Megalomaniac and megachiropterian in his ways, Bruce Wayne/Batman as a cartoon character has never won my admiration before. And while I can't say Christopher Nolan's "elemental" figure has captured my fancy, it certainly has raised my opinion of the proverbial Dark Knight quite substantially.

A savvy no longer sickening is what Christian Bale brings into the role. Larger than life (but still no better than it), he fleshes out the black suit (yeah, minus the offending nipples) with a convoluted reality that this moviegoer can certainly appreciate. That he gets cuts and bruises and sleeps 'til 3pm is most refreshing. And while his toys are cut in the million-dollar mold, he's only just another boy wanting to bring justice to the world. Really.

***

As far as I'm concerned, Katie Holmes has been typecasted (eternally and forever) due to a fault entirely her own. She's far too delightfully pretty, too cuddly-cute, to play a serious, hard-hitting (albeit idealistic) district attorney. No one in their right minds will think, even for a millisecond, that she's Rachel Dawes. She will always - always - be Joey. Period.

She's good for one line of dialogue, though:

"It's not who you are underneath but what you do that defines you."

***

In retrospect:

"Life's a bitch, " Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer) purrs menacingly. "Now so am I."


Here kitty, kitty...