almost perfect

Rating: 8/10 (6 August 2005)

It's a fine comic book movie. funny enough, though David Goyer denies it, it seems to owe a lot to Frank Miller's Batman: Year One.
There are so many things I like about this movie. Christian Bale, Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox. I love that car (and bought all my nephews one and kept one for myself).
Some nitpicks (why I couldn't give it a 10 rating): Katie Holmes as Rachel is kind of weak. Not bad, just weak when I've mentioned already three great roles. That microwave emitter is an unnecessarily complicated plot device.
And I don't like Christian Bale's look as Batman. His skin is so pale it fairly hurts the eyes against the dark rubber. Also his cheeks are so big it looks like his cheeks and jaws are slowly squeezing out of his cowl like toothpaste.
But that car. Um. Watched it 3 times for that car. Even if the reason for the chase was silly. Even if the reason for the car's existence is silly (bridging rivers? Rampless jumps?). It's an ugly, frightening vehicle and it looks spot-on perfect for Batman.