Cast and Crew: David S. Goyer (Co-Writer); Hanz Zimmer (Score); Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy, Tom Wilkinson, Rutger Hauer, Katie Holmes, Ken Watanabe, Mark Boone Junior, Jack Gleeson
What It’s About: Batman’s (Christian Bale) early years are recounted in the film that made “Reboot” part of even casual movie fans vocabulary.
Why Watch it Today?: Batman co-creator Bob Kane was born on this date in 1915. Batman Begins so successfully made fans forget that a previous series of Batman movies existed (and fell into rapid decline) that now every film franchise rights holder reboots its series at the slightest box office disappointment. While the film has some troubles in the script area, it’s a compelling update that series director Christopher Nolan successful imprinted with his own signature style and thematic concerns. It also features a darned fine cast taking some of the best elements of the comics’ own “early years” imaginings and turning them into a beautifully made event film with a fantastic cast.
Other Choices: We’ve previously featured the much more light-hearted Batman, as well as today’s film’s sequel The Dark Knight. We also gave your our thoughts about The Dark Knight Rises.
The League of Dead Films 
I liked this until the big train stuff at the end. That was a great model set they built, but it felt so out of place with the rest of the film’s tone and that last-second escape stuff made me roll my eyes out of my head because I was thinking of Speed and other disaster flicks.
Of course, I’ve heard people say “but it’s a comic book film!” and such, but it certainly felt like more before that part, heh. I guess that’s why The Dark Knight opens SO powerfully – it’s as if Nolan was saying to fans “Yeeeeeah, I kinda blew it with that ending, so here you go (before delivering a kinda weak ending to that second film, some would say)… 😀
I hear you on the ending. I was able to roll with it but it’s not a great moment and I would also agree that all of Nolan’s Batman film’s third acts are let downs.