131-465: Batman Begins is a 2005 superhero film directed by Sir Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer . Based on the DC Comics character Batman , it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman , with Michael Caine , Liam Neeson , Katie Holmes , Gary Oldman , Cillian Murphy , Tom Wilkinson , Rutger Hauer , Ken Watanabe , and Morgan Freeman in supporting roles. The film reboots
262-641: A Bhutan prison, he is approached by Henri Ducard, who recruits him to the League of Shadows , led by Ra's al Ghul . The League believes Gotham is beyond saving and intends to destroy it. After completing his training, Bruce rejects the League and its mandate that killing is necessary. He escapes, burning down their temple in the process. Ra's is killed by falling debris, while Bruce saves the unconscious Ducard. Intent on fighting crime, Bruce returns to Gotham and takes an interest in his family's company, Wayne Enterprises , which
393-472: A sequel , Barb Wire (1996), The Phantom (1996), Black Mask (1996), Chouriki Sentai Ohranger: Ole vs. Kakuranger (1996), Revive! Ultraman (1996), Gekisou Sentai Carranger vs. Ohranger (1997) and Steel (1997). Marvel Comics ' Captain America (1991) did not have a theatrical release , and Roger Corman 's The Fantastic Four (1994) was produced solely for the legal maintenance of
524-428: A 16.5" wheel) and the suspension system of Baja racing trucks . The design and development process took nine months and cost several million dollars. With the design process complete, four street-ready race cars were constructed, with each vehicle possessing 65 panels and costing $ 250,000 to build. Two of the four cars were specialized versions. One version was the flap version, which had hydraulics and flaps to detail
655-426: A brother named Max who is also a criminal. Max Chill is suspected of having murdered Boston Brand / Deadman , though the suspicion proves erroneous as Brand was actually killed by Hook. Max is killed when a stack of slot machines falls onto him while he is attacking Batman. In Batman #208 (January/February 1969), it is revealed that both Joe and Max had changed their name to Chill from Chilton and that their mother
786-502: A drug shipment, Batman provides Rachel, now a Gotham Assistant District Attorney, with evidence against Falcone and enlists Sergeant James Gordon , one of Gotham's few honest police officers, to arrest him. In prison, Falcone meets Dr. Jonathan Crane , a corrupt psychologist who smuggled drugs into Gotham with his help. Donning a scarecrow mask, Crane sprays Falcone with a fear-inducing hallucinogen , driving him insane and transferring him to Arkham Asylum . While investigating Crane, Batman
917-489: A form much as it was prior to "The New 52". In the 2020 miniseries Batman: Three Jokers , a news report about the massacre of the final members of the Moxon Crime Family stated that they were accused of hiring Chill to kill Thomas and Martha Wayne, only for them to be exonerated when Chill confessed that he acted alone. It was also mentioned that Joe Chill is serving a life sentence at Blackgate Penitentiary . Using
1048-450: A human dimension to Batman, whose behavior would typically be seen as "psychotic", through the music. Both composers collaborated to create 2 hours and 20 minutes worth of music for the film, with Zimmer composing the action sequences and Howard focusing on the dramatic scenes. Nolan used the 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner as a source of inspiration for Batman Begins . He screened Blade Runner to Pfister and two others to show
1179-536: A maternal figure of unconditional love, despite the overall lack of focus on a mother figure in Bruce's life. Fingeroth also argues that a major theme in the film is fear, which supports the story of Bruce Wayne becoming a hero. Director Christopher Nolan stated that the idea behind the film was "a person who would confront his innermost fear and then attempt to become it". Fingeroth referred to this film's depiction as "the man with fear—but who rises above it". The theme of fear
1310-460: A month. Chill is living as a shut-in, but his guards never see or catch Batman during the visits. On his final visit, Batman gives Chill the gun he used to kill the Waynes, with a single bullet loaded in it. Chill finally realizes who Batman is and fears what his fellow gangsters might do if they found out he was responsible for creating him. It is implied that he uses his gun to commit suicide. Considering
1441-655: A particular superhero character often focuses on the hero's origin story , and typically introduces the hero's nemesis. Many superhero films are adaptations of existing works. Superhero comics from publishers such as Marvel , DC , and Dark Horse ( The Umbrella Academy universe) have frequently been adapted into film. Others are based on television properties, such as films from the Japanese Ultraman , Kamen Rider , and Super Sentai franchises. Both Underdog and The Powerpuff Girls are based on their respective animated television series. The Green Hornet
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#17330849468541572-726: A public hero. After purchasing a controlling stake in Wayne Enterprises, Bruce fires Earle and replaces him with Fox. Sergeant Gordon is promoted to Lieutenant, shows Batman the Bat-Signal , and tells him about a criminal who leaves behind Joker playing cards . Batman promises to look into it and disappears into the night. Other cast members include Mark Boone Junior as Arnold Flass , Gordon's corrupt partner; Linus Roache as Thomas Wayne , Bruce's late father; Larry Holden as district attorney Carl Finch; Colin McFarlane as Gillian B. Loeb ,
1703-620: A short story by Denny O'Neil and Dick Giordano about Bruce's travels throughout the world. The early scene in Batman Begins of young Bruce Wayne falling into a well was adapted from "The Man Who Falls". Batman: The Long Halloween , written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Tim Sale , influenced Goyer in writing the screenplay, with the villain Carmine Falcone as one of many elements which were drawn from Halloween ' s "sober, serious approach". The writers considered having Harvey Dent in
1834-553: A waterfall with 12,000 imperial gallons (55,000 L; 14,000 US gal), and built rocks using molds of real caves. An airship hangar at Cardington, Bedfordshire was rented by Warner Bros. during April 2004 and, converted into a 900 feet (270 m) sound stage, was where the slum-district of "the Narrows" and the feet of the monorails were filmed. Mentmore Towers was chosen from twenty different locations for Wayne Manor , as Nolan and Crowley liked its white floors, which gave
1965-414: A well and getting swarmed by bats, a young Bruce Wayne develops a fear of them . At the opera with his parents, Bruce becomes unsettled by performers masquerading as bats and asks to leave. Outside, mugger Joe Chill murders Bruce's parents in front of him. Bruce is raised by the family butler, Alfred Pennyworth . Fourteen years later, Chill testifies against the mafia crime boss, Carmine Falcone , and
2096-462: Is a film that understands the essence of one of the definitive superheroes." At Metacritic , which assigns a weighted mean rating reviews, the film received an average score of 70 out of 100, based on 41 critics, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. James Berardinelli applauded Nolan and Goyer's work in creating more understanding into "who [Batman]
