6. Ra's al Ghul - Batman Begins (2005)
Ra's al Ghul is definitely one of the best and coolest characters in Christopher Nolan's
Dark Knight trilogy, and that's because he's played by Liam Neeson, who is one of the best and coolest actors in the entire world. Seriously. Anyway, al Ghul is one of the most important supporting characters (if not
the most important characters) in the entire series of films, because he essentially pushes Bruce Wayne into becoming Batman. He also tries to destroy Gotham, which wasn't so good. Or was it? Having trained when them for many months, Bruce Wayne abandons his life in the League of Shadows because he's unprepared to do some of the nastier things that Ra's al Ghul asks of him should he join the secret society. Ra's al Ghul turns up later on in the movie and explains to Bruce that the only way for Gotham to prosper once more is for it to be burned to ground and re-built from its ashes. And considering the wrenched state of the Gotham that we glimpse in
Batman Begins, that certainly isn't the worse idea ever proposed by one of Batman's foes. Ra's, after all, isn't a villain by definition, in the sense that he is trying to right a wrong. The League of Shadows may make some questionable decisions but he sees his plan as one necessary for restoring balance and implementing a brighter future. It's all for the greater good, so to speak. Had Bruce sat down with Ra's, they might have been able to work something better out. The hundreds of innocent people that would have surely died had the League of Shadows' plan gone through certainly means the idea was ill-judged, but Ra's al Ghul's intentions were at least righteous.