Rebooting a franchise is always the hardest thing for every film maker. The Batman franchise is the most beloved comic book and graphic novel franchise in the world of comics. Tim Burton did a good Job with the first two films, they were light, fun, and comically entertaining. Nolan has done something special with the first Batman film in a very long time. This made us nervous simply because Joel Schumacher made Batman laughing material. He's back and he is awesome.
The movie begins with Bruce Wayne, played by Christian Bale, in a Chinese prison and we quickly learn that he's there because he wants to be there. Then Liam Neeson shows up and we all know how cool he is. Wayne then goes and works for a mysterious organization that teaches him to use fear against criminals, this is when we find out about Bruce's fear, bats. We see batman birthed on the screen for the first time. Nolan was the screenwriter, producer and director of this movie and the care and diligence shows through his material. We see Wayne flawed and confused as he stumbles to create batman and watching batman evolve into what we know him as is so well done. The casting of the movie was spot on except for one character, Rachel Dawes. Bale is fantastic, he looks, sounds, acts and truly is Bruce Wayne. He is the perfect Batman , Liam Neeson as the mentor is a nice addition and Michael Caine as batman's servant, Alfred, was perfect as well. Let's not forget about Morgan Freeman as Fox, the man who builds all of those cool gadgets. Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes was not the best choice. Katie isn't a great actress, she does what she needs to do here but never really makes Rachel important in the movie. There is no real Che,is try between herself and Bruce, but then again, Rachel in the graphic novel was merely a side note as well.
This movie is made with such staggering poise and confidence. Just as Bruce Wayne struts his way into the room, this film is a mighty handsome action film. The villain is the scare crow, and a major crime lord, they add a nice touch but the real meat of the story is how Batman became who he is. The action is fun, the sets are polished but I sense that there is something holding this film back. A sense of, "okay we need to tell this story to get this this other part", batman never really reaches his height. At the end of the movie we are left with a cliffhanger, a hint at the Joker for the next villain, and bat,an really isn't anything without the joker.
This is a slick and poised action flick boasting some excellent acting and directing. Batman has never been cooler and the scare crow is marvellous, Liam Neeson is also a nice touch. This movie is a wonderful reboot, a fresh vision on a dull franchise. It's wonderfully exciting, dark, and insanely fun to watch. I am excited to see more from this very own batman franchise, it will be exciting to see where Nolan takes this. Please do not bring back Katie Holmes, there's a start.
