I've never made a huge distinction between the two, to be fair I'm not huge into comics or superheros like a lot of people on here are. I fukking love Michael Keaton so you'll hear no qualms from me about his portrayal. But Bale's performance in Batman Begins was fukking fantastic, and all people have to say about his performance in Dark Knight is his voice. I was never bothered by his voice, as it made sense to me that he would have to disguise his voice to avoid people finding out he was Bruce. I don't think Batman or Bruce is a very complex character, imo many superhero roles are so confining it doesn't allow the actor much range, notice how most of the standout performances are villainous. You can do so much more with a character like Joker. That's why I'm glad bale stopped doing Batman flicks because people really forgot what a fantastic fukking actor he is.