Tempus Fugit

Mark Jaquith's personal blog

Review: Batman Begins

I went to see Batman Begins the other night with my girlfriend. We’d been hearing good things, and are both fans of Batman. I, because Batman doesn’t have super powers… he’s just a human who’s that good (very cool), and Sarah, because Batman is, well, hot (yeah, I can’t argue with that).

Batman Begins is, without question, the best Batman movie yet. Directed by my second favorite director, Christopher Nolan (Following, Memento, Insomnia), Batman Begins is a fresh look at the franchise that completely eschews the camp silliness of previous installments. You’ll find no Joker character laughing manically and making groan-worthy jokes. The bad guys in Batman Begins are bad. You can practically feel the evil seeping out their pores.

The cast is top-notch. Cillian Murphy (28 Days Later) plays Dr. Jonathan Crane, a character simultaneously beautiful, captivating, and utterly frightening. Michael Caine plays the character of Alfred with the perfect blend of fatherly affection and butler-ly disdain for Bruce Wayne’s violent escapades. Liam Neeson appears as Ducard, the man who trains Wayne, creating the skills necessary for him to become Batman. Katie Holmes plays Rachel Dawes, part love-interest, part moral voice to Wayne. Gary Oldman turns in an expectedly solid performance as Jim Gordon, Batman’s police “in.” Tom Wilkinson, who never fails to impress me, plays the mob boss Carmine Falcone, in a performance that I particularly enjoyed. Morgan Freeman, an asset to any film, plays a small role as Lucius Fox, who is to Bruce Wayne as “Q” is to James Bond. Finally, Christian Bale plays the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman perfectly.

The best line of the movie comes after hard-working D.A. Rachel Dawes (Wayne’s childhood sweetheart) encounters playboy Bruce Wayne wandering out of a hotel, dripping wet, with a European bimbo on each arm. He tries to explain it away, after she shames him with her talk of fighting corruption in the justice system of the city by saying that all of “this” isn’t who he really is. Dawes replies, “deep down you may still be that same great kid you used to be… but it’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you.” Knife. In. Heart.

Honestly, the only real fault I can find with the movie is that the fight sequences are disorienting. It effectively communicates that Batman is swift and takes his enemies by surprise, but I’d rather feel like a spectator than one of his enemies as I watch him fight. Minor quibble, really.

You owe it to yourself to go see this one. It’s rated PG-13, but you might want to leave the kids home. The “Scarecrow” scenes are rather frightening, and the whole movie is very dark and not really kid-friendly.

Comments

  1. I think it’s interesting that you mention how the fight scenes are disorienting, because many other reviewers have mentioned this. I think you are missing the point, because I believe they are shot that way to show how Batman is learning how to become an effective vigilante. The movie seems to portray Batman as someone who learns as he goes, so at first he is going to clumsy and off-balance. This is why he creates new equipment along the way that better suits him. Maybe I’m wrong, and the action sequences are incoherent by accident (or because Nolan has never directed a big budget action film), but I think the choreography is better in this one than in any of the others (the Burton versions were clunky and Schumacher’s were, well, what can I say that hasn’t been said before).

    This is the best movie of the year so far (or a close second to “Sin City”), and for once I can say that about a summer blockbuster film and not make it seem like an indictment against all the other film that have come before.

  2. I think the point that so many are making re the blurry action sequences need to be considered in context. We live in an age where audiences expect to see every turn of a bullet (Matrix) or an explosion that lasts 5 minutes. They want these iconic moments. Really, Nolan wants to intellectually justify every action in the film, and he could justify some such moments. Sometimes time passes more SLOWLY in moments of stress, it’s not always and only more confusing. Nolan really could do this, and should do it, because the demand for it is nearly universal – it’s not jsut a few people who ‘don’t get it’.

    FYI: I have an offbeat review comparing Batman to Darth Vader here: http://mistersnitch.blogspot.com/2005/03/men-in-black-capes.html

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  1. ever to be purchased at an auction. Chris provides a short tutorial on podcasting with WordPress. Angsuman would like to hear your input before developing a plugin that would add a copyright notice to your WordPress feeds. And, Mark reviews Batman Begins.

  2. cesperanza (by way of Anna Louise Genoese ) posted an excellent review on the movie. Some other blog posts on the movie here, here, here, here , here, and here And little history on BATMAN, for those interested. **Gawd, I love Google and the copy n’ paste function. Saves. My. Ass. Every.

