A Knight in Polyurethane Armor

The Dark Knight

The story of the comic book hero Batman has been interpreted and reinterpreted many times since Bob Kane created the character in 1939. He’s been a campy 60s punster, a flashy hero in a rubber suit, and, most recently, a dark crusader in a world on fire. This latest incarnation of the Caped Crusader is thanks to Christopher Nolan, who rebooted the “Batman” franchise in 2005 with the wildly popular “Batman Begins.” That movie gave fans what they desperately wanted: a realistic and believable story of Batman. Its sequel, “The Dark Knight,” was released last week.

“The Dark Knight” continues the story established in “Batman Begins.” Billionaire Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is secretly the masked vigilante Batman, who apprehends criminals when the regular police force cannot. He has an ex-flame in the District Attorney’s office, Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal), and a friend in the police department, Lieutenant James Gordon (Gary Oldman). We also meet two new faces, newly elected District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) and psychopathic bank robber The Joker (Heath Ledger).

As The Joker’s crimes become more and more deadly, Batman, Gordon and Dent struggle to apprehend the criminal mastermind, who always seems one step ahead.

“The Dark Knight” is easily the best movie in the “Batman” franchise and one of the best movies of the year. It has near-perfect direction, acting, writing and production values. In a world packed with so many superhero films, “The Dark Knight” is the first to completely transcend the genre. It no longer belongs to the pages of comic books; it is a sweeping crime drama first, and a superhero movie second.

Much has been written about Ledger’s performance in “The Dark Knight,” in part due to his ferocious acting and in part due to his untimely death several months before the movie premiered. The praise heaped upon him is not an overstatement; his performance is a tour de force, his version of The Joker terrifying, unpredictable and mesmerizing. His death, at age 28, is a significant loss for Hollywood.

The rest of the actors in “The Dark Knight” also give solid performances, especially Michael Caine as Wayne’s butler and confidant Alfred, and Morgan Freeman as Wayne’s business partner Lucius Fox.

One of the most compelling parts of “The Dark Knight” is its screenplay, penned by Nolan and his brother Jonathan. The dialogue is believable and unforced, the situations harrowing and thrilling. Unforgettable are the exchanges between Batman and the Joker, who form philosophical opposites to each other: Batman, believing above all in justice; The Joker, an agent of chaos, and therefore random injustice.

Nolan and company set out three years ago to reinvent the Batman franchise, ground it in reality and make its heroes and villains believable. What they have done is reinvent the superhero genre.

**** out of ****

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

There are few filmmakers in the world who can tap into their subconscious imagination more productively than Guillermo del Toro. His movies, made in Mexico and the United States, are filled with images that could only be discovered in dreams and in nightmares. He is perhaps most famous for “Pan’s Labyrinth,” a horror-fantasy story set in fascist Spain.

Del Toro’s latest movie is “Hellboy II: The Golden Army,” a roaring action-packed sequel to the first “Hellboy,” released in 2004. Like he did in the first installment, del Toro fills “Hellboy II” with inventive and thrilling sights and sounds. The puppetry, animatronics and digital effects are all superior, coming together to create some fantastical and memorable movie monsters.

“Hellboy II” is the story of a demon from another dimension. He was released by the Nazis through an inter-dimensional portal during World War II, rescued and raised by an allied paranormal expert. In the present day, the demon, codename: Hellboy, is a member of an elite squad of heroes who fight against the forces of darkness.

The latest challenge for Hellboy (Ron Perlman) and his friends comes in the form of Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), an exiled Elf prince who is searching for the key to unlock the Golden Army, a legion of indestructible mechanical soldiers. Accompanying Hellboy in his quest to quash Nuada are fish-man Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) and Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), who has pyrokinetic abilities.

“Hellboy II” is absolutely overflowing with action, stunts and monsters, but it retains the sense of romance, humor and gravitas that distinguished its predecessor. In the end, the “Hellboy” series is one of relationships. Del Toro examines the strained romantic connection between Hellboy and Liz, the star-crossed love affair of Abe and the Elf princess Nuala (Anna Walton), the public’s animosity toward Hellboy, and, most relevant, the conflict between men and the natural world.

