By Lubna Abdel-Aziz They hang upside down when resting, usually huddled together in large groups in caves, on treetops, rooftops, old buildings, underneath attics and bridges. They spend their daytime sleeping, but come the dark of night they begin to come alive. It is party time in their sunless world -- they socialise, they fly, they play and hunt for food until dawn breaks, when it is time for them to call it a day, or rather, a night. They go back to hanging upside down for a well-earned rest, until the next night. We have lived with mice and flying mice for at least 60 million years. They have harassed us, poisoned us, plagued us and killed us for centuries. In fact we have lived with animals since time immemorial. We have feared them, hunted them, eaten their flesh, worn their skins, used them for labour. We have loved them, pampered them, and tolerated them. None left us so positively bothered and bewildered like rodents, reptiles and insects. Nothing compares however to the lure, the mystery of the legend of the nocturnal flying mouse -- the bat. What are bats anyway, and what makes a "bat" an unprecedented cultural phenomenon? Men who saw bats fly in the dim of night became spellbound. They must be a kind of bird without feathers, they concluded. But of course all birds have feathers, therefore bats must not be birds at all. In fact bats are mammals just like us -- warm-blooded mammals who can hear, taste, see and smell just as we do. Like us, they have a thumb and four fingers, like us most of them give birth to one baby per year, and nurse their babies with milk. Unlike us, they can fly, something that no other mammal can do without the help of an airplane. Herein lies our fascination. There are 900 species of bats, some as tiny as jelly beans, the "Bumblebee bat", others like the "Bismarck flying fox" have a wingspan the length of an average man. Then there are the "Vampire bats", so called because they resemble the famous Count Dracula and not vice-versa. Unlike the Count however, they rarely bite people and rarely kill their prey. Instead, they feed mainly on cows, horses, and other large mammals by painlessly cutting a thin sliver of skin about the diameter of a drinking straw, and use their razor-sharp teeth to lap up the blood that oozes from the wound. Because they appear only at night not too many people have seen bats and their sight is frightening. Through the centuries many superstitions, myths and legends have circulated about bats, with the mistaken idea that they are harmful to man. Action comic books of the late 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, gave us one superhero after another, captivating the readers for decades. Their creations were perhaps inspired by German philosopher Friederich Nietzsche who shook the intellectual world at the close of the nineteenth century with his thesis, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, glorifying the concept of Uberman (Superman). The Golden Age of superheroes first gave us Superman (1938) who came from another planet, Krypton, wearing a red and blue costume and exercising super-human powers. A year later "Detective Comics" hit the stands bringing a darker grimmer hero, dressed in a long black cape, his face totally masked, with two pointed bat ears. He did not possess super powers, but a superior intellect, a variety of real gadgets, and fine detective skills that put him on the same super-hero level. Batman was created by Bob Kane and has always remained in print. While he may have lacked superpowers like Flash Gordon and The Shadow, etc, Batman's popularity depended on his sharpness, his grittiness, adding to the mystery enveloped in his dark and awesome black cape. Batman has enjoyed a life of his own, on television, in cartoons and in feature films on a regular basis for the last 66 years. He is one of the most recognised 10 'people' on earth. The big screen gave us many "comic book" super-heroes, Superman, Spiderman, X-men, etc. We have had four Batman films since 1989, the first two were directed by Tim Burton, the last two by Joel Schumacher -- different directors, different moods, different portrayals. As may be expected, Burton's Batman (1989), and Batman Returns (1992), both played by Michael Keaton are darker and grittier. The last two directed by Schumacher: Batman Forever (1995) with Val Kilmer was more campy and fun, but Batman and Robin (1997) starring George Clooney and his side-kick Robin, was overloaded and without focus. This was the least successful of the Batman franchise; critics predicted we would never see the black-caped icon on the screen again. British director Christopher Nolan ( Memento, Insomnia ) known for his dark provocative sensibility, never stopped dreaming of bringing the dark knight to the screen one more time. Together with screenwriter David S. Goyer, and producer/ wife Emma Thomas, Nolan conceived of the idea of exploring the origins of Batman and his quest to become a force for good, and how and why he acquired the skills and tools to create his amazing alter-ego. The result is Batman Begins released worldwide this week. Bruce Wayne, alias Batman, saw his parents gunned down before his eyes in the streets of Gotham city, on a night that changed his life forever. Tormented by guilt and anger, battling the demons that fed his desire for revenge, Wayne leaves Gotham city and travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and punish those who prey on the weak. On his return he finds crime and corruption rampant in Gotham. Although only human and therefore flawed, Bruce Wayne harnesses his powerful self- destructive emotions into a living, breathing weapon against injustice, inspiring both fear and admiration. "There is no one definitive account of Batman's origins" in the Bob Kane originals, "the interesting gaps in the mythology, allowed us to create our own interpretation of how Bruce Wayne would have evolved into Batman" says Nolan. Fans of the flying dark knight are poised to view the iconic masked warrior one more time. Portraying him in his fifth outing is 31 year-old Welsh actor Christopher Bale ( American Psycho ). If Christopher Bale is unfamiliar to you, consider the rest of the heavyweight international super Bat cast, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Gary Oldman, Rutger Hauer, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson, and if that is not enough, we get our chance to view the beauty and talent of Tom Cruise's latest flame, fiancé Katie Holmes. But why bats you may ask? Why not! Bats are very dramatic-looking, intriguing and mystifying, and have been universally dreaded, maligned and misconceived. For instance "blind as a bat" is nonsense. Bats have perfectly good vision for seeing in daylight, but being the nocturnal creatures they are, they simply prefer the night, not unlike some other mammals we know of. They have the best hearing of all land mammals, including us, and they perform a valuable service for mankind by eating a large number of harmful insects that could be destructive to our planet. Whether spider, bat, mouse, or any other creature-man, Wonderman or Superman, Captain Marvel or Captain Thunder, The Shield, or The Shadow, The Hulk or The Spectre, man is always ready to exercise that inner force within, which will allow him to wear a cape, a suit, or a uniform, and rise above the ordinary human to battle the evil forces that threaten his existence. Batman however, retains that common touch by merging his ordinary human powers with his extraordinary human brain as he sets out to change the world. If as Nietzsche said "man is something to be surpassed", then channelling his earthly powers to right all wrong, is the best way of achieving it. " The secret of reaping the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment from life, is to 'live dangerously'! " Die Fruhliche Wissenschaft -- Book III Friederich Nietzsche (1844 -- 1900) [email protected]