2227-534: Is also aware of what her sons did, but she still mourns their deaths. Alfred Pennyworth , the Wayne family butler , is also secretly aware of Mrs. Chilton's connection to Joe and Max Chill, but he keeps that information from Bruce. He muses that "in her own way, that dear woman more than made up for her son's heinous crime". In the 1987 storyline Batman: Year Two , Chill played a key role. Several Gotham City crime bosses hire Chill, an experienced button man , to kill
2358-442: Is ambushed by him and sprayed with the hallucinogen. Batman barely escapes and is saved by Alfred and Fox, who develop an antidote for the hallucinogen. When Rachel accuses Crane of corruption, he reveals he has introduced his drug into Gotham's water supply and drugs her with the hallucinogen. Batman later subdues Crane and sprays him with his own chemical. While being interrogated, Crane claims to work for Ra's al Ghul. Batman evades
2489-455: Is and what motivates him", something Berardinelli felt Tim Burton's film had lacked; at the same time, Berardinelli felt the romantic aspect between Bale and Holmes did not work because the actors lacked the chemistry Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder ( Superman ), or Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst ( Spider-Man ) shared in their respective roles. According to Total Film , Nolan manages to create such strong characters and story that
2620-538: Is based primarily on the original radio series and its 1960s television adaptation . Anime superhero films are often based on manga and television shows . Some superhero films, like the RoboCop series, The Meteor Man , the Unbreakable film series , Hancock , Darkman and They Call Me Jeeg , were developed as original projects for the screen. According to box office income figures from Box Office Mojo ,
2751-518: Is being taken public by businessman William Earle. Company archivist Lucius Fox , a friend of Bruce's father, allows him access to prototype defense technologies, including a protective bodysuit and the Tumbler , an armored vehicle. Bruce poses publicly as a shallow playboy while setting up a base in the caves beneath Wayne Manor and taking up the vigilante identity of " Batman ," inspired by his childhood fear, which he has now conquered. Intercepting
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#17330849468542882-537: Is further personified by the Scarecrow. The film depicts how fear can affect all creatures regardless of might. Allusions to fear are seen throughout, from Bruce's conquering of his demons, to becoming Batman, to the Scarecrow and his deadly fear toxin. The macabre, distorted images presented in the Scarecrow's toxin-induced hallucinations also express the idea of terror to an extreme. Critic Brian Orndorf considered Batman Begins "fierce" and "demonstrative in brood", giving
3013-486: Is later reproduced in the comic book Batman #1 (Spring 1940), but the mugger is not given a name until Batman #47 (June–July 1948). In that issue, Batman discovers that Joe Chill, the small-time crime boss he is investigating, is none other than the man who killed his parents. Batman confronts him with the knowledge that Chill killed Thomas and Martha Wayne. Chill accuses him of bluffing, but Batman takes off his cowl and reveals his secret identity : "I know because I am
3144-402: Is paroled. Bruce intends to murder Chill to avenge his parents, but one of Falcone's hitmen does so first. Bruce's childhood friend, Rachel Dawes , berates him for acting outside the justice system. After confronting Falcone, who says real power comes from being feared, Bruce spends the next seven years traveling the world, training in combat, and immersing himself in the criminal underworld. In
3275-417: Is stern and demanding, didactic and challenging, but not a father figure with any sympathy. If Bruce is anyone's son, he is Alfred's. [Morgan] Freeman's Lucius is cool and imperturbable, another steady anchor in Bruce's life." Blogger Mark Fisher states that Bruce's search for justice requires him to learn from a proper father figure, with Thomas Wayne and Ra's al Ghul being the two counterpoints. Alfred provides
3406-414: Is the fourth-highest-grossing Batman film, as of August 2012, behind Tim Burton's Batman , which grossed $ 411 million worldwide and also being surpassed by its sequels The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises , both of which have grossed over $ 1 billion. Batman Begins averaged $ 12,634 per theater in its opening weekend. It was released in more theaters, but sold fewer tickets than
3537-529: Is the greatest thing that happened [to superhero films ] because it bolstered everything." Filmmakers, screenwriters and producers who have mentioned Batman Begins or The Dark Knight Trilogy to describe their projects include: Comic book writer and author Danny Fingeroth argues that a strong theme in the film is Bruce's search for a father figure, saying "[Alfred] is the good father that Bruce comes to depend on. Bruce's real father died before they could establish an adult relationship, and Liam Neeson 's Ducard
3668-484: Is the last person to meet Bruce when he leaves Gotham City, and the first civilian to see Batman, Risteárd Cooper and Andrew Pleavin as uniformed policemen, Jo Martin as a police prison official, and Shane Rimmer and Jeremy Theobald (the star and co-producer of Nolan's 1998 film Following ) as Gotham Water Board technicians. Jack Gleeson , who had previously co-starred with Bale in 2002's Reign of Fire and later found fame for his role as Joffrey Baratheon in
3799-648: The Batman film series , telling the origin story of Bruce Wayne from the death of his parents to his journey to become Batman and his fight to stop Ra's al Ghul (Neeson) and the Scarecrow (Murphy) from plunging Gotham City into chaos. After Batman & Robin was panned by critics and underperformed at the box office, Warner Bros. Pictures cancelled future Batman films, including Joel Schumacher 's planned Batman Unchained . Between 1998 and 2003, several filmmakers collaborated with Warner Bros. in attempting to reboot
3930-526: The Chicago Reader , criticized the script, and Nolan and David Goyer for not living up to the "hype about exploring Batman's damaged psyche ". Roger Ebert , who gave mixed reviews to the previous films, and claimed in his review for Batman Returns that he did not believe noir worked in superhero films, wrote this was "the Batman movie I've been waiting for; more correctly, this is the movie I did not realize I
4061-616: The Ultraman Tiga TV series led to several films based on it and later installments, including Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light (1998), Ultraman Gaia: The Battle in Hyperspace (1999) and Ultraman Tiga: The Final Odyssey (2000). Adam Sternbergh of Vulture.com has stated that The Matrix (1999) was influenced by comic books, cyberpunk fiction, Japanese anime , and Hong Kong action films , reinvented
Batman Begins - Misplaced Pages Continue
4192-549: The French political satire film Mr. Freedom (1969), the Polish parody Hydrozagadka (1970), and the American B movies Rat Pfink a Boo Boo (1966) and The Wild World of Batwoman (1966). Following the success of Star Wars which increased interest in fantasy and science fiction films, Richard Donner 's Superman (1978), the first major big-budget DC feature film,
4323-622: The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). The MCU alone has earned over $ 31 billion. The MCU film Avengers: Endgame (2019) is the highest-grossing superhero film to date, grossing $ 2,797,501,328 worldwide. It briefly held the record for highest-grossing film of all time before being surpassed by Avatar . Superhero stories gained popularity through comic books and were later adapted into film serials . Early examples include Mandrake
