The One and Only Batman Begins thread

[cabbageboy 0]

Given that they've introduced Ra's into it I'd go with Talia. Hell my dad was asking me "Ok they have Ra's Al Ghul, now where's his hot daughter?" Thing is, it might include bringing Ra's back too...if so I demand he call Batman "detective." But would all this take heat off the Joker?

 

As far as the Scarecrow being weak...well shit, he's a jobber. As I said, he's a C grade villain with a one note schtick of using hallucinatory gas. Once Batman figures that out, there's really nothing he can do.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

err never mind... I see the imdb newsbit's already been posted.

 

 

Not exactly shedding any tears here (over the Holmes newsbit). The most moronic thing was when Katie was on Letterman and Dave asked whose movie she would see if she had a choice, and she said war of the worlds, something about suporting Tom or some such thing. Hello, McFly, the only reason you were sitting in that chair was to promote Batman Begins.

and dont tell me its JUST two people in love. They are very clearly seeking out media attention for their relationship, making it a point to get it out in front of the reporters, mention it even when not asked about it ("Was Christian Bale a good kisser?" KATIE: "You know who's a good kisser? Tom"). I swear to god that was an actual question and answer during movie promotion.

[Guest SP-1]

I just had a great idea for the sequel involving Talia, now that the Rachel character seems to be gone.

Edited June 21, 2005 by SP-1

[Brett Favre 0]

That doesn't mean anything (On the Scarecrow). The Joker isn't exactly superman, but he's still a strong character, and the Scarecrow is a smart guy (on top of his gas); so making him look stronger in the sequel (which he's rumored to be in) shouldn't be a problem.

[brokentusk16 0]

I liked the romored sequel plot of Batman teaming up with Gordon and Harvey Dent to take down the Joker. Joker is the next logical step for a Batman franchise. It's like doing a group of Superman movies without Lex Luthor--it just ain't right!

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Scarecrow was perfect in this movie. Portrayed as unlike a traditional tough villain. He's a creepy pretty boy with a great trick and a lot of ferocity. I have high hopes for more of him in the sequel.

[cabbageboy 0]

Anyone think at times Dr. Crane looked like a loony Eddie Vedder? Particularly in his "It's the BATMAN!" rant in the chemical basement.

 

The Joker is infinite amounts cooler than The Scarecrow. He's funny, he's scary, and certainly dangerous as hell. Scarecrow isn't good for much beyond being a lackey heel, spraying a couple people with his gas before he's figured out and beat down. He could hardly carry an entire movie (though he's fine for a 30 min. cartoon).

[Secret Agent 0]

Well I finally saw it today at a matinee, and it was absolutely incredible! I loved how Batman was actually the focus of a Batman movie for once with the villains adding to the story. Plus Scarecrow and Ra's actually had a purpose for doing what they were doing.

 

I can't wait for another done like this.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

The only reason I'd like to see Katie Holmes back is if Joker was going to off her, a la jason todd or gordon's wife or how he crippled batgirl.

 

A murderous Joker is a happy Joker

[St. Gabe 0]

The intensity of Christian Bale's portrayal is what made it so awesome...I think there have been Better Bruce Wayne's, but He is, by a mile over the rest, the best Batman. When he snares Gordon's Fat Partner, and pulls him up to the roof, and he is asking about the drugs, his face is literally shaking with anger, it was one of the most intense scenes I've scene. The anger is absolutely dripping off of Bale's perfomance, and fatty lost his falafel.

[AndrewTS 0]

Katie Holmes is good looking?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Her wierd smile and lazy eye don't do it for you?

 

My girlfriend said: "Is she trying to pull off sexy or sick there?" at one point in the film.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

At least Holmes admitted she was the least sexy of any of the Bat-babes, and I'd totally agree. Even counting Silverstone, who was rather chubby in B+R.

[Downhome 0]

The intensity of Christian Bale's portrayal is what made it so awesome...I think there have been Better Bruce Wayne's, but He is, by a mile over the rest, the best Batman.  When he snares Gordon's Fat Partner, and pulls him up to the roof, and he is asking about the drugs, his face is literally shaking with anger, it was one of the most intense scenes I've scene. The anger is absolutely dripping off of Bale's perfomance, and fatty lost his falafel.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

My favorite line in the entire film:

 

"SWEAR TO ME!!!!!!!"

 

 

 

I don't know where this is from, or who made it (I found it on DVDTalk, someone posted it like this), but I think this is both a really well made fan poster, as well as being fucking cool. This fits the new Batman universe perfectly in my eyes:

 

[Guest SP-1]

My only complaint is the date. Give me 2007.

[Jericho2000Mark 0]

I want to see The Joker, Two-Face and all, but I still think more can be done with both Ra's Al Ghul and Scarecrow, maybe they can come back in a third sequel...if the franchise lasts that long this time. I also would like to see Bane done properly.

[Crimson Platypus 0]

Can someone tell me how close they were to the comic Ra's Al Ghul in this movie? I'm somewhat familiar to Batman, but I can't say that I've ever read a comic with him in it. Perhaps someone could recommend an arc with Ra's?

[Boner Kawanger 0]

DC just rereleased a trade paperback called Tales of the Demon.

