Batman Begins

No gothic buildings, spinning shots of newspaper headlines, jokes, positive emotions, digital eye-candy effects or a catchy soundtrack. Batman Begins is no fairy-tale fantasy. It’s Insomnia with Batman – a bleak drama about a real person set against the backdrop of the real world. What makes the film unique is the gravitas of the lead and supporting characters and their incorporation into the dramatically dense, emotionally engaging and intelligently told story. Everything in the film is physically palpable, the psychology of the characters is well developed, and the characterization of Bruce Wayne is literally a dissection of the development of his personality, a clarification of the reasons for which he became who he is. As a true character actor, Christian Bale redefines the cult of his character’s name. His Batman is not an exemplary hero. Rather, he is extraordinarily angry and enjoys the superficial vices that his wealth affords him. The bombastic cast is not without purpose and elevates the film to the level of a spectacular celebration of the comic-book genre. The action is great, though not quite as great as in Spider-Man. But does that really matter? It’s pains me not to give it five stars, but as an eternal idealist, I would have liked more plot innovation in the second half, which is rather guided by comic-book rules. The first half, however, is worthy of six stars. (24/06/2005)

This is how it should have been. They finally found someone who could rectify Tim Burton's embarrassing blunders (not to mention Joel Schumacher's botched "closure" of the series). This is the true Batman, the Dark knight beneath the mask, with a cape hanging on his back and an uncontrollable resentment in his heart. Few could have been a better Bruce Wayne than Christian Bale. The hero of Equilibrium has managed to improve his acting even further, and whenever he hesitated or became furious, a shiver ran down my spine. But the main hero here is Christopher Nolan and the team of screenwriters who managed to create precisely the atmosphere that the first installment of a comic book series needs. An exhilarating 90% and a final wink with the promise of awaiting things never before seen... (11/07/2005)

Christopher Nolan created a trilogy that redefined all established norms of superhero films at the time. Personally, I hold Batman in the highest regard among comic book characters; his origin story is incredibly fascinating to me. That’s why I was thrilled that someone took on this intriguing project and made the most of the opportunity. The first film introduces us to the beginnings of this eccentric billionaire, explaining why he decided to become a masked guardian of Gotham with the goal of making life difficult for criminals. It also reveals that his early days of monitoring all the nefarious activities were far from simple and were fraught with challenges; it took him quite some time to master everything. Nolan prides himself on his unique approach to the material, striving to minimize the inclusion of grandiose action full of explosions and CGI mess, which suits me immensely. On the other hand, the film emphasizes every dialogue (especially Alfred and Bruce, showcasing perfectionism in every aspect), with a script polished to the last detail, allowing you to fully enjoy the conversations of all the characters. I wouldn’t replace Christian Bale with anyone; no one has portrayed such a human Batman before, and I assert that this portrayal suits him best. I also appreciate the inclusion of various villains (Scarecrow, Ra's al Ghul) and, of course, the now-legendary Jim Gordon played by Gary Oldman. The ending set the stage for the second film, and we all know how Heath Ledger claimed the sequel for himself. I give the first film 90%. (12/09/2019)

Overall, this was rather disappointing, especially considering the adoration from a significant portion of the film fans. It is primarily a very divided film, which on one hand wants to approach the theme and its hero unconventionally, but on the other hand, is burdened with genre clichés. I think the only person who has truly grasped Batman in such a polarizing theme is Tim Burton. His Batman films are stylish, properly exaggerated in a comic-book way, and above all, they don't take themselves too seriously. Nolan wants to be realistic, but at the same time his flesh-and-blood hero faces a monstrous conspiracy by an organization that destroyed ancient Rome, burned London, and for some reason feels that it will save the world by destroying a modern metropolis with all its inhabitants. This simply cannot work. Nolan's film take itself too seriously, so even though his directing skills are excellent, and he utilizes several top actors and has an adequate budget, the result is only average. Moreover, compared to The Dark Knight, this film is worse for several reasons. The Joker is a much more interesting villain than Batman's antagonist in the first installment, and Katie Holmes as an actress is hardly half as good as Maggie Gyllenhaal, lacking not only acting talent but also personal charisma. Above all, The Dark Knight works much better in its construction and logic of the characters in this fictional world. For example, a powerful underworld boss brilliantly played by Tom Wilkinson, who controls the entire city and easily buys its political and financial elites, would hardly be guarding a drug exchange with a shotgun in hand. Such logical gaps occur abundantly in Batman Begins. Although Liam Neeson is a quality A-list actor, he fails as the main villain in the cult comic book series, while Cillian Murphy is disproportionately better and represents what I would expect from a monstrous villain in a comic book film. Overall impression: 60%. (08/03/2010)

Nolan's trilogy logically begins with Batman’s origin, which had been neglected to such an extent up until then. Today the situation is a bit different, but it was not a bad move then. Batman needed a revival and audiences needed to forget the last film of the last series, Batman & Robin. Nolan relied on good actors and a realistic style within reason. This was yet another contribution to the great family of DC films and helped bridge a decade when the style of the genre was changing fundamentally. (05/05/2022)