Did I mention I love Nolan’s Batman movies? Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Rutger Hauer, Cillian Murphy, Liam Neeson, Gary Oldman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson…I’d watch anything these actors are in. Fortunately, many of them have often been in Nolan movies, so I’d already be watching anyway.
For me, Nolan’s films raise all kinds of questions – which he leaves to the viewers to answer for themselves. Perfect opportunities for a newsletter posing thoughts and questions about movies.
Anyway, hello, welcome, and thank you for stopping by. For new visitors, here’s what this situation is all about:
With Savor the View, we’ll watch, think, and talk about movies and the things that matter. A special welcome and thanks to our regular crew!
Each Monday, I share brief, spoiler-free remarks and questions to frame viewing a movie on our own.
Each Thursday, I share post-viewing questions to poke at the issues, ideas, quandaries, inspirations...whatever...that movie might have summoned (spoilers, ahoy!).
Paid subscribers can talk it all out in a weekly Discussion Thread.
General thoughts?
The universal/general
What is “necessary” to do in the face of corruption?
Is compassion a weakness or a strength?
Trauma looms large over Batman’s origin story, as it does for many other superheroes. What can a trauma narrative do, and what can it not do, to explain a character’s motivations, powers, and inhibitions? Could explanations emerge in other ways? In other words, how vital – or not – is the traumatic narrative as origin story?
The specific/unique
Batman is the superhero in this superhero film. But does he act alone? If not, who else helps him, and how?
What is Bruce Wayne’s/Batman’s (Christian Bale) character arc? What does he learn, what does he lose, what does he gain?
In what ways does this film seem to be of its time (2005)? Does it ever seem, in parts, timeless as well?
Sooo…what’s with the bats?
The viewer is always present
Given how violent things get, why is Wayne/Batman so firmly committed specifically to not killing? Do you agree or disagree with his rationale?
At the end, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) mentions to Wayne his sense of “escalation,” that the more aggressive Batman gets, the more aggressively criminals will respond. You can, but need not, keep in mind that this film opened during the thick of the War on Terror. What do you think – are Gordon’s concerns fair or justified?
Should Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes) have protected that Little Boy (Jack Gleeson), even though he grows up to become Joffrey Baratheon?
What do you think of Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes? I ask because (spoiler alert) in the next movie, someone else – Maggie Gyllenhaal – steps in for the character.
Worthwhile Reads
https://www.popmatters.com/batman-begins2-2496227291.html
Next Week’s Movie?
For July – the month of “Blockbusters” – The Dark Knight (2008)
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