Mixed among those interactions are thrilling special effects set pieces, which include a scary battle with voracious “tooth fairies” in a New York City high rise and a scene in the subterranean Troll Market, a bazaar filled with goblins, ogres and other enchanting creatures.

Whether the “Hellboy” saga will become a trilogy is uncertain at this point, as del Toro, who also wrote “Hellboy II,” is attached to direct “Doctor Strange” next year. Then, in 2010, del Toro will begin work on a two-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” the precursor to “The Lord of the Rings.”

It’s amazing that del Toro, who began his career making low-budget horror movies in his native Mexico, will soon direct a blockbuster adaptation of one of the most famous stories in the world. It’s a testament to his skill behind the camera, his ability to organize and inspire a team of artists, and his raw creative power.

*** out of ****

Also playing:

The Blob (1958) ***

RoboCop 3 ** 1/2

Invisible Ham

Hollow Man

There are many laws that human beings would happily break if it were not for the fear of being caught. Who knows what actions men and women might take if they were confident in their anonymity before and after the fact. That is the vague philosophical foundation of "Hollow Man," a slasher flick masquerading as a thriller.

"Hollow Man" has a story, but its an underdeveloped narrative used mostly to introduce visually stunning special effects and soon-to-be victims. It tells the story of genius scientist Sebastian Caine (Kevin Bacon) and his research team, made up of ex-flame Linda McKay (Elizabeth Shue), Matthew Kensington (Josh Brolin) and several other one-dimensional personalities. They're all working on a top-secret Pentagon project to create a serum which renders its hosts invisible.

When the most believable part of a movie involves a secret government project for an invisibility potion, something is terribly wrong.

We meet Sebastian as he finally, after weeks of frustrating disappointment, develops a serum which returns hosts to a visible spectrum. The research team tries it on an invisible gorilla and she transforms, although with some complications, into a completely visible being. Sebastian then coerces the senior team members to inject him with the invisibility serum, hoping to complete the final phase of the project: human transformation.

For a long time, easily 75 minutes, "Hollow Man" is completely dull. The audience meets the team, none of who are remotely interesting, and Sebastian, who's a run-of-the-mill egomaniac. Most of the action takes place in an underground lab where Sebastian in confined after his injection. It's strange to see Sebastian, who is touted as a genius, use his newfound powers simply to perform practical jokes on his associates.

Finally, when the movie reveals its true identity, bodies begin to pile up. Everything degenerates into a silly cat-and-mouse game with lots of blood and little suspense.

The only thing which separates "Hollow Man" from "Friday the 13th" or "Halloween" are its visual effects, almost all of which are brilliantly conceived. The most amazing effects involve Sebastian's initial transformation, where layers of skin, muscle and bone disappear in stages, leaving him completely invisible. Other neat effects include Sebastian's invisible body submerged in water and in a cloud of carbon dioxide.

"Hollow Man" was directed by Paul Verhoeven, who is famous for his graphically violent and sexually explicit films, including "RoboCop," "Total Recall," and "Basic Instinct." Although those films flirted with NC-17 ratings, they were all intelligently directed and full of suspense. In "Hollow Man," Verhoeven seems like nothing more than a director for hire; he doesn't appear to care for the script, the characters or even the extraordinary special effects.

** out of ****

Whiskey Sour

Hancock

Let's face it: the summer movie season doesn't take many risks. Year after year, the same big-budget blockbusters show up in multiplexes with the same mega-watt stars. Two sequels, one television adaptation and one musical adaptation are due out this month alone. In "Hancock," however, we have a refreshingly original idea; and, although it features one of the biggest names in the movie business, Will Smith, it's still something of a gamble.

"Hancock" is the story of an unconventional superhero, a man who costs Los Angeles millions of dollars in collateral damage in order to apprehend a handful of bad guys. When we first meet Hancock (Smith), he's passed out drunk and needs to be alerted to a high-speed highway chase by a young boy. He saves the day, of course, but earns the contempt of the city once again. They're sick and tired of his drinking, his swearing and his basic contempt for personal and municipal property.

We also meet Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), a public relations specialist struggling to impress upon executives the importance of charity and altruism. When man and superman encounter each other, Ray decides it would help both men's careers if he repairs Hancock's image.

