I just found out that Eartha Kitt, the multi-talented one, Catwoman has passed away. A touchstone of my youth, on Dec 25th 2008, four days ago as of this writing, has departed.. has left. My god, everyone I grew up with, all the icons of my youth, are passing away. Ozzie Davis, Gordon Parks, Paul Winfield, James Brown, Issac Hayes, Paul Newman… now Eartha Kitt. My Catwoman. I grew up watching her on reruns of the old Adam West Batman, as Catwoman, a role she shared with the equally brilliant Julie Newmar. My god, I had such a crush on those two women. Eartha Kitt had a career that was far larger than her guest role as Catwoman, that role was just a small piece of a grand and varied career, that included music, dancing, theater, and films… but for a little kid, that small piece of her career, playing a purring, feline felon, was the piece that mattered. Those two women, for me, were the twin suns of my youthful sky. And now one of them has set. And the world is that much dimmer. But I’d like to believe someplace else… is far brighter. Thanks Eartha, for my youth. And wherever you are… dazzle them. ******* On a related note, TCM (Turner Classic Movies) every year, does their TCM remembers segment. It’s one reason TCM is my favorite channel. They understand history, the importance of it. And the importance of people. Every year their TCM segment breaks my heart, and enriches it. Breaks it for the share number of those who have passed, enriches it, in the knowledge that they will be remembered. Years 2005 through 2008 are available on Youtube for viewing. I recommend it. **************** And turning toward life. My other Catwoman, the ravishing Julie Newmar, the sun that still lights up my horizon, is still wowing people, and has a book coming out in 2009. Go swing by her site and give her much love. http://www.julienewmarwrites.com/

Hola Glad you stumbled in here! In this pretty snazzy section you’ll uncover things I love, things I like, and things I find intriguing, all available here for sale. I hope to make this page a one-stop shop for people looking for interesting items on a daily basis. And the idea is to update this page daily, YES I SAID DAILY, with new items! So after this week I’ll probably move this page to the list over there on your right. So while the blog proper, will not be updated every day, this specific page will be. But you’ll need to probably bookmark it, just so you can check it easily on a daily basis. To keep me honest if I miss a single day and you point it out to me via email (“heroictimes at safe dash mail dot net” or by leaving a comment on this post), along with a suggestion for an item I should have posted that day, you win a free comic! Yes a free surprise comic of my choice! Also the person who buys the most items through this page, in any given month wins the prize of the month. This month’s prize is a copy of the acclaimed, and Out of Print film noir book called THE BIG BOOK OF NOIR. A fantastic book edited by Ed Gorman, and packed with interviews, anecdotes, reviews, opinion, gossip on all things noir, from book to film to comics. (Since I’m posting this in the middle of December, we’ll call January 15th, the end of this month, for contest purposes.) So onto todays items for sale: If you see an item you’d like to try, please use the following links to buy the items as they help me generate revenue. So it’s a win-win situation. You get great items and I generate pennies to help keep this blog going and growing. Thanks and Tendras un gran fin de semana.

*********************************

David Lapham- is one of those writers whose reputation, for me at least, is made on the strength of one book.

That book is STRAY BULLETS #1. I remember that issue, when it came out, nearly two decades ago if I’m not mistaken, and I remember being completely blown away by it.

No one had seen anything like that first issue. It predated SIN CITY, PREACHER, everything.

It was a dark, bottomless scream… with no end. With no end. And it changed the face of comics.

No one will admit to it. But overnight, everyone knew the bar had been raised.

Twenty years ago STRAY BULLETS #1 was the most powerful gutshot the comics world had ever seen. Unfortunately the 20+ issues of STRAY BULLETS that followed that opening, never equaled it, never came close.

And the medium in the 20 years since, has grown beyond STRAY BULLETS. And the medium is the better for it.

But that first issue of STRAY BULLETS remains a favorite, and its creator Dave Lapham, on the strength of that issue, remains a name I’m always ready to support.