4454-503: The Reaper , a vigilante serial killer who is murdering their associates. When Batman proposes an alliance with the bosses, they agree that he and Chill will work together — something Batman finds repugnant, but which he nevertheless justifies to himself as necessary to stop the Reaper. He vows to kill Chill afterwards. The crime bosses also secretly commission Chill to kill Batman after he and
4585-501: The Scarecrow and Ra's al Ghul as the film's villains, as both characters had not been featured in previous Batman films nor in Adam West 's 1960s television series . A common idea in the comics is that Bruce saw a Zorro film with his parents before they were murdered. Nolan explained that by ignoring that idea – which he stated is not found in Batman's first appearances – it emphasized
4716-565: The Vatnajökull glacier in Iceland (standing in for Bhutan ). The crew built a village and the front doors to Ra's' temple, as well as a road to access the remote area. The weather was problematic, with 75 miles per hour (120 km/h) winds, rain, and a lack of snow. A shot that cinematographer Wally Pfister had planned to take using a crane had to be completed with a handheld camera. Unlike Burton and Schumacher's Gotham City that did not exist in
4847-644: The superhero Batman . Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane , the character first appeared in Detective Comics #33 (November 1939). In Batman's origin story , Joe Chill is the mugger who murders young Bruce Wayne's parents, Dr. Thomas Wayne and Martha Wayne . The murder traumatizes Bruce, inspiring his vow to avenge their deaths by fighting crime in Gotham City as the vigilante Batman. As an integral part of Batman's origin story, Joe Chill has appeared in numerous media adaptations. Richard Brake portrayed
4978-545: The "split personality" of Bruce Wayne and his alter ego, Batman. Zimmer and Howard began composing in Los Angeles and moved to London where they stayed for twelve weeks to complete most of their writing. Zimmer and Howard sought inspiration for shaping the score by visiting the Batman Begins sets. Zimmer wanted to avoid writing music that had been done in earlier Batman films, so the score became an amalgamation of orchestra and electronic music. The film's ninety-piece orchestra
5109-486: The 1970s, Martha dies from a heart attack brought on from the shock of seeing her husband murdered). Chill runs away when Bruce begins crying and calling for help — but not before the boy memorizes his features. In at least three versions of the Batman mythos, the Waynes' killer is never identified. Batman's origin story is first established in a sequence of panels in Detective Comics #33 (November 1939) that
5240-837: The 1980s include Denshi Sentai Denziman: The Movie (1980), Flash Gordon (1980), Taiyo Sentai Sun Vulcan: The Movie (1981), Dai Sentai Goggle V: The Movie (1982), Swamp Thing (1982), Kagaku Sentai Dynaman: The Movie (1983), its sequel , Superman III (1983), Choudenshi Bioman: The Movie (1984), Supergirl (1984), Ultraman Zoffy: Ultra Warriors vs. the Giant Monster Army (1984), Ultraman Story (1984), Dengeki Sentai Changeman: The Movie and Dengeki Sentai Changeman: Shuttle Base! The Critical Moment! (1985), The Toxic Avenger (1985), Choushinsei Flashman: The Movie (1986), Choushinsei Flashman: Big Rally! Titan Boy! (1987), Hikari Sentai Maskman: The Movie (1987), Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), Masters of
5371-529: The 2012 summer film market, with three films occupying the top three positions of the box office chart. These were Marvel's The Avengers (May 2012), which broke box office records as the highest-grossing superhero film of all time, The Dark Knight Rises (July 20, 2012), and The Amazing Spider-Man (July 12, 2012). Joe Chill Joe Chill is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics , commonly in association with
Batman Begins - Misplaced Pages Continue
5502-491: The Batman character in popular culture, shifting its tone towards a darker and more serious tone and style. The film helped popularise the term reboot in Hollywood, inspiring studios and filmmakers to revive franchises with realistic and serious tones. It was followed by The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012), with the three films constituting The Dark Knight Trilogy . In Gotham City , after falling down
5633-507: The Batsuit at an FX workshop codenamed "Cape Town", a secured compound located at Shepperton Studios in London. The Batsuit's basic design was a neoprene undersuit, which was shaped by attaching molded cream latex sections. Christian Bale was molded and sculpted prior to his physical training so the team could work on a full body cast. To avoid imperfections picked up by sculpting with clay, plastiline
5764-471: The Batsuit. Churchyard explained the cowl had been designed to show "a man who has angst", so his character would be revealed through the mask. Fight choreographers for Batman Begins , Justo Dieguez and Andy Norman, trained actors and stunt performers using the Spanish Keysi Fighting Method , which itself gained fame after it was used in the film and its sequel, The Dark Knight ; however,
5895-465: The Caped Crusader have disposed of the Reaper. During a major confrontation, the crime bosses are all killed in a shootout at a warehouse, in which the Reaper seemingly also perishes. Chill reasons that he has no reason to fulfill his contract, but Batman takes him to " Crime Alley ", the scene of his parents' murder. There he confronts Chill and reveals his identity. Batman has Chill at gunpoint, but
6026-729: The Chocolate Factory . Batman Begins was expected by industry experts to help reverse the box office slump in June. However, there were concerns over a possible soft opening for the film. The previous film, Batman & Robin , was widely panned by critics and was credited with stalling the franchise since 1997. Bale's lack of star power at the time and a lack of iconic villains such as the Joker and Penguin that were portrayed by A-list celebrities were seen as possible detachments from audiences. Some also expressed concerns that Holmes' involvement with
6157-509: The Dark Knight intervenes and knocks out the goons. Chill dies in Batman's arms, acknowledging that the Dark Knight got his revenge after all. Len Wein and John Byrne add a one-panel coda in their retelling of this scene in the first issue of The Untold Legend of the Batman . Batman stands over Chill's body and says "No, Chill -- The Batman didn't finish you... It was Bruce Wayne!" In Detective Comics #235 (1956), Batman learns that Chill
6288-621: The HBO series Game of Thrones , appears as a young admirer of Batman who is later saved by him from Ra's al Ghul's men; Gleeson was cast at Bale's recommendation. Actors John Foo , Joey Ansah , Spencer Wilding , Dave Legeno , Khan Bonfils , Mark Strange, Grant Guirey, Rodney Ryan and Dean Alexandrou portray members of the League of Shadows. Hayden Nickel made his acting debut portraying James Gordon Jr. In January 2003, Warner Bros. hired Memento director Christopher Nolan to direct an untitled Batman film, and David S. Goyer signed on to write
