Batman Begins may seem like a superhero movie, but it ultimately crosses genres. There are a number of messages in the film, the strongest are about fear. Overcoming fear, power through fear and embracing fear are just a few. Much like a horror film villain, Scarecrow or Jonathan Crane uses fear to conquer his enemies. I also saw aspects of film noir such as, the corruption of Carmine Falcone in the police department, the DA and even the judges. However although there are elements of these other genres it is very clearly a superhero film. Batman is often viewed as a “normal” guy and not a man with superpowers or necessarily a hero because of what he stands for. However, I found that in this film he is in fact a superhero.
What makes a superhero is both having super abilities such as the ability to fly or turn invisible and being a hero by standing for all that is good and pure. I think the title of the film Batman Begins is very significant because it describes the film perfectly. It is in fact the beginning of Batman as a superhero. At the start of the film he is neither “super” nor a “hero.” One may argue that Batman does not in fact have any powers so how could he be considered “super.” However, I believe that he does have many powers that are similar to other superheroes. This is best seen in a scene where the character Ducard tells Bruce Wayne “You can fight 6 men, I will teach you to fight 600. You know how to disappear, I will teach you to become truly invisible.” Through training by Ducard, Bruce learns how to become “more than just a man.” Ducard as well as Bruce Wayne himself discuss the significance of a symbol. Bruce says while talking to Alfred “As a man I am flesh and blood I can be destroyed, but with a symbol I can be incorruptible and everlasting.” In the same way Ducard is just a man but Ra’s Al-Ghul is immortal, Bruce Wayne is just a man while Batman is in fact immortal. Bruce Wayne himself is not a superhero; he is mortal and has no “supernatural” abilities. However Batman is not only immortal but he has the ability to turn invisible, fight “600 men” at once, and even fly. A lot of Batman’s abilities are also inventions or man made objects, such as his ability to “fly” or his bulletproof armor. These objects are given to Bruce Wayne, mostly by Lucius Fox, and become part of the symbol of Batman himself.
Batman is not just super, he is a super hero. One could argue that he stands for revenge which is not a quality of a hero. However, in this film he stands for justice and not vengeance. The film discusses the difference of revenge and justice and, although there is a thin line between them, Batman does in fact remain on the side of justice. In one scene where Ducard is training Bruce he discusses that the path to salvation is through vengeance. However, Batman is unable to get revenge on the man who killed his parents because he was murdered. This is a fact that might have saved Bruce because it led him to Carmine Falcone and his quest, instead of killing a man and possibly going to jail. Some other “hero” actions or qualities seen from Batman are hope and compassion. Compassion is a big one because, as Bruce says in the film, it is what “separates us from them.” Ra’s Al-Ghul on the other hand has neither hope for humanity nor compassion and that is why he is in fact, a villain.
Many of the characters in Batman Begins contrast or highlight each other. The strongest pair is Bruce Wayne or Batman and Henri Ducard or Ra’s Al-Ghul. These two characters are both very similar and opposites of each other. Both overcome fear to fight for what they believe, have strong stands for justice, and a hatred for evil. Both characters use an alter ego to become more powerful and to strike fear into the hearts of their enemies. The main difference between these characters is Bruce Wayne/Batman’s compassion and hope for the human race and Gotham City which he believes can still be saved. Al-Ghul on the other hand says that Gotham is just a “breeding ground for suffering and injustice beyond saving.” He plans to destroy the city by letting it tear itself apart by fear. The compassion and hope are qualities that Ra’s Al-Ghul looks at as a weakness, something that will hold Bruce Wayne back from becoming great. Bruce sees his compassion as a strength that separates him from the criminals. The match up seen here with Batman and Ra’s Al-Ghul is one of superhero and supervillian, while Bruce Wayne and Henri Ducard actually have a lot in common.
We also see a lot of comparing and contrasting between Carmine Falcone the crime boss, and Dr. Jonathan Crane or the Scarecrow. Both of these characters use fear as power and strength. The main difference is that Carmine Falcone uses his power of strength, muscular or influential. He corrupts the police, the district attorney, and even the judges. He is a very powerful man who is respected out of fear and is almost untouchable. Dr. Jonathan Crane or Scarecrow also uses power to cause fear. His power is the power of mind, which is in fact stronger. One interesting irony is that while Falcone’s power is physical and Scarecrows is mental, the actual fear of Falcone in others is mental. They fear his power and his influence, while their fear of the Scarecrow is physical as he manifests it as a weapon. Even though both characters’ form of fear is powerful, which is more? Mental fear in the end proves to be stronger. This is proven when Falcone and Crane confront one another. Falcone threatens Crane, in response Crane attacks Falcone with fear which leads to Falcone going insane. This leads to the conclusion that “power of the mind” is stronger than physical power.