That long winded intro brings us to the just released TPB of Dave Laphams, YOUNG LIARS. I’ve heard some good word of mouth about this series, and at $7.99 for six issues worth of material that’s a fantastic deal and one I’ll be picking up. Try a copy for yourself here!

*******************

Next recommendation:

A book that has not been far from my corner table and I whole heartedly recommend is:

SIGHT UNSEEN- by Robert Tinnell and Bo Hampton, is an Original Graphic Novel published by IMAGE COMICS. It’s slightly an odd choice for a holiday stocking stuffer, but if someone likes horror movies (specifically ghost stories) and Graphic Novels, you’ll have a hard time trying to find a better combination of the two, to give them as a present.

Horror movies, the adrenalin inducing scenes/scares that compose them… are very medium specific. They depend on pacing, and sound, and sudden motions… so it’s not something that translates into the static medium of slims (comics/graphic novels).

To generate a sense of momentum, and pacing, and unease, and perhaps even horror… is perhaps the hardest thing to do in comics.

Most horror comics, are about horrible contexts, but the book itself has no horror in it. It either leans toward the campy or tongue in cheek, ala EC comics, or just the wonderfully rendered image, ala the Warren books, and this is because making something that elicits feelings of trepidation out of words and static pictures, takes a unique melding of the craft. A unique marriage of the words and the images.

WALKING DEAD to its credit has done it. And SIGHT UNSEEN to its credit, is equally effective.

SIGHT UNSEEN might just be the most effective example, of Graphic Novel as a book of horror.

Robert Tinnel crafts a truly engaging, and compelling narrative, married to absolutely effective visuals… visuals that almost… move, by the great Bo Hampton.

It’s a fantastic ghost story that I will not go into details about, except to say… I keep looking for another Graphic novel half as good, and as effective… and have yet to find one.

Pick up the hardcover if it is available, this graphic novel deserves the hardcover treatment. It’s one you’ll want a copy to give as a present, and a copy to keep for yourself. Order your copies here before it sells out. You’ll thank me later. .

You can fit what I know about Tori Amos on the head of a pin, but I know a good value when I hear it, and Tori Amos’ COMIC BOOK TATTOO clearly qualifies. A wealth of talent, and a fantastic price point makes this book one that has been selling out all over the place. Pick up your copy here.

***********************************

I’m a real big fan of interactive books. I got hooked when I was a kid, on the “choose your own adventure type ” books. Books where depending on what you want to do, you jump to a particular page and read your ending of choice.

Just a great book for a kid, pre-video games. And I think even in our 21st century CGI, video-game obsessed society; it is still a good present.

So anyhow, huge fan of interactive books. So when I saw new publishing company, QUIRK had started putting out Interactive Mystery books starring iconic characters, I had to order them, and I think they’ll make a great present for adults and kids alike.

The titles are Dracula’s Heir HC (2008 Interactive Mystery) available here, and Batman Murder at Wayne Manor HC (2008 Interactive Book) available here! So go pick em up, and tell them Heroic Times sent ya! .

Rex Libris Vol I- A book about a 2000 year old, Alien and Demon fighting, Librarian. What’s not to love? . Amusing, fun, and with a nice intro by Dave Sim. Collects the first half dozen issues. Click here to get it on sale!

Books For Kids of all ages!

AMELIA RULES- I picked an issue of this comic up for free, along with free versions of SIMPSONS, SCOTT PILGRIM and OWLY and a few other kid friendly comics; and while all those books are good, AMELIA RULES clearly stood out from the pack.

It was just such a fun, endearing book. So much so that I decided to pick up the AMELIA RULES: WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY? trade. I have to say, that book will make you happy. It hits the Charlie Brown note of telling stories of a pack of neighborhood kids, but is its own animal, by including the misadventures of the adults as well.

It is a bittersweet, at times biting satire, but always heartwarming chronicle of a young bunch of friends, and their wonder years.

There are three trades currently and the fourth is on the way. Jimmy Gownley has yet to place a foot wrong, and if you’re looking for a great read for kids, as well as layered humor that will also make adults laugh out loud for different reasons then these are the books you want to buy. Highly Recommended!

