Since ‘Batman’ has hit the big screen, there’s only been one actor who has perfected the character – at least for me, and that’s Michael Keaton. Maybe that’s because he was under the direction of one of Hollywood’s most creative genious in recent years – Tim Burton. Val Kilmer didn’t come close, and George Clooney was just thrown in there for the female draw. But yet I was still entertained by the the third and fourth movies.
Now, comes possibly the next big actor in Hollywood. An actor to fill the wings lost in the last two. Christian Bale is the new Dark Knight in “Batman Begins.� I have to admit I was a bit surprised when Warner Brothers chose a fairly unknown British actor to play Bruce Wayne, but it paid off. Bale delivers an excellent performance. He is a bit too intense at times while he’s in the bat suit, but still a top notch job. Unfortunately for me, I was not as impressed with the film overall – but that’s in the entertainment side of things. Good as a film, just not as entertaining as I would have liked.
For anyone who is a true comic book fan, who likes the Batman character, this is the movie for you. If you want to know the who, what, where, when and how Bruce Wayne became ‘Batman’ this is the movie for you. If you don’t really care about that stuff and are going to see a repeat performance of a comic book-type film, stay home. That’s what I was expecting and I didn’t get it. I’m not a comic book fan and really not a ‘Batman’ fan, but I’ve enjoyed the previous four ‘Batman’ films for what they were.
This film begins with a pre-Batman Bruce Wayne in an Asian prison. After years of suffering in jail, Bruce finds a mentor in Liam Neeson. Neeson rescues him and teaches him how to fight, and to fight his fears. In this time, we the audience are shown clips of Bruce’s childhood – from his fears of bats to witnessing his parents murdered. As Bruce becomes more accustom to his new surroundings and Neeson’s teachings, we get to learn a lot more as to why he was in prison.
Seven years pass from the time Bruce left Gotham City when he returned. His friends, as well as the only family he has left, his butler Alfred (played by Michael Caine) thought he was dead. Bruce knew there was only one way to fight the crime that had taken over the city – fight fear with fear.
With the help of Alfred, and the one loyal Wayne Enterprises employee, Lucius Fox (played by Academy Award winner, Morgan Freeman), Bruce comes up with the new crime-fighter, ‘Batman.’ Freeman designs several weapons and gadgets for Bruce including a new look Hummer-type Batmobile.
His main villain – mob boss, Carmine Falcone and the only comic book villain, ‘The Scarecrow,’ who’s alter ego is Dr. Jonathon Crane. They’re working together to crush Gotham City. Cillian Murphy portrays ‘Crane’ in the film. His performance alone should drive this film. His presence as 'The Scarecrow' had me even a bit frightened.
Along with Murphy, the other supporting characters strengthen the movie. There are some great one-liners from Caine and Freeman. Katie Holmes drops in as eye candy (and that’s about it); she plays Bruce’s boyhood friend, Rachel Dawes. Liam Neeson and “The Last Samurai’s� Ken Watanabe lend strong support as well as great action. We meet Lieutenant Gordon, who later becomes Commissioner Gordon; he’s played by Gary Oldman.
“Batman Begins� is directed and co-written by Christopher Nolan, who has previously worked on “Insomnia� and “Momento.� The other writer is David Goyer, famous for bringing the “Blade� series to the big screen. “Batman Begins� opens in theaters June 15th, it’s rated PG-13.
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ByImperial Mantooth ( Warning: Agent Orange's review's are rated R ) "Batman Begins makes Revenge of the Sith look like a little kiddie play pool that the Bat-Mite came along and took a dump in."
"Batman Begins improves on films of the past, staying loyal to the film series' story arc, while singularly emerging as a fluid prequel of beauty and masterful filmmaking, pairing gritty urbanism and heightened reality with astounding finesse." ByJ.P. Mangalindan
"The mature nature and gripping and deep storyline as well as the standout performances and action make this film a true classic and rivals Spider-Man as the most faithful and best film adaptation of a comic book." ByGareth Von Kallenbach
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