Another pair that highlights each other is Detective Jim Gordon and Rachel Dawes. Both of these characters represent the uncorrupt, honest people in a corrupt city. Detective Gordon is a police officer in a department where almost everyone is corrupt. For example, in one scene Flass is seen taking money. He goes over and talks to Gordon and says that some of the men don’t like how Gordon is clean. Gordon responds by saying “I’m not a rat, besides there’s no one to rat too.” The fact here is that there is no one to rat too because everyone in the police division is corrupt. The reason the police department is so corrupt is because of crime boss Carmine Falcone. Falcone has corrupted the city’s police department and also the district attorney. Much like how Gordon is the one good cop, Rachel Dawes is the uncorrupt in the DA’s office. Similar to Batman, Rachel Dawes stands for justice and believes the city can be changed. Although both of these characters are uncorrupt and pure, Gordon doesn’t fight the corruption until the arrival of Batman because there really isn’t much he can do. Rachel Dawes on the other hand believes “it is not who you are that defines you, but what you do.” She is a character that fights injustice and the corrupt; she “rattles the cages.” Some more attributes that these characters have in common are their links to Batman as well as Bruce Wayne. Through the flashbacks of young Bruce Wayne we see his friendship with Rachel Dawes. She is kind to him and they are almost like brother and sister. When Bruce’s parents are killed Gordon comforts young Bruce Wayne in his office. The criminal and the corrupt fear Batman. He is meant to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. In one scene we see the police surround the building that Batman is in. Gordon asks them why they’re not going in and they say because Batman is in there and they are waiting for backup. In response to this Gordon walks into the building. This goes along with the criminal and corrupt fearing Batman. Gordon is uncorrupt so he has nothing to fear.
The last link is the one between Lucius Fox and Alfred. These two characters are what I call Batman and Bruce Wayne’s support. Alfred, Bruce’s butler, is his guardian figure. He raises and takes care of Bruce after his parents are killed and he gives him emotional and moral support. In the scene where the house is burning down and Bruce blames himself for failure. Alfred comforts him and quotes Bruce’s father in saying “Why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.” This is significant because it shows Alfred’s role as a father figure to Bruce Wayne. He cares about helping Bruce and supporting him in everything he does. Although becoming Batman is dangerous for both Bruce Wayne and Alfred, Alfred still supports and helps him. Alfred is Bruce’s guardian and best friend and is a very important role in the film. Lucius Fox is another character who supports Bruce. Although he doesn’t officially know that Bruce Wayne is Batman, he claims he doesn’t want to know. He supplies Bruce with all his equipment to become Batman. He gives him the glider cape, his armor, and even his vehicle, the tumbler. When Batman gets a dose of the Scarecrow’s fear powder, it is Lucius Fox who creates the antidote for him. All his work does not go unnoticed, at the end of the film he is rewarded by being made head of Wayne Enterprises.
There are many themes of the film Batman Begins but the message about overcoming fear is the most obvious. After the murderer of his parents is killed, Bruce goes and talks to Falcone. He tells him he is not afraid of him and they get into a discussion about how we “fear what we don’t understand.” Bruce realizes he doesn’t understand the criminal underworld, so he goes out on a quest. On his journey he lives among the criminals, learns to pity them and realizes the assumptions of what is right and what is wrong are not as clear as believed. By learning about the criminal and corrupt, he no longer fears them. Through Henri Ducard, he learns how to use this knowledge of fearing what we don’t understand. He becomes Batman, something that his enemies will be unable to see, something they will fear. Alfred asks Bruce at one point “why a bat?” His response is “because bats scare me, its time my enemies share my fear.”
Identity is also a big part of the film. At the end of the film Rachel Dawes says to Bruce that his real face is his mask. This is apparent throughout the film. He sacrifices his reputation as Bruce Wayne for Batman. The title of the film Batman Begins is even significant because it describes the way Bruce Wayne evolves into Batman throughout the film.
Batman Begins is truly a brilliant film. Deep, emotional, and almost completely flawless.
Rating: 5/5 *****
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