Batman Begins [Blu-ray]

Batman Begins [Blu-ray]
by Christopher Nolan

Batman Begins [Blu-ray]

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Blu-ray details

Actor: Christian Bale, Katie Holmes, Ken Watanabe, Liam Neeson, Michael Caine
Director: Christopher Nolan
Brand: DC Comics
Writer: Christopher Nolan
Producer: Benjamin Melniker
Producer: Charles Roven
Producer: Cheryl A. Tkach
Producer: Emma Thomas
Writer: Bob Kane
Writer: David S. Goyer
Audio: English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); Chinese (Subtitled); Japanese (Subtitled); Korean (Subtitled); Portuguese (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.40:1
Running Time: 140 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2008-07-08
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Model: 111521
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product features:

Condition: New
Format: Blu-ray
AC-3; Color; Dolby; Dubbed; Subtitled; Widescreen

Blu-ray Reviews of Batman Begins [Blu-ray]

Blu-ray Review: Batman Begins (Blu-ray)
Summary: 5 Stars

Movie - 4.5

Prior to seeing this reboot I only liked Tim Burton's renditions, but more so for them being Tim Burton movies rather than actual Batman movies. I didn't see Batman Begins in theaters and never even considered watching it till the DVD came out because I was so embarrassed at the debacle that is Joel Shumacher's Batman & Robin. So I blind-bought this on DVD and was blown away at its epic storytelling, characterization, and wonderful production quality. As many times as it's been done through Batman or any other kind of comic book/fictional writing, what draws me to this film the most is the presentation and symbolism of Bruce Wayne, his inner conflict with himself over the responsibility of his parents' death, his willingness and fortitude to act upon that tragedy, and his continuing efforts to be Batman and live his life for a greater cause. My favorite aspects of the film are its dark and gloomy atmosphere, the especially wonderful cast, and an extremely well-written script that manages to amaze and inspire for both the characters and overall narrative. For an origins story, I really like how it fills in the gap of Bruce Wayne's time away from home, the lessons he learned, and how it slowly molded him into the eventual persona of the Caped Crusader. In addition to some excellent plot development and character exposition between he and his one-time mentor, I also thought it made for a great climax and clashing of ideals between two similar people at the end. However, being only an origins story, there's just so much depth one can expose, as this is just the tip of the iceberg into the real meat of the story before The Dark Knight. This first installment, though, does an outstanding job building the emotional and philosophical foundations and really letting us get to know the man that would become the mask. Major kudos to Christopher Nolan in taking the franchise and re-infusing it with just the right balance of realism and theatricality.

Video - 3.5

In defense of HD-DVD, while the picture quality for Batman Begins isn't as stunning as it could be, I would liken it as more of a fault of Warner Brothers, and not the format itself. Other WB titles ported to BD like 300, Blade Runner, The Departed, I Am Legend, The Matrix, or Troy all look as good under the VC-1 codec as can be, just not so much for Batman Begins. Bitrates aren't all that high, but there have been plenty of excellent looking video transfers under VC-1, regardless of said numbers. BB benefits greatly over the SD-DVD in terms of color, contrast, sharpness, and especially black levels. Blacks are deep, not too inky, but don't suffer from crush. Tint for flesh tones is also more towards the natural side, instead of the DVD-orange, and shows some good instances of facial features. On the downside, comparatively speaking in relation to other BD ports, BB does appear somewhat washed out at times. I've also noticed in some shots that skin color would occasionally have a little too much red on the cheeks, neck, or forehead. I even paused the movie a few times to take a closer look, and it almost seems like a little DNR was applied. Not a whole lot like say, Amadeus, but it clearly is enough to effect the image and level of theatrical film grain. There's also some Edge Enhancement that results in halos and ringing here and there (which are especially annoying in on-screen light sources like bulbs and such), though I'm personally a little more forgiving for EE than I am for DNR. I'm almost inclined to say I'm very disappointed in this presentation, as a lot of other Wally Pfister-shot films look fabulous elsewhere (Insomnia, The Prestige, The Dark Knight, and Inception). The image looks presentable enough for BD, but the overall softness leaves much to be desired. And to make matters worse, if this description doesn't convince you of the above average picture quality, just look at the Dark Knight prologue in the extras, and you'll clearly see the discrepancy, IMAX film or not.

