Batman Begins is a 2005
superhero film based on the fictional
DC Comics character
Batman, co-written and directed by
Christopher Nolan and starring
Christian Bale,
Michael Caine,
Liam Neeson,
Katie Holmes,
Gary Oldman,
Cillian Murphy,
Tom Wilkinson,
Rutger Hauer,
Ken Watanabe, and
Morgan Freeman. The film
reboots the
Batman film series, telling the
origin story of the title character (Bale), from his alter ego Bruce Wayne's initial
fear of bats, the death of his parents, his journey to become Batman, and his fight to stop
Ra's al Ghul (Watanabe) and the
Scarecrow (Murphy) from plunging
Gotham City into chaos. It draws inspiration from classic comic book storylines such as
The Man Who Falls, , and .