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Despite the standard superhero plotline, the film has a nicely original look and feel to it. Writer-director Johnson (Simon Birch) injects a grainy earthiness to both the cinematography and dialog. The characters are all darkly shaded and quite interesting, much more rounded than most comic-book movies, although we never really identify with anyone. Affleck plays the blind-lawyer scenes very well, bouncing nicely off Garner, Favreau (as his hilarious legal partner) and Pantoliano (as a nosey newspaper hack). As usual, he's a bit overwhelmed by the Daredevil suit, but at least it's not the usual lycra/rubber job (maroon leather anyone?). Farrell, meanwhile, steals the film as the vicious killer who's simultaneously the comic relief--his rabid, murderous nuttiness is both gruesomely over-the-top and hilarious. Technically, the film looks excellent. The effects ingeniously allow us to see what Matt hears; although there are a few computer animated sequences that don't look remotely real, and you have to get yourself into the mood to accept a Crouching Tiger/Matrix bend of gravity-defying action sequences. If Spider-Man was from the sunny and bright Superman school of comic book films, this is much more in the Batman mould--shadowy, tormented, sexy and very violent. It's also surprisingly good.