This weekend I had the opportunity to see the much-anticipated follow up to 2005's Batman Begins.... The Dark Knight. I can honestly say the most talked about film I can recall in recent years. Of course much of that had to do with the death of Heath Ledger in December of 2007. Before I begin to praise this film to embarrassing levels let me say that I am a huge comic movie fan especially when it comes to The Caped Crusader of Gotham city. I had the opportunity to see Batman Begins in IMAX and thought in moments it took the superhero genera to more dramatic places than a comic film had attempted before.
In The Dark Knight Chris Nolan takes us to a gritty urban metropolis reminiscent of The Departed filled with all kinds of strange criminals only these crime syndicates have more than just the police to worry about in Gotham, The Batman patrols the nights. The only complaint I heard before going to see this movie was that it’s hefty 2 ½ + run time might scare some away. To those critics I point out that The Departed is the same length and won 4 Academy Awards. I also have to say The Dark Knight displayed as many dramatic elements. As a fan of Batman I always knew this superhero could live in a world so close to our own the line fades away... Batman is at it’s core the story of Bruce Wayne a man who sees a need in the world for someone to stand up and fight back and because of his extraordinary position chooses to take that role and put himself in harms way for the average joe... Nolan’s choice of painting a full picture of Batman fighting all types of crime and not just the traditional super villain is a brilliant move and adds a wonderful extra layer of depth that sucks you in even more. Although if the super villain part was any less than the amazing performance of Heath Ledger’s Joker this film would have not felt as real. Even now 2 days after I saw the movie I sill haven’t fully taken in Ledger's masterful performance. I believe Ledger delivers the best movie villain I have ever seen on screen. He chooses to play the Joker not just as a flamboyant criminal like Jack Nicholson but as a crazy, unpredictable, serial killer that happens to also be a super villain who is several steps ahead of the cops and even batman at times. To say the Ledger disappears into the role doesn't give him enough credit. His role has been the talk of the year in film and still at times during the movie I forgot that Ledger was playing the Joker. As wonderful a performance as Ledger gives, Aaron Eckhart who plays both the most noble character Harvey Dent and most flawed character Two-Face in the film with pitch perfect accuracy and does a excellent job keeping up with the Joker. The experience of Caine, Freeman and Oldman works as each brings depth to a minor character. The last character that owns significant screen time is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s take on Rachel Dawes. Gyllenhaal a favorite of the Dack improves enormously on Katie Holmes previous version….. I mean, I actually remembered what her character did for a living after the movie ended this time. Gyllenhaal's role however small had enough emotional connection that allowed later parts in the film to work. Before I end this puff piece of a review I can’t forget to mention Christian Bale’s Batman. He has blended the perfect mixture of all of those that have come before him. From Adam West to George Clooney no one has played a better Dark Knight than Bale. He shows the true depth that Batman can have and that allows the viewer a look into what responsibility an ordinary man would have to take in order to become The Batman.
In the end The Dark Knight gives us the best comic book movie ever… actually I believe this movie rises above the entire genera. I only wish they would have released it later in the year so it would have gotten a real chance at the awards season. The Dack Knight, I mean Dark Knight soars to TenDacks!!!
Oh, and if you haven't seen it yet, now is the time!
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