 

As for his portrayal, since these movies are supposedly going to be as grounded in realism as possible, a lot of the supernatural and mystic aspects of Ra's were dropped, but I loved the subtle hints dropped suggesting otherwise. Ra's' motivation was on par with his comic counterparts, in that he wanted a new world that was a utopia, and he would get it by any means necessary. Liam Neeson almost tops David Warner's animated version.

[Guest SP-1]

Yeah I almost like the BEGINS Ra's better because he's a little more grounded. The scene with Bruce where Ra's mentions his wife is what does it, I think.

[cabbageboy 0]

It doesn't hurt that Neeson is a lot more interesting than the boring Ra's with the monotone voice from the cartoon. I've never read any comics with Ra's in them. He's in some ways the most curious Batman villain in that he and Batman have a cordial type relationship, Ra's seemingly tries to hook him up with his hot daughter, etc.

[Downhome 0]

This was posted on DVDTalk, in regards to that Batman "poster" I posted earlier:

 

It's Conrad Veidt from "The Man Who Laughs", the original inspiration of the Joker.  He was Major Strasser in Casablanca.  He's been dead since 1943.

 

[cabbageboy 0]

You know if they'd done a Batman in the late 30s Veidt would have been a killer Joker from that pic. Of course he is German and had an accent, not sure how they would have gotten around that. Shame Batman wasn't around in the silent era, huh?

 

The Man Who Laughs is a movie I heard about on the Universal Horror documentary as an example of Universal doing a horror type drama in the silent era. It's about a guy who was horribly disfigured by carny crooks as a kid (the weird smile was his freak gimmick) who falls in love with a blind girl. I've never seen it though, but I should sometime.

[Guest JMA]

I have a feeling that Batman will face the Scarecrow during the beginning of Batman Continues and defeat him (similar to Anakin and Obi-Wan vs. Count Dooku in Revenge of the Sith).

[Big McLargeHuge 0]

So I finally saw it. I liked it, but I'm not quite ready to go apeshit over it like th rest of the net. I hated Bale's Batman voice at first, but towards the end I warmed up to it. The Batmobile definitely gets high marks from me after watching it in action. And I was one of the few who HATED the way it looked when the first pics were released.

 

My only problem is that the villains didn't seem like that huge of a threat. Hell, Scarecrow gets tazed in the face by whats-her-face in a scene that takes all of 30 seconds. Kind of anti-climactic, but he WAS just a pawn in the end, so I guess it's justified. I would've preferred Batman take him down himself.

And the editing of the fight scenes had me convulsing. I really hope they tone that down next time through.

 

I still like Batman 89 more than Begins, though.

[Justice 0]

If they give him a good fifteen minutes at the beginning to finish it up, just those two, it'll be a great intro to the movie as it helps it start off fast and ties up a loose end.

[Big McLargeHuge 0]

I agree. Also the end had me pissing my pants. Both literally and figuratively. I had to take a huge piss because of the soda I drank during the movie, and the Joker tease was awesome.

[Downhome 0]

The next Batman film will be interesting to see, since we wont have the story of how he came to be to deal with like we had in this one. I'm very interested to see how they produce the next one, since Batman will be there from the very start.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Finally saw it. It was basically everything that's been said around here, and it definitely had the best villains of the series. Scarecrow is just as he should be, genuinely creepy and I thought Ra's was even better than Nicholson's Joker. Even Falcone, Earle & Chill were actually characters and not jokes which is something that would never happen in the other series.

 

My main problem with the movie is the score. There just wasn't anything memorable about it all. It just sounded like a generic action movie score. Batman really needs a distinctive theme. I'm not saying Elfman, but just something better than what we got.

[Boner Kawanger 0]

Yeah, I was underwhelmed by the score, but there were a few scenes where it worked. Elfman's score today is just too big. I was reading an article about it saying that a more mature Elfman would have gone about the movie completely differently, as the score nearly overtakes the movie or something.

 

The fight scenes, however, I understood the style immediately. This may or may not change your opinion, but think about it. Ducard, when beating the hell out of Bruce, tells him "this is not a dance", meaning that fancy, choreographed moves will not take down any fighter. This applies to the story and to the movie. This Batman will be gritty and realistic, not a neon nightmare that can't bend his neck and face off with his foes in stylized fights. As it pertains to the audience, filming so close and so disorienting allows us to feel what it would be like to fight Batman. When there are many opponents, so much is happening that we can barely see what's going on. We see a man dressed in all black. He's unstoppable. He's dressed as a bat? What is he? It should give the fights the sense of dread that Bruce wants to inflict on criminals. One-on-one shows how brutal a fighter Batman can be.

[Guest SP-1]

There are actually two or three distinct themes running throughout the score (I'm listening to it right now), they just complement the movie so well that they don't overpower it.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

This movie was absolutely great. I loved it.

 

Why do you people assume there's going to be a sequel? It leads straight to Batman (1989), IMO.

[Guest SP-1]

No. It doesn't. It directly negates some essential plot elements of Batman '89, and was never intended to be a "prequel", but to be the beginning of a whole new series.

 

It negates the Joker having killed Bruce's parents. That's pretty important. It negates the beginning of the bat signal. It changes Gordon's character tremendously from the low key idiot we have in the previous series (don't get me started on how the 90's movies mishandled Gordon on every stinking level).

 

Not a lead-in at all.