Holy IMAX,Batman!

Just got back from seeing my first IMAX movie,Batman Begins. My sister and I had already seen BB but wanted to check out the IMAX format. My sister goes to the movies with me alot(she's younger than me)and our tastes have somewhat merged but we still keep our own personal preferences. She flat-out refused to see Revenge of the Sith("Fuck Star Wars" became her mantra for awhile)due to her being annoyed by the massive product placement and excessive media hype.
I'm at the point where Darth Vader soda bottles and mini"Lava Planet" M&Ms amuse me so I went by myself and was expectedly semi-entertained.

We both enjoyed BB so the only qualm I briefly had was the price of admission-I didn't realize that IMAX movies cost more(I'm a bargain matinee kind of gal)but figured this was a new experience so I put my penny pinching doubts aside and selected our seats on a computer screen(how very sci-fi it felt). We sat in row M and were amazed at how big the screen. Real BIG. Times Square Billboard big(like the Coca-Cola one General Zod was thrown into in Superman II).

I've read about how CinemaScope impacted audiences in the fifties and now I understand what that must of been like:having an imaginary world swallow you up and hold you tight in it's reality for a moment in time. The sights and sounds are enhanced a thousandfold and gives you truly a "Ride at the Movies."

Christian Bale makes an excellant Batman and is actor enough to be a great Bruce Wayne. I knew even before the movie came out that it would be good with him-if you've ever seen Equaliberium(and I recommend that you do,it's much better than the critics say and has a sweet throwdown sequence near the end),you know CB has the chops to be the ultimate kick-ass dark hero. Also loved him in American Psycho(the rare film that improves upon the book)and one of my favorite scenes in the Shaft remake is when his yuppie character stomps a fellow prisoner into the ground after being shoe-jacked. I only hope that the actor who plays the Joker in the next movie(my personal pick is Gale Harold,best known as Brian Kenny in the US version of Queer as Folk)is a true worthy opponent to this Darknight Detective.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is also coming out in IMAX(another movie my sis refuses to see)-find hard to imagine how that sucker's gonna look. Think I'll watch in the usual multiplex format. Oh,and the best thing about IMAX? No commercials or excessive trailers(have seen the PSA for Nat'l Amusement Cinemas starring the cast of Two and a Half Men so many times,I know the dialogue by heart)-just a promo announcing"You're watching an IMAX MOVIE,DAMNIT!" and then on with the show. Worth every penny.