Excellent Restart to the Franchise

Rating: 8/10 (15 June 2005)

Having a friend who works in Warner Brothers, and getting feedback from him to "Lower expectations" in watching the movie, it was with uncertainty that I went to see the opening night show with a bunch of my friends who were hardcore batman fans. During the trailers they all complained about the car. It wasn't cool enough, futuristic enough (??) and that batman was about sleek and stealth not about raw power, these were the complaints.
The movie was above and beyond expectations, not only because we had lowered our expectations, but because the movie was great. It manages to beat Spider Man 2 by a small margin as the best ComicBook adaptation. The characters are fleshed out enough so that even those who have no BatMan background are capable of understanding the story and the characters. Bewarned however, this is not a comic book story. It is dark, intense and emotional. You will get scared, not by the monsters and evil doers, but by BatMan himself.
Alfred is exactly how he should be, Fox is the quite silent strength, the villains are real, you don't hate them completely, you respect them for who they are as well. The car is a beauty and its awesome power will hold you captivated.
My advice? Watch it, but remove all comparisons of other Batman movies from your mind. Watch it immersed in all it provides. The dialog, the action, the visuals, the sounds.