  3. […] This is in responds to Metal’ss request for a review .[So i am not to blame – fee foo fee ].Warning – Absolutely NO spoilers ahead .The Short VersionRediff hates it . All those who live for movies like “Star Wars – Sith ” hate it .Most of the audience were left asking where was the blood ? the sfx ? the sex and violence ? the cgi ?But mayank thinks its the best movie he’s seen this year (with 2 flaws albeit)In short – those who liked Memnto and dont mind Batman aka Bruce Wayne will love it .The Long VersionThere was a hero . In 1936 . A different kind of a hero . Not super powered . Dark – psychotic – batty .Unfortunately – then came the TV series – which turned him into a purple police helper with a gay kid in shorts . This was followed by an era of “boom – kapow – dhishum”. Funny ,yes – but not Batman . Finally some good men snapped .Frank Miller and Tim Burton set about getting the real Batman back . They had there flaws – too dark and too stylized – but they had good intentions in mind . There hard work paid off . Batman returned . With style . Defeating clark, in both comics and movie revenues .This brief renaissance was cut short by Joel Schumachher . Neon lit cartoonish Gotham . Corny one-liners .Batman with NIPPLES on his suit . [F***K HIM – ahem sorry]To cut a painful story short – those two bat movies killed the legend of the Dark Knight .And then the Marvel heroes came .Spidey and X-men . Blade and punisher. Hulk and Daredevil. Elecktra .Kyle Cooper making the Marvel on-screen logo.DC was dying in the movie world – taking WB with it .Then a young smart kid at WB pointed out – The strength of Batman is that he is real . That is what should be reflected in the movies . [Or something along this line …]The Big Shot execs asked – who is a “real director”.The kid sez – Seen Memento dude ?Enough Tripe ….The movie IMHO has only two flaws (or what can be allowed as flaws)- The action scenes . Dark murky , awkwardly edited . Perhaps this was deliberate : make a realistic fight – not another Matrix . Or perhaps its becoz Nolan is not a action director .Whatever the reason – he has to remember that unfortunately whatever may the reasons for Spideys success – the sudiences clapped hardest when he kicked CGI ass in slo mo . Sad , but true.- Kate Moss . Bad acting .Super flous role .On the good side – the movie has great actors . Bale is terrific as Bruce Wayne . Slightly over the top as Batman . Caine,Freeman,Rutger Haer are spot on.Neeson ,although is a brialliant Ra’s Al Ghul – but sadly fr him and me- i cant see him as an evil warlord .Always mister Schindler.Sorry luv, can’t say muchos about Ra’s as he’s tied up to the storyline .Gary Oldman IS Gordon – its like he’s walked out from the comic “Batman – Year One”.However the most underutilized , and the most briallant is Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow . He auditioned for Batman – rejected – was so impressive that he landed this role . If he had been the main Villian in a meatier role – he would have dislodged Jack Nicholson as the scariest/funkiest Bat villian .The cast is -Christian Bale — Bruce Wayne/BatmanMichael Caine — Alfred PennyworthKatie Holmes — Rachel DawesKen Watanabe — Ra’s al GhulCillian Murphy — Dr. Jonathan Crane/The ScarecrowLiam Neeson — Henri DucardMorgan Freeman — Lucius FoxGary Oldman — Lt. James GordonTom Wilkinson — Carmine FalconeRutger Hauer — Richard EarleLinus Roache — Dr. Thomas WayneRichard Brake — Joe ChillRade Serbedzija — Homeless manAlexandra Bastedo — Mrs. DelaneTim Booth — Victor ZsaszEnding lines – this movie may not make as much as Sith an Spidey 2 – but it is far far better . And finally : the spectre of Batman with nipples on his costume is laid to rest .This truly is the best adaptation of a comic book (along with Ghost World)ps;TriviaIn the comics there is an actual Zsasz (serial killer). There is also a guy called Henry Ducard – a french detective who teaches Brucepps;Links to convince u ppl to see it ….Wired News: Batman Begins on the Right FootBatman BeginsReview: Batman Begins[ Tempus Fugit TxFx.net ]newbatmobilebig.jpg (JPEG Image, 900×580 pixels)Beyond The Rim… » Archetypical HeroesKemitix.net » Blog Archive » Go see Batman BeginsBatman Begins (2005)Cosby Sweaterand of course IMDB gives it a 8.6 – highest for a comic book adaption methinks …So now can someone pleez kick Vijay and co into going ……… […]

  4. 5 personalities cited most in the blogosphere. In fact, seven celebs or director/producers involved in the movie (Bale, Holmes, “Bruce Wayne,” Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine, Christopher Nolan) appear in the top 20 key personalities today. Tempus Fugit blog calls it the “best Batman movie ever.” Ms. Holmes and Tom Cruise also are creating “buzz” because of their recent Paris engagement, which is captured quite nicely in a BlogPulse trend graph: [IMG Tom and Katie]