6419-558: The Magician (1939), The Shadow (1940), Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941), Batman (1943), The Phantom (1943), Captain America (1944), and Superman (1948). Between 1941 and 1943, Fleischer Studios produced a series of animated short films based on the Superman comic book . In the following decades, the decline of Saturday matinee showings of serials along with turmoil in
6550-512: The Reaper then appears and guns Chill down. It is left ambiguous as to whether or not Batman would have actually pulled the trigger. In the 1991 sequel to "Year Two", Batman: Full Circle , Chill's son Joe Chill, Jr. assumes the identity of the Reaper to seek revenge for his father's death. He attempts to drive Batman insane by using hallucinogenic drugs in conjunction with a faked video of the Waynes' murder to trigger Batman's survivor's guilt over his parents' death and thus break his spirit. After
6681-571: The Three-Headed Monster (1964). By the 1970s, Godzilla came to be viewed as a superhero, with the magazine King of the Monsters in 1977 describing Godzilla as "Superhero of the '70s". Donald F. Glut wrote that Godzilla was "the most universally popular superhero of 1977." The year 1966 saw the debut of the Ultra Series with the kaiju TV show Ultra Q . However, with the release of
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#17330849468546812-473: The Tumbler out of a large block of Styrofoam in two months. The styrofoam model was used to create a steel "test frame", which had to stand up to several standards: have a speed of over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), go from 0 to 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) in 5 seconds, possess a steering system to make sharp turns at city corners, and withstand a self-propelled launch of up to 30 feet (9.1 m). On
6943-538: The Tumbler pursuit, were filmed in Chicago at locations such as Lower Wacker Drive and 35 East Wacker . Authorities agreed to raise Franklin Street Bridge for a scene where access to the Narrows is closed. Despite the film's darkness, Nolan wanted to make the film appeal to a wide age range. "Not the youngest kids obviously, I think what we've done is probably a bit intense for them but I certainly didn't want to exclude
7074-765: The Universe (1987), Bollywood 's Mr. India (1987), Ultraman: The Adventure Begins (1987), Kousoku Sentai Turboranger: The Movie (1989), and The Punisher (1989). The success of Tim Burton 's Batman (1989) and its direct follow-up, Batman Returns (1992), spawned the DC Animated Universe . Superhero movies from the 1990s include Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) and its two sequels , RoboCop 2 (1990), Darkman (1990), Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. (1990), The Rocketeer (1991), Shin Kamen Rider: Prologue (1992), RoboCop 3 (1993),
7205-496: The Waynes were until the next day. Enraged that Chill killed his parents for no reason, Bruce prepares to kill him, but relents at the last minute when he realizes that his father would not have wanted that. After sparing Chill's life, Bruce Wayne leaves Gotham City and begins training to fight crime, vowing that he will stop criminals like Chill from harming anyone else. In 2016, DC Comics implemented another relaunch of its books called " DC Rebirth ", which restored its continuity to
7336-459: The Waynes. Batman, Batgirl, and the Red Hood arrive at the theater where the two Jokers are holding Chill prisoner as a film plays of Chill confessing that he killed the Waynes because he thought they were rich elitists who didn't care about anyone but themselves, only to realize that he was wrong after he saw the young Bruce sobbing over their dead bodies. The Criminal Joker plans to dump Chill in
7467-545: The animated Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Kamen Rider ZO (1993), Kamen Rider J (1994), Gosei Sentai Dairanger: The Movie , The Shadow (1994), The Mask (1994), Ninja Sentai Kakuranger: The Movie (1994), Blankman (1994), Chouriki Sentai Ohranger: The Movie (1995), Batman Forever (1995), Judge Dredd (1995), Tank Girl (1995), Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie (1995) and
7598-409: The attitude and style that he wanted to draw from the film. Nolan described the film's world as "an interesting lesson on the technique of exploring and describing a credible universe that doesn't appear to have any boundaries", a lesson that he applied to the production of Batman Begins . Nolan worked with production designer Nathan Crowley to create the look of Gotham City . Crowley built a model of
7729-555: The audience underneath the mask, but that Gary Oldman succeeded in "emotional complexity" where the rest of the movie failed. Film director Tim Burton —who had directed the 1989 Batman film and its first sequel —felt Nolan "captured the real spirit that these kind of movies are supposed to have nowadays. When I did Batman twenty years ago, in 1988 or something, it was a different time in comic book movies. You couldn't go into that dark side of comics yet. The last couple of years that has become acceptable and Nolan certainly got more to
7860-476: The bat suit is only lightly touched upon. Orndorf noted that Bruce is a "character constantly striving to do the right thing, not worn down by incessant reexamination". Superhero film A superhero film is a genre centered on superheroes and their adventures, with characters often possessing superhuman abilities or exceptional skills. Superhero films typically blend elements of action , adventure , fantasy , or science fiction . The first film about
7991-511: The box office, but also reverse the slump at the box office. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith was expected by the industry to be the top-grossing film of the summer due to being the final live action Star Wars film at the time. Other films that were expected to do well were Batman Begins , Madagascar , Mr. & Mrs. Smith , Fantastic Four , War of the Worlds , and Charlie and
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#17330849468548122-537: The cape out of their own version of parachute nylon that had electrostatic flocking, a process shared with the team by the British Ministry of Defence . The process was used by the London police force to minimize night vision detection. The cape was topped by a cowl , which was designed by Nolan, Hemming, and costume effects supervisor Graham Churchyard. The cowl was created to be thin enough to allow motion but thick enough to avoid wrinkling when Bale turned his head in
8253-622: The character in Batman Begins , and Doug Bradley voiced him in Gotham Knights . Joe Chill first appears in Detective Comics #33 and was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane . Chill is, in most versions of Batman , a petty mugger who kills Bruce's parents Thomas and Martha while trying to take their money and jewelry. When he demands Martha's necklace, Thomas moves to protect his wife and Chill panics and shoots him. He then kills Martha when she screams for help (in later versions up to
8384-587: The cinematic lexicon, influencing our perception of different approaches to storytelling not only in the comic book film genre but in all sorts of other genres as well." Shawn Adler of MTV stated Batman Begins heralded a trend of darker genre films, that either retold back-stories or rebooted them altogether. Examples he cited were Casino Royale , as well as the in-development RoboCop , Red Sonja , and Grayskull . In 2012, Kevin Feige , film producer and president of Marvel Studios , stated, "Chris Nolan's Batman
