**Batman Begins opened the door for the new age of superhero cinema with its realistic, grounded approach and excellent quality.**

Many may not realize the groundbreaking impact Batman Begins had on the superhero genre. While Spider-man and X-Men were popular films, many still rejected comic book films as only for kids. Incredibly cheesy films like Catwoman and Batman + Robin didn’t help make the more grown-up audiences have much faith in the genre. But Batman Begins changed all that. Batman was stripped of all the goofy comic book shtick and thrust into a gritty real world that spent time developing the character and making a rich man dressed like a bat and jumping off of buildings suddenly seem not just possible but awesome. Nolan’s serious and dark aesthetics and tone changed the landscape of superhero films and paved the way for the soon-to-come Marvel universe. With a brilliant director like Christopher Nolan and a cast boasting Christian Bale, Liam Neeson, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman, the film carried a weight and quality that was new and fresh for comic book films and signaled the beginning of a new era for superhero movies.