TheBatman said:

I was actually just referring to the origin flashback featured in that story, with the Joker as the no-name comedian. It will be years before Barbara, so she won't be included as Batgirl, Oracle or otherwise.

Yes, you should go see it!!! It's obvious that Nolan and Goyer are both huge fans of the Animated Series, since they had lots of visual nods to it. Remember how Gotham actually looked like a real city in that series (as oppossed to some goth kid's idea of the perfect metro area like the Burton films, or the neon mess of the Schumaker crap)? Well, the Gotham in this film is like that! It actually seems like a place that people work, play and go to school in. It made me care so much more about Batman's crusade, since you could believe that he was from this city and loved it. I never bought that Keaton's city was worth saving.

I LOVE the Killing Joke. Especially the joke at the end.....

A great piece of writing.

XxAxX said:

Totally agree. This is the first time he's been depicted correctly in live action.

Neversin said:

Well, there ya go! TheBatman should definitely take this as a ringing endorsement, since I know you were pretty darned sceptical! Heck, the fact that you enjoyed a film with Katie Holmes says a whole lot about how good it is, since I know how much you detest her!

uPtoWnNY said:

Agree with you totally, except for the bit about The Hulk. Hated that one.

jerseykrs said:

It definitely was a better origin for The Joker than what was presented in the first Burton movie. The comparison and contrast of how the Joker and Batman both dealt with the tragedies in their lives was fantastic.

I won't see it until next Tuesday.... damn, I cannot wait! Really looking forward it. I hope it makes enough money though, I know almost nobody that wants to see this one.

BTW, I guess The Killing Joke, The Long Halloween, Dark Victory and Hush are all worth reading? I'm considering getting those soon.

calldapplwondery83 said:

Yes, those are all great stories. I'm especially fond of TLH and DV, since they so effortlessly built upon Miller's Year One.

I just saw it tonight! I loved it! If I was gay, I'd love to eat my breakfast off of Christian Bale's chest.

I saw it Sat night and thought it was pretty good ...interesting avatar there Dook

Great sig there, Ocean!

Finally saw Batman Begins...and loved it!

I loved the way Batman was the central interest (rather than whoever the bad guy
happened to be). They finally made Bruce Wayne / Batman a seriously dangerous,
dark and disturbed character. Christian Bale was excellent I thought (how on earth
did he get back into shape so quickly after The Machinist?), and Michael Caine
was great as Alfred. My only minor gripe was that, like Gladiator, a lot of the
action sequences were filmed too close up and shaky. Sometimes you wanna see a
bit more of the choregraphy clearer. But apart from that, a solid thumbs up!
Can't wait for the Joker in the next one.

ReturnOfDOOK said:

If.....???

BorisFishpaw said:

I knew he lost weight for that one and had to get back in shape for Batman but I didn't knew how thin he was until I saw the MTV Making the Movie special about Batman. Incredible.

BorisFishpaw said:

Totally agree.

JediMaster said:

i'm as far from an expert on Batman as possible, but i thought it was a fine movie.

i would like to echo Boris's comments on the fighting. It was very, very...uh...edited. as if somehow it was supposed to make it more realistic if you couldn't see anything because the camera danced all over the place and cut from shot to shot so rapidly your eyes couldn't focus properly. that's my only gripe.

TheFrog said:

I think it was to give you the sense of confusion and fear that the thugs were experiencing. By making it so intercut, it adds this feeling of the Bat being a force of nature. I'm not saying I wouldn't have preferred to have seen cleaner editing, but I do think that was the intention behind it.

JediMaster said:

with the drugs, that's fair enough but didn't it happen in other fights too? i can't remember offhand.

anyway, it was definitely a great film. everything made more sense somehow. like the batmobile - rather than it just being a 'flash car' which was there, giving it the background just felt more real, somehow.

Saw it yesterday and I thought it was SUPERB!

I've read so many glowing reviews, I feared this might be a bit of a disappointment. However, it's definitely the best so far - especially after the cack-handed efforts of the last two.

Beautifully shot, great lines, a decent plot, no camp gimmicks - and Christian Bale was fantastic.

onenitealone said:

Couldn't agree more!


Now, I'm just waiting to see if TheBatman has been made a believer yet! I have a feeling he's going to be pleasantly surprised!

calldapplwondery83 said:

Bale is just so impressive as an actor! He's the perfect Batman, through and through.

BTW, I highly recommend to anyone who enjoyed Bale's performance to check out Equilibrium. Fantastic sci-fi flick!
[Edited 6/20/05 8:24am]

TheBatman said:

I KNEW YOU'D LOVE IT!!!!

Okay, it's official, this film has pleased the biggest sceptic (as well as Bat-aficianado) that I know! Bale, Nolan and Goyer are gods amongst men!

Hollywood, take note! When you treat the source material with the respect and reverence that it deserves, you make the fans happy, and you make more box office green!

I'm ready for the sequels, as well as Goyer's take on The Flash!

JediMaster said:

The tantalising clues indicate verything already seems to be in place for the sequel.

I'm curious how The Joker's origin will be handled this time around and how they think they will top Jack Nicholson's class performance.

.

giotto said:

From what I heard they're gonna play up on the similarities between The Joker
and Batman. Showing how similar childhood experiences produced such different
yet similar people.

BorisFishpaw said:[quote]

giotto said:

If that's the case then I pray that the powers that be resist the temptation of repeating the travesty origin of The Joker according to Burton at all costs. I am confident this will not happen.

The Joe Chill storyline from Batman Begins was one of several reasons I emerged from the cinema with a huge grin on my face. The thought of having The Joker himself shoot dead Bruce Wayne's parents (and thereby "creating" The Batman) was far too neat as well as a preposterous cop-out that insulted the intelligence of Batman fans everywhere.

.
[Edited 6/20/05 9:24am]

JediMaster said:[quote]

Milty said:

Jedi, regarding Neeson as Ra's Al Ghul, did you know something we didn't all along?

I remember commenting on an earlier thread that I definitely could not see anybody else but Liam Neeson portraying this character (who, incidentally, was once described by creator Dennis O'Neil as being of "indeterminate" ethnic origin).

The man not only chews scenery but displays the neccessary mix of brooding menace, nobility and a ton of gravitas to the role of Ra's Al Ghul, who I hope to see return in one of the sequels.

My money is on a re-enactment of the Lazarus Pit storyline. I hope this gets the green light.


.
[Edited 6/20/05 9:39am]

giotto said:[quote]

BorisFishpaw said:

Goyer stated in a recent interview that he has script outlines for the next two films. The second film would feature the Joker's origin, though much more in line with the one Moore did in The Killing Joke (like this movie, it would also flesh out some details that were not touched upon in the comic). It would also introduce brand new D.A. Harvey Dent.

The third film would then begin with the trial of the Joker, with Dent prosecuting the case. The Joker would be responsible for throwing the acid in Dent's face that results in him becoming Two-Face (though whether or not he would actually become Two-Face in that film remains to be seen. They may show him slowly going insane in that film, while another villian is the focus. I just don't know.)

Goyer has also stated that he deliberately left a lot open in this film with regards to The Scarecrow. It also stands to reason that Ra's could be broughtback via the Lazarus Pit, and thus introduce Talia and Ubu.