(Example of that layered storytelling: In the Ninja Battle story of WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, there’s a line shouted by the character REGGIE as he tries to hold onto his presidency. It’s a line that kids will laugh at because it’s just a funny line, but politically savvy adults will laugh out loud at, because it satirizes a recent political reality. That is unbelievably difficult to do, write a multi-leveled work, that can be many things to many people. But Gownley in AMELIA RULES pulls it off.)Click here to buy Amelia Rules! Your funny bone will thank you!

K-CHRONICLES-by Keith Knight. And speaking of satire. I had the great pleasure of meeting the author and artist of the K-CRONICLES, Keith Knight at a recent con, and purchasing two of his books from him. The books are Just funny, fantastic, insightful looks at the world, from a most unique 20something protagonist.

From making a living as a Michael Jackson impersonator to the finer points of Frat parties and beer bongs to that oddest of things called Californication (where people from California, want people from other states to stay the heck away) it’s just a great strip, to touch base with often.

Cartoons and cartoonists like this give me hope for the future of the medium. And thankfully there is now a thick compilation of all the previous slim K-CHRONICLE volumes. THIS IS A MUST HAVE! Because it might go out of print, then the used prices will shoot up, and you’ll be kicking yourself you didn’t buy it when you had the chance.
So highly recommended the complete K-CHRONICLES.Click here to buy THE COMPLETE K-CHRONICLES! 500 pages of goodness!

And finally wrapping up this installment, please support the following auctions. You can find all the following items pictured below and more being auctioned off here!

STAR TREK:OF GODS AND MEN

It is really easy these days to be cynical about so much. When so much of what we see, or hear, or do is… toward venal ends, and suspect goals. So few things these days, seem to be done… for the love of doing it.

STAR TREK:OF GODS AND MEN is one of those few.

A fan film, seemingly to end all fan films, I became aware of the existence of this three part web film through a British podcast called GEEK SYNDICATE( http://geeksyndicate.libsyn.com/index.php?post_category=podcasts). Hosted by the Nuge and Dave, the internet based audio-show covers all things pop-culture (If a newbie to the show start with episode 89, as they take on Buzz Aldrin… hilarious and brilliant!). From comics, to tv, to movies, to technology, to happenings on the web. One of the happenings it praised was… OF GODS AND MEN.

So working my way to the STOGAM site , I took a gander at the first 2 parts, and was well impressed. A fan film, but directed by a major talent and starring major talent?? The cast read like a who’s who of Star Trek lore.
And prior to actually seeing the third part I received notice of this big screen screening of the whole film with stars in Attendance. I signed up immediately.

They had me at big screen.

So I went, I saw, and I have to say… I really enjoyed it.

The Fine Arts Theater where the screening occurred, is conveniently located in Beverly Hills. With available residential/street parking in walking distance. Entering the place after being checked off on the VIP list, I found a packed theater lobby.

I immediately saw the still stunning Nichelle Nichols, surrounded by fans and photographers, and in another section Walter Koenig also surrounded by fans and well wishers. I moved out of the traffic area to the edge of the lobby with other gagglers, and I people watched a bit. There were more than enough people clamoring for the stars attention, I didn’t want to add to that number, so went in and found a decent seat, and put my reporters hat on. I’m being metaphoric there.

The Fine Arts Theater, is a throwback to the one screen theater of yesteryear. The interior garishly decorated, you get a sense of the place being used for school plays, or dance programs, and occasionally for films. It’s a lived in, familiar feel to the interior. Like School Auditoriums of not that long ago.

I watched, and listened. Two rows in front of me the cast and crew of the film began to assemble. Being still new to LA, there’s still an oddness for me of seeing stars in person. I grew up far from these tinseled lights, and while I don’t get star-struck, there is this moment of surrealism.

I would think, for a star as well, there must always be something slightly… unreal and surreal, about you watching yourself in a film, while you are also being watched by fans. Both of “you” being watched by fans. The you of the screen and the you in person.

There’s something both paradoxical there and endearing, that plays out unspoken, and typically uncommented on, but plays out never the less. A little bit of movie magic, that is a tiny throwback to ancient man gathering over an open flame, to share stories of wonder.

