review by Jackson Tyler Pro
Batman Begins 2005
Rewatched Jul 18, 2012
Jackson Tyler’s review:
Let's not beat around the bush, this film is fucking stupid. It's a good film, but damn is it stupid. Whereas you get the Avengers which plays with it's absurdity in a comedic way, Batman Begins treats it deadly serious, as in:
Yo, this shit is stupid, but for reals, what if a man did become a Vigilante Bat?
That's probably not the exact phrasing with which it was pitched.
If anyone thinks I'm coming down hard on it, I'm not, it's a good film. Ain't flawless, but I like it's approach to it's subject matter. It's stupid in the same way Breaking Bad is. (That is to say highly, but it treats it's stupidity with immense respect).
I wouldn't call it stupid, Jack - that's going a bit far mate.
I don't do half stars, and I also don't do proper in depth reviews (far better people at that on this site than me, I stick with cheap Jokes), but I'll go into a little bit of depth. The "stupid" thing is a positive in my book, it's more proof that if you tread something as ridiculous as A GOD DAMN BAT MAN with the respect it deserves, you get compelling drama. The negatives I felt were the pacing in the middle, a little bit of a cliched script at parts, nothing too bad, just felt like some scenes weren't up to snuff, like anything with Rachel in it, for example.
But the point with emphasising how Stupid it is (in premise, and I stick by that, he's a man dressed up as a bat) is that Nolan's Batman films are highly praised for many reasons, and we should recognise the nonsensical plotlines more. People put down many films for being complete nonsense - off the top of my head I'll say Vantage Point is extremely silly - but it's how you treat the matter at hand, and I've heard many people (rightly) praise the grit and realistic tone of the films, but we shouldn't forget that it's still ridiculous, and that's not a bad thing.
So that's where I'm coming from with that :P, should also make it clear why I stick to reviews around the size of a tweet (cause I'm not all that great at longer ones)
I like the film quite a bit until the last act where I always end up bored and just wanting it to end. I feel the same way about The Dark Knight.
I see what you're saying Jackson yeah - the voice could certainly be construed as stupid (though I don't agree myself).
I like the way Nolan grounds it though. He tackles the idea from a darker, more psychological perspective (the scene with young Bruce being terrified by bats, hence why he uses that as the symbol to make fear his weapon). Compare this to Schumacher who made Batman about bad one-liners and rubber nipples - now those movies I'd definitely consider 'stupid'.
Oh totally! Up (in my opinion, the best film ever) has THE WORLD'S MOST BONKERS PREMISE IN EXISTENCE.
@Tony: I guess it's more a difference in opinion of what makes a film "stupid," whether it's the premise or the execution -] because I do basically agree with you. Batman and Robin was abysmal, this is good and works as a character study as well as an action film.
And I like the Voice, actually. It makes total sense - it's theatrical, it's distinctive, and it's an affectation of the character which is set up throughout the films. I'd say, it's stupidity done right.
Indeed. Hence why maybe 'stupid' is a blanket term that doesn't apply necessarily to the film, rather the idea.
IMO the film itself is very intelligent, very well made. A man dressing as a human bat to fight crime is the daft part but, well, blame the 40's for that! :D