After the official opening credits, the scene on the big screen was morning.
Inside a quaint yet luxurious suburban mansion, Alfred Pennyworth, the butler played by Anthony Hopkins, entered a bedroom with a tray. The sound of a TV filled the room, and Bruce Wayne, shirtless, sat on the bed, tending to a wound on his shoulder.
After a good morning, Alfred, with a worried expression, placed the tray on the table and sighed as he walked over to help Wayne with his wound.
The camera turned to the TV.
Amidst the noisy footage, a group of media reporters surrounded Commissioner James Gordon of the Gotham City Police Department, played by Tommy Lee Jones, clamouring to ask about the events at the city docks last night.
"Commissioner, was it really a bat man who attacked over twenty gangsters?"
"It's rumoured that this arms smuggling case involves gang leader Sal Maroni. Is that true?"
"Commissioner Gordon, I'm Vicki Vale, a reporter from the Gotham Gazette. Rumour has it this isn't the first time the bat man has acted. How do you define this behaviour?"
"..."
"..."
James Gordon had initially just pushed through the crowd of reporters in silence, but upon hearing Vicki Vale's question, he finally stopped and said to the reporters around him, "Regarding the details of this case, I have no comment. However, I do not condone any private law enforcement actions. This is very dangerous behaviour and is also a crime".
With Commissioner Gordon's answer, the scene became even more chaotic.
Alfred withdrew his gaze and continued to tend to Wayne's wound, softly saying, "Seems they don't approve of your actions".
Bruce Wayne was silent for a moment, a hint of sadness in his eyes, but he still said firmly, "Alfred, I don't need their approval".
"Alright", Alfred finished tending to Wayne's wound, took an invitation from his suit pocket, and handed it to Wayne, saying, "Perhaps you need this".
Bruce Wayne took it and glanced at it. It was an invitation to a shareholders' gathering of the Janus Group, signed by Roman Sionis, Chairman and CEO of the Janus Group.
Alfred brought over the tray, arranging the cutlery as he said, "Roman Sionis, remember him? You two used to be classmates. The Sionis couple passed away in an accidental fire a few years ago, and Roman inherited the Janus Group".
Bruce Wayne continued to examine the invitation in his hand and suddenly said, "That fire seemed suspicious".
Alfred merely shook his head faintly: "Perhaps, but the police didn't find anything".
Bruce Wayne tossed the invitation aside and said, "Alfred, I'm not interested in these things".
Alfred picked up the invitation and placed it by Wayne's hand, saying, "Master Wayne, you must be interested. Or do you want everyone to notice the fact that the master of Wayne Manor, after years of traveling, has returned to Gotham City, becoming a recluse, and then coincidentally a Batman appears in the city, fighting crime everywhere?"
Bruce Wayne conceded, looking at his butler and saying, "But, Alfred, what am I supposed to do at such an event?"
"Socialize, meet a young Gotham girl, marry her, have a child, stop 'gallivanting' every night, and pass on the glory of the Wayne family". Alfred lectured earnestly, seeing his young master's indifferent expression, he shook his head helplessly and said, "Well, let's start small with just socializing".
Inside the Holy Citizen Grand Auditorium, Alfred's nagging and his final helpless tone drew a round of laughter.
At the same time, these few short minutes at the beginning, seemingly just a conversation between master and servant, contained a vast amount of information and were very friendly to both comic book fans and non-comic book fans.
For comic book fans, the identities of Commissioner Gordon, Roman Sionis, and gang leader Sal Maroni needed no further introduction, in addition to the all-too-familiar Bruce Wayne and Alfred the butler.
At the same time, comic book fans could also catch many familiar details from this short segment of the plot.
For example, the Sionis couple, who died in a fire mentioned in the conversation between the master and servant, as anyone who has read the comics knows, were burned to death by their already insane son. Delving deeper, Bruce Wayne questioned the fire, but Alfred was unwilling to elaborate, actually to prevent Wayne from recalling his own parents who also died unnatural deaths.
Another example is Sal Maroni. In the comics, it was this brutal gang leader who publicly threw acid on prosecutor Harvey Dent's face in court, leading to the birth of 'Two-Face'.
For non-comic book fans, even if they are not familiar with the comic plot, they can still grasp several important plot points.