8515-482: The city that filled Nolan's garage. Crowley and Nolan designed it as a large, modern metropolitan area that would reflect the various periods of architecture that the city had gone through. Elements were drawn from New York City, Chicago, and Tokyo; the latter for its elevated freeways and monorails. The Narrows was based on the slummish nature of the (now demolished) walled city of Kowloon in Hong Kong. Crowley started
8646-586: The city. He sets Wayne Manor aflame and leaves Bruce to die, but Alfred rescues him. Ra's loads the emitter onto Gotham's monorail train to release the drug at the city's central water source. Batman rescues Rachel from a drugged mob and reveals his identity to her. He confronts Ra's on the train as Gordon uses the Tumbler's cannons to destroy a section of the track. Batman escapes the train and leaves Ra's to die as it crashes. Bruce gains Rachel's respect. However, she refuses to be with him, promising they can be together when Gotham no longer needs Batman. Batman becomes
8777-463: The close-up shots where the vehicle propelled itself through the air. The other version was the jet version, in which an actual jet engine was mounted onto the vehicle, fueled by six propane tanks. The visibility inside the vehicle was poor, so monitors were connected to cameras on the vehicle body. The professional drivers for the Tumblers practiced driving the vehicles for six months before they drove on
8908-541: The comic book industry slowed superhero motion picture production, with the exception of Superman and the Mole Men (1951) starring George Reeves , and Batman (1966), a big-screen extension of the Batman television series starring Adam West . Superman and the Mole Men served as a pilot for the TV series Adventures of Superman . Compilations of the series were later released theatrically. In 1957, Shintoho produced
9039-553: The concept of " faster than a speeding bullet " on-screen. Inspector Gadget and Mystery Men would then follow to close out the decade for the sub-genre. Following the success of the Kamen Rider Kuuga television series, a new era of the Kamen Rider franchise began. This led to the production of annual Kamen Rider movies, starting with Kamen Rider Agito: Project G4 in 2001. The release of Iron Man in 2008 laid
9170-615: The event accompanied by Catwoman , notes that Chill should be dead. Chill notes that he was there at the birth of Batman, so it is only fitting he should be there to witness the end. In 2011, DC Comics relaunched its entire line of monthly books, and rebooted the fictional continuity of its books in an initiative called " The New 52 ". An 18-year-old Bruce Wayne tracks Chill down and holds him at gunpoint, demanding to know who hired him to kill his parents. Chill, an alcoholic ne'er-do-well, responds that he just wanted Martha Wayne's pearls so he could buy alcohol and that he didn't even know who
9301-401: The exterior monorail shots. The climactic monorail sequence mixed live action footage, model work, and CGI. The bats depicted in the film were entirely digital (except in shots containing only one or two bats), as it was decided that directing large numbers of real bats on-set would be problematic; dead bats were scanned to create digital models. Locations and sets were recreated digitally so that
9432-441: The film an abundance of gravitas and energy. It strays away from the lighter fare of Joel Schumacher 's 1997 Batman film, Batman & Robin , which contained camp one-liners throughout. The theme of fear is intensified with the help of the musical score by Zimmer and Howard, which also "eschews traditional heroic themes". Also contrary to previous Batman films, a psychological investigation of Bruce Wayne's split personality in
9563-581: The film could derail the film's financial prospect due to her high-profile relationship with Tom Cruise (whose film War of the Worlds opened the following weekend) after his controversial appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show . Warner Bros. held the world premiere for Batman Begins in Tokyo, Japan on May 31, 2005. The film opened on June 15, 2005, in the United States and Canada in 3,858 theaters, including 55 IMAX theaters. The DVD of Batman Begins
9694-420: The film rights to the property and was therefore not released theatrically or on home video . Alex Proyas ' The Crow (1994) became the first independent comic superhero film to establish a franchise. The film introduced a level of violence not seen in previous superhero films targeted at younger audiences and bridged a gap to the more modern action film . The success of The Crow may have influenced
9825-524: The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on July 8, 2008, to coincide with The Dark Knight which hit theaters July 18, 2008. Due to the successful box office performance of The Dark Knight , the Batman Begins DVD saw an increase in both sales and rentals. Batman Begins was released on 4K UHD Blu-ray on December 19, 2017. It received a novelization written by Dennis O'Neil , and a comic book adaptation by Scott Beatty . Batman Begins ranked at
9956-479: The film's events in the transpiring years. In addition, the film's Sergeant James "Jim" Gordon was based on his comic book incarnation as seen in Year One . The writers of Batman Begins also used Frank Miller's Year One plot device, which was about a corrupt police force that led to Gordon and Gotham City 's need for Batman. Due to Batman's extensive rogues gallery over seventy years, Goyer and Nolan decided to use
10087-468: The film, but replaced him with the new character Rachel Dawes when they realized they "couldn't do him justice". The character was later portrayed by Aaron Eckhart in the 2008 sequel The Dark Knight . The sequel to Halloween , Batman: Dark Victory , also served as a minor influence. Goyer used the vacancy of Bruce Wayne's multi-year absence presented in Batman: Year One to help set up some of
10218-495: The fingerprints from Judge Wade Walls' humanitarian trophy, Batman enters Blackgate Penitentiary to see Chill. After Batman finds that Chill is not in his cell, Batgirl informs him that Chill was moved to the infirmary ward because he is suffering from stage 4 cancer . Two versions of the Joker , Comedian Joker and Criminal Joker, later abduct Chill from the infirmary, where they torture him to get him to explain on camera why he murdered
10349-563: The first film serial featuring the tokusatsu superhero character, Super Giant , signaling a shift in Japanese popular culture toward masked superheroes in tokusatsu . Along with Astro Boy , the Super Giant film series greatly influenced later Japanese tokusatsu superhero films. Moonlight Mask also became popular around that time, with six films retelling the story of the TV series were made. Another early Japanese superhero film
10480-414: The first jump test, the Tumbler's front end collapsed and had to be completely rebuilt. The basic configuration of the newly designed Tumbler included a 5.7-liter Chevy V8 engine , a truck axle for the rear axle, front tires by Hoosier (which are actually dirt racing tires used on the right rear of open wheel sprint cars), 4 rear 44/18.5-16.5 Interco Super Swamper TSL tires (44" tall, 18.5" wide, mounted on
10611-482: The flying bats would not appear incongruous once incorporated into the finished film. 2005 was expected by industry experts to underperform compared to 2004. Many attributed the slump to be a result of high ticket prices, marketing costs, DVD sales hitting record levels, and new technologies creating an incipient demand for movies delivered directly via the Internet, over-the-airwaves, satellite dish or cable set-top box. By
