part 2:
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When Bruce returns to Gotham, Wayne Enterprises is in shambles. Its not his father's company anymore. It's all about the profits, about defense contracts, and the board of the company is trying to have Bruce Wayne declared dead so they can complete the takeover of the company. Unfortunately for them Bruce shows up and defeats their plans, and meets LUCIUS FOX (Morgan Freeman), who heads the Applied Science Division after he refused to go with the board and was booted off. It's here that we see the development of many of the iconic Batman symbols - the suit, the Batmobile, the grappling hook. When Bruce reaches his 30th birthday, he inherits all of it.
Bruce learns that Joe Chill, the man who killed his parents, is being offered parole in exchange for testimony against local crime lord Carmine Falcone, and Bruce decides to take revenge. However, Rachel (Katie Holmes), now an assistant district attorney, prevents him from acting. Later, Chill is killed by one of Falcone's cronies, and Bruce realizes that the corruption of Gotham City goes much deeper than his own petty revenge fantasies. The corruption, in fact, goes much further than Bruce knows, all the way back to China, where the REAL villain bides his time...
Gotham City needs a symbol. A symbol of fear, yes, the fear of his childhood, but turned into a force for good. In a mask, Bruce contacts JIM GORDON (Gary Oldman), one of the few honest cops in the city, and tells him to look for a sign.
The first time we see Batman in the script isn't until page 58 of the script, almost an hour in, if the axiom of one minute a page is true. As in SPIDER-MAN, we are so invested in the character that by the time Batman actually shows up it all has a sense of context. The first Batman fight has the feel of someone who really is new at this sort of thing, but it feels exciting and I'm looking forward to seeing it on screen.
There's a lot of ground for the film to cover, but it never feels rushed. It feels well-paced, and introduces characters at leisure. It never feels dull. It's fresh.
What about the other villain, the SCARECROW (Cillian Murphy)? He has a terrific entrance, and isn't just a throwaway baddie for Batman to fight, but figures into the larger story. And Goyer does something really cool that more superhero movies need to pay attention to - the Scarecrow's not disposable. Ra's Al Ghul is also used very well. He feels a little like how Dracula is introduced in the Bram Stoker novel. He's a villain that isn't onscreen a lot of the time, but you continuously feel his presence. This movie really has three villains. Ducard, as written, is just as much an equal for Bruce as the others. With all the crime in Gotham, Batman is never at a loss of bad guys.
Am I leaving anything out? Oh hell yeah. A lot more than you realize. The script's 128 pages long, and I'm only to page 58. And I really can't go any further without really ruining it. There's some twists, including one that I really didn't see coming until it was right on me. But the script has confidence in the characters, and everyone's well written, including Alfred, who I can't wait to see Michael Caine play. He really is Bruce's moral center, the one that keeps him grounded, and Bruce and Alfred have a nice banter and a warm relationship that should translate well on screen. The only character that may get a little short shrift is Rachel, but this is a superhero movie, and sadly, historically, the women in superhero movies aren't exactly given the best lines.
This feels like a film written for Batman fans. The introduction of all the iconic symbols that make Batman the hero we know and love is done particularly well, including the Batmobile, which I can't wait to see (think THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, rather than the skinny car the films are used to). They even make an effort to explain how Bruce can afford all this stuff, and lay a scientific foundation that actually gives "all those wonderful toys" a sense of reality.
In fact... and I might get lynched for this... this is a better introduction to the Batman character than YEAR ONE. Frank Miller's comic works for comics. But this is a movie... and it MOVES. At some points... well. The fight scenes just click and pop off the page, and if they are choreographed as well as they read, we're in for a treat. We even get to see Gordon in some action, which is nice.
Problems? Only one, really... Rachel. She's written like a token female character, needing to be rescued by Batman, the character who gets to put to voice all the romantic aspects to the story... she's not much more than a plot point. She does get some nice moments, towards the end, but we're always wanting to get back to the action.
I think the fans are going to go apeshit over this, frankly. It's done almost completely right, and starts the franchise anew. The last page of the script... well, it'll get fans all a twitter with casting ideas. I hope the WB signs both Christopher Nolan and David Goyer to a three picture deal, because this story's not done. It reinvents the franchise, and I dare say it improves on the Burton vision. This is the Batman origin the fans have been waiting for. I can't wait to see it, and it's now one of my most anticipated films of 2005. With this and Episode III, if all goes well, it's gonna be a good year. Post-LOTR... we're in for some good times, I think.
Nordling, out.
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03-08-2004, 04:53 AM
