Critics accused Tim Burton’s 1989 reinvention of Batman of being too dark. Those naysayers won’t know what hit them this time. Batman Begins isn’t just dark, it’s utterly bleak and teeth grittingly harsh. It’s exciting and completely adrenalizing, but not very much fun. The film starts with Bruce Wayne in a squalid, third world prison. His idea of freedom is escaping to a bitter and desolate arctic mountain, to learn how to take a good beating. His boyhood home is somewhere between Blade Runner and Dark City. Director Christopher Nolan’s Batman is the most realistic one yet, but only because he’s a Hero in the post-9/11 redefinition of the word. This Bat is a soldier, trained by special ops, outfitted with kevlar armor, and driving a literal tank. He’s calling a war on terror in Gotham, where the bad guys plan on destroying the city by inducing panic in its citizens. The police are on heightened alert and use extreme force against anyone, while not being sure who the enemy is or where they will strike. Sound familiar? It’s a serious movie for a serious America. Gone are the clown-faced adversaries, the hip hop soundtrack, and the pointy-nipple-suits of previous incarnations (except for Katie Holmes‘ blouses, that is). This Batman is one that everyone will understand…motivated by rage, vengeance and fear. And for that I’m a little bit sad.

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