Dreamcasting # 16 - Further Entries in the Batman Begins Franchise

[Victor Von Doom]

I have finished the mandatory cast. Now I'm deciding if I want to do the additionals. Expect the mandatory one this weekend.

 

[ourchair]

Batman Begins... And Continues!!

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-leonoralghul.jpg[/IMGL]Leonor Varela as Talia Al Ghul - Ra's Al Ghul believed that modern civilization was decadent and corrupt, and that cleansing the Earth through fire and terror was the only way to make it a finer place. Talia Al Ghul should be the daughter that the movie Ra's would have been proud to have: globe-trotting beauty who does not permit herself to idle decadence. Instead, she speaks several languages and is skilled in several forms of combat and never suffers a fool gladly.

Leonor Varela is probably recognized by most for her memorable performance as Cleopatra in the Hallmark Entertainment TV movie of the same name. Born of French-Chilean descent, Varela's exotic looks combine a fiery spirit and other-worldly elegance, which she also channeled to a modest extent as the regal warrior vampire Nyssa Damaskinos from Blade II.

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-judithompkins.jpg[/IMGL]Dame Judi Dench as Dr. Leslie Thompkins - The most interesting aspect of Leslie Thompkins character is that she's how she manages to keep an unyielding edge about her despite encounters with criminals and drug addicts. Like the movie Thomas Wayne, she believes in a better world in spite, though she has more reasons than to give in to cynicism.

Enter Judi Dench, who has made a career out of playing not just any garden variety maternal figures in films like Mrs. Henderson Presents and the James Bond films, but steely-edged mentors who guard themselves NOT with sarcasm or tough love, but a no-nonsense attitude that is stronger than even the most thuggish of personalities.

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-jamesbullock.jpg[/IMGL]James Gandolfini as Detective Harvey Bullock - Harvey Bullock is the honest cop who looks like an incompetent, one with grim resolve in spite of sounding completely indifferent to whether any good gets done at the end of the day.

To play him, I'd get James Gandolfini whose Emmy-award winning role as Tony Soprano in HBO's The Sopranos has earned him eternal typecast as a mobster. But a close look at Gandolfini's body of work shows that he's also keen on playing distrustful paranoiacs who keep everyone at a distance, whether it's as a sleazy pornographer (8MM) or a blue-collar family men (A Civil Action).

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-paulamontoya.jpg[/IMGL]Paula Garces as Officer Renee Montoya - The young Renee Montoya is all about mistakes and troubled relationships. She takes to unorthodox means --- if not blatantly rookie nonprocedural ones --- to getting justice, draws the attention of disfigured schizophrenics and falls into alcoholism, only to discover her true path under the mentorship of a conspiracy theorist/urban shaman.

Clockstoppers' Paula Garces could easily be written off as just another pretty Latina, but she's the first person I had in mind to play this wet-nosed version of Montoya. Her recurring role on FX's The Shield as career-driven social-climbing rookie Officer Tina Hanlon might be off-putting, but put a positive spin on that and you have Montoya --- a promising cop still trying to find her way.

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-michaelnygma.jpg[/IMGL]Michael C. Hall as Edward Nygma - The aspect of Edward Nygma that is most interesting is his obsessive compulsive urge to deny he is capable of deception --- to tell the truth, so to speak --- and so he does this in the form of riddles. He's an interesting mix of self-superiority and self-hatred.

Who better to play him then, than Michael C. Hall? As the titular character of Showtime's Dexter, he's shown an ability to play restrained self-superiority yet dovetail it with a desperate search for identity. Most people probably remember him as David Fisher from the HBO series Six Feet Under though, but that just shows that he's mastered a portrayal of internalized self-loathing. Both roles are fertile material to feed into The Riddler character.

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-bobcobblepot.jpg[/IMGL]Bob Hoskins as Oswald Cobblepot - Oswald Cobblepot is basically a very refined thug. At best, he's an aristocratic gentleman, who masks the baser desires that drive any criminal. At worst, he's a well-bred thug who has mastered the manners of high society.

Anyone who has seen Hoskins in Hollywoodland will know this is THE perfect choice. Although, Hoskins has a reputation for playing rough and tough guys with Cockney accents, he's pretty darn good with an American accent. As Eddie Mannix, Hoskins mastered the characterization of an 'innocent pictures guy' with a barely concealed reputation for blood. In that role, the idea that thuggery is deeply welcomed among the upper crust was made completely credible.

[IMGL]http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q32/experimentego/07-dc-shannynkyle.jpg[/IMGL]Shannyn Sossamon as Selina Kyle - The original bad girl, Selina Kyle was raised in an orphanage, spent time as a 'lady of the night' and is now a mysterious bounty hunter and international thief. She also might just be the daughter of Carmine Falcone.