10742-540: The franchise. After the studio rejected a Batman origin story reboot Joss Whedon pitched in December 2002, Warner Bros. hired Nolan in January 2003 to direct a new film. Nolan and Goyer began development on the film in early 2003. Aiming for a darker, more realistic tone compared to the previous films, a primary goal for their vision was to engage the audience's emotional investment in both the Batman and Bruce Wayne identities of
10873-423: The goal of the film was to get the audience to care for both Batman and Bruce Wayne. Nolan felt the previous films were exercises in style rather than drama, and described his inspiration as being Richard Donner 's 1978 film Superman , in its focus on depicting the character's growth. Also similar to Superman , Nolan wanted an all-star supporting cast for Batman Begins to lend a more epic feel and credibility to
11004-405: The groundwork for the Marvel Cinematic Universe . A few months later, The Dark Knight released to widespread critical acclaim and became the first superhero movie to make over $ 1 billion at the worldwide box office. 2009 saw the release of Watchmen and X-Men Origins: Wolverine . The 2010s saw a continuation and expansion of the box-office success of superhero films from the 2000s, taking
11135-487: The highest-grossing superhero film franchises since 1967 include Tsuburaya Productions ' Ultra Series , Toei Company 's Kamen Rider and Super Sentai , New Line Cinema 's Blade , 20th Century Fox 's X-Men , Sony Pictures ' Spider-Man trilogy directed by Sam Raimi , the Amazing Spider-Man duology directed by Marc Webb , Pixar 's The Incredibles , Christopher Nolan 's Dark Knight Trilogy ,
11266-482: The importance of bats to Bruce and that becoming a superhero is a wholly original idea on his part. It is for this reason Nolan believes other DC characters do not exist in the universe of his film; otherwise, Wayne's reasons for taking up costumed vigilantism would have been very different. As with all his films, Nolan refused a second unit ; he did this in order to keep his vision consistent. Filming began in March 2004 in
11397-595: The impression of the manor as a memorial to Wayne's parents. The building chosen to represent Arkham Asylum was the National Institute for Medical Research building in Mill Hill , northwest London, England. The St Pancras railway station and the Abbey Mills Pumping Stations were used for Arkham's interiors. The Senate House of University College London was used for courtrooms. Some scenes, including
11528-420: The intervention of Robin , Batman frees himself from the drug-induced haze. After the new Reaper is defeated, Batman learns to let go of his hatred of Chill. In Detective Comics #678, a " Zero Hour " crossover story, Batman finds himself in an alternate timeline where, instead of his parents, he was killed by a mugger. Investigating the crime, he discovers that Chill, at least in this timeline, did not commit
11659-403: The issue consists of Bruce's flashbacks and hallucinations from an experiment he undergoes during his early career, however, it is left ambiguous whether the events of the story are real. In 2009's Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? by Neil Gaiman , Joe Chill is seen as the bartender attending Batman's funeral (the funeral itself being a near death experience). Batman, who is observing
11790-539: The lead character. The film, which was principally shot in the United Kingdom, Iceland and Chicago, relied heavily on traditional stunts and miniature effects , with computer-generated imagery being used in a minimal capacity compared to other action films. Comic book storylines such as The Man Who Falls , Batman: Year One , and Batman: The Long Halloween served as inspiration. Expectations for Batman Begins ranged from moderate to low, which originated from
11921-636: The method was modified in The Dark Knight Rises due to Batman's age and physical condition and in order to match Bale's fighting style. The method is a self-defense system whose training is based on the study and cultivation of natural instincts. For Batman Begins , Nolan preferred traditional stuntwork over computer-generated imagery . Scale models were used to represent the Narrows and Ra's al Ghul's temple. There were, however, several establishing shots that were CG composite images, such as Gotham's skyline, exterior shots of Wayne Tower, and some of
12052-408: The murder. Once he returns to his own timeline, Bruce Wayne is plagued with doubt; he wonders if there is a possibility that he never actually caught his parents' killer, and if that makes any difference regarding his crimefighting career. Ultimately, he concludes that it does not. In 2006, Infinite Crisis #6 reestablished that Chill was responsible for killing Thomas and Martha Wayne, and that he
12183-604: The original Ultraman , the franchise started focusing on superheroes. The series was met with a 36.8% average audience rate, a success. In 1967, Ultraman started expanding to films. Early films, such as Ultraman: Monster Movie Feature , were compilations or theatrical releases of TV shows' episodes. The first original Ultraman film was The 6 Ultra Brothers vs. the Monster Army , a co-production with Thailand . This rise in popularity of television superheroes in Japan led to
12314-406: The other previous Batman movies, with the exception of Batman & Robin . Batman Begins was the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2005 in the United States. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives Batman Begins an approval rating of 85% based on 293 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Brooding and dark, but also exciting and smart, Batman Begins
12445-408: The police commissioner; Christine Adams as Jessica, William Earle's secretary; Vincent Wong as an old Asian prisoner; Sara Stewart as Martha Wayne , Bruce's late mother; Richard Brake as Joe Chill , the Waynes' killer; Gerard Murphy as the corrupt High Court Judge Faden; Charles Edwards as a Wayne Enterprises executive; Tim Booth as Victor Zsasz ; Rade Šerbedžija as a homeless man, who
12576-418: The police to get Rachel to safety and administers the antidote. He gives her two vials: one for Gordon and the other for mass production. At Bruce's birthday party, Ducard reappears and reveals himself to be the true Ra's al Ghul. Having stolen a powerful microwave emitter from Wayne Enterprises, he plans to vaporize Gotham's water supply, rendering Crane's drug airborne and causing mass hysteria that will destroy
12707-500: The poor reception of Batman & Robin that was credited with stalling the Batman film series in 1997. After premiering in Tokyo on May 31, 2005, the film was released on June 15, 2005. It received positive reviews from critics, who deemed the film an improvement over the Schumacher films. The film grossed over $ 371.9 million worldwide, becoming the ninth-highest-grossing film of 2005 and
12838-420: The process of designing the Tumbler for the film by model bashing . Crowley used the nose cone of a P-38 Lightning model to serve as the chassis for the Tumbler's turbine engine. Six models of the Tumbler were built to 1:12 scale in the course of four months. Following the scale model creation, a crew of over 30 people, including Crowley and engineers Chris Culvert and Annie Smith, carved a full-size replica of
