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Batman Begins (Full Screen Edition) |  | Director: Christopher Nolan
Actors: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes
Category: DVD
Buy New: $3.97
as of 3/15/2010 07:38 CDT details
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Seller: zilinski28
Rating:  1319 reviews
Sales Rank: 119652
Format: NTSC
Language: English (Unknown)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Running Time: 140 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
UPC: 012569750845
EAN: 0012569750845
ASIN: B000AZLK8Q
Theatrical Release Date: June 15, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Batman Begins discards the previous four films in the series and recasts the Caped Crusader as a fearsome avenging angel. That's good news, because the series, which had gotten off to a rousing start under Tim Burton, had gradually dissolved into self-parody by 1997's Batman & Robin. As the title implies, Batman Begins tells the story anew, when Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) flees Western civilization following the murder of his parents. He is taken in by a mysterious instructor named Ducard (Liam Neeson in another mentor role) and urged to become a ninja in the League of Shadows, but he instead returns to his native Gotham City resolved to end the mob rule that is strangling it. But are there forces even more sinister at hand? Co-written by the team of David S. Goyer (a veteran comic book writer) and director Christopher Nolan (Memento), Batman Begins is a welcome return to the grim and gritty version of the Dark Knight, owing a great debt to the graphic novels that preceded it. It doesn't have the razzle dazzle, or the mass appeal, of Spider-Man 2 (though the Batmobile is cool), and retelling the origin means it starts slowly, like most "first" superhero movies. But it's certainly the best Bat-film since Burton's original, and one of the best superhero movies of its time. Bale cuts a good figure as Batman, intense and dangerous but with some of the lightheartedness Michael Keaton brought to the character. Michael Caine provides much of the film's humor as the family butler, Alfred, and as the love interest, Katie Holmes (Dawson's Creek) is surprisingly believable in her first adult role. Also featuring Gary Oldman as the young police officer Jim Gordon, Morgan Freeman as a Q-like gadgets expert, and Cillian Murphy as the vile Jonathan Crane. --David Horiuchi
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 1319
 Batman flies high in excellent BEGINS June 16, 2005
Hazen B Markoe (St. Paul, MN United States)
373 out of 421 found this review helpful
Since his first dramatic appearance in Detective Comics in 1939, Batman has grown to become a pop-culture icon. From movie serials in the 40's, to a classic campy TV show in the 60's, to a solid animated series in the 90's, fans have thrilled to the super heroics of this unique character. However, as a film franchise, he has brought results that were somewhat less than impressive creatively. While the Tim Burton directed films, BATMAN and BATMAN RETURNS were stylish and dark, they also suffered from plot holes you could drive a Batmobile through. Then Joel Schumacher introduced a Day-Glo sensibility to the Dark Knight in BATMAN FOREVER, before drowning the character in ludicrous costumes (a Bat suit with nipples???), pun-filled foes, and whiney sidekicks in the lousy BATMAN & ROBIN. By then, Batman as cinematic property had become a laughingstock. Fortunately, indie film director Christopher Nolan reinvigorates the franchise in glorious form in BATMAN BEGINS, a reboot of the Batman legend that, for the first time, puts the focus squarely on our hero and not on the over-the-top villains of past films. Nolan also bases the film in a strong semblance of reality that allows the audience to not only accept the possibility of the winged vigilante, but embrace it as well.
Most fans already know the story of how wealthy Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) loses his parents when they are slain during an attempted robbery, but the movie also tells how he chose the bat as his symbol, as well as the steps needed to become the avenger of the night that he turns into. Disillusioned and frustrated by Gotham City's corrupt judicial system, the young Wayne goes abroad to study the criminal mind. Later, while locked in an Asian prison, Wayne is recruited by the enigmatic Ducard (Liam Neeson), who offers him a path in which to focus his anger and hone his skills. Wayne eventually joins his new mentor as a recruit in the mysterious League of Shadows, headed by the sinister Ra's Al Ghul (Ken Wantanabe). Eventually, Wayne realizes that he cannot follow the League's extreme methods of dispensing justice and returns to Gotham to forge his own way. It soon turns out that Wayne's return is just in time as Gotham falls prey to a fear epidemic engineered by the twisted Dr. Jonathan Crane AKA "the Scarecrow" (Cillian Murphy) and a familiar figure from Wayne's past.
From the top on down, this film is blessed with a solid cast that adds wonderfully to Nolan's vision. As the title hero, Christian Bale blows all other Batman portrayers out of the water with his intense and scary take of the role. This is a Batman that you not only fear, but can relate to as well. In fact, he turns in the definitive performance. Michael Caine adds warmth and humor as Wayne's trusty butler, Alfred. Liam Neeson does a great variation of his usual mentor roles as Ducard, a man with his own surprising secret. As an assistant DA and Wayne's childhood friend, Katie Holmes does a nice job with what is basically a thankless role. Cillian Murphy makes for a perfectly creepy Scarecrow, while Morgan Freeman is solid as usual as the man who provides Batman's wondrous car and gadgets. Gary Oldman is wonderfully cast against type as Jim Gordon, one of Gotham's few honest cops. The scene in which he drives the tank-like Batmobile is a sheer delight.
