Chapter 541: Batman's Rebirth

"This movie is mostly about Wayne's growth. What impressed me the most wasn't him saving the city as Batman later on, but him learning combat and swordplay on the snowy mountain peak and conquering his fear."

Walking out of the theater, Brad Miller was still discussing Batman Begins with his new acquaintance, Norman Hiller.

"A good movie can make you think and resonate with you at any moment. Often, just a fleeting shot or a single line of dialogue is enough to get your blood pumping or strike an emotional chord. Any film that can do that is undoubtedly a good one, and this is no exception."

The two seemed to hit it off, chatting as they walked toward a nearby bar. Norman Hiller also shared his opinion.

"Actually, some of the things Henri Ducard said make a lot of sense. For instance, the only way to conquer fear is to face it directly. People are always terrified of things they don't know or understand. We instinctively reject choices that don't fit the mainstream and are afraid to try things we've never explored. Because we're always afraid of change—afraid that life after the change won't be as good as it is now—we deceive ourselves, play it safe, and live our whole lives like that."

As they stepped into the bar, Brad Miller chimed in.

"So, after watching Batman Begins, I feel like a life without risk is sometimes just too boring."

"Christian Bale is also a good actor, especially his eyes," Norman Hiller added. "That face of his, which can look both righteous and wicked, is perfectly suited for playing characters with inner struggles."

"Yeah." Brad Miller completely agreed. "Duke isn't just an outstanding filmmaker; he also has a real knack for casting."

In the theater's temporary press room, Duke and the cast were still giving interviews. However, many fans had already taken to the internet—a highly responsive medium—to share their views on the film. This was especially true on IMDB, where many veteran moviegoers were leaving comments in the review section for Batman Begins.

"In Batman Begins, director Duke Rosenberg takes a groundbreaking approach by portraying Batman as an ordinary mortal. He also deeply explores the relationship between human fear, anger, and power. Through the traits and connections of the characters, viewers gain a crystal-clear understanding of the main cast's origins, beliefs, and stances, laying the groundwork for their fates and choices in the next two installments."

"As a reboot, it explains Batman's origins—why he wanted to become Batman, and how he became Batman. From a screenwriting perspective, this movie feels like an interpretation of his personal resume or his trajectory of growth."

"Duke molded Gotham City into a city of darkness. Crime, corruption, and high technology are omnipresent; the city has reached the absolute rock bottom of society. It breeds infinite fear in people's hearts. And fear is exactly the core of this movie."

His opinion also won the approval of other fans.

"That's completely true. There has never been a movie that could illustrate the relationship between fear, anger, and power quite the way Duke has."

"Anger stems from fear. Anger, in turn, generates power. This power can forge evil, but it can also fight evil—it is an individual or localized resistance. When evil forces step outside the law, righteous forces are needed to pull things back. Righteous forces are similarly beyond the law, and after destroying the evil, they can easily become evil themselves. There is no solution to this. Because this power ultimately comes from fear, and fear is a human instinct. As long as humans exist, power will always be in conflict. The good thing is, people inevitably die. The bad thing is, humanity will always exist. It's better to just trust in the law; it can allow humanity to survive better and longer."

Just like with the analyses of The Matrix, everyone always forms their own unique understanding of a movie, some even far exceeding the visions of the screenwriter and director.

As the premiere concluded, more and more of Duke's fans flooded onto IMDB. Even though this wasn't a typical Duke-style movie, they still found it spectacular enough.

"This is the best Batman movie! The visual and emotional impacts are both incredibly thrilling. It can be called a model for action movies. Duke has given Batman a new life on the big screen!"

"Batman Begins is truly stunning. Even though it has a much more oppressive tone than your standard superhero movie, that's exactly where it shines. Duke has filmed a completely different kind of superhero movie."

"The film provides a complete and fulfilling narrative of the reasons behind Bruce Wayne becoming Batman. From self-doubt to enduring rigorous trials, and then to reclaiming justice, the entire process flows seamlessly. The characters' inner emotions are also authentic and rich. It's an excellent opening for a series. Among all the existing movies, this Batman is the most captivating."

"Duke's Batman breaks free from the increasingly clichéd rut of Hollywood hero movies. The scenes and scale are grand and magnificent, the personalities are rich and fully fleshed out, and the plot is far more brilliant and nuanced. Looking at it from various angles—script, cinematography, editing, staging, characters, score, and props—this film can be hailed as a new benchmark for blockbuster entertainment. In a way, Duke has once again raised the standard of commercial cinema to a new height. This might be bad news for his peers in the industry, but it's absolutely great news for the audience!"

