previous Batman movies. I do hope it's going to be a blockbuster, so that they would get Christian Bale to play Batman again.