The screenplay by Nolan and David Goyer (who wrote the BLADE films) is awash with characterization and motivation...something that you don't see in many comic book films as a rule. In fact, you get so engrossed by the proceedings that you almost forget that you are watching a "superhero" film in the first place. The special effects are used to enhance the story and not overpower it, while the set design pictures a Gotham that is a unique cross of Chicago, New York and Hong Kong. If there is a flaw, it lies in some of the fight sequences. Done in close-ups and quick cuts, they can get frustrating for those who want to see more of Batman's fighting style. However, this is very minor since the story never ceases to grasp your attention.
In the end, Nolan and his superb cast and crew succeed in achieving what was once thought impossible: the resurrection of a film franchise that, if not dead, was at least on life support. As a result, Batman is once again flying high and BATMAN BEGINS is a film that I wholeheartedly recommend.
Flesh and Machinery June 18, 2005
MICHAEL ACUNA (Southern California United States)
503 out of 585 found this review helpful
Christopher Nolan and his co-screenwriter, David Goyer have chosen to postpone the crossover of Bruce Wayne (a soulful Christian Bale) into Batman until half way through the new "Batman Begins."
And this is a crucial and important step that Nolan puts off until Bruce walks the earth in search of his own personal nirvana... in a sort of Christ-like journey to understand himself and his place in the world after his parents are brutally murdered. It is also from this quest that he acquires the knowledge and skills necessary for him to become a warrior, ready and able to combat the ills and rid his town Gotham of all evil-doers.
Nolan's "Batman Begins" is a more macho, masculine film than were the previous movies, which is not to take anything away from Tim Burton's elegiac, gothic and visionary takes on this story. But Burton's world is/was/ and will always be the world of the dreamer: his Batman is more sinned against than sinning. His Batman needs love and understanding while Nolan's wants and needs justice and revenge more than anything else: even the sultry Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes proves to be of little interest to Batman save a chaste kiss at the end of the movie. It's interesting to note that in the previous Batman films we had big beautiful bombshells like Kim Bassinger and Nicole Kidman as the so-called love interests while here, in Nolan's vision we have a more scrubbed clean, working class (Rachel is an assistant D.A.) heroine: a woman who is as interested in righting wrongs as is Batman and not merely someone meant as an adornment to the suave debonair Batman of Val Kilmer, George Clooney or Michael Keaton. It's an important and telling shift from woman as a plush toy to one who is, not only beautiful but also smart and dedicated to a cause other than self-promotion and self-satisfaction.
Christian Bale's Batman is real..i.e. a genuine, fleshed-out, beautifully written movie character: he is conflicted, he makes mistakes, he trusts the wrong people at times and he pays for his mistakes. It is a remarkable casting coup to have Bale in this role particularly since of late he has been playing a spate of radicals...i.e. in "The Machinist," in which he transforms himself into a skeleton...literally. As Bruce Wayne/Batman, Bale dons the mask, assumes the persona, not out of a lust for power but out of a fervent belief that good will always triumph over evil: several times in this film he is brought to task for his trust in the basic goodness of people and one of his mentors ( Liam Neeson as Ducard) even goes so far as to ridicule Bruce as sentimental and weak for it. Though Ducard is his mentor and sensei, this relationship proves to be fraught with ambiguity as the movie progresses to the climax.
What is a Batman film without its villains? But this film is devoid of the cartoon craziness of the Riddler or the Joker. Here we have Cillian Murphy (so good in "28 Days Later") as a scary-as-hell The Scarecrow, alias psychiatrist Dr. Jonathan Crane, who spews his psychedelic paranoia and psychosis on an unsuspecting Gotham. His "stuff" is more thrilling and frightening than anything that the aforementioned villains could ever muster.
"Batman Begins" is not only a physically gorgeous film, it is also an emotionally and ideologically complicated one. It wears its heart on its sleeve, yes...but it also has the brains and a profoundly strong back and pumped up physicality to back it up.
Not Your Father's "Batman"... September 7, 2005
BruceWayne
17 out of 18 found this review helpful
I won't go on for six paragraphs about how good this movie is. In all reality, I would need twenty or more. This is THE definitive comic book movie of all time. It stays true to the source material, and as true to reality as possible. Be warned though, this Batman is not for the faint of heart. Clooney and Kilmer were laughable in their batsuits. Michael Keaton looked cool enough. But Christian Bale as Batman is downright scary. If you think Keaton pulling a thug close to his face and whispering just who he is was scary back in 1989, you've got another thing coming when Bale growls and hisses and hangs criminals upside down over the sides of buildings as they more than likely soil themselves. All of that, plus the villain (Scarecrow) makes Nicholson's Joker look...like...well, a clown. THis is not only the greatest comic book film of all time, but it deserves a place within the top 100 films of all time for it's cinematography, script, direction, and performances.
Bottom line:
Absolute paradise for Batman fans---and still a damn enjoyable movie for people that would say, "Bat-who?"
