Christan Bale done playing Batman

[Flick James]

He's competent but not fantastic. I'd have Bale anyday over Kilmer and Clooney. I think because of the type of film fans we are here, it's easy to hate on things when they become really popular and critically lauded. For me the best Batman films have been the first Tim Burton flick in '89 and TDK.

I agree with Circus. Bale is just too talented to say he's a crap Batman, I just, IMO, think he's not the best fit, although I think the Nolan films are decent enough.

[tracy]

I thought that Val Kilmer was passable as Bruce Wayne but as Batman he just didn't have it. As for George Clooney,well, I've never really been a fan of his and as Batman he simply didn't work.

[Chainsawmidget]

He's competent but not fantastic. I'd have Bale anyday over Kilmer and Clooney. I think because of the type of film fans we are here, it's easy to hate on things when they become really popular and critically lauded. For me the best Batman films have been the first Tim Burton flick in '89 and TDK.

I agree with Circus. Bale is just too talented to say he's a crap Batman, I just, IMO, think he's not the best fit, although I think the Nolan films are decent enough.

Bale is normally a good actor, and if he had brought any of the skills from American Psycho into play, he could have been a great Batman, but instead he was a real wishy wasy Bruce Wayne and his Batman always sounded like he was trying to gargle gravel.   This just wasn't a role that had any real depth to it, and they did practically everything they could to make Batman not fit in to his own movie. 

Of curse I also thought Ledger's performance was horribly overrated and didn't resemble the character he was supposed to be playing either.

[trekgeezer]

I'm with MOFO on this, you're all wrong  and  1.5  Billion dollars say so.

[Chainsawmidget]

I'm with MOFO on this, you're all wrong  and  1.5  Billion dollars say so.

And we all know that the only way to define quality is "does it make money?" 

That's why Stephanie Myer is worth $125 million and Edgar Allan Poe died penniless in the street. 

[indianasmith]

I define quality by asking myself:

"Was I entertained?  And if so, how much?"

[akiratubo]

I define quality by asking myself:

"Was I entertained?  And if so, how much?"

In the case of the Batman Begins, not at all.  TDK had some moments.  I don't regret seeing it once, though I don't think I could ever sit through it again.  I was highly satisfied when they blew up the ... vehicle Batman drove.  I will not ever call that ... thing ... the Batmobile.

[Mofo Rising]

You're all wrong.

Bale was a fantastic Batman, and the Christopher Nolan movies are incredible.

It makes sense that Bale will stop playing Batman, because it is the end of the trilogy Nolan made.

If you're honestly going to claim that those movie are the worst Batman movies, I will emphatically state right now that your taste in movies is suspect, and I will think less of all your subsequent movie opinions.

Holy hell, Batman fans, you couldn't be more wrong. Don't try to defend yourself, you're wrong. End of story.

I think you may be suffering from what I'm now calling the "Phantom Menace Syndrome".  You're trying to convince yourself something awful is something great.  I'll be right here for you buddy if you need a support system.  I've been there man....I've been there.   

Well, I'll put forward the opposite syndrome, the inability to recognize something as good because it has proved incredibly popular. You want to enjoy it, but the more popular it becomes the more you are unwilling to recognize it as good. I've been there, too.

Tell you what, if one of us has to be right and the other wrong, we should flip a coin for it...

(There would be a winking smiley face here, but I'm pathologically against emoticons.)

[Mr. DS]

Well, I'll put forward the opposite syndrome, the inability to recognize something as good because it has proved incredibly popular. You want to enjoy it, but the more popular it becomes the more you are unwilling to recognize it as good. I've been there, too.

Meh, I like my theory better.   

(There would be a winking smiley face here, but I'm pathologically against emoticons.)

I'll put an extra one in for you.   

[Mr. DS]

I'm with MOFO on this, you're all wrong  and  1.5  Billion dollars say so.

And we all know that the only way to define quality is "does it make money?" 

That's why Stephanie Myer is worth $125 million and Edgar Allan Poe died penniless in the street. 

[rebel_1812]

I have to add my two cents since this thread has become if the Nolan Batman movies suck.

Alot of the people here are saying Batman Begins sucks, and one person said it "has no plot".  Let me address this since Batman Begins has alot of plot.  However, unlike typical action films the plot is all character development.  The movie looks at how Bruce goes from a happy kid, to a vengeful adult willing to murder for revenge, to his training where he refused to kill a criminal, to the hero batman.  I think Bale did an excellent portray at all of those stages.  The only scence that didn't seem to fit was the one where Katie Holmes b***h slapped him.  I think that showed how a bad of an actress she is.

     Fear was a big theme in the movie.  Most of the people were scared of the crime, Gordon was the only cop not scared to go against the mob, same thing with Katie Holmes,  Bruce set out into the criminal underworld because of his fear of the unknown, Bruce's fear of bats, becoming something criminals fear, and the Scarecrow enjoying peoples fears.

The dark knight was a good film too, however, its plot was more like a traditional action film which is likely why it is more popular.

[Mr. DS]

Ok since I've been a little vague I'll add this although I've probably blabbed about this in the past in other threads:

I liked Batman Begins, I really did.  There was something there that worked and worked well as an origin story.  Bale was tolerable to me in that one because it was mostly about Bruce Wayne which he can pull off as an actor.  However, as Batman the train goes off the tracks when he brings out that ridiculous growl.  

The Dark Knight, as I poked fun at Mofo earlier in the thread, suffers from The Phantom Menace syndrome or at least it does for me and I think many other folks.  You go in expecting the world and you walk away trying to convince yourself you received it.  However, it simply failed on all levels.  Story wise it was a choppy mess.  Yes I get the underlying theme of "how far must you go to stay the hero" which I'm cool with.  That and what makes a hero.  However as a viewer, I want to know how far the film will go to entertain me which frankly, it didn't.  It has no rewatch value for me personally.  It was actually painful the second time around and I mean painful.

Harvey Dent should have simply been a background character but gets thrust into the mix way too much.  Ledger was par for Mr. J but I really don't think it was as epic as people made it out to be.  Especially Oscar winning, no offense to the deceased of course.  

[rebel_1812]

I define quality by asking myself:

"Was I entertained?  And if so, how much?"

In the case of the Batman Begins, not at all.  TDK had some moments.  I don't regret seeing it once, though I don't think I could ever sit through it again.  I was highly satisfied when they blew up the ... vehicle Batman drove.  I will not ever call that ... thing ... the Batmobile.

the tim burton batmobile certainly had more style.  However, it had a cocoon mode which turn it into a thing as well.

[rebel_1812]

For the people that didn't like Batman Begins and the Dark Knight; I wonder what superhero films you did like.  I have a feeling it will be Green latern or fantastic four movies.

[InformationGeek]

For the people that didn't like Batman Begins and the Dark Knight; I wonder what superhero films you did like.  I have a feeling it will be Green latern or fantastic four movies.

Don't say people like the recent Fantasic Four films around here.  Do you want to get hurt?! 

I would have to estimate a lot of people around here liked the original 2 Superman films, Tim Burton's Batman, Roger Corman's Fantastic Four, one of the Spider-Man films, possibly at least one of the animated DC superhero films, and maybe one of the Punisher films.