Some of the other stars in attendance were Garrett Wang, Gary Graham, Crystal Allen, William Wellman Jr, and of course the ravishing Chase Masterson (The thing about Ms. Masterson is she’s so stunning, people tend to overlook the fact that she’s a fantastic actress. Scenes work, that otherwise wouldn’t, because she’s always processing, she’s always projecting, so when she has a close-up there’s more than a pretty face there, you get the sense of depth, of a backstory, of history.. which is hard to do with just your eyes, just a look, or a smirk, or a nod, or a phrase. In the old days we would call that, star power. Whatever you call it, she pulls it off).

But to be fair, time has been kind to all the women of Star Trek, or perhaps the casting directors are supremely smart to pick women who don’t age like the rest of us mere mortals. Nichele Nichols, Grace Lee Whitney, Crystal Allen, Chase Masterson… I’m convinced there is a painting of these women in a Paramount closet somewhere, that is getting older, while these women continue to just get better looking.

Now moving away from the beauties of Star trek and allusions to Dorian Gray, let’s discuss a little about the crowd.

An eclectic cross section of people, with only one person in costume… it didn’t seem to be the stereotypical trekker crowd. Having never been to a Trek Convention I could be talking out of turn, but I got the vibe the people there were still the audience for it. Some 20 somethings, lots of 30 and up somethings, it was people who had grown up watching the show in syndication… but not con-goers, or rabid fans, but people who had quietly grown up on this pioneering show… and people who quietly… missed it.

While sampling the crowd, I noticed Walter Koening, sitting in the back of the theater, an old trick of pros, so they can gauge the audience reaction, and potentially make a quick departure should that be necessary.

But it was obvious that would not be necessary with this crowd. To the right of me sat a casting agent, who worked on some of the Trek properties. To the left of me sat Karen Hart, her husband Mike (I’m so bad at names, that if I got that right, I’ll be amazed) and their friend, whose name I would definitely get wrong if I tried to remember it.

Karen turned out to be a composer/performer of some note, as well as being pretty darn fascinating. For more on Mrs. Hart’s work, go here… http://www.karenhartmusic.com/home.html. We spoke a little about how we ended up here, and somewhere along the way names like Cash, and Buckley and Seal came up.

And we worked our talk back to Sci-fi, notably her not being enamored of most recent television, particularly science fiction. Though she was a fan of the original series. That and the cajoling of her husband brought her here tonight.

I think that’s what most of the crowd shared, not her husband cajoling them , but rather a disappointment with current science fiction, particularly as it relates to the 40 year old franchise of Star Trek.

The Trek TV shows have gotten for the most part progressively worse (If I had to rate them they would go STAR TREK, DS9, THE NEXT GENERATION, and following distantly VOYAGER and ENTERPRISE— send hate mail to…), and the films have likewise lost their way.

Which brings us to the reason we were all assembled in that theater… OF GODS AND MEN.

Before I get into my review of the film, I have to mention the 2 minute rap that occurred to open the proceedings.
I still find it laugh out loud funny, that someone thought the best way to warm up a crowd of sci-fi fans, was with a rapper. MC something something. It was inexplicable, but thankfully short. Which was followed by the producer, Sky Douglas Conway, introducing the film and the stars.

Okay onto the film. The lights dim… and away we go.

The film was made for the web, so blown-up of course it’s a little pixelated, it’s not 35mm film we’re watching here, but that said it was a perfectly acceptable picture.

Avoiding a play by play, let me summarize that this no-budget tale of a powerful foe from yesteryear seeking vengeance from a dead Captain Kirk, is better than the majority of multi-million dollar star trek films Paramount has done. Exceptionally well directed by actor/director Tim Russ. All the beats are note perfect. Hey, somebody give this guy a big screen film to direct!

Add to that a really FANTASTIC script, and the flick earns its praise. It is well performed by everyone, but Nichols, Koenig, and Alan Ruck bring the money. Nichele and Walter have proven countless times their ability to command the screen, and this film is no exception.