Naturally, for any movie, there will be those who like it and those who don't. Moreover, Batman Begins fundamentally couldn't be compared with The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. To clearly explain the process of Bruce Wayne becoming Batman, Duke inevitably had to use a massive amount of dialogue-driven scenes and screen time. For hardcore action movie fans, this inevitably felt a bit lacking.

"Aside from establishing Batman's own background, the story is fairly conventional, but because Duke broke the traditional hero mold, it's quite rare how deeply this movie resonates. However, the film's biggest problem is that compared to his past works, the pacing is a bit slow. It focuses too heavily on exploring Bruce Wayne's psychological transformation, resulting in a lack of action scenes. Aside from the Batmobile chase and the final battle between good and evil, there's almost no room for Duke to show off his strengths in action and sci-fi."

"The second half of the movie is fine—it's exciting and thrilling enough. But the first half is way too dull, and the scenes constantly jump back and forth, making it somewhat difficult to follow. I just couldn't bring myself to like that part."

Simple movies were the ones that could sweep the globe; the more complex a film was, the narrower its reach became.

Duke knew this very well. Therefore, his exploration of Bruce Wayne's so-called inner world only went as far as necessary. As long as Batman could find himself, that was enough. There was absolutely no need to dig deeper in that regard; otherwise, he wouldn't be making a commercial film, but rather a niche arthouse picture.

Even Christopher Nolan—formerly a cult film director—no matter how much he shifted things up in his trilogy, still delivered standard commercial blockbusters.

No matter who it was, no one would be foolish enough to throw hundreds of millions of dollars into making a niche arthouse film.

After the press conference ended, Duke didn't leave the theater immediately. Instead, he went to a lounge to wait for a while. After all, a massive crowd of reporters had gathered outside. Even if he got into his car, he would be blocked on the road by them. He might as well wait for Christian Bale and the others to draw away some of the crowd before returning to the hotel.

Sitting in a high-backed chair, Duke addressed the female assistant who had come in with him.

"Tina, are the media still hyping up the Hathaway incident?"

Tina Fey sat down beside him and replied, "Fox and Disney's media outlets have been relentlessly pursuing it. Even though we bailed Anne Hathaway out, and the press conference changed the narrative for some outlets, she was indeed involved in it. It'll be very difficult for us to completely clear her name."

"Make sure to notify her publicist and agent," Duke instructed. "Tell Hathaway to keep her mouth shut. If any reporters ask about this, bursting into tears is the best response. That shouldn't be hard for her."

"Mhm..." Tina Fey jotted it down in her work log. "I'll emphasize it to her agent again once we're back at the hotel."

As Duke's representative, no one would ignore Tina Fey's words. She was gradually becoming a heavyweight figure in Hollywood herself.

It was no exaggeration to say that, with Duke's backing, Tina Fey could absolutely rank among the most powerful people in Hollywood.

A gentle knock suddenly sounded at the door. Tina Fey went over and opened it; Aerin Lauder and Scarlett Johansson walked in together.

"Hi, Duke."

Scarlett greeted him rather carefully, and Duke nodded back. On the other side, Aerin Lauder walked over, gave him a gentle hug, and spoke.

"Congratulations. Another successful franchise is about to be born."

"It's only the premiere."

In front of his friends, Duke was uncharacteristically modest.

"It's still hard to say how the market will react going forward."

"Darling, I've been watching your movies for over a decade." Aerin Lauder laughed softly. "I have a pretty good grasp of how the market reacts to your films."

Scarlett Johansson suddenly chimed in, "Duke, you've already given Batman a new life."

Duke just smiled and didn't say much more. After all, the fierce competition of the Summer Season was right in front of them. Even though he was brimming with confidence, he couldn't guarantee anything.

In North America, a relatively mature film market, the box office was ultimately determined by the market and the audience. It wouldn't shift based on personal will.

Much like the social climate, there were quite a few factors that influenced a movie's success or failure. A film never succeeded simply because someone wanted it to.

After waiting for about forty minutes, Duke finally left the theater in a car with the other three to return to their hotel.

The premiere was entirely over, but for many fans, this night of moviegoing had just begun.