Between a drug-addled party girl in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and a voluntary virgin in The Rules of Attraction, Shannyn Sossamon is a great choice to play Kyle. Sossamon went from D.J.ing to acting by mere happenstance... not unlike Kyle herself, a street girl turned glamor lady.

I am so tired now.

 

[Victor Von Doom]

Batman Begins... And Continues!!

I am so tired now.

Sifu.

I am so glad you're back. I've come up my cast and now I'm on the picture search.

I'll have to comment on your individual choices later. Stupid work.

 

[Langsta]

Batman Begins... And Continues!!

Awesome casts.

 

[Planet-man]

Ourchair just raped this round like a Thai slave. Kudos.

 

[SSJmole]

cool list ourchair but this round I think bluebeast's is the best

 

[thee great one]

I like how Ourchair always make his cast post look so fancy and professional.

 

[ProjectX2]

SSJMole:
- Some of the cast doesn't fit at all, but for some reason, I really like Vin Diesel as Mr. Freeze, even though Victor Fries has more to him that just being a big thug.

Thee Great One:
- I like Judi Dench as Leslie and maybe McGowan as Poison Ivy. Not sure about Knepper as Mad Hatter, I think he should play someone else, I'm just not sure.
- Ian Somerhalder is a perfect Jason Todd, too bad that stuff will just clutter the movie.
- I also see Aiken being a good Robin, probably a Tim Drake.
- I love Peter Stormare, but I think he should play someone else... I'm just not sure.

Bluebeast:
- I like Beckinsale as Selina Kyle, but I'm not sure about her as Catwoman...
- Hoffman needs to be Cobblepott.
- I think Streep feels too *****y/sinister to be Bruce's mother figure. I don't like her eyes.
- Tony Soprano as Bullock is fun.
- Also, Peter Petrelli as Nightwing is perfect.

Ourchair:
- I like the Talia pick... though I don't think I've seen her in anything.
- Again, Dench as Leslie is good.
- Again, Soprano (I refuse to call him by anything else) as Bullock would be neat.
- I'm pretty sure Michael C. Hall was rumoured to by Nygma in the movie anyway, so that's a good pick.
- Not sure about Hoskins... I think he'd be too similar to Tom Wilkinson in Begins.

So yeah, I like bits and pieces out of each of them.

 

[moonmaster]

Ahg, I was totally going to do Hoskins as Penguin. Damn you Ourchair.

**** it, I'm still gonna pick him.

 

[Planet-man]

- I'm pretty sure Michael C. Hall was rumoured to by Nygma in the movie anyway, so that's a good pick.

:lol:

Anthony Michael Hall is rumoured to be Nygma in TDK.

 

[ProjectX2]

:lol:

Anthony Michael Hall is rumoured to be Nygma in TDK.

Meh, same person.

 

[SSJmole]

SSJMole:
- Some of the cast doesn't fit at all, but for some reason, I really like Vin Diesel as Mr. Freeze, even though Victor Fries has more to him that just being a big thug.

Yeah my cast does suck , but thanks on Vin Diesel

 

[Dr.Strangefate]

YOU MAY NOT VOTE FOR THIS CAST, BUT YOU MAY ADORE IT IN ALL ITS GLORY!!!

Talia Al Ghul - Rachel Weisz
Obviously this is the daughter of Ra's Al Ghul, as portrayed by Liam Neeson... She's an aristocrat, sent from soon after her birth to boarding school after boarding school, mostly focusing on politics. She shares her father's twisted beliefs, and comes into the picture as a British advisor to the mayor of Gotham. She is really there to meet the man who defeated her father, and she is apparently running the League of Shadows. She always talks about besting Ra's, but never killing. You later find out that she resents Bruce for being the son Ra's never had, the son whom she tried to be all those years. In the end, her and the League of Shadows wouldn't be defeated, she would abandon the attack on her Beloved, telling him that soon he'll see that she and her father are right. And that when he's ready to admit that, he should find her. I'm not so sure about Weisz, but moreso than anyone else on here, I had a general idea of what I'd want to do with the character.

Selina Kyle, Catwoman - Winona Ryder
Winona has magical hypnotic eyes, and she has this dark edge to her beauty... And I've always wanted to see her in some Femme Fatale role... She'd be the perfect love interest (i think she'd have great chemistry with Bale), and she'd be perfect once she got in the simple black Catwoman outfit... And hey, who better to play a thief?

Edward Nygma, The Riddler – Sam Rockwell
I'm thinking of the Jeph Loeb Riddler (see Catwoman: When in Rome) here... He's less the mastermind and more the annoying pest of the villain community, but he's still the guy who you go to to get the inside information. He has dreams of becoming something much more, especially once he sets on solving the riddle of who exactly is Batman. Everyone thinks he's a ****up, even Batman, who basically ignores him except for when he needs him... Which is where this need to be the first to solve this great riddle comes from. And who better to play ****ed up, unloved puppy dogs, with a mean side that'd shoot you and your family to get the right information, than Sam Rockwell. I think he starts out more sane, and deteriorates to the point where at the end of a film he's tossed into Arkham... but when Bats pays him a visit, he says, "Hello Bruce"... Putting him in a position to blackmail Batman... I love the idea of a Riddler who figures out his big riddle, and uses it to gain power in Gotham City.