The surprise for me was Alan Ruck. Alan Ruck has been working in movies and tv for over 20years, in everything from FERRIS BULLER to YOUNG GUNS to STAR TREK, but this is the first time he’s gotten to be a hero and a badass, and I think he relishes it, because he gives a nuanced and commanding performance. I personally think it is one of his best performances.

That said everyone is great. The film is witty, action packed, suspenseful, and sexy.

The producer and director, Sky Douglass Conway and Tim Russ, should be applauded for getting this great cast together, and making this fiction a reality. However it is not for the casual or new fan, I mean the film is deep in the original Star Trek lore, and for maximum enjoyment and understanding you should watch or rewatch two episodes from the original Star Trek series. CHARLIE X from Feb 1966, the 2nd episode of Star Trek ever aired and WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE, the 3rd episode of the first season.

With those two episodes under your belt, you watch this film and you can really appreciate the brilliance of the script.
Writers Ethan H. Caulk and Jack Trevino who bought cut their teeth on DS9 (the best written of all the Star Trek spin-offs) and producer/writer Sky Douglass Conway, based on the quality of this film, should officially be handed the keys to the Star Trek toys.

And talking about good writing, looking back at the 1st season of Star Trek to research this article, I realize just how impressive and well written that first season was. It really was “boldly going where no one had gone before”. And seemingly that is something TV and film doesn’t do too much anymore.

Which makes STOGAM all the more note-worthy.

Now a little bit on casting, particularly two notable casting choices:

Daaman J. Krall stars as Gary Mitchell (Krall does a good job, but too bad they couldn’t get the original actor Gary Lockwood to reprise his part. The script makes a big point of building to the reveal of the bad guy, and it’s a little meaningless because you don’t know who Krall is supposed to be. It’s not till the expository dialog by Nichele that you figure out who this guy is supposed to be. However if the reveal had shown Gary Lockwood that would probably have worked much better)

William Wellman Jr stars as Charlie X, a role originated by Robert Walker Jr. Robert Walker jr. was (and as of this writing “is”) the spitting image of his father, a famous actor who starred with Spenser Tracy, among others. So While Wellman did a great job, it would have been nice if Robert Walker Jr. could have reprized his role. (Oh well, maybe in the remake )

Those substitutions aside, the actors did admirable jobs… and it comes across.

I mean the film is of course captive to its budget, but that acknowledged… it really is, in the face of its limitations, a fantastic achievement. And should do two things 1/ motivate would be filmmakers to just do it, and not use lack of funds as an excuse and 2/ spur Paramount to toss money at all of these guys to remake a big screen, big budget, 35mm version of this… or just give these guys money to make another Star Trek film or series.

Those two things would happen in a sensible world.

The first one has and is happening. The film motivates everyone who sees it. As far as the 2nd one, unfortunately Paramount has repeatedly proven themselves pretty blind, deaf, and dumb to quality… but who knows… maybe they’ll surprise me this time.

All in all a great event, great film, and a great crowd. And the after movie Q and A was equally brilliant.

Darn it! I have to start carrying my camera, or recorder… if I had I could have posted the Q and A for you guys. I’ll remember for next time.

There are a few more big screen showings planned, so check the STOGAM site (www.startrekofgodsandmen.com) to stay informed. And if you enjoy the film as much as I did, consider purchasing the making of DVD. It looks well worth it.

There are only three Star Trek movies I think enough of to own… WRATH OF KAHN, UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY, and FIRST CONTACT.

OF GODS AND MEN will be the fourth.

Other Fan Films you may want to check out, and that I recommend are:

THE GREEN GOBLIN’S LAST STAND (Created long before there was ever a Sam Raimi Spiderman– and in many ways looks like it influenced that movie)

BATMAN DEAD END- 10 minute short by Director Sandy Collora, done way before the Nolan Batman films. I am not a fan of the Nolan Batman films, I hated the first one and thought the 2nd one was serviceable but flawed. I don’t think Nolan’s interpretation of Batman works, which is why the Nolan movies are more interesting when his Batman is not on the screen. Nolan just doesn’t get Batman. Collora in this 10 minute short gave Hollywood a blue-print on how to do Batman right. Unfortunately they ignored it and we get Nolan’s transformer/lego style Batman instead. See previous reviews if you want to hear more of my DARK KNIGHT bashing (oh I don’t really bash it!—much stop crying!). Oh and it’s worth mentioning this stars Andrew Koenig, Walter’s son, in a great turn as the Joker.

