E's MOVIE ROUNDUP
I watch about one movie a quarter, so there's not much to round up. Yesterday I didn't have any work to do and my family was at the community pool so I took in BATMAN BEGINS at the 12:30 matinee.
It was 45 minutes before Bruce Wayne considers becoming the crimefighter later known as Batman, and for me that was the best part of the film. That is the best part of the Batman story, the foundation without which the character cannot make sense except as another gadget-laden superhero. It was long past due for a big-screen treatment.
I liked how neatly and concisely the filmmaker presented Bruce's complicated inner turmoil and provided anchor points for subsequent flashbacks and lines.
Mixed reviews on the casting. No real quarrels over Bruce Wayne - he was passable in both the Kevlar bat-suit and the tuxedo. Good choice of Gary Oldman for Jim Gordon and well played. Rutger Hauer was sturdy and steely as CEO of Wayne Enterprises, a fine choice. Michael Caine was polished and credible as Alfred. Falcone the crime boss was great. Thankfully no Robin. On the other hand I found the Rachel character completely ridiculous - at her age she would not even be out of law school, much less be Gotham's powerful and threatening Assistant D.A. It was equally absurd that she would not recognize the lower half of Batman's face, which includes his distinctive mouth, as her childhood friend whom she is also in love with. I guess the gravelly voice threw her off. Likewise, the sinister Dr. Crane was much too young to be a Ph.D. or an accomplished supervillain.
Liam Neeson was okay but I wasn't sold on his motivations.
Morgan Freeman was fine but he and the police commissioner were black just to be black.
The effects of Dr. Crane's evil potion on multiple victims at once contradicted the uniquely personal effects as explained earlier in the film.
Most of the joke lines fell flat. "Didn't you get the memo?" was not funny. Twice.
Batman cannot fly. Take your liberties in the big-screen adaptation, but don't change the fundamental elements that make the character great. Batman is such a compelling character because he's just a man, with no X factor or special radiation-induced gift. All the ninja training in the world can't teach you to fly.
I think I'm just too old for car chases, every conceivable fight sequence, and then everything exploding. I used to delight in it, now it's just loud and kind of silly. I thought the same thing when I saw the last Bond movie. There was no payoff for me. I just bought a Volvo, maybe that explains things.
Mostly what I took away from Batman Begins is how critical I am, and a reinforcement of why I don't watch movies, don't read fiction, and am no fun at parties.
2 comments:
I was reading Craig Vidgodsky's comic books in 1987 and I was blown away by Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. That's when I realized that Batman was a special kind of superhero, because he was never irradiated or some such convention, but rather, he was simply a sociopath with a huge bankroll. There was talk back then of a movie based on Miller's graphic novel, but what we got instead was a cheesy franchise. I was disappointed with the first one and never bothered with the others. Finally, after so many years, I am so pleased to be offered the movie that was once promised. I can't wait to see it.
Speaking of graphic novels and maybe even fiction that E might enjoy, pick up a copy of the graphic novel "Elvis Shrugged." It's a great libertarian parody using Ayn Rand and popular culture.
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