"Hancock" is brief, only 92 minutes, but packs a load of material in that span. It's got plenty of action and special effects, but those are largely perfunctory. The real treat of "Hancock" are the interactions between Hancock and other people, including Ray, his wife Mary (Charlize Theron), villains and bystanders, most of whom jeer the superhero. The scenes in which Ray tries to make Hancock a softer and more affable superhero are especially funny.

"Hancock" was written by Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan, both of whom bring different resumes to the film. Ngo has a background in suspense and action, while Gilligan, who wrote for "The X-Files" and its spin-off "The Lone Gunman," has worked extensively with science fiction and the supernatural. The result is a script full of action and danger, but with a very intriguing mythology.

Stuck in a summer movie season so fascinated by famous superheroes like The Incredible Hulk and Batman, "Hancock" could easily model itself after an established franchise. Instead, the writers and director Peter Berg made Hancock an unorthodox hero in an unorthodox movie. It's one thing to revive a character who's been developed for years in a comic book; it's quite another to develop a new type of hero in a world with so many established archetypes.

*** out of ****

The Fellowship of the Gun

Wanted

There is a scene early in "Wanted" when a super-assassin runs down an office hallway high in a skyscraper, breaks through a plate glass window at incredible speed, and flies the length of a football field to reach rival assassins on the rooftop of the adjacent building, shooting his attackers in mid-flight. This sequence establishes the over-the-top action and violence of "Wanted," a story ripped from the pages of a comic book series by Mark Millar and J.G. Jones. Those who enjoyed the scene will probably enjoy "Wanted;" those who found it preposterous will have a long 110 minutes ahead of them.

"Wanted" tells the story of a secret league of assassins, their assignments chosen by fate. It also tells the story of Wesley Gibson, a twenty-something nobody. Gibson (James McAvoy) has a dead-end job, an unfaithful girlfriend and low self-esteem. His father left him the week he was born, and he appears to have no other companions beside his disrespectful girlfriend and his lecherous best friend.

Then one day at a pharmacy, where he's picking up medication, Wesley is approached by a beautiful stranger (Angelina Jolie). "Your father died yesterday," says the woman, "he was one of the greatest assassins who ever lived." From that moment on, Wesley is aggressively recruited by The Fraternity, a 1,000-year-old brotherhood of assassins, to take his father's place and kill the man responsible for his death.

"Wanted" is, naturally, short on realism and long on action. The movie exists in a comic book world where the laws of physics do not necessarily apply. That being said, many of the action set-pieces in "Wanted" are thrilling and technically eye-popping, including a firefight inside a high-speed train. The visual effects, including several nifty bullet effects, are equally impressive.

"Wanted" is the first American film of Timur Bekmambetov, a Russian-Kazakh filmmaker known for the vampire series "Night Watch." Bekmambetov does a good job at organizing all the special effects in the movie, and at drawing out decent performances from his actors, most of whom had fairly unchallenging roles. Jolie is especially good as Fox, Wesley's mentor.

The best way to think of "Wanted" is as a child of "The Matrix," albeit with a more nihilistic bent than its forebear, which investigated how the human experience has become a simulated reality.

Action-packed and visually innovative, "Wanted" is a fun summer blockbuster, but it still lacks a serious emotional element to raise it above the mediocre. Fleshing out the relationship between Wesley and Fox would have gone a long way toward infusing "Wanted" with an emotional gravity.

** 1/2 out of ****

Iran so Far Away

Persepolis

In a cinematic landscape filled increasingly by high-tech computer-generated imagery, it's refreshing to see the simple and expressive animation of "Persepolis," last year's Best Animated Feature Oscar nominee. Told mostly in stark blacks and whites, "Persepolis" is as much a history lesson as it is a memoir.

"Persepolis" tells the story of the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran and its aftermath through the eyes of a young Iranian girl. When we meet the young Marjane "Marji" Satrapi, the Western-backed Shah is still in power in Iran. Indoctrinated by her school teacher and by the government, Marji believes the Shah to be divinely ordained as head of state. In a very funny aside, Marji's father explains how England supported the Shah in return for access to oil.