Okay kiddies, till next time, in the words of Don Cornelius… “Peace, Love and…. SOUL!”

This has been a great year for movies. I’ve seen more films in the theater this year then I’ve seen in the last few years combined. Much of this has to do with me being on the west coast and taking advantage of the movie going groups/scene out here. And much of this has to do with there actually being a ton of really exciting looking films coming out. This summer particularly has been the summer of the Super-Hero film. With IRON MAN, HULK, WANTED, HANCOCK, HELLBOY, heck even INDIANA JONES. Comic properties this summer have a license to print money with IRON MAN, INDIANA JONES, and HANCOCK leading the pack with blockbuster domestic revenues of between $220 and $330 MILLION DOLLARS to date! WoW, those are impressive numbers! However, WARNER BROTHERS (that was not having a good summer, their highest grossing movie prior to DK being the $80million from GET SMART) hits a home run with THE DARK KNIGHT. In about 3 weeks, since 18 July 08, THE DARK KNIGHT has grossed over $441 MILLION DOLLARS domestically. It is well on its way to grossing over HALF A BILLION DOLLARS! Those are impressive numbers. Though honestly, given the fact that this movie has been given a tremendous hype campaign, along with opening on over 9400 screens (according to such sources as HOLLYWOOD.COM and CNN.COM), the highest number of screens ever, a record breaking number of screens (three times what its closest competition opened with); a record breaking opening is to be expected. That’s just common sense. That’s just math and the law of averages. Opening in more theaters and more screens means more people can see the film. Plus opening in IMAX screens, where the ticket price is higher, again inflates the revenue this movie is going to generate. Add the fact that WARNER BROTHERS cozied up to every critic they could find prior to the movie even hitting theaters, and you have record hype to go along with a record number of movie screens. So yeah THE DARK KNIGHT is going to crack half a billion dollars. But that has less to do with it being a great movie, and everything to do with it having a record breaking marketing campaign, and screen release. HANCOCK which had perhaps the worst marketing campaign of any film I’ve ever seen, opened on a little over 3000 screens, with tons of negative pre-release reviews… HANCOCK was a film marketed to fail, with dismal support from its studio SONY, and negative critical feedback… and managed to surprise everyone by not failing, in fact it’s succeeding pretty darn well. According to VARIETY and MOVIE TIME it has currently grossed over $220 million dollars domestically in a little over a month! So it’s going to crack 300 Million easily! My point being you put the number of screens and marketing of DARK KNIGHT behind HANCOCK, or IRON MAN they would have cracked the 500 Million dollar mark as well! Honestly HANCOCK with no support is going to do at least half of DARK NIGHTS domestic gross. So just following the math, putting subjective concepts aside, and extrapolating from what the movies are currently doing, if HANCOCK or IRON MAN had opened on as many screens as DARK KNIGHT, with its positive marketing, they would surpass DARK KNIGHT in domestic gross. Period. DARK KNIGHT’s success is one of marketing more than content. Over 9000 screens, including IMAX screens, and a critical marketing hype campaign bordering on religious hysteria goes a long way toward filling seats. The movie is good, but it is not the masterpiece the critics would delude you into believing. And I freely admit I’m not a fan of Christopher Nolan, I think he’s an extremely overrated director. I’m not a fan of any of his films. He has a tendency to start films well, but lose his way by the time he gets to the end. MEMENTO…ehh, I could take it or leave it. INSOMNIA… ehhh, just…. much ado about nothing, BATMAN BEGINS…solid beginning, tedious middle, idiotic end…. Stupidest costume ever, PRESTIGE…good beginning, ending…. not so much, it’s a poor man’s ILLUSIONIST. #gallery-1 { margin: auto; } #gallery-1 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-1 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-1 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } So that brings us to DARK KNIGHT. Two complaints off the top: 1/ The costumes, both old and new, are still horrendously stupid. How you can spend