Gothamites psyched for Batman's silver screen return

Batman will be making his anticipated return to movies this weekend, and New York fans can't contain their excitement in their utility belts.

Demand for the "Dark Knight Rises" has reached new levels. Tickets have sold out not only for Thursday's midnight screenings, but also for several screenings for the rest of the weekend, according to theater owners.

Batfanatics say the caped crusader's adventures trump "The Avengers" and "Spider-Man" because he doesn't have any superpowers.

"The stories have a darker and more adult tone, and everyone can relate to them, not just comic book fans," Patrick Davis, 23, an actor from Inwood said.

Since the record-breaking "The Dark Knight" came out four years ago, more fans have been flocking to comic book stores to get their Batman fix.

Thor Parker, the marketing and events coordinator at Midtown Comics in Times Square, says his store has seen at least five times more Batman fans in the last four years.

"It definitely drove the bat craze through the roof," he said, referring to the past movie.

The enthusiasm may have reached some new heights of discord on the Internet. The movie review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes had to shut down its comment board Tuesday for "The Dark Knight Rises" after 800 people bashed critic Marshall Fine's negative review of the movie.

"Michael Uslan, the executive producer of all of the Batman movies since the '80s, said he saw a distinct energy from the fans during the movie's premiere at the IMAX theater in Lincoln Center Monday.

The fans didn't come out just to see the movie first, they also came to celebrate the character's 73-year mythology, according to Uslan.

"In New York, the accent is on comic books," he said. "When you go to San Diego, the accent is more on the movies, it's more on the games, it's more on the pop culture directly."