Viewed in
2005, 2008, 2012
Format
Movie theater, DVD, HDTV (w/ ads)
Premise
Christopher Nolan's first reboot of Batman, in which we see how Bruce Wayne transforms into the dark knight.
Loved
Top notch cast. Cool, dark atmosphere. Haunting score.
Liked
Everything else.
Thoughts
I grew up loving the 1989 Tim Burton version. But the Nolan flicks blew them out of the water.
It's actually a little mind-boggling how easy Nolan made it look, reinventing something with so much baggage, dealing with the traps of an origin story, creating a universe grounded in realism but involving a dude in a cape, and balancing brainy psychology with blockbuster spectacle.
It definitely had one of the most prestigious casts for a "comic book flick". Bale was great as Bruce, charming, unstable, completely believable as the damaged orphan. Never thought someone could do a better Alfred than the late Michael Gough, but Sir Michael Caine owned it. Liam Neeson was starting his streak of what became a string of sheer badass roles. Cillian Murphy was quite spooky as the Scarecrow, but my favorite criminal was Tom Wilkinson, just eating up every moment as Falcone. I know Katie Holmes got a lot of grief, but I thought she was perfectly fine. The only underwhelming cast member was Ken Watanabe, mainly due to screen time.
The story was very well done. I especially liked the tapestry of criminals/characters that cross each others paths. Usually, I squirm when a film attempts to breath life into more than one antagonist, but it worked in this seedy, corrupt universe.
For once, Bruce Wayne was actually an interesting character. Kudos to the writing for making a believable and sympathetic hero, even though most of us aren't billionaire orphans bordering on basket case. In the end, we want Bruce to win, not because he's the good guy, but because he's someone we've come to understand and want to win. I relished the themes of fear and diving into the psychology of Wayne, even if sometimes the dialog nearly veered into confusing pretentious territory.
Initially I was disappointed there wasn't an ounce of Danny Elfman in the score. But in hindsight, it was the right move. Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard created a non-rythmic, eerie, haunting, and atmospheric sound. It's actually not so fun to listen to by itself, but it truly enhanced the experience of the film.
Batman Begins was a great start to the trilogy. I was sucked into a haunting universe of realistic characters, intrigued by the psyche of Mr. Wayne, then strapped to a roller coaster of cool action.