Oswald Cobblepot, The Penguin - Jon Polito
You might recognize Polito from virtually every Coen Brothers movie, ever... He's great at playing sleazeballs who like to think they have power... Shave off his signature moustache and give him a monocle and a tuxedo and lots of weapons he wants to sell at absolutely rediculous prices. But he'll have his men kill you in a second if you back out of a deal. Polito is absolutely perfect for the Penguin I'm thinking of... the sort of character who's never a primary villain, but always somebody Bats needs to think of to shake information out of.

Dr. Leslie Thompkins – Angela Lansbury
Nothing is more motherly than the voice of Angela Lansbury, and the fact that she's old only adds more to the character... I'm not looking for the Thompkins who sets up a hospital camp in No Man's Land... This Thompkins would have been a child psychologist who did her best to try to help Bruce when he was first trying to deal with it all. She feels that she failed him, but Bruce somehow proves to her that what he's doing isn't some adolescent revenge fantasy, but something more noble. I imagine that after spending some years back in her native London, she returns to Gotham to see Bruce, and wondering what made him disapear for all those years.

Harvey Bullock – Michael Madsen
Okay. Take a moment to imagine Gordon on the rooftop with Batman and Madsen who is smoking a cigarette. Then he goes off at batman for being some lunatic in a cape who's no better than the guys he's rounding off. He's cynical as hell, and will never trust Batman, but he's still one of the good guys.

Renee Montoya – Michelle Rodriguez
Tough Lesbo Action Cop. Plus she drinks too much when her partner's die. I responded to Proj's cast with this: I think that the writers of Lost didn't exactly know what to do with her... Because some of the time she was great as Ana Lucia, but some of the times she was the worst part of the episode. I do think she can act, and I can't think of ANYONE better for the role.

Crispus Allen – Romany Malco
Weeds has shown that Malco can do both serious and joking, so I think a serious role would fit damn well on him. He's a serious cop, and a good cop, one of the best on Gordon's team. I think he'd have a great relationship if he was always snapping back at Bullock's smart remarks. I sort of imagine him as Morgan Freeman's character in Seven, many many years earlier...

Feel free to steal from me!!!

 

[ourchair]

- I like the Talia pick... though I don't think I've seen her in anything.

If you saw Blade II, then you saw her. Not that she was really given much to do in that film.

- Again, Dench as Leslie is good.

It seems other people have casted her too, but I want her to play a more no-nonsense version of the character. Where as Michael Caine's Alfred tells Bruce what he should hear, Judi Dench's Leslie tells Bruce the things he already knows but can't admit to himself.

Again, Soprano (I refuse to call him by anything else) as Bullock would be neat.

I've seen dozens of movies with Gandolfin in them, and everytime I do he's the 'supporting character who never seems to really trust the protagonist, but isn't a bad guy'.

Not sure about Hoskins... I think he'd be too similar to Tom Wilkinson in Begins.

Watch Hollywoodland.

Bob Hoskins is the man.

 

[ProjectX2]

Madsen as Bullock is awesome. Also, we have two of the same choices. Therefore we are better than everyone else.

 

[Gideon Stargrave]

...

DSF stole Winona Ryder from me.

 

[Random]

...

DSF stole Winona Ryder from me.

not a problem

Feel free to steal from me!!!

 

[Planet-man]

Yours is probably the best cast, DSF. There have been some good picks all around, but Madsen as Bullock is the best I've seen so far.

 

[ourchair]

Edward Nygma, The Riddler – Sam Rockwell
I'm thinking of the Jeph Loeb Riddler (see Catwoman: When in Rome) here... He's less the mastermind and more the annoying pest of the villain community, but he's still the guy who you go to to get the inside information. He has dreams of becoming something much more, especially once he sets on solving the riddle of who exactly is Batman. Everyone thinks he's a ****up, even Batman, who basically ignores him except for when he needs him... Which is where this need to be the first to solve this great riddle comes from. And who better to play ****ed up, unloved puppy dogs, with a mean side that'd shoot you and your family to get the right information, than Sam Rockwell. I think he starts out more sane, and deteriorates to the point where at the end of a film he's tossed into Arkham... but when Bats pays him a visit, he says, "Hello Bruce"... Putting him in a position to blackmail Batman... I love the idea of a Riddler who figures out his big riddle, and uses it to gain power in Gotham City.

A VERY inspired and original choice.

 

[Dr.Strangefate]

CUZ IM AWESOME