In the latest edition of Mandatory Movie Battles, we’re delving into the world of Gotham City for a battle of the Batmen. By this point, Batman has been a mainstay of cinema for over six decades. We have seen the best & worst of what the character has to offer over numerous live-action adaptions throughout this time. Among these movies is Batman Begins, whose influence stretches from the beginning of the MCU to modern-day blockbusters. After 10 long (excruciating) years, the latest solo Batman venture, The Batman, has finally arrived in theaters. But how does it stack up to Batman Begins? Let’s find out!
Cover Photo: Warner Bros.
When you hold Batman Begins and The Batman side by side, it becomes evident that they’re both trying to do the same thing, while also taking completely different approaches. As much as there are some similarities between the two, they’re also great examples of how a director’s specific vision can change the path to achieve the same effect. In short, they are both movies that explore what Batman thinks the city needs. In reality, they are equally as divergent in terms of learning to be the kind of Batman that Gothan needs them to be.
At the same time, The Batman is probably not the movie that you are expecting. For this reason alone. Matt Reeves’s film is sure to be divisive (especially in the modern age of internet fandom). Aside from this, The Batman is expertly crafted & diligently made, standing as the modern high-bar for the future potential of Superhero Cinema.
Overall Winner: The Batman
MMB: The Batman vs Batman Begins
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Titular Role
There was a lot of skepticism when Robert Pattinson was cast as Batman. Although your average person would most commonly associate Pattinson with the Twilight franchise, he also happens to be one of the premier character actors working today. Suffice to say, Pattinson is very, very good in The Batman. In certain ways, Pattinson’s take on Batman is a complex yet nuanced character study of a broken man who is also compelled to dress up like a bat. While all these things may be true, the fact that The Batman is mostly centered on the titular character means that Christian Bale is still the best actor to capture the Batman/Bruce Wayne dynamic on film thus far.
Winner: Batman Begins
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Villains & Supporting Characters
A Batman movie is never complete without a few members of the Rogues Gallery making an appearance. Whereas Batman Begins introduces Scarecrow and Ra’s al Ghul to audiences for the first time, The Batman re-introduces classic characters such as The Riddler, The Penguin, and Catwoman. Even though Cillian Murphy and Liam Neeson are expertly cast in their respective roles, they also come second fiddle to Bruce Wayne’s journey in Batman Begins. While this is something that works for Batman Begins, the opposite is true in The Batman. Despite the subdued take from Pattinson, the most entertaining performances come from Zoë Kravitz, Collin Farrell, and Paul Dano.
Winner: The Batman
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Music
Aside from the villains, one of the keys to crafting a great Batman movie is undoubtedly the score. The Batman is unique in the sense that it is the first movie to incorporate diegetic music. That is, real-life music that a character is listening to in a scene, which comes in the form of Nirvana’s “Something in the Way”. In addition to this, Michael Giacchino’s score for The Batman not only perfectly captures the mood, texture, and feel of Gotham City in musical form. At the same time, it expands on the bombast of Hans Zimmer’s score and the haunting nature of Elfman’s. It’s true that Zimmer and James Newton Howard’s score for The Dark Knight improves on its predecessor in a way that is substantial. And yet, Giacchino’s incredible score somehow manages to be equally as memorable, if not more.
Winner: The Batman
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Action
If there’s one element of Batman Begins that is glaringly lacking, it would be the action. Even though the intent & emotion of the action is on point, it’s also pretty obvious that Nolan was relatively new to shooting major action setpieces. While this was clearly remedied in The Dark Knight, the action in Batman Begins is often muddled with quick edits and tight close-ups. In the age of the MCU where everything is shot tight and handheld, The Batman proves that it is possible to make a modern-day superhero movie that holds onto a masterfully-composed wide shot for more than two seconds. Truthfully speaking, the action scenes in The Batman are few and far between. But when these moments do come, they hit like a freight train. The Batmobile chase in the film is with the price of admission alone.
Winner: The Batman
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Story & Writing
Whereas most of the entries in the franchise have eschewed the “world’s greatest detective” elements of the character, The Batman is the first to embrace them. As wonderful of a screenwriter as Matt Reeves is, the story for The Batman tends to meander in what can only be described as an almost-unnecessarily long studio-mandated second act. The pieces eventually tie together in a brilliant way, but Matt Reeves' film is burdened with setting up a larger shared universe. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since all of these tendrils are well-executed for the most part. But what it does do is make the film slightly less focused than something like Batman Begins, which is why Nolan’s film (barely) wins this round.
Winner: Batman Begins
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Cinematography
Easily one of the best aspects of The Batman is Grieg Fraser’s cinematography, aka the guy who also shot last year’s Dune. Not only does Frasier provide a brand-new look to Gotham City that we’ve never seen before, but he also manages to use the lighting to give it a tactile sense of personality. Though Wally Pfister’s cinematography remains influential on Batman Begins in terms of using real locations, Fraser’s cinematography in The Batman is so dynamic that it easily puts shame on most of the blockbusters of the last two decades.
Winner: The Batman
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Directing
Looking back, Matt Reeves has always been the perfect fit to direct a Batman movie. Not only does Reeves have the ability to make a big blockbuster, but he also can tap into the core human element of a particular story. The Batman is no exception to this rule, offering the most subtle, yet brutal, approach to the story imaginable. The challenge of directing a Batman movie these days is offering a new and fresh take on the world of Gotham City. In this respect, The Batman manages to do the impossible, even if that means building off the foundations established in something like Batman Begins.
Winner: The Batman
