Batman Begins

[puddnanners]

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000AU9UYM/102-6574194-6321767

Amazon has it for pre-order, and for nearly 50% off retail price.

[MacGuffin]

Interview: Christopher Nolan
The Batman director begins anew on DVD with his franchise-launcher - but without a commentary track.

The first things you'll notice when you pop in the new Batman Begins DVD are the top-shelf picture and sound... they are most choice. Bat-filmmaker Christopher Nolan told us these were his top priorities while preparing his fresh take on the classic comic-based franchise for home release.

"On the sound end, our mixers didn't just take the theatrical mix and use it, which sometimes happens," he told us. "They remixed the audio for home systems to better translate what we were trying to do in the theater. On the picture side, we spent many, many weeks -- into months, actually -- approving every aspect of the transfer. We were really working hard to give the best experience to people that would be seeing the film for the first time, as well as fans who were collecting the film, having seen it at the cinema. We wanted to recreate the theatrical experience with the home release."

In addition to the excellent audio and video quality on the Begins DVD, it's also packed with a plethora of behind-the-scenes features. "I very much enjoyed all the material relating to how we made the film," Nolan told us. "I hope the fans enjoy it as well. I think our EPK crew and DVD guys were able to get an enormous amount of footage, and they really got a lot of the most interesting parts of the filmmaking process. As a movie fan, I just have always loved getting information about the ways that movies get made and I think there are a lot of people out there who feel the same way I do."

The feature on creating the "Tumbler"/Batmobile will surely be a favorite of fans that have welcomed Nolan's gritty, reality-based take on the Dark Knight. The director says, "However much I tell people that we wanted to do it real and that we made a real car... When you see it in the film you never quite know what's real and what's trickery. When you see the DVD extra, and the thing without its finished body being tested, you really begin to gain an appreciation of all the engineering that these guys were able to put into this vehicle."

"The Tumbler was one of the things the designer and I created to initially test our idea with the studio. We put together our design and that was the first thing we showed them. We felt we could use it to express the tonal ideas of how this film was going to be radically different than anything that had been done before in the Batman films. And we wanted to show them how it was very different, but very much true to the comics. And they completely got it and they were excited about it, and it just set us off on the right path."

Nolan explained that this total reboot of the franchise was what attracted him to the project. "For me the excitement in doing a Batman film was to do something completely different than what had come before," he says. "And the way in which I characterized that difference with everybody I was working with is a feeling of reality -- a grounded quality. Batman, to me, is the ideal character to do a large-scale action film about."

One thing Bat-fans might be bummed about on the new DVD is the lack of an audio track with more of this kind of commentary from the director.

Nolan says told us that he feels including one might've been premature. He says, "I didn't do a commentary on the DVD, which people were maybe surprised by. To be honest, my feeling is that commentaries are very tricky because I feel like the audience completes the film, and until a film gets out there you almost don't know exactly what it is that you've done. You have to do commentaries these days before the movie is even in theaters, so I wanted to hold off and instead just have them use the material that we generated during production to explain our intentions."

So, what about the inclusion of a commentary on a future home format release? Maybe. But don't hold your breath. "At some point, I think it'd be interesting to do a commentary and everything," Nolan says. "But I think they've managed to get all the best material in this package. For me, personally, it's just a wonderful record of what we did and all the people I was working with. From a selfish point-of-view its just a wonderful archival tool."

Nolan confirms that fully intends to helm the next Batman movie, but he's mum on the details. And it seems that fans will have to wait a bit for the next installment as he'll be making another flick first.

"I can't really talk about it other than to say that we are talking about doing a sequel right now," he says. "David [Goyer] and I have been talking about where we're taking the characters. ... We know what we're doing and we're pretty excited about it, but it's still very early. I'm actually making another film first that I'm just in preproduction on, so it's a bit of a ways off."

And although Nolan didn't toss us any Scarecrow casting possibilities, he did drop a couple of familiar names that are being eyed for his next project. He says, "It's a film called The Prestige - the Christopher Priest novel. We start shooting in January and we're talking to Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale about starring."

Michael Caine has also been rumored to be up for a role in the project which was adapted for the screen by Nolan's younger brother Jonathan (Memento). The novel centers on the rivalry of two young stage magicians in turn-of-the-century London.

As for the expectations that go with being hitched to such a big movie franchise, Nolan says, "I wouldn't consider doing a Batman sequel unless I felt like it could be a great film, a film even better than the one we already made. But I certainly couldn't do another one on such a large scale right after having finished this one. I'm very glad to be doing something completely different."

[modage]

And although Nolan didn't toss us any Scarecrow casting possibilities

SPOILER
cillian murphy

[killafilm]

Mod... you're a, a Psychic?

[killafilm]

Am I the only one who couldn't find a Deluxe Edition yesterday?

[modage]

circuit city was sold out and i found one in a cardboard box unshelved at best buy.

[Raikus]

Wal-Mart had the DE edition listed as $15.71 on their website yesterday. So I go to the store, find it, and check out and it rings up 24.99. So I told them to put it back and ordered it off the website. Order went through but now they don't have the DE listed anymore, only the regular edition. They better not screw me. I'm still miffed about that Amazon.com huge box set of classic movies for $3.95 or whatever it was.

[Thrindle]

I finally get to read this thread cuz I watched the movie.  Sigh, I'd like to have Christian Bale's babies (but he's married with children)... and because that will never happen, maybe I'll buy the movie and watch it over, and over, and over, and over again.  But seriously, Damn, did I enjoy that flick... so entertaining.

[Pozer]

I look like Christian Bale by the way.  Machinist era though.

[hedwig]

I look like Christian Bale by the way.

you want a cookie?

Machinist era though.

seriously, go eat a cookie.