ing Christian Bale, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman
What separates Batman from all the other superheroes ? He doesn’t have any superpower like all the rest and also (till now) he didn’t have a good movie to his credit like the others.
Batman Begins is one of the better superhero movies and certainly the best in Batman series. All the previous movies (except Batman to some extent) did not do justice to the Dark Knight. Chris Nolan has shown that Memento, Insomnia were no fluke.
Ever had a few questions about Batman, namely
If Batman or Bruce Wayne did not have any special powers and loads of money, why did he decide to become Batman ?
Not out of a sense of duty but for revenge. Revenge for killings of his parents by a mugger. Later on, this need for revenge was replaced by protecting Gotham from the scum and bring justice.
Why the name Batman ?
Because as a child, bats were his worst fears.
You might have a few more questions but hey, I am not here to answer questions. I have a review to write.
Bruce Wayne(Christian Bale) is a man driven by revenge for the murder of his parents. His childhood friend, Rachel (Katie Holmes) shows him that justice comes above revenge. Bruce disappears from public eye to find answers to his questions and ends up in Bhutan living like criminals, participating in crimes understanding the criminal psychology ? There he runs into an ancient clan, League of Shadows headed by Ra’s Al Ghul (Ken Watanbe) with Ducard (Liam Neeson) as his lieutenant. Ducard becomes Bruce’s mentor teaching him skills to fight, overcome his fear making him a complete fighter.
At the last stage of his training, Bruce comes to know the real purpose of League of Shadows. Whenever crime & injustice in the world reaches a pinnacle, League of Shadows destroys one city as an example to what crime & injustice can do to the world. They were responsible for destruction of Rome, burning of London etc. Now its Gotham’s turn to be destroyed. Knowing this, Bruce destroys the League of Shadows killing Ra’s Al Ghul and saving only Ducard.
Returning to Gotham (where he is believed dead), he finds that Wayne Enterprises is about to be taken public, crime situation is even worse than when he left and Rachel has become Assistant DA. He decides people need a symbol to believe in justice and becomes that symbol as Batman. He firstly destroys the city mafia but finds out that someone else with more ulterior motives is working the mafia. See the movie to find out who he is & what r the motives.
Christian Bale has suits the role of Batman and Bruce Wayne as a perfection. Young, rich, playboy as Bruce and dark, sinister as Batman. Even his voice as Batman has been changed for the impact.
Michael Caine comes up with a wonderful performance as Alfred, the butler inserting humour in the story, picking up Bruce when he is down etc.
Liam Neeson as Ducard has given a good performance (as always) and his dual persona is relieved pretty late in the movie.
Morgan Freeman is Lucius Fox, a scientist/inventor with Wayne Enterprises who knows what Bruce Wayne is upto even though not told explicitly. He is to Batman what M is to Bond.
Gary Oldman is Sgt. Jim Gordon. He has to play the part of a sincere, honest cop. This is one of the key roles in the story showing that the movie is just beginning. If anybody remembers the other Batman movies, Jim Gordon is always shown as the Commissioner of Police.
Cillian Murphy plays the role of Scarecrow. He leaves an impact in the small role and looks menacing.
Katie Holmes as Rachel is the love interest of Bruce. She had to look beautiful and she has done that
Background score is pretty good. It has the potential to become something like the James Bond theme if used in subsequent movies.
Chris Nolan’s direction is simply superb. He has been able to portray what Batman is from inside - Dark, brooding superhero. This darkness can be seen throughout the movie with almost no scenes in bright light. There is a scene with Batman using bats as allies which is my favourite scene from the movie. Also, he leaves a hint for the sequel with Joker as the villain in the last scene of the movie. Can’t wait for the next Batman to come out.