Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #500 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-01-23
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, Portuguese
• Subtitled in: Arabic, English, German, Hebrew, Icelandic
• Dubbed in: German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 134 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Batman Begins discards the previous four films in the series and recasts the Caped Crusader as a fearsome avenging angel. That's good news, because the series, which had gotten off to a rousing start under Tim Burton, had gradually dissolved into self-parody by 1997's Batman & Robin. As the title implies, Batman Begins tells the story anew, when Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) flees Western civilization following the murder of his parents. He is taken in by a mysterious instructor named Ducard (Liam Neeson in another mentor role) and urged to become a ninja in the League of Shadows, but he instead returns to his native Gotham City resolved to end the mob rule that is strangling it. But are there forces even more sinister at hand?

Co-written by the team of David S. Goyer (a veteran comic book writer) and director Christopher Nolan (Memento), Batman Begins is a welcome return to the grim and gritty version of the Dark Knight, owing a great debt to the graphic novels that preceded it. It doesn't have the razzle dazzle, or the mass appeal, of Spider-Man 2 (though the Batmobile is cool), and retelling the origin means it starts slowly, like most "first" superhero movies. But it's certainly the best Bat-film since Burton's original, and one of the best superhero movies of its time. Bale cuts a good figure as Batman, intense and dangerous but with some of the lightheartedness Michael Keaton brought to the character. Michael Caine provides much of the film's humor as the family butler, Alfred, and as the love interest, Katie Holmes (Dawson's Creek) is surprisingly believable in her first adult role. Also featuring Gary Oldman as the young police officer Jim Gordon, Morgan Freeman as a Q-like gadgets expert, and Cillian Murphy as the vile Jonathan Crane. --David Horiuchi, Amazon.com

Synopsis
Genius of mystery and intrigue Christopher Nolan (MEMENTO, FOLLOWING, INSOMNIA) helms this prequel to the Batman films based on the DC Comics series, explaining how Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) the billionaire prince of Gotham whose parents were killed in an alleyway mugging transformed into the crime-fighting superhero. With flashbacks to his privileged childhood, young Master Wayne, as he is called by the butler Alfred (Michael Caine), develops a terrible fear of bats when he falls through the backyard garden into a hidden cave. As a young adult, Wayne lives among the League of Shadows, a martial arts group in the mountains of Asia. His leaders Ra's al Ghul (Ken Watanabe) and Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson) teach him strength, endurance, and unfortunately evil, against which he naturally rebels. Returning to Gotham and reinstating himself as a dapper socialite and the rightful heir to his parents' enterprise, Wayne quickly devises his secret identity, commanding help from the gadgetry expert Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman). With one eye on his childhood playmate Rachel (Katie Holmes) now a beautiful woman and dedicated lawyer and the other on his mission to save Gotham from criminal corruption, Batman makes his fledgling debut. But when the blue-blooded mastermind Dr. Crane (Cillian Murphy) who steals every scene with chilling menace taints the water system with a hallucinatory substance, Batman realises he has met his first true opponent. An attitude of grave seriousness elevates BATMAN BEGINS above more cartoony Batman movies, as Nolan crafts a dark drama that thrives on sci-fi intrigue. Bale strides into the role with grace, adding refinement that is seldom seen in action-oriented films. And while the action scenes explode with high-tech glitz and fast-moving thrills, they are evenly placed among sequences of plot and character development, making for a complex and satisfying viewing experience.

Customer Reviews

Time for a new Beginning...
In the summer of 1989, a Legend was born. Although Batman had already been around for decades, it was Tim Burton's original movie that introduced the general public to the Dark Knight that fans of the character had loved for so long. The Batman persona as percieved by the general public was still that of the "Pow! Wack! Bam!" Adam West days, but with this new movie Burton captured Batman's dark roots perfectly, and all but erased any ridiculous camp extravaganza of the 60's. The film was a huge success, but 3 sequels down the road, and the Bat slate was wiped clean, what with the Villains taking centre stage and the 'Colourful Camp Tea Party' making an un-welcome return by the 1997 film, 'Batman & Robin'. Audiences should be pleased then to know that the Dark nature of the Batman character that they embrazed so much back in '89 has returned, with Director Christopher Nolan treating the source material with the up-most respect. In Burton's original, The Joker asked "Where does he get those wonderful toys?..". Well now we know, not just Batman's origins are explored in Nolan's movie, but those of The Batmobile, the Bat-suit, and all Batman's other fantastic gadgets. For once Batman has a villain that, whilst almost as interesting as the Bat, does not over shadow our title character, with Bale putting in an admirable performance in both the roles of Batman and Bruce Wayne (something that was severly missing from Bat's other screen adventures) Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Cillian Murphy and of course Morgan Freeman all put in stellar performances in roles that could have very easily overshadowed Mr. Bale; Again credit goes to Director Nolan for juggling all these stars. Wonderful story, rocket fast pace and thrilling chases join forces with Tremendous performances to make Batman Begins not just a great Batman movie, but a film that will definetly be remembered as something more than a "comic book flick"...

Great Cast, Great Story, Great Film!
The Plot
Batman Begins follows the life of Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), who, after losing both his parents, decides to rid Gotham City of the Criminals of the Underworld. Firstly he meets Ducard (Liam Neeson) who trains him in the Himalayas. On returning to Gotham, he asks for the help of Lucius Fox (Morgan Freemen), a technician and scientist who designs his suit. After facing one of the more notourious gang leaders, Carmine Falconi (Tom Wilkinson) befriends Gotham Detective, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman). So with his allies, Batman battles with a sinister phycologist (Cillian Murphy) and his mysterious master, to stop them destorying Gotham City.

The Characters
Bruce Wayne/Batman (Christian Bale) - The son of a billionare who becomes the heir of the buisness. Decides to rid Gotham of it's criminals.
Alfred Pennyworth (Michale Caine) - Butler and old friend, Alfred is the cautious advisor who wants Bruce to safe.
Lucius Fox (Morgan Freemen) - The brillian technician who is the mastermind behind the almsot industructable suit and the armoured Batmobile.
Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) - The Gotham Detective who gets wrapped up in Batman's plans and is forced to go along with them.
Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes) - Assisstan DA and life long friends with Bruce, she doesnt approve of Batman's methods but knows that they are necessary.

Other Characters
Ducard - Liam Neeson
Carmine Falconi - Tom Wilkinson
Doctor Crane - Cillian Murphy

Review
Batman Begins is a great comeback with a fantastic storyline. By not using some of the more, well-known bad guys, it gives the whole film feel frsh and new. The film has some of the biggest cast ever in one film and all of them have a good amount of on-screen time. The bad guys, all though not scary, have a sinister presence about them and the plot to destory the city is well thought out and different. The special affects are good and the air view of the city is realistic. I am struggling to find any bad points, I dont think there are any.
Overall, a fantastic film that can be wtched by the whole family.

DC comics should be proud.
I enjoyed both Tim Burton Batman films but they were nowhere near as good as they could've been, i'd rather forget about any of the Batman films after that as they were absolutely terrible .... until now.
I grew up reading Batman comics and i've always loved this particular character, my dad taught me to read when I was A child with a Batman comic so it's very refreshing for me to see a film that actually manages to get deeper into the psyche of Bruce Wayne/Batman. This is a movie that feels in style and substance not much unlike the Batman year 1 story and it shows more of a true Batman origin than ANY of the other films have managed.
One last thing... hats off to Gary Oldman for a brilliant portrayal of Commisioner Gordon, this man is so much like the Commisioner in year 1 in looks and mannerisms that Gary Oldman really must've done his homework on this person and studied the year 1 book for months to get everything just right.