Poor fight choreography, heavy-handed symbolism, self-congratulatory philosophizing. Plot holes. Recurring "fear" theme expressed primarily through loud noises. Exceptionally predictable to the point of tedium. Film attempts to tie itself together clumsily through the excessive use of mini-flashbacks: for example, when batman experiences fear as an adult, the director feels that it is necessary to show you five times it's the same fear he had as a child.

Good car chases, decent setting, plentiful ninjas, Scarecrow villain executed well. Freeman and Caine steal every scene they're in.

Not a terrible film, and certainly an improvement from previous Batman films, but if I'd had a quarter for every time I involuntarily rolled my eyes I'd have recovered the price of admission. Not much present to set it apart from other similar movies. That said, while there's nothing groundbreaking here there are periods of good fun, but all in all I would say it makes a pretty run-of-the-mill superhero save-the-city flick.