In BATMAN BEGINS, Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer have successfully re-imagined the screen version of Batman by dispensing with the big-budget camp of past features and getting back to the basics of good storytelling. This Batman is darker and the villains more complex. In addition, the action is more sophisticated to some extent, yet the screen fighting still leaves significant room for improvement.
We finally get the full story of how Bruce Wayne becomes Gotham’s Caped Crusader in a carefully-crafted account that takes its time to develop, much the way that SUPERMAN (1978) did. We see Wayne (Christian Bale) develop from a traumatized boy, who witnesses the deaths of his parents, to a lost soul wandering the far reaches of the world in search of an antidote to his fears and emotional suffering. He finds what he’s looking for, or so he initially thinks with an ancient association known as The League of Shadows where ninjitsu-trained assassins under the leadership of Ra’s Al Ghul (Ken Watanabe) have committed themselves to wiping out the world’s criminal element. Although entrusted with the advanced training of various combat arts by an aged warrior named Ducard (Liam Neeson), Wayne is unable to complete the organization’s cold-blooded initiation. Thus, the masked crime fighter with a conscience is born, as is his epic struggle against arguably his greatest foe.
This first half of the film gives us a glimpse into not only the origin of Batman, but his fighting skills, which is a welcome exploration of one of the comic book world’s finest hand-to-hand combatants. A veteran of Western-style martial arts action in film, Liam Neeson is the ideal choice as his trainer. We get to see Wayne engaged in swordplay, stick fighting atop plumb blossom poles and honing his skills of concealment. We also see how he overcomes his fears and develops mentally. Considering how much the film attempts to cover in two hours, it’s very well done.
Christian Bale is the best Batman to date to handle this kind of action, just as I suspected he would be after a fine martial arts and bullet ballet-infused role in EQUILIBRIUM. He also nails down the character’s duality of a genuine brooding nature and his contrived image as a charming billionaire playboy.
As Wayne returns to Gotham to take on the city’s rampant corruption, we’re introduced to the costume, the utility belt and the car. The more realistic tone here is military-grade material; Kevlar, experimental fabrics and a highly mobile armored vehicle designed for a specific purpose, but easily adapted to Batman’s unorthodox needs. Here, Morgan Freeman takes on a Q-like role as Wayne Industries’ chief gadget maker and unspoken confidant to Bruce’s nocturnal activities. With the exception of the signature jet exhaust, the car is quite a departure from its predecessors. Gone are the hotrod-inspired fins and cartoony armadillo armor. In place are features that combine to create a stealthy off-road vehicle that simply owns the road, rooftops, police cars, and everything else it ends up rolling over. It’s something seemingly inspired by Batman’s monster truck assault on a besieged Gotham in the 1988 classic graphic novel BATMAN: THE CULT.
For once, the villains appear to take a back seat to the development of Batman, although their roles are not diminished. Rather, their evil deeds compliment the exploration of Batman very well. Two main themes surface, one dealing with the nature of fear and the other with the definition of justice. Both are crucial to the understanding of Batman and this is where the film really shines. What better villains to use than the Scarecrow and Ra’s Al Ghul? The Scarecrow’s hallucinogenic fear gas adds an element of surreal horror to the movie as characters become demonic in the eyes of their victims, including Batman. The story nicely ties Scarecrow’s petty activities to Ra’s Al Ghul’s more sinister plan to destroy Gotham with flawed logic and a wicked piece of stolen military hardware. This allows for Batman to have a satisfying confrontation with the man he was once considered a mentor.
Great care is taken in setting up what becomes the standard life of Batman. He develops a bond with future police commissioner (now just a sergeant) Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), while his faithful servant Alfred (Michael Caine) proves to be a resourceful and guiding force in Wayne’s efforts to balance his dual identities. His relationship to childhood pal Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes), who becomes a key district attorney in helping to fight corruption, is kept well in check, like all of Wayne’s female relations. Even Wayne’s business affairs are given fair coverage with Rutger Hauser playing a greedy chairman. To top it all off, a telling clue is handed to Batman at the end as to who his next opponent will be.
BATMAN BEGINS is such a brilliant interpretation of the comics in most regards, that it pains me to point out what I believe to be sub-par fight scenes. Although an improvement over the stiff movements in Tim Burton’s films, most of Batman’s battles are reduced to a series of chaotic close-ups that show virtually nothing of his abilities. You do get the general sense that this guy can move fast and unseen, which may be the point. However, there are better ways to show this. The editing is just bad. It’s the same old squabble I have with most Hollywood fight scenes these days. Nolan apparently has little appreciation or understanding for the complexities of finer fight choreography. Leaving your audience with nothing but blurred shots is a cheap cop out, sometimes masked as artistic expression. The viewer remains distant and uninvolved during the action. Frankly, I’ve seen better fight scene construction in serialized Westerns from the 1930s.
Hollywood is often great at drawing the viewer into a dramatic scene, but seemingly incapable of doing the same during an action scene. Hong Kong movies have often been reversed. Despite their devolution into CGI-filled DRAGON BALL Z confrontations, THE MATRIX films made some progress in merging the two styles with Yuen Wo-ping’s masterful help. With Batman, there is a unique opportunity to show how he uses his mind, as much as his body to overcome his adversaries in a fight. With the low-lit and frenzied display we’re offered here, there is no chance for this. One can only hope that future installments will pay as great attention to the screen fighting as has been lavished on nearly every other aspect of the film.
Nevertheless, most moviegoers will be satisfied and well they should be. BATMAN BEGINS is a thoughtful and action-packed film with great performances. Batman is in good hands with Christopher Nolan and appears set for a successful continuation of the franchise.
by Mark PollardRelated Topics:
Batman Begins (2005) • Videos
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