Christopher Nolan‘s Dark Knight trilogy is arguably the definitive live-action depiction of Batman. Although four other filmmakers — Tim Burton, Joel Schumacher, Zack Snyder, and, most recently, Matt Reeves — have all tried their own hand at bringing the Caped Crusader to the big screen in live-action spectacles, none of them have succeeded in transcending Batman’s origins as a children’s comic book character and using him as a vehicle for mature and complex themes to quite the same degree as Nolan.
However, when discussing the technical merits and thematic depth of The Dark Knight trilogy, most critics and viewers end up focusing primarily on the second and (to a slightly lesser extent) third entries that gave the trilogy its name, The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Meanwhile, the film that started it all, Batman Begins (2005), has largely flown under the radar. Possible reasons for its lesser status in the minds of most viewers include its less memorable villains and comparative lack of sociopolitical commentary that define the two sequels. Instead, the film focuses more on the personal and psychological side of Batman and his secret identity, Bruce Wayne. But it is for precisely these reasons that Batman Begins best embodies the spirit of Batman across all the films in the trilogy.
How Batman… Well, Begins
Batman Begins opens with a tragedy that will be quite familiar to most Batman fans: the murder of child Bruce Wayne’s parents in a Gotham City alley. Many years later, a grown-up Bruce (Christian Bale) unsuccessfully attempts to get revenge on his parents’ killer, but is reprimanded by his childhood friend, Rachel (Katie Holmes), for trying to take the law into his own hands. After a revealing conversation with mobster Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson), Bruce decides to travel the world and become skilled in combat and crime-fighting, ultimately falling under the mentorship of Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson) and the mysterious League of Shadows.
After a violent falling out with the League, Bruce returns to Gotham, where he decides to adopt a bat-themed alter ego to fight crime in Gotham City. Joining him on his mission are Rachel, his loyal butler Alfred (Michael Caine), upstanding Gotham City cop Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), and tech-savvy engineer Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman).
Less Bat & More Man
It would be fair to say that Batman Begins is less of a “Batman film” per se and more of a “Bruce Wayne film.” After all, Bruce doesn’t get the idea of adopting the Batman alter ego until 45 minutes into the 140-minute film, and he doesn’t go out on his first mission as Batman until much later. Furthermore, even after becoming Batman, many of the film’s most crucial scenes feature Bruce with the mask off instead of on, such as his emotional conversations with Alfred and Rachel towards the film’s climax.
One byproduct of this lack of screentime for Batman is that the film feels slightly less action-packed than its sequels, focusing more on Bruce’s personal development and relationships than on his physical fights with bad guys (although there is still plenty of action, particularly in the second half).
Related
The 10 Greatest Batman Movies Ever Made (Live-Action and Animated), Ranked
Explore the ultimate ranking of Batman films. From classic animation to live-action features, see which one shines.
But the film’s focus on Bruce’s life and relationships also humanizes Batman, reminding us that there’s a three-dimensional human being behind the intimidating costume, which is important to remember for the next two films, in which Bruce spends more screentime as Batman than as himself. Furthermore, Bruce’s relationships with his closest friends gradually become more fraught and unstable in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises — sometimes with tragic results. But those narrative arcs wouldn’t have been nearly as powerful and compelling without Batman Begins giving the audience time to become emotionally invested in them in the first place.
The Underrated Villains of ‘Batman Begins’
The primary antagonists of Batman Begins are devious psychiatrist Dr. Jonathan Crane (Cillian Murphy), also known as Scarecrow, and Ducard, who is later revealed to be Ra’s al-Ghul, the previously unseen leader of the League of Shadows. Bruce soon learns that their plan is to flood Gotham’s water supply with a fear toxin in order to drive the population into mass hysteria and burn the seemingly hopelessly corrupt city to the ground.
In one respect, it’s easy to see why Scarecrow and Ra’s are less memorable than the Joker (Heath Ledger) in The Dark Knight and Bane (Tom Hardy) in The Dark Knight Rises. Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning performance as the frighteningly psychopathic and ideologically chaotic Joker in The Dark Knight is arguably the greatest performance in any comic book movie ever, while Bane’s large and physically imposing build makes him easily the most intimidating villain in the trilogy. Furthermore, both villains have resonance in the real world. Joker represents Americans’ fears of terrorism post-9/11, while Bane embodies the collective rage of the poor and working class against corrupt institutions and wealthy elites — a conflict that continues to define American politics to this day.
Related
The Best Major Villains From Batman Movies, Ranked
With a rogues’ gallery as amazing as Batman’s, these are the villains that are the best at being bad.
But, while Scarecrow and Ra’s lack the intimidation factor and sociopolitical verisimilitude of Joker and Bane, they are compelling villains in their own right for a different reason: they are both mirror images of Batman himself. Scarecrow’s modus operandi is using fear to manipulate people, and the same can arguably be said for Batman. (In fact, Bruce gets the idea for the Batman alter ego when Falcone tells him about the utility of fear as a control mechanism.) Similarly, Ra’s al-Ghul and the League of Shadows share Batman’s sense of justice and fierce opposition to crime and corruption. But, like Bruce at the beginning of the film, the League only cares about punishing people, not protecting them.
In other words, Batman Begins is more than just another film about a superhero fighting bad guys. It’s also a coming-of-age film, in a way. Over the course of the movie, Bruce goes from being motivated by a selfish desire for vengeance to being motivated by an altruistic desire to protect and provide hope for a city that others consider a lost cause. As incredible as the other two films in the trilogy are, Batman Begins does the best job of conveying what Batman stands for: justice rather than vengeance. Batman Begins is available for streaming on Netflix and on Max through the link below:
You can view the original article HERE.
