I know its been a while since I posted a movie review, so what better time than now to do that? The reason the timing is perfect is because I just saw The Dark Knight last week. I'm probably the biggest Batman freak you'll ever meet, so to say that I was excited about seeing this movie is pretty much the understatement of the year.
I should probably begin with the preface that if the only Batman you know is the old school TV show, or the Tim Burton & Joel Schumacher movies (Batman, Batman Returns, Batman Forever & Batman & Robin) then you don't REALLY know Batman.
I'll admit, when the first movies came out beginning in 1989, I was stoked. I, like probably everyone else, thought Michael Keaton was a horrible for selection to play Bruce Wayne/Batman. I thought of Mr. Mom & said, "Are you serious?" But to my surprise, he did a stand up job. As a matter of fact, he was my favorite Batman up until Christian Bale took over the role in Batman Begins. Of the first series of movies, Batman Returns is probably my favorite, but the first one was pretty good too.
But then, in 2005, Batman Begins came along & kicked all of the other movies' in the tail. Christian Bale was outstanding as Bruce Wayne & this movie was stellar mainly because it explained how Batman came to be. It showed his rise from youth to Caped Crusader & the trials & tribulations that went along with it. So when I saw it, I thought -- "This can't get any better." I thought that for about 3 yrs. Until last Thursday night at 12:01 am..... it got better, way better.
The Dark Knight as everyone knows has Bale at Batman but introduces the INCREDIBLE Heath Ledger as Joker. Also, Aaron Eckhart stars as Harvey Dent/Two Face.
For sake of those who have yet to see the movie, I won't go into specific scenes, story lines, or the like, but just my opinion of the movie overall & individual performances.
Bale, again was excellent. This was a much darker movie & his role reflected that. In the movie he struggles with being Batman & Bruce Wayne, & the balance that it takes to carry on as the 2 entities. As in Begins, his "love interest" Rachel Dawes (this time played by an okay Maggie Gyllenhaal - & an okay M.G. is way better than Katie Holmes at her best.) is in the forefront of Bruce Wayne's mind that those feelings flow over into Batman's thoughts.
Christian Bale IS Bruce Wayne/Batman. I can't think of anyone who could play the part better. Of course, I said that in 1989 too, about Keaton.
Next up, & receiving the most pub is the late Heath Ledger as Joker. Ledger has been one of my favorite actors in the past as I think A Knight's Tale is underrated & Brokeback Mountain was a really good movie even if you aren't comfortable with the story.
Ledger as Joker just shot him up close to the top my favorite actors list. His portrayal as Joker makes Jack Nicholson's Joker look like a clown at a 5 year olds birthday party. Ledger was so much darker, deeper, & straight up creepier. It was weird because the character was in love with anarchy & had no rules. He just did what he wanted & had no remorse about it. But somehow, I LIKED him. Maybe I have issues. HAHA. I couldn't get enough of Ledger. He was in the movie a lot & every scene he was in, I wanted to watch him: to see what he was going to do next, what he was going to say next, what he was up to next.
There has been a lot of press about him being nominated for an Oscar for this role. I say forget a nomination, GIVE him the posthumous Oscar NOW.
Aaron Eckhart is an actor I'm not entirely familiar with. I have not seen many of his movies, but after seeing The Dark Knight -- I'm going to seek them out. He plays a brilliant Harvey Dent & when he is turned into Two Face, he does a great job with that too. I would say my only concern is that he did Dent TOO well. In the sense that when he became Two Face he wasn't evil enough. I suppose it could also be because I was used to seeing Joker as conniving as he was.
So as I finish this post, I've come across word that The Dark Knight has this weekend, become the fastest movie to reach the $300 million mark. It only took 10 days to hit $314 million & the previous holder of this title, Pirates of the Caribbean 3, hit $300 mil in 16 days.
This is amazing to me & to put it in perspective check these fun facts out:
- Shrek 2 hit $400 mil in 43 days. (TDK is on pace to hit that in less than 20 days)
- Star Wars is the second highest grossing movie of all time ($460 mil)
- Titanic holds the record for highest grossing movie of all time with a whopping $600 million dollars
Do yourself a favor & see The Dark Knight IMMEDIATELY!
To Be Continued...
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