A Couple of Movies

Though there are a bunch of movies in the theater that, collectively at least, Kim and I would like to watch, we only had time for one, so went to see Batman Begins (thank you, Kim!). It turned out to be a good choice for both of us. Far and away, it was the best Batman movie I'd seen, and Kim and I decided that in certain respects, it was better than Revenge of the Sith. Yes, I said that.

Christian Bale was a great young Bruce Wayne, but the movie could have flopped again if they hadn't allowed for the transition from the man to the bat, which is why I think the others became a bit tired even before they were bad. While it was still an adventure movie, it was grounded in realism enough that the cape and cowl were believable when they finally came out.

The early reviewers who said that Ken Watanabe was a great villain, dark and powerful, were absolutely correct, but they do no credit to Liam Neeson's Ducard - I think he really stole the show. There were hints of a Qui'Gon in his acting, but even Kinsey was more Liam than Kinsey in mannerisms. People who hire Liam get Liam, I reckon.

They left the end wide open for sequels, so it will be interesting to see if Christian sticks around for a sequel or is spooked by the mainstream side of Hollywood.


We also watched Shawn of the Dead on DVD Sunday night. I wasn't a fan of zombie movies, and I'm still not after Shawn, but it was definitely the funniest one I've seen, and perhaps the best. It wasn't too gory for me, which I was worried about, but the whole movie was very tense, which I suppose is good for the genre, but I tend to handle that kind of tension with aggression, and I did at that movie. Kim had to calm me down several times while I was incredulously demanding that they go back and pick up their weapons if they're going to go out there.

So, if you're a more well-rounded person than me and enjoy the thrill of that kind of movie, I would recommend it. But I'm not recommending it to myself again.