10 Best Pre-MCU Superhero Films

Nolan's retelling of Batman's origins remains the definite version for this cinematic generation. In the same vein as X-Men, Batman Begins sought to give the comic book genre a bit of gravitas by approaching the subject matter in a more subdued fashion, though took this notion further in its grounded version of the Dark Knight's journey.

Batman Begins rather fittingly shows us how Christian Bale's take on the Caped Crusader gets underway with his crimefighting career - especially his training under Liam Neeson's Ra's al Ghul, his subsequent break from Ra's, and return to crime-besieged Gotham.

The performances are what elevate this picture; that and the reluctance director Christopher Nolan has towards using CGI. The result is a weighty piece of work, one that really packs a punch. It seems difficult to imagine a better version of Bruce and Alfred than the interplay between Christian Bale and Michael Caine. That, and Cillian Murphy's Scarecrow is probably the most underrated and overlooked masterstroke of the subsequent trilogy, though his real time to shine is unarguably in this very first outing.