The following is a review Rekha and I wrote for the class. No, Batman Begins isn't a new film. No, this isn't a new review. Why post it? Because we can, and because we love it. The movie. The review. We love them both. And you should to. Here's why:
What is the difference between a man driven by justice and a man driven by revenge? Writer/director Christopher Nolan attempts to answer this question in his resurrection of the Batman franchise. Batman Begins does just what it says — it traces the birth of Batman out of the broken spirit of a young, parentless Bruce Wayne. Unlike the previous incarnations variously portrayed by Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, and George Clooney, Christian’s Bale’s Batman is a profoundly realistic character.
Freed from the camp that has been the creative ethos of nearly every portrayal of the caped crusader, Nolan instead embraces the darker, more human side to Batman. What is particularly innovative about his approach is that we get a back-story for Bruce Wayne that does not feel at all contrived. The film begins with a series of flashbacks to Wayne’s youth, juxtaposing the horrifying murders of his parents with the anchorless and vengeful young man he has become.
At a mountain retreat in the Himalayas Wayne encounters Ra’s Al Ghuhl (Ken Watanabe) and the League of Shadows, a group devoted to the erradication of crime through vengeance. As he immerses Bruce in martial arts training, mentor Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson) presses Bruce to relive his worst fears in order “to become more than a man, to become a legend”. And in this fashion Nolan’s storytelling establishes Batman’s physical acumen even as Bruce Wayne learns to harness his fear and convert it in to something more productive.
Upon returning to Gotham, Nolan reveals the nuts and bolts behind Batman’s accoutrement with the help of beloved butler Alfred (Michael Caine) and Wayne Enterprises’ Applied Science guru Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), including the Batcave, the Batmobile, and the Batsuit. What follows is a web of crimes, masterminded by Gotham’s resident thug Carmine Falconi (Tom Wilkinson) culminating in a face off between justice and vengeance. Struggling to listen to his own better angels, Bruce attempts to right the system that produces the desperation that led to the murder of his parents. Forsaking the easy relief of revenge on Falconi, Batman maintains hope that the restoration of justice can redeem Gotham. Aiding his struggle are Police Officer Gordon (Gary Oldman) and lawyer and childhood friend Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes).
Visually, this film departs from Tim Burton’s inaugural vision of Gotham as merely opaque, a comic book enviornoment that is both two dimensional and heavily framed. Nolan’s departure, while remaining dark, allows characters and locations the depth to resonate as actual people and spaces — instead of convenient fictions. For example, rather than a non-descript black hole, the Batcave is a cave, replete with dripping stalagtites and swarms of furry bats. This visual trick allows us to see the man of Batman and the world he inhabits beyond the legend we are so familiar with.
Nothing feels more innovative about this film than the choice to cast Christian Bale in the lead dual roles of Bruce Wayne and Batman, two entirely distinct physical presences. Bale’s face is all sharp angles and smooth planes, giving him the dignified appearance of the aristocrat Bruce Wayne was born to be (also on perfect display in the role of Patrick Bateman in American Psycho). But when his jaw juts outward and his cheeks furrow in, Bale transcends the physical limits of the suit to become the seething, revenge-bound man in black. Michael Keaton, as the original Batman, was an equally unconventional choice to play the leading man, but where he relied on costumes and brooding, Bale embodies the torturous psychology of both Wayne and Batman.
Few superhero movies and comic adaptations achieve the transcendent awesomeness that Batman Begins appears to do so effortlessly. It’s rare the film that is able to marry franchise filmmaking with the kind of directorial weight Nolan brings, particularly in the genre of noir, where he is clearly at his best. The wide appeal of Batman Begins is not to be underestimated—fans of Nolan’s earlier Memento will appreciate the film’s commitment to narrative and character while comic book fans will appreciate seeing a favorite hero reclaimed from camp. But perhaps most appealingly, Batman Begins taps into an American ideal that we all have the potential to be our best selves with a little introspection and a lot of money.
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