Audio - 5.0

Unlike the video transfer, the audio isn't nearly as bad as some people say. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track may not show much in terms of numbers averaging around 2Mbps, but the sound quality is deceptively top-notch. Dialogue is clear and never distorts through the center. Everything from the various voices of Bruce Wayne, to his Batman growls, to Lucius Fox's echoes down in R&D, to Dr. Crane's synthesized voice are reproduced perfectly. Separation is stunning from the get-go of the opening sequence with the immersion of bats, as well as later on during the discovery of the Batcave and breakout of Arkham. The Bhutanese prison fight does an especially good job of silence separation between Wayne and his beating up of the prisoners. Directionality is also well-placed to the rears during action sequences in the form of (more) bats, a scene of rainfall, and the final scenes on the monorail. The score by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard keeps up great pace and mood between all the action and drama, though not nearly to the effect as their work in The Dark Knight, but that's for another review. LFEs, by the way, are booming. The crackling ice on the frozen lake, the Batmobile chase, and the various explosions at the end of the movie all make for reference material. Part of the difference between what I thought I heard the first time and now, though, lies completely in the newer home theater setup I have. In fact, it makes a big difference in a lot of the movies I watch these days, so make sure you're somewhat up to date.

Extras - 4.5

Batman Begins comes loaded with extra features. The P-i-P commentary is somewhat informative, but has a lot of dead space in the movie and is rather jarring between transition of the commentary and movie itself because it goes from such a low speaking volume right into the lossless action mix (and it's quite a loud burst at times). After watching Insomnia on BD and hearing the extremely well-spoken audio commentary by Nolan, I think I would've preferred that or a Maximum Movie Mode instead. A lot of the making-of material can actually be viewed separately as standalone featurettes and, in my opinion, flow much better in that form. They cover just about everything from pre-production, to filming, to set, prop, and costume design, to the influences and decisions of the writing, casting, and training for the actors. However, the most exciting feature at the initial time of this release was an HD version of The Dark Knight prologue. It's only MPEG-2 with lossy DD 5.1, but any Batman fan would've been head over heels at seeing a glimpse of the late Heath Ledger's now most infamous role. I'm pretty sure I watched it at least half a dozen times myself before the film even hit theaters, as it makes a for a perfect segue to the deeper and darker sequel. All in all, it's an excellent set of extras clocking in at just under 2 hours that really show the hard work, thought, and dedication put into the film by Nolan and company.

Overall - 4.5

By now, I'm sure anyone that loves this movie already owns it. The thematic depth here is just the beginning, and the new direction Nolan takes the franchise in is truly a sight to behold compared to its predecessors. It's literally and figuratively dark with excellent writing from the screenplay down to the script, possesses an all-star cast of actors, and is arguably the best representation of the Batman mythos overall. While the video quality isn't stellar, the audio is reference and the extras as meticulous as its director. Unless Warner Bros. just decides to totally remaster the video and somehow double-dip, this is at least worth owning for now and a must-see for Bat fans.

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Description of Batman Begins [Blu-ray]

Batman Begins explores the origins of the Batman legend and the Dark Knight's emergence as a force for good in Gotham. In the wake of his parents' murder, disillusioned industrial heir Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and turn fear against those who prey on the fearful. He returns to Gotham and unveils his alter-ego: Batman, a masked crusader who uses his strength, intellect and an array of high tech deceptions to fight the sinister forces that threaten the city.

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?

Cowritten 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

Batman at Amazon.com

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Batman Begins 101: A Comic Book Primer
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All Batman Comics and Graphic Novels
Batman Toys
Batman Begins Soundtrack

Stills from Batman Begins (click for larger images)

DVD Features

The first disc is filled out by the theatrical trailer and a Jimmy Fallon-starring Batman Begins spoof from the MTV Movie Awards. The second disc consists of eight featurettes (about 105 minutes total) on a variety of topics. "The Journey Begins" covers the early stages of the movie, including the casting and how director/co-writer Christopher Nolan brought in co-writer David S. Goyer for his comic-book expertise. "Shaping Mind and Body" covers Christian Bale's fight training, and other featurettes discuss the sets (the Batcave is shown being constructed out of wood and sheets), the Batman costume, the Batmobile, the monorail sequence, and the hazards of filming in Iceland. All the behind-the-scenes featurettes are solid but somewhat routine, and while "The Journey Begins" is the widest overview, there's not really any centerpiece documentary (all are 8 to 15 minutes, and there's no Play All option). Interviewees tend to be the same throughout: Nolan, Goyer, Bale (the only cast member to get much face time), and other crew members (it's nice to hear from the stunt people).

Potentially more interesting to fans is "Genesis of the Bat," which covers the comic books that influenced the film, including The Long Halloween, Neal Adams's Ra's Al Ghul from the '70s, Dennis O'Neill and Dick Giordano's The Man Who Falls, and Frank Miller's Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns. Interviewees include DC Comics editor Paul Levitz and artist Jim Lee, but the latter's involvement eventually degrades the featurette into a pitch for DC's All-Star Batman line. Filling out the disc are overviews of four gadgets and eight characters, DVD-ROM features, and a variety of poster-art concepts. To get to the features menu, you have to scroll through a multipage Goyer-scribed comic book, which is a good read, but you can't skip it the next time you want to watch the second disc. Note that the second disc offers a French menu and French (but not English) subtitles for the featurettes. --David Horiuchi

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