Easily, without a doubt, THE best Batman Movie ever. August 22, 2005
Yankeescf
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
When i first heard they were making a new Batman movie, i thought, it won't be better than the old ones. That was before i went and watched the old ones again, as I hadn't seen them in years. The first one in 89 was good, but after that, they all completely blowed. I mean, they just sucked. The acting was horrible, it was so stupid, it seemed like a comedy.
Then I saw the trailer for Batman Begins, and it was amazing. I have seen the movie 3 times so far, not to mention once in IMAX, and am going to see it again. It was just awesome. At first, i didn't like the different look of batman or the batmobile, but you grow to like it, and now i absolutely love it. The acting was great, and Liam Neeson was a great actor for Ra's. I liked the new,tougher, almost criminal, Bale as Batman. He was a great actor as well.
As the other review mentioned, the music for a movie can destroy it, or make it incredible. The old batman movies had freakin circus music and Prince, what the heck. Hans Zimmer is amazing with this movie. Already creating incredible soundtracks for Gladiator and King Arthur, for example, he was perfect for Batman. The music makes the exciting action scenes 20 times better. I honestly got chills when i watched this movie, it was so good. For example, the final scene of the train, the music made the scene so much more action packed. And the "scary" parts, or more disturbing parts with the toxin being inhaled by batman and other people, made THOSE scenes perfect as well.
The new batmobile is simply amazing. When i first saw it, before i saw the movie, i was like "o no, not a dang tank!" But i later loved it, more than the old crappy ones with the flimsy "wings" on it. It is just more tough and has better gadgets, like the spike strips, or more spike balls, for that matter.
Batman's outfit is much better in these movies. It doesn't look like crappy rubber or stuff like that, cuz its not. And the guy who said earlier that he can barely move his head, well, he moves it plenty. Compared to the old movies, he looks like he isn't even wearing the cowl. In the old ones, there wasn't any head movement at all, he had to move his whole body. Then there is his cape. This is the best cape ever made. Batman doesn't have to hold sticks out to make it look like his cape is up. He can actually glide on it. Its just so much better.
Anyways, that finishes my review. This movie was the best movie i've seen in a long time. It makes me happy to know that it wasn't really associated with the old ones, and it isn't part of that franchise. I wouldn't want to be known for those pitiful attempts. I can't wait till the deluxe edition comes out. I also can't wait till the next movie comes out, with the Joker and all.
The movie Bat-fans have been waiting for. August 30, 2005
Jeff Wiley (Atlanta, GA)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
I became a fan of the Dark Knight following Frank Miller's genius "The Dark Knight Returns" in the mid-80s. I loved the reinvention of the character, making him darker, brooding, and bordering on psychotic. It was this reinvention that most likely allowed the making of the original Batman movie, as well as its 3 successors. However, I found myself dissecting each of those movies as I exited the theater, feeling dissatisfied with each.
After four previous attempts, two of them bordering on catastrophic, Hollywood has finally gotten it right. This is not your big brother's Batman.
Director Christopher Nolan has stripped away all the flash from the previous two movies, making Gotham City appear to be more like an enormous amusement park, and made it the gritty, murky urban sprawl that Batman fans have come to embrace as the home of Bruce Wayne. We also get much more of a feel as to why Wayne is so tortured and driven to do what he does for the city. The character of Bruce Wayne is the focus of this movie, whereas the villains have been the focus of the previous movies. We learn why Wayne is so tortured, and how deep his psyche is scarred. Story holes are plugged that were left gaping in previous efforts. In time, I believe that Christian Bale will replace Michael Keaton as the general consensus favorite in the role of the Guardian of Gotham, as he truly puts the Dark in Dark Knight.
Perhaps the best part of this edition of the Batman series is the long overdue establishment of the relationship between Batman and Jim Gordon, a police sergeant in this early stage of the legend. In previous movies, the character of Gordon was all but made irrelevant, and in some cases, a buffoon. Gordon is not only a tough cop, but is the only member of the police force that Batman will allow to get close to him. That element is presented flawlessly here.
The acting is better than your average comic book flick. Christian Bale captures perfectly the brood of Batman, as well as the careless, playboy persona of Bruce Wayne. Katie Holmes does a good job in shedding her "Dawson's Creek" image, and handles the character of Rachael Dawes well. Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, and the rest of the support cast turn in worthy performances in their respective roles. The plot is thicker than previous efforts, and the villains' role in said plot is far from insulting to the intelligence of even a casual Bat-fan.
While this movie has plenty of bangs for the buck, it does not feel like a gratuitous effort. Each special effect has a meaning, and if this movie's intent was to wipe the slate clean, and offer an apology for the previous four Batman movies, then mission accomplished. This is a comic book movie that does not present itself as a comic book movie. Each character and story element is believable, and I sincerely hope that the key elements from this project will be back for a sequel in a few years. If you're a fan of the comic, you will thoroughly enjoy this effort. If you aren't a fan of the comic, you just might be after viewing Batman Begins.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 1319
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