Commissioner Gordon's dislike of Batman's actions, a fire that caused the death of the Sionis couple, gang leader Sal Maroni whose business was attacked by Batman, and the introduction of Roman Sionis.
The subsequent story will clearly revolve around these characters.
On the big screen.
The plot had already shifted to evening.
Inside another clearly luxurious mansion in the city, though several levels below Wayne Manor, busy servants were setting up for a party. A waiter accidentally bumped into a poster displaying 'Angel' face cream in the hall and was reprimanded by a butler who came forward.
In a brief conversation, everyone learned that 'Angel' was a new cosmetic product that the Janus Group was about to launch. The purpose of tonight's party was to introduce this upcoming product to the Janus company shareholders.
Immediately, the scene shifted upstairs in the mansion.
Roman Sionis, played by Willem Dafoe, looked up from a document, his face showing a clear degree of anger: "One in a hundred thousand, Jack. The company spent three years developing 'Angel', and it's about to be launched. Now you're telling me that this product has a one in a hundred thousand chance of causing allergic reactions in users. Do you know what this means?"
"Mr. Sionis, this is a fact we must admit. Once an allergic reaction to 'Angel' occurs, in the most severe cases, it could even lead to sudden death".
Roman Sionis gripped the document in his hand, his expression fluctuating for a moment, then suddenly looked up and asked, "Will it disfigure?"
The executive named Jack Slade paused, then shook his head and said, "No, mainly it's..."
Roman Sionis interrupted Jack before he could elaborate, saying, "Jack, you must know best how much we've invested in developing this product, and also the company's recent stock price. So, do you understand?"
"But..."
"It's only one in a hundred thousand," Roman Sionis stared at Jack, saying, "Since it won't disfigure, then perhaps it's food poisoning, or maybe a pollen allergy. Who knows if it's 'Angel' causing it".
Jack Slade looked at his boss's almost distorted angry face and still reminded him, "Mr. Sionis, if this matter is discovered, the consequences will be severe".
Roman Sionis slammed his fist on the desk, erupting completely: "If 'Angel' can't be launched on schedule, Janus will collapse! Is there anything more serious than that?"
Jack Slade was startled by Roman Sionis' outburst and dared not speak for a moment.
The door was knocked at this moment, and the butler who had just reprimanded the waiter opened the door, reminding Roman Sionis that guests were starting to arrive. Sionis' previously agitated expression gradually returned to calm. He waved Jack Slade away, got up, put the 'Angel' test report document into the safe, and went downstairs to entertain the guests.
Night fell.
The party at the Sionis mansion began to liven up, and Bruce Wayne arrived fashionably late, driving a silver sports car alone.
As soon as he got out of the car, some reporters guarding outside the Sionis mansion spotted the heir to the Wayne family, excitedly surrounding him for photos and interviews.
After handling the situation, Bruce Wayne was about to enter the mansion when an arm linked through his. A lady in a red dress with a neat black bob and a slight Italian accent leaned close to his ear and said, "Sir, do you need a companion?"
Bruce Wayne nodded politely, handed his invitation to the doorman, and entered the party with the lady.
Upon entering the hall, before Wayne could ask, the lady leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, saying, "Thank you".
Then she gracefully drifted away.
Bruce Wayne shrugged, watched the lady's figure disappear into the crowd with a peculiar smile, and then gathered himself to greet Roman Sionis, who enthusiastically approached him.
On the other side, Selina Kyle, played by Valeria Golino, the 'Catwoman' everyone knew, skilfully moved through the crowd, occasionally flirting with those who approached her. Unbeknownst to anyone, she bypassed the waiters and guards and made her way upstairs.
A moment later, a rather secluded door quietly opened.
Selina Kyle slipped inside, somewhat surprised as she surveyed the room filled with various types of handguns, muttering to herself, "Typical boy's private little corner", then backed out.
Catwoman was clearly not interested in firearms.
In front of the big screen, many viewers smiled knowingly at Catwoman's phrase 'boy's private little corner', while others understood this was a plot foreshadowing laid by the director for Roman Sionis. In the comics, Roman Sionis was a character whose marksmanship could rival 'Deadshot'.
In a flash, Selina Kyle arrived at the study where Roman Sionis and Jack Slade had been talking, and accurately located the safe.
