Marval Movie

When Bob Kane first created Batman within the course of a weekend he made him as a combination between Sherlock Holmes and Zorro.  He was the Dark Knight who was a moody loner and even used a gun to kill criminals (this was quickly rectified).  After the comics code of approval came into effect Batman got a colourful sidekick and became the campy crusader loosing almost all kind of drama and seriousness.  Then the age of Dennis O'Neil and Frank Miller who reinvented him back to his roots as a dark, psychopathic millionaire, fulled by revenge and rage.  This direction carried over to his movie carrier with Tim Burton's Batman and even more so with Batman Returns.  Then Joel Schumacher took over the franchise with a lighter touch then over did it with Batman & Robin.  After this disaster of a movie the studio knew that it was time to give Batman a break from the big screen.

It took seven years until Batman could return to the big screen and be reinvented for a new audience.  Sam Raimi and Daren Aronofsky lost the chance and David Fincher turned down the chance to direct so the duty to direct the new Batman would be turned over to the British up and coming star Director Christopher Nolan.  Nolan had gained big critical success with Memento and Insomnia, two wonderful thought provoking films but they don't seem like the Director seems interested in adapting a comic book character, but Nolan said he wanted to do it so the studio took a gamble and it payed off.

Batman Begins is one of the greatest Superhero movies made because it is more than just a fisticuffs explosion fest it is a character piece that brings in the audience and intrigues them with its deep sophisticated plot.  The movie takes its time building up the character of Bruce Wayne and takes its own liberties with the mythology.  We see little Bruce playing in his huge garden with his childhood friend when he falls down a water well and a swarm of bats come out of a hole and scare the eight year old.  His father comes to his rescue and tells him the way of fear and scary things.  These sequences show that little Bruce was just an innocent kid who lived in a world protected by his two loving parents, he had everything to loose.

The original origin had Bruce being taken too see The Mark of Zorro and exiting with excitement and joy, in Batman Begins they take Bruce to see an opera (as rich people do) and there is a scene with the actors dressed as bats descend on the stage and Bruce asks to leave so they exit early into a dark dingy alley where a desperate low life is waiting for an easy victim.  This (I consider) is an improvement on the original story because it puts more guilt on Bruce, it was his fear that lead to his parents leaving the theater and then meeting their doom, as well as this Bruce is dad (still just alive) looks to him says with his dying breath "don't be afraid". If that doesn't fuck with your head I don't know what will.

Christopher Nolan is a man obsessed with obsession, he loves to dive deep into the psyche of obsessed individuals and in comics there is no one more obsessive that Batman.  Nolan has stated that he was never that much of a comic fan, but he did have unique ideas to bring to the character, this leads to a fresh take on the character rather than the same old pop approach that we've seen in many other Superhero movies.

Nolan is a storyteller first and a fan second so he knows to put the right amount of set up and character before he appeals the fans more simple nature.  He does however have David S. Goyer as his co-scriptwriter, Goyer is a comic book fan so he brings the knowledge of who's who in this universe so certain names like Flass, Lobe and Falcone are strategically placed in the script to put the fans at ease that this is the world that Batman has always lived in.

For the casting Nolan used the original Superman movie as an example.  If you have a huge star as your pahlawan the audience will just see the star in that outfit.  So have a few key roles filled in with big names stars and have the star as an unknown.  Big name stars like Michale Cane, Morgan Freeman,  Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson  and Rutger Hauer more than make up for not having the main character as a star.

The role of Batman would go to Christian Bale, who had stared in such slipper hits like American Psycho and Equilibrium.  In those he proved he can play an intense psychotic bastard and pull off intense physical work so he seems like the perfect Batman.  Bale is one of the best Batman's no doubt, he nails the physical side of the character with the mastery of the Casey fighting style and of course he is in great shape.  Bale also channels his performance from American Psycho and down plays it to the right degree for Bruce Wayne as the big time playboy with a model on each arm.  Nolan also adds touches like waking up at three pm after a night of crime fighting and drinking healthy shakes to then do continual push ups, like an obsessive individual would.

We don't see Batman clearly until just about one whole hour into the movie.  The time leading up the that is spent building up to it with character development and rationalizing Batman's techniques and methods.  Why would a man dress as a bat?  to induce fear in his enemies and become more than a man but an icon for justice.  Why does he wear a cape? Because he gets heavily bruised by jumping from building to building so he uses the cape a para-glider.  The ears have surveillance equipment stored in them, the suit is an expensive solider suit that was too expensive to be put into commission.  Everything is there for a reason and serves a purpose.

The main merit I give Batman Begins is that it is a movie, it does not try to be a comic, it knows what it is and confident enough to stand by it principles.  It is dealing with iconic characters but Nolan adds his own naturalistic obrolan to again ground the characters and make them all the more relate-able.

The main theme of the movie is fear, overcoming it as well as using it to your own advantage.  Batman has always been a character who has had more than one demon on his shoulder and fear is an emotion that is incorporated into his very foundation from what he uses against criminals to what haunts him at night.

I have heard criticism of the action scenes being a cluttered mess of editing.  I like what they do, yes the camera may be a little too close but it makes the action feel more visceral and gives a feeling that we cant keep up with Batman.

The movie ends with Batman and a newly appointed lieutenant Gordon meeting on the roof with a newly placed Bat-signal (that appears faded and blurred on the clouds above, nice touch) and they talk about the up coming challenges they'll have to face and what having a man wearing a mask and jumping off rooftops might bring them.

Batman Begins brought the character of Batman into a unique psychological study from a sophisticated perspective.  It became more than a mere comic book movie but a fully respectable film for smart people not just the humble nerds.