So you think you know all about the BATMAN movies and that they're nothing you'd be interested in? Well, think again. Thanks to the creative team of director Christopher Nolan (MEMENTO) and actor Christian Bale (THE MACHINIST), as Batman, the latest Batman movie, which is a prequel to all of the others, raises the quality bar several notches over the previous efforts. BATMAN BEGINS, an exhilarating picture that is almost operatic in scope and impact, will easily appeal to Batman fans as well as moviegoers who wouldn't be caught dead looking at a comic book. One hopes that this latest film will do just as well at the box office as the recent SPIDER-MAN movies, since it is just as good and perhaps even better.
Although my absolutely favorite part of the film is the stirring and dramatic musical score by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer, along with Nathan Crowley's production design and Wally Pfister's cinematography, most people will probably like best the strong performances, of which there many. Given a terrific cast, Nolan manages to get the most out of them, no matter how small their roles. Morgan Freeman is wonderful as the guy with the gadgets; Michael Caine makes an excellent right-hand man; Tom Wilkinson, Rutger Hauer and Cillian Murphy make great villains; Gary Oldman does a nice turn as the only honest cop in town; and Katie Holmes is fetching as the love interest. Only Liam Neeson (KINGDOM OF HEAVEN) proves a bit disappointing, not so much for his performance as for his whole character, which never works as well as the other characters do. The only notably off part of the movie happens in a remote area of China, with Neeson's character training Bruce Wayne, soon to become Batman, in the ways of stealth fighting.
Probably the best proof for me about how enjoyable the movie was came at the hour-and-a-half mark. Looking at my watch, I found myself extremely disappointed that there was only a little less than an hour left. I didn't want it to end. I could easily have stayed glued to my seat for another two hours or more.
BATMAN BEGINS runs 2:21. It is rated PG-13 for "intense action violence, disturbing images and some thematic element" and would be acceptable for kids around 11 and up.
My son Jeffrey and his friend Nick, both 16, gave it *** 1/2. Jeffrey particularly liked the background part of the story, and Nick liked how deep the plot was.
By : Steve Rhodes (http://www.internetreviews.com/)
Source: rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating: 4
Batman has finally caught a break. Through five mediocre films the poor guy's stumbled around without even a superpower on his side. I mean, come on, Batman's just a buff guy in leather. He's one step above an S&M enthusiast. But now, with Batman Begins, ole' bat-ears has found his limelight.
This film chronicles Bruce Wayne's (Christian Bale) rise to power in the New York copycat city Gotham to become the ever-popular Batman. We're brought through his rise from an East Asian prison to the mountaintop sanctuary, training with Ra's Al Ghul (Ken Watanabe) and Henry Ducard (Liam Neeson). There we're told of Bruce's childhood trauma that fuels his hatred for injustice. We're then spun along to Gotham City, where Bruce is looking to save the corrupt city from the clutches of the brutal mob boss, Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson). But when Falcone's brought down on charges of drug smuggling, he pleads for insanity and actually wins. This brings Dr. Jonathan Crane (Cillian Murphy) into the picture. His examinations of numerous Falcone thugs have led to successful insanity pleas in Gotham's courtroom. Something smells fishy to Bruce. Or is that Batty? And with Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes), assistant to the DA and childhood friend to Bruce, burrowing herself into danger with the Dr. Crane case, Batman's got his hands full.
Much of Batman Begins success must be attributed to the brilliant star studded cast. I couldn't imagine a better actor behind the mask of Batman than Christian Bale. He brings an ideal mix of vengeance and humanity to a character that's hasn't felt quite right until now. Cillian Murphy as usual also does well. His role as Dr Crane/Scarecrow hits on the kind of evil bad guy that would usually be filled by such an actor as Jack Nicholson. And Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe, Katie Holmes and Tom Wilkinson all fill in roles that, although are smaller than these caliber of actors are used to, play them as perfectly as humanly able.
Director Christopher Nolan is most known for, as of right now, his work in Memento. The backwards time mystery masterpiece has been elevated to a kind of cult classic/critics choice. But now, almost undoubtedly, Nolan will be known as the man that made Batman work. The comic book hero has never looked so good. Most impressive is Nolan's work with his film's flawless atmosphere. Batman Begins is steeped to spilling point in atmosphere; with the perpetual nighttime, overtly common rain showers, and creepy dark alleys, this atmosphere is what brings Batman to a different level of Comic Book genre films than, oh say, Spiderman.
Spiderman's world is a geek fanboy's dream. Sunshine spilling from a New York horizon with our nerdy hero staring off from his bedroom window to that of his first love across the street, enamored by the way the sun reflects off her golden blonde hair...etc. Batman Begins plays an entirely different tune. This film is spectacularly dark. Gothic (no pun intended, by the way) is really the best way to describe it. We're presented with a man who's trained himself to embrace fear and use it against his enemies. Bruce Wayne is a guy that wants revenge on those that degraded his father's city to the dredges it is today. These grim overtones work to help flesh out what is quite a complex and surprisingly engaging storyline.
There is, however, one very disappointing aspect of Batman Begins that I can't help but mention. In a comic book film we all know the best parts are going to be the action sequences. But here Batman, or rather Christopher Nolan, finally disappoints. The film resorts to cheap and overrated quick cuts that dizzy us into distraction instead of letting us actually witness the action. The fights become nonsensical and frankly boring when we're only allowed to glimpse half-second cuts at a time. This ruins much of what could be a very stimulating aspect of the film.
Luckily, the rest of the film does not disappoint. Surprisingly, the most interesting aspect of Batman Begins is when it slows down to let us follow the story and look further into the world Nolan has so meticulously created. What I found interesting about the film's story is that it made an effort to incorporate more aspects of Gotham City than simply Batman vs. Baddie. We're presented with a tricky system of corrupt judges, cops, and lawyers; where all these are dealt with and strangely dissected using Rachel Dawes' sub-plot and an underappreciated straight cop named James Gordon (Gary Oldman). We're also offered insight into Wayne Enterprises by way of Fox's (Morgan Freeman) sub-plot as the director of the Applied Sciences division where Bruce finds all his equipment. And lastly, the history and proud lineage of Bruce is played out by Michael Caine's character Alfred. In doing all this, Nolan looks beyond the simple comic book formula and succeeds in immersing us deeper into his Gotham City, making his crime trail storyline affect us more than we originally thought.
I'm happy to finally be satisfied by a Batman flick. It's been a long time coming and with a few straggles aside, Batman's finally got something to look forward to.
