Batman Begins

He just had to tick off the boss...

Yet another origin story, Batman Begins is set in a slightly different universe than other Batman series. Christopher Nolan wanted to take a step away from the super-beings present in many other story arcs, and set this series of Batman movies in a more realistic world. Batman Begins follows Bruce Wayne in his training with The League of Shadows, an organization run by Ra's Al Ghul, who are essentially ninjas who strive for balance in the world. In the grand scheme of alignments, The League falls under True Neutral, striving for balance between good and evil, law and chaos, regardless of cost.

After time in harsh physical and psychological training at The League's hands, Bruce returns to Gotham City to find it in a terrible state. Crime and corruption run rampant throughout the society and Bruce begins to take steps to becoming the Batman in order to bring the city back to order. Being a billionaire certainly has its perks when funding a one man assault on crime. Using his company's resources, Batman is born.

This is a very technical Pew-Pew gun. For... spelunking... yeah...

After taking on a crime lord in the city, Batman finds his first rival in the form of Scarecrow, a master of psycological chemicals and poisons. Scarecrow uses a toxin that induces horrible visions into it's victims, chemically induced fear. His true purpose in Gotham is later revealed, as well as his accomplices.

Someone forgot to hold their breath

Visual: 5 out of 5

  The use of fear inducing chemicals plays a fair role in this movie, and the way it is portrayed is very well done. The action sequences are amazing to watch, as should be expected from a Batman movie. Cool gadgets, ninja combat, and high budget explosions. What more could you ask for?

Story: 5 out of 5

  Seeing Batman as a true human, not someone who trained in magic, not fighting alongside Superman, his enemies using chemicals instead of sorcery or mythical powers, is refreshing. He bleeds, gains significant injuries, and is limited to (movie) physics. The story of his training with The League mixes nicely with his first battle for Gotham's soul.

Overall 5 out of 5

I'm always a sucker for Batman movies and Christopher Nolan does an amazing job of creating a Batman series set in a realistic world. If you're looking for a DC movie to watch, this particular trilogy has an amazing start with Batman Begins.