12969-550: The real world, Nolan shot exteriors in London, New York, and Chicago as he wanted the city to seem recognizable. In seeking inspiration from Superman and other blockbuster films of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Nolan based most of the production in England, specifically Shepperton Studios . A Batcave set was built there and measured 250 feet (76 m) long, 120 feet (37 m) wide, and 40 feet (12 m) high. Production designer Nathan Crowley installed twelve pumps to create
13100-535: The relationship between Bruce Wayne and Rachel Dawes was "frustratingly underdeveloped". Kyle Smith thought Bale exhibited "both the menace and the wit he showed in his brilliant turn in American Psycho ", and that the film works so well because of the realism, stating, "Batman starts stripping away each layer of Gotham crime only to discover a sicker and more monstrous evil beneath, his rancid city simultaneously invokes early '90s New York, when criminals frolicked to
13231-563: The release of a film version of Spawn (1997), Image Comics ' leading character. After Marvel bought Malibu Comics (the company that owned The Men in Black comic series), Marvel and Columbia Pictures released the Men in Black film in 1997. This film was the first Marvel property to win an Academy Award and, at the time, was the highest-grossing comic book adaptation. While commercially successful, Joel Schumacher 's Batman & Robin (1997)
13362-401: The root of what the Batman comics are about." Batman Begins has been cited as one of the most influential films of the 2000s. On the film's 10th anniversary, Forbes published an article describing its lasting influence: "Reboot became part of our modern vocabulary, and superhero origin stories became increasingly en vogue for the genre. The phrase "dark and gritty" likewise joined
13493-448: The script two months later. Nolan stated his intention to reinvent the film franchise of Batman by "doing the origins story of the character, which is a story that's never been told before". Nolan said that humanity and realism would be the basis of the origin film, and that "the world of Batman is that of grounded reality. [It] will be a recognizable, contemporary reality against which an extraordinary heroic figure arises." Goyer said that
13624-439: The sequel titled Ultraman Zearth 2: Superhuman Big Battle - Light and Shadow premiered. In 1998, Marvel released Blade , a darker superhero film blended with traditional action elements, featuring a title character with the powers of a vampire and an arsenal of weaponry. The success of Blade is considered the beginning of Marvel's film success, and a catalyst for further comic book film adaptations. The popularity of
13755-399: The son of the man you murdered! I am Bruce Wayne!!" Terrified, Chill flees and seeks protection from his henchmen. Once his henchmen learn that Chill's actions led to the hated Batman's existence, however, they turn on their boss and gun him down before suddenly realizing how priceless his knowledge of Batman's true identity is. Before the dying Chill has a chance to reveal Batman's identity,
13886-463: The sort of ten to 12-year olds, because as a kid I would have loved to have seen a movie like this." Because of this, nothing gory or bloody was filmed. The score for Batman Begins was composed by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard . Nolan originally invited Zimmer to compose the music, and Zimmer asked Nolan if he could invite Howard to compose as well, as they had always planned a collaboration. The two composers collaborated on separate themes for
14017-521: The start of the Kamen Rider and Super Sentai franchises by famous manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori in 1971 and 1975, respectively. Similar to Ultraman , many early Kamen Rider and Super Sentai episodes were released as films. Original Kamen Rider films released before 1978 include Kamen Rider vs. Shocker , Kamen Rider vs. Ambassador Hell , Kamen Rider V3 vs. Destron Mutants, and Five Riders vs. King Dark . Original superhero characters emerged in other, more comedy-oriented films , such as
14148-404: The start of the theatrical summer in 2005 (May), the box office slumped for 11 consecutive weeks, with year-to-date ticket sales down 5.4 percent from last year even as ticket prices rose a moderate 3 percent, to around $ 6.40 on average, according to Exhibitor Relations. Theater attendance prior to the summer of 2005 declined about 8 percent. Several films were projected to not only perform well at
14279-425: The story. Goyer wanted to reboot the franchise; he and Nolan saw Batman as a romantic character, and Nolan envisioned a large, sweeping film like Lawrence of Arabia . Although Warner Bros. required the film not be R-rated , Nolan did not have a problem with this, as he wanted to make the film that he wanted to see when he was 11 years old. His personal "jumping off point" of inspiration was " The Man Who Falls ",
14410-402: The streets of Chicago for the film's scenes. The interior of the Tumbler was an immobile studio set and not actually the interior of a street-capable Tumbler. The cockpit was oversized to fit cameras for scenes filmed in the Tumbler interior. In addition, another version of the Tumbler was a miniature model that was 1:6 scale of the actual Tumbler. This miniature model had an electric motor and
14541-626: The studio's surveys, Batman Begins was considered the best of all the Batman films. The audience's demographic was 57 percent male and 54 percent people over the age of 25. The film held its top spot for another weekend, accumulating $ 28 million in a 43 percent drop from its first weekend. Batman Begins went on to gross $ 205 million in North America and had a worldwide total of $ 371.8 million from its original release. It earned $ 1.6 million more from its 2012 re-release, bringing its lifetime worldwide total to $ 373.4 million. It
14672-705: The sub-genre's success and ubiquity to new heights. Matthew Vaughn 's adaptation of Kick-Ass was released in 2010, followed by Iron Man 2 a month later. 2011 releases included The Green Hornet , Green Lantern , and X-Men: First Class . After referencing the " Avengers Initiative " in the Iron Man films and The Incredible Hulk , Marvel released Thor on May 6, 2011, followed by Captain America: The First Avenger on July 22, 2011. While Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (February 17, 2012) had little audience interest, superhero films dominated
14803-548: The superhero film, setting the template for modern superhero blockbusters and inspiring the superhero renaissance in the early 21st century. John Kenneth Muir , in The Encyclopedia of Superheroes on Film and Television , describes The Matrix as a revolutionary re-imagination of movie visuals, paving the way for the visuals of later superhero films. He credits it with helping to "make comic-book superheroes hip", and notes that its bullet-time effect effectively demonstrated
14934-698: The third-act action sequences cannot compare to "the frisson of two people talking", and Katie Holmes and Christian Bale's romantic subplot has a spark "refreshingly free of Peter Parker / Mary Jane -style whining". Los Angeles Times ' Kenneth Turan , who felt the film began slowly, stated that the "story, psychology and reality, not special effects", assisted the darkness behind Batman's arsenal; he noted that Neeson and Holmes, unlike Bale's ability to "feel his role in his bones", do not appear to fit their respective characters in "being both comic-book archetypes and real people". The New Yorker ' s David Denby did not share Berardinelli and Turan's opinion. He
