A Reel 20: BATMAN BEGINS

“I’m Batman!”

 

This month marks the 20th anniversary of BATMAN BEGINS. 

 

Directed by Christopher Nolan, BATMAN BEGINS was the first big-screen treatment for the famed superhero since the 1997 critically drubbed BATMAN & ROBIN. This new version, which would coin the term “reboot” for the next 20 years, would reset the franchise and track the origins of the Caped Crusader; the story of Bruce Wayne from the death of his parents, his training, and eventual confrontation with those looking to destroy his beloved Gotham City. 

 

After BATMAN & ROBIN made a mockery of superheroes, parent company Warner Bros. shelved any future caped films. After several stops and starts in the early 2000’s, WB hired up-and-coming director Christopher Nolan to bring the Bat back to the big screen. Nolan’s pitch of favoring humanity and realism would be the selling point, and he co-write the script with David S. Goyer, taking inspiration from famous Batman comics such as The Long Halloween and Year One. 

 

Actor Christian Bale, who had reached status as a cult-favorite after his chilling performance in AMERICAN PSYCHO (2000), would be cast as Bruce Wayne. He would be joined by an A-list cast including Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Cillian Murphy, Tom Wilkinson, Ken Watanabe, and Katie Holmes. Filming would take advantage of stunning worldwide locations in Iceland and England. Hans Zimmer would provide the score. 

 

On release, BATMAN BEGINS was met with excellent reviews from critics and fans. The box office earnings would have it finish as the seventh highest grossing film in the U.S., and it still stands as the fourth-highest earning Batman film. It would be nominated for an Oscar for Best Cinematography. Today it is considered to be one of the most influential films of the 2000’s and one of the best superhero films, while giving the Batman character a new cinematic life for the next two decades. 

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In 2005, superheroes on film were scarce. Spider-Man and X-Men were just getting going, and we were still three years away from the MCU. With the sour taste of the previous Batman films still in my mouth, I had little interest in seeing a rebooted Batman (little did I know, it wouldn’t be the first reboot). And then I got a phone call from my fellow cinephile, the late great Sid Michaels. I can still hear him telling me: It was tremendous. I trusted him, so I (bat)caved, and I was pleased to agree with Sid; it was tremendous. 

 

What made it so? Gone was the camp and cartoonish nonsense of the previous four Bat-films. In its place was a grounded hero that easily could have existed in our world. The death of Bruce’s parents sparked memories of JFK, Jr. standing at his father’s funeral, and the class-distinctions between the haves and have-nots hit hard. For the first time, Batman felt real. 

 

BATMAN BEGINS was also finely crafted. The non-linear storytelling was a challenge to the audience, but proved that a movie with capes and masks could be cerebral. The script boldly got into the psych of Bruce Wayne, and gave the character a depth he never had on the big screen before. The rest of the cast was perfect, and Zimmer’s score contained one of the most recognizable themes of all time. All the pieces came together correctly in BATMAN BEGINS, but we would still be unprepared for what would come next.

 

“…has a taste for the theatrical. Like you.”