Batman Begins

The film that saved Batman

It's easy now to expect another great Batman movie next year, but in 2005, I had never seen a truly great Batman movie (or even a good one as far as I am concerned).  The Tim Burton films were not for me and the Joel Schumacher films were not for anyone, not even Schumacher's mother*.  Christopher Nolan flew in like a hero and saved fans of the greatest comic book character of all time from only having memories of uninspired interpretations of the Caped Crusader.

* I can't confirm this but I would like to think that it is true

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

Instead, be afraid of Katie Holmes trying to act

What an incredibly poor movie and a waste of money this was. In order for a scary movie to properly work, the audience must have an emotional connection to the main characters, or the characters who are being subjected to the horror. Don't Be Afraid of the Dark fails at this miserably. A little girl is the main character and she is spoiled, stubborn, obnoxious, ungrateful, etc. She brings on all of the bad things that happens to her, her father (Guy Pearce), and her soon to be step-mother (Katie Holmes). So, when her actions create the horror situation, we, in no way, shape, or form, do not feel sympathy for her.