over a 100 Million on a movie and be unable to come up with a suit that doesn’t make people want to laugh out loud when they see your protagonist is beyond me. Sandy Collora, A director and Special Effects/Makeup Designer, a year or two before BATMAN BEGINS created for $50,000 a short fan film called BATMAN DEAD END (you can view it here: http://www.collorastudios.com/projects/bde/bdemain.htm). I defy you, I utterly defy you to compare the look of the BATMAN he creates in that film, to the transformer looking nonsense that Nolan has Bale wearing, and in any way prefer Nolan’s version (And no, I don’t know Mr. Collora personally, I just saw his film a few years ago and was then, and remain now… utterly impressed by his brilliant take on the character of the Batman. He got it right). Collora’s version looks like someone you do not, in this world, want to meet in a dark alley. Nolan’s version looks like a hobo got a hold of some cardboard and Styrofoam, and makes you pee yourself laughing whenever you see him on screen. Bottom Line; Nolan’s version of Batman is handicapped by a stupid costume, and how you mess that up, when you have over seven decades of comics/storyboards to choose from is completely beyond me. The movie works far better when they don’t have Bale in that laugh inducing box, someone calls a costume. It is inexcusable. And moving on to my next issue… 2/ THE LOVE INTEREST… Maggie Gyllenhaal…. in a word: no. Just no. I don’t want to be cruel here, she may be a nice lady but she’s not remotely the type of person men are going to fight over. So her being a love interest for a billionaire, and the city’s DA, both men that could have their pick of women… was not remotely credible. It’s plain poor casting. Plus in addition to not being the woman for the part, Gyllenhaal lacked the presence to bring anything to her scenes. My opinion admitedly, others may have loved her, but I found her, like the suit, an obvious and inexplicable weakness that should not have made it into the final film. I think it would have been a far stronger film with an actress of say the stature of Nicole Kidman or Rosanna Arquette. Okay those were the two glaring warts, that continued to bug me throughout the movie. But I’ll give Nolan credit for an ambitious script, that tosses in everything and the kitchen sink. It’s not a great movie, but it has great moments. It is easily Nolan’s best film, and central to this is the performance of Heath Ledger, absolutely phenomenal in his role as the Joker. I did not see Heath Ledger in this movie, he completely created something else, completely was this thing, this… Joker. I think talk of this film being a masterpiece is BS, talk of it being a great film is BS, what I don’t think is BS, is talk of Ledger being nominated for a best actor award. Like I have said, I’ve seen a lot of films this year, Ledger’s performance ranks up there with the best of them. He single-handedly makes this entire film… better than it would otherwise be. He makes me survive the horrendous scenes of Bale trying to act wrapped in a transformer suit, and helps get my mind off pondering why Maggie Gyllenhaal is even in this film. His performance makes a trite villain, true. And an uneven film, nearly fluid. Add to that, moments of cinematic greatness, the triple assassination scene stands out as… brilliant. That you have to hand it to Nolan for, that’s a masterful bit of direction and editing. So there was a lot to like in this movie, and it worked largely because the movie stayed away from Bale in the suit, and Gyllenhaal’s screen time was relatively brief. But ultimately the last act is all about the suit, and that’s the part that works the least for me. So while strong in parts, it’s unfortunately another Nolan ending that leaves something to be desired. But it’s a far stronger film than anything previous from Nolan. I just think he tries too hard for his films to have a gotcha ending, rather than just a good ending. He’s not David Fincher or early Shymalan, he can’t pull off the gotcha ending, so he needs to stay away from trying to be cute, and just try for solid and consistent. So while I hated choices the filmmakers made, that I think unnecessarily hampered a film that could have been… great, they made enough right choices to get this very long film, my grade of: B. Recommended with reservations. (Oh and next Batman movie, hire Mr. Collora to do the suit! )