Then comes the insurrection, swift and decisive, after which many political prisoners are set free. Marji meets her estranged uncle Anouche, a communist, and falls in love with his way of life. Then hell breaks lose in Iran. The country is declared a theocracy and becomes subject to a very conservative Islamic code of conduct. Shortly thereafter, Iraq, emboldened by Iran's internal conflict, attacks its eastern neighbor. It is no longer safe for Marji, now a teenager, to remain. She is sent to boarding school in Vienna where, it turns out, she learns some important life lessons.

"Persepolis" was co-written and co-directed by the real-life Marjane Satrapi, whose autobiographical graphic novel "Persepolis" inspired the movie. All of the seminal events in Satrapi's life are mentioned here, told with brutal honesty and a sense of irony. The scenes in "Persepolis" range from tragic - young men turned soldiers running through mine fields - to heartfelt and hilarious.

The artwork in "Persepolis" is very beautiful in its simplicity and starkness. Thick black and white lines frame every face and every body. When something happens to Marji that is too awful or absurd to imagine, the lines become distorted and grotesque. In one scene, chastising Muslim schoolteachers become cruel faces in amorphous burqas.

"Persepolis" is not the masterwork that many critics have claimed it to be, but it is a charming, honest and important movie. Its discussion on liberty and justice in Iran is startling and its commentary on the role of women is intensely troubling.

Unfortunately, not every country in the world is satisfied with "Persepolis." Lebanese authorities have banned it from the country, citing a distorted image of Muslims in Iran. The Iranian government was so opposed to the movie that it sent a letter to the French embassy in Tehran to protest against the movie and also pressured the organizers of last year's Bangkok Film Festival to drop "Persepolis" from the lineup.

*** out of ****

Glutton for Punishment

The Punisher (2004)

Actor Thomas Jane has now been featured in two of the worst comic book to movie adaptations. The first was "The Crow: City of Angels," a 1996 stinker in which he played a crooked henchman; the second is "The Punisher," an ugly revenge movie with bad acting, worse writing and amateurish production values.

In "The Punisher," Jane plays Frank Castle, a career FBI man. Hours before his retirement, an undercover bust goes wrong and the youngest son of mobster Howard Saint (John Travolta) is killed. The Saints want revenge, and find it in Puerto Rico, where, amazingly and conveniently, Castle is enjoying a post-retirement family reunion. Every family member is gunned down by hit men, including women and children, and Castle is shot and left for dead. He survives, however, and sets himself to punish the people responsible.

Most of "The Punisher" is drenched in violence, but it falls in a strange no man's land between stylized comic-book carnage and visceral brutality. The massacre in Puerto Rico, for example, is surprisingly bloodless. Stranger still are random scenes of dark humor and one intensely unsettling scene of torture. The movie doesn't seem to know how to address the violence of Frank Castle's world. Is it funny, disturbing or simply background music? Most of the time, it's uninteresting.

No one can be blamed more for that than Jonathan Hensleigh, who directed and co-wrote "The Punisher." Hensleigh is a prolific action writer, having penned "The Saint," "Armageddon," and "Die Hard: With a Vengeance." His script for "The Punisher" is an absolute mess, filled with undeveloped secondary characters, inexplicable subplots, and contrivance after contrivance. The dialogue is particularly awful, filled with a dozen laughable one-liners.

Had the movie not been edited down from its original running time (176 minutes), the subplots and the characters might make more sense. On the other hand, those extra 52 minutes might have been just as grueling as the 124 which remain.

The most consistent part of "The Punisher" is its lousy acting, which infects everyone from Jane and Travolta to the smaller roles on both sides of the vendetta. The worst offender is Laura Harring, who is positively goofy as Livia Saint, Howard's wife. Then there are Rebecca Romijn, Ben Foster and John Pinette, who play Castle's anti-social neighbors. All three seem totally lost and directionless, and appear to be guessing at their characters' motivation. The only decent performance comes from Will Patton, who plays sadist Quentin Glass, the Saint family's lawyer and advisor.

The story of The Punisher will be retold this winter in "Punisher: War Zone," a sequel of sorts with a new cast, director and group of writers, two of whom contributed to "Iron Man," one of the better comic book to movie adaptations. Hopefully they will learn from the mistakes of the 2004 release and push The Punisher is a more compelling and coherent direction.

* 1/2 out of ****