15065-431: The top in its opening weekend, accumulating $ 48 million, which was seen as "strong but unimpressive by today's instantaneous blockbuster standards". The film's five-day gross was $ 72.9 million, beating Batman Forever (1995) as the franchise high. Batman Begins also broke the five-day opening record in the 55 IMAX theaters, grossing $ 3.16 million. Polled moviegoers rated the film with an A, and according to
15196-462: The top-selling DVD of the fourth quarter of 2005. The DVD grossed $ 11.36 million in rental revenue. The DVD held its position at the top of the sales chart for a second week, but fell to second place behind Bewitched on video rental charts. The film had brought in $ 167 million in DVD sales by August 2006. Batman Begins was released on HD DVD on October 10, 2006. A Limited Edition Giftset of
15327-428: The tormented drama and revenge motifs with light hearted gags and comic book allusions," and that Nolan takes the series out of the "slam-bang Hollywood jokefests" the franchise had drifted into. Comic book scribe and editor Dennis O'Neil stated that he "felt the filmmakers really understood the character they were translating", citing this film as the best of the live-action Batman films. In contrast, J. R. Jones, from
15458-413: The tune of five murders a day ; Serpico New York, when cops were for sale; and today, when psychos seek to kill us all at once rather than one by one." In contrast, Salon.com 's Stephanie Zacharek felt Nolan did not deliver the emotional depth expected of "one of the most soulful and tortured superheroes of all"; she thought Bale, unlike Michael Keaton who she compared him to, failed to connect with
15589-420: Was Ōgon Bat (1966), starring Sonny Chiba and based on the 1931 Kamishibai superhero Ōgon Bat . The kaiju monster Godzilla , originally a villain, began to transition into a superhero role in subsequent films. He has been described as "the original radioactive superhero," due to his nuclear origin story predating Spider-Man's 1962 debut, although Godzilla did not become a hero until Ghidorah,
15720-671: Was a critical and commercial success . The same year, Toei Company 's Spider-Man reimagining and the first Super Sentai crossover film, JAKQ Dengekitai vs. Gorenger , were released. Other successful entries emerged throughout the 1980s, including Eight Riders vs. Galaxy King (1980), Kamen Rider Super-1: The Movie (1981), Richard Lester 's Superman II (1981), Spider-Man: The Dragon's Challenge (1981), and Paul Verhoeven 's RoboCop (1987). These were followed by Kamen Rider Black: Hurry to Onigashima and Kamen Rider Black: Terrifying! The Phantom House of Devil Pass , both released in 1988. Other superhero films released during
15851-432: Was critically panned for its campiness and deviation from the darker style of the series' first two films directed by Tim Burton. Some have cited it as a factor in the temporary decline of the superhero film sub-genre. Starting with the 1990s, original Ultraman films became more common. In 1996, Tsuburaya released Ultraman Zearth , which parodied the original TV series and later installments. The following year,
15982-402: Was developed from members of various London orchestras, and Zimmer chose to use more than the normal number of cellos. Zimmer enlisted a boy soprano to help reflect the music in some of the film's scenes where tragic memories of Bruce Wayne's parents are involved. "He's singing a fairly pretty tune and then he gets stuck, it's like froze, arrested development," said Zimmer. He also attempted to add
16113-660: Was later arrested on that same night for their murder. In the 2008 Grant Morrison story "Joe Chill in Hell" (featured in Batman #673), Chill is reinterpreted as a mid-level crime boss who builds a company called Land, Sea, and Air Transport, which he uses as a front for his other, illegal businesses. He blames his crimes, including murdering the Waynes, on class warfare , claiming that the unequal distribution of wealth in Gotham forced him to commit crimes in order to survive. In this story, Batman has visited and frightened Chill every night for
16244-450: Was not a mere mugger, but actually a hitman who murdered the Waynes on orders from mob boss Lew Moxon as revenge for Thomas foiling one of his robberies. Batman deduces that Chill spared his life so he would unwittingly support Moxon's alibi that he had nothing to do with a robbery that was really a planned murder. In The Brave and the Bold #79 (September 1968), Joe Chill is revealed to have
16375-582: Was released on October 18, 2005, in both single-disc and two-disc deluxe editions and also released on VHS and UMD Video formats. In addition to the film, the deluxe edition contained featurettes and other bonus materials. The edition contained a small paperback booklet, the first Batman story, featured in Detective Comics #27, as well as Batman: The Man Who Falls and an excerpt from Batman: The Long Halloween . Batman Begins achieved first place in national sales and rental charts in October 2005, becoming
16506-415: Was the housekeeper to Bruce Wayne's uncle Philip, who became Bruce's primary guardian after his parents' deaths. As Philip was often away on business, Mrs. Chilton played the primary parental role in Bruce's life. As an adult, Bruce continues to visit her and still calls her "Mom Chilton", unaware of her connection with Joe and Max Chill. For her part, Mrs. Chilton knows Bruce is Batman and is proud of him. She
16637-457: Was the second highest grossing Batman film at the time behind Tim Burton 's Batman (1989). Receiving a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography , the film elevated Bale to leading man status while it made Nolan a high-profile director. Since its release, Batman Begins has often been cited as one of the most influential films of the 2000s. It was credited for revitalizing
16768-485: Was unimpressed with the film, when comparing it to the two Tim Burton films, and that Christian Bale's presence was hindered by the "dull earnestness of the screenplay", the final climax was "cheesy and unexciting", and that Nolan had resorted to imitating the "fakery" used by other filmmakers when filming action sequences. Michael Wilmington of the Chicago Tribune believed Nolan and Goyer managed to "comfortably mix
16899-427: Was used to show the Tumbler flying across ravines and between buildings. However, the actual Tumbler was used for the waterfall sequence. The filmmakers intended to create a very mobile Batsuit that would allow the wearer to move easily to fight and crouch. Previous film incarnations of the Batsuit had been stiff and especially restrictive of full head movement. Costume designer Lindy Hemming and her crew worked on
17030-430: Was used to smooth the surface. In addition, the team brewed different mixtures of foam to find the mixture that would be the most flexible, light, durable, and black. The latter presented a problem, since the process to make the foam black reduced the foam's durability. For the cape, director Christopher Nolan wanted to have a "flowing cloak... that blows and flows as in so many great graphic novels". Hemming's team created
17161-527: Was waiting for". Giving it four out of four stars, he commended the realistic portrayals of the Batman arsenal – the Batsuit, Batcave, Tumbler, and the Batsignal – as well as the focus on "the story and character" with less stress on "high-tech action". Like Berardinelli, USA Today ' s Mike Clark thought Bale performed the role of Batman as well as he did Patrick Bateman in American Psycho , but that
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