In the mansion's grand hall, the dazzling party continued.
Bruce Wayne, clearly uncomfortable in such an environment, reluctantly endured the compliments of a group of guests and excused himself to the restroom.
The scene switches.
In Roman Sionis' study, Selina Kyle had already opened the safe and was looking through the 'Angel' test report document when suddenly, an unexpected alarm blared.
Muttering a low curse, Selina Kyle quickly tidied up the mess, rolled up the document, and headed out.
There was a slight commotion at the party, but it wasn't serious.
After safely evading the bodyguards rushing upstairs, Selina Kyle exited the Sionis mansion. Seeing the reporters still waiting outside, she casually approached and slipped the document she had been holding into a reporter's satchel.
The familiar silver sports car appeared, stopping beside Selina.
The car door opened, and Bruce Wayne looked at Selina with what seemed like a charming expression: "Need a ride?"
Selina Kyle saw bodyguards rushing out of the mansion and smiled enchantingly: "Sure".
With that, she got in, and Wayne started the car, driving away from the party.
A moment later, Selina Kyle, finally sensing something amiss, turned to Wayne: "Darling, where are we going?"
Bruce Wayne glanced at the lady in the passenger seat and said, "The police station".
Selina Kyle's body stiffened for a moment, then quickly relaxed: "Wow, you really know how to romance a girl".
Bruce Wayne continued driving.
Seeing that the man had no reaction, Selina Kyle proactively asked: "How did you find out?"
Bruce Wayne gave the lady another faint glance, seemingly searching for something, and said, "If you like that wallet, you can keep it, but you must return the photos inside to me".
"Tsk what a stingy man", Selina Kyle immediately understood how she had given herself away. She reached into the front of her dress, pulled out a black wallet, and handed it to Wayne, her expression changing to one of pitiful vulnerability: "So, Mr. Wayne, may I leave now?"
Bruce Wayne indifferently opened the wallet, glanced at the photo of himself and his parents, and said, "Your method of disabling other people's alarm systems is too skilled. You'd better go to the police station".
Selina Kyle paused, again realizing why the alarm had still gone off even though she had clearly dismantled the Sionis family's alarm system. She teased, "Your familiarity with other people's alarm systems is quite impressive too".
As she spoke, Selina reached out and tried a few times, finding the car door already locked. She looked at Wayne again, with a hint of pleading: "You really aren't going to let a poor lady leave, Mr. Wayne?"
Bruce Wayne was somewhat surprised: "You know me?"
"Of course, is there a second Wayne family in Gotham City?" Selina said, then added a small threat: "I'll definitely pay you a visit when I get the chance".
Bruce Wayne was about to speak again when Selina Kyle, having finished her sentence, leaned in close.
Was this a honey trap?
Both Bruce Wayne in the car and the audience in front of the big screen simultaneously had similar thoughts.
Catwoman using a honey trap on Batman, and in a speeding sports car at that.
Just thinking about it was a little exciting.
It must be said that, even though she only appeared for a few minutes, Valeria Golino had already created the character of Catwoman, a charming, yet cat-like, fickle and even morally ambiguous figure. The audience had clearly noticed the scene where she slipped the 'Angel' test report document into the reporter's bag.
For many moviegoers, this action was clearly an important detail that propelled the plot forward.
On the big screen.
Just as everyone thought Catwoman was about to use a honey trap on Batman or even have a passionate moment in the car, Selina Kyle embraced Bruce Wayne, but the scene suddenly shifted dramatically. The lady used Wayne's body as support, bracing one long leg against the car door.
Then.
Bang—
With a muffled thud, the car door window shattered completely.
No one had time to react; the lady had shattered the car door window of a luxury car with just one kick.
Bruce Wayne also hadn't anticipated this situation; his hands on the steering wheel were unsteady, and the car began to shake violently.
"Farewell, darling".
Finally, after pecking Wayne on the cheek, Selina Kyle's body, as lithe as a cat, slipped through the broken car window and landed nimbly on the ground.
By the time Bruce Wayne awkwardly stopped the sports car and got out, the lady's figure had vanished without a trace.
"Cool!"
Inside the Holy Citizen Grand Auditorium, amidst countless stunned gazes, that voice sounded again.