So If you weren't aware.....Batman Begins was released 10 years ago, and it spawned one of the greatest movie trilogies of all time.
I remember taking my little brother to see this and we were absolutely floored. This movie set the precedent of superhero movies, and continues to reverberate today. It changed Hollywood. Christopher Nolan didn't direct a realistic Batman. He created a grounded Batman, and a Batman that has resonated with all movie audiences. His neo-noir feel was complimented by Wally Pfister's incredible camera work. Christian Bale gave us the Batman we deserved. He is the best Batman because he understood the concept from that from the very beginning of Batman 75 years ago that Bruce Wayne is not Batman; Batman is Bruce Wayne. Bruce stop being Bruce the moment his parents were murdered in front of him.
His raspy voice was necessary to separate the fantastical with this grounded take. "Swear to me!" That still gives me chills! Those who say this Batman franchise was "humorless" obviously didn't pay attention to Bale's interaction with Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman.
The Dark Knight is the better movie. It really is the best superhero movie of all time. However, Batman Begins is the better BATMAN movie. It's Batman crouched on rooftops, leaping, flying, using gadgets from his belts, and more importantly, out of the 9 Batman films, including the Adam West movie and Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (remember that great piece of animation was theatrically released), it's the only origin story that has ever been made about Batman, and it's perfect.