Growing up I watched a lot of movies. My Mother worked full time, went to school, and was raising two children. Keeping us entertained with a film was a way for her to take a nap. My experience with films had become over saturated to the point where I wasn’t really interested anymore. In 2005 Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins came to theaters but I didn’t see it until 2008 in a high school class.
Batman movies have been coming out since 1943, and it seems there is no end in sight with another film to start shooting early 2019. Beginning films in the franchise have included more corny comic book action and catchy one liners. Nolan’s are more realistic, dark, and clever without making you feel dumb. That’s what made such a big impact for me. This film felt real. The technology while a little advanced was still believable, the politics covered subjects we are still talking about today. Also I’m from the Chicago land area. I grew up around the environment portrayed in the film. I remember walking down by Navy Pier seeing a sleek black super car go by and thinking, “there’s Batman.” Seeing the film more recently made me realize this trilogy is what kicked off the grand superhero saga that we are seeing today. Which incidentally are also films I really enjoy. In Kofi Outlaw’s article (link 1) Nolan is hailed as “a true game-changer for both the superhero movie genre and blockbuster movies in general.” The Marvel cinematic universe, DC, even the horror flick The Conjuring has it’s own universe partly in thanks to Nolan. Many superhero films used to have a very specific formula to follow. The beginnings were always a quick, glossed over origin story. In this version it’s a “distinctly non-linear origin story, jumping back and forth in time throughout its first act, as we get the sketch of events that shaped young Bruce Wayne into the Caped Crusader known as Batman.” (link 1) Superheros (and villains) are shown that they can be everyday people. You don’t have to fall in a vat of toxic waste or be born on an alien planet to be a hero.
Link 1: https://comicbook.com/dc/2017/06/15/batman-begins-anniversary-retro-review-discussion/
Hi Sydney,
My father was a single parent who had to spend a vast majority of his time working, and as a result I too had my childhood entertainment provided by movies whenever my dad got his much-needed rest. I was familiar with the campy Adam West film/television series (which I embarrassingly love for their humor), but I had no idea that the Batman films stretched as far back as the 1940’s. I enjoyed how personal your writing style is, and as someone who tends to focus more on my opinions rather than any personal story, I would like to incorporate your technique into my writing in the future.
Hello Sydney,
As a child, Superman fascinated me and I carried an action figure of him and Spiderman with me everywhere. They both lost their parents and I was adopted, so they seemed to give me special powers. I watched all the Christopher Reeves superman movies.
In 2005, I was 5 years old and waited months for the movie to come out. This movie was so dark and adult that it terrified me, so much when I was 5, that my Mother had to take me out of the theater.
I think this was the first adult Batman movie. Now that I am grown, it may be time to see it again.
Hey Sydney,
Like yourself, “Batman Begins” was one of the first kind of superhero movies that made a big impact on me. As a little kid, batman was so intriguing to me and the “darkness” aspect that you mentioned made it all more entertaining. Throughout your writing, I like how you compared it to other sagas/movies and how it was crucial for other movies and franchises to be created for us to enjoy today.
Hi Sydney,
Similarly to you I enjoyed the reality of this film and the way that it felt to have real consequences. The way that Christopher Nolan brings in a “darker” theme and overall tone really sets up what Batman is all about. I had no idea that Nolan was apart of the works for the conjuring series but it makes a lot of sense that he would be apart of that team. The connections you make to yourself and your experience really adds to your writing and makes it a lot more personable and intriguing.