Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins is a fantastic start for the comic fan and movie fan alike. It's got everything a movie like this needs. Action, character, and a story that not only sets the ground work for future movies, but holds well on it's own too.

Unlike previous Batman movies Bruce Wayne is not simply a playboy looking to fight crime. The movie opens with him in a foreign prison being held because he was trying to figure out the criminal mind. This involves traveling around stealing, and infiltrating various crimial organizations. You find out that he is doing this because his parents were murdered (although unlike the first Batman they were not murdered by the Joker in some cheap revenge tie in) by a mugger waiting in the wings after an opera. From there the movie introduces Ducard, a man who takes Wayne under his wing and trains him to disappear, to fight, and to become more than a man. He is under the employment of Ras Al Gul, the leader of the League of Shadows, a group dedicated to fighting injustice by any means necessary. Ultimately finding out that their means of justice are a little bit to extreme Wayne leaves the League and heads back to Gotham city, determined to make a difference and bring Gotham back to the good people.

And that's just the first half.

We haven't even gotten to Batman at this point. Or the Scarecrow, a villain that is really underused in this movie. His fear toxin is something that could have been used much more, which was a same cause it added a much darker element to the movie, something that was a welcome change to the Batman franchise. The last half is Batmans birth, building a relationship with Sgt. Gordon (played very well by Gary Oldman), and providing Gotham city with a symbol to get behind. I would tell you the plot points of this part of the movie, but it's a lot better if you see it for yourself.

Acting:

The majority of the movie is acted very well. Christian Bale does a good job in the cowl, and also succeeds as Bruce Wayne. Something that actually is more important in this film. It's also worth noting that Michael Caine does a fantastic job as Alfred. I really hope they get both these guys back if they are planning to do a sequel. They work very well together. All the supporting cast fills out their roles nicely. With the exception of Katy Holms. She might function as the "damsel in distress" but when she's going for the strong female role it becomes conflicted, and ultimately fails. While it doesn't look like that is going to be a problem since she probably isn't coming back story wise, that's probably a good thing.

Scenery:

Gotham is displayed excellently here. This is the first time we get to see the city as the sprawling metropolis that it is. Not only that but all the locations that Wayne trains in are elaborate and yet don't get to overblown. Gotta give it to Christopher Nolan for doing a good job in this area too.

The Rest:

I have to say my favorite things about this movie were

1) This movie sticks ridiculously close to the comic book. Everything in this movie was taken from some comic and unlike the first movie tells the story without sacrificing the Bruce Wayne aspect of the Batman character. While the villains weren't the best (I'm not a Ras Al Gul fan) the set up for the next one was fantastic and I've already got my hopes up.

2) Everything that Batman uses serves a purpose, and you find out why everything is there. Why did he pick Batman? How did he get his gear? Where did the Batmobile come from? You know everything. I can't stress enough how cool it is to see all that stuff explained on screen. And yes while the Batmobile is a tank it still serves it's purpose and doesn't sacrifice it for style. Something the other movies have missed the mark on. Batman isn't about style, Batman is about getting the job done and not carrying how he looks doing it. Unless you're talking about the costume, then disregard my previous comment.


Conclusion:

Batman Begins is the best Batman movie ever, it does everything right for the most part (there are some quick cutting fight scenes that might be elaborated in the next one) and I really hope they continue the trend with more films. Good job to everyone involved, a great summer movie. See it. I give it a A.

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