Of course there are natural tendencies to compare creative works that share a protagonist. Batman Begins will be, appropriately enough, compared with Tim Burton's 1989 Batman. But most people will want to pick a 'winner', and that's unfortunate because I think there's room for both movies at the top of the pile. They are such dissimilar films, set in different universes, yet I think they both hit the mark in their portrayals of a billionaire with lots of neat toys and the lunatics that he battles (both externally and within his own head).
I'm not going to make any of those comparisons now. I'll just say that I loved Michael Keaton as Batman, Nicholson's Joker obviously hit the mark, and Tim Burton's vision of Gotham City was fantastic. It didn't hurt that a decent Batman movie was a long time coming (50 years), but when it finally arrived it sure blew Superman out of the water.
Now, onto Batman Begins. WOW. I absolutely loved this film. I'll get my only two complaints out of the way first: (1) It was a bit long and (2) Katie Holmes looks like she's 15, that does not make her a very convincing district attorney. Christian Bale as Batman - yeah. It works, big-time. He's got the look, he has a fantastic voice (the voice he gives his Batman is creepy as hell! Plus they amplified it somewhat I think, to give his raspy bellow more...bite?), and his transitions between Bruce Wayne and the Batman are seamless. Supporting cast? Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman aren't on screen enough to steal any scenes, but Caine as Alfred is the butler we all wish we had (I know my butler can't hold a candle to him, that's for sure), and Freeman is his usual charming self. Gary Oldman as Gordon wasn't really given that much to do, which surprised me - you cast an actor of his caliber, I would figure he'd be a bit more interesting. But as always, a solid performance. The bad guys? I don't want to give anything away, so I won't comment on them directly, other than to say that it's nice that Christopher Nolan chose two lesser-known but still intriguing baddies for his (hopefully first of many?) Batmans. Casual fans won't even recognize either of these villains, but they're worked into the plot quite well, and the performances behind the masks are solid, if unspectacular. But that's OK, because for this film, the focus is all on the Batman. None of the bad guys are half as scary as the good guy with the point ears, and that's how it should be.
Ok, I have to get my ass going this morning to help friends move. More on Batman Begins later...
3 comments:
It's playing in IMAX down here, so we'll have to let you know how it is-I guessing it'll kick ass.
IMAX?!?!? No fair! No IMAX for this movie in the Baltimore/DC area, but in South Carolina? And here I thought you guys just got talking pictures last year...
We saw it on the IMAX....I do wish we'd been two or three rows further back, as the early battle scenes can be quite confusing on a screen that takes up your peripheral vision. It took about the first half hour to get used to that alone, so if you do manage to see it on an Imax, try and get a seat near the rear of the theatre.
That said, I thought it was awesome and completely obliterated the Joel Schumacher films and compares very well with the Tim Burton ones. I thought it did MUCH better than Sith in revisiting the beginning of a saga and connecting it to the middle. Christian Bale made a great Batman and the guy they got to do Dr. Crane was great. He had such beautifully creepy eyes. Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine did nicely for their parts.
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