Thursday, July 24, 2008

The Dark Knight

Went out to see the movie this weekend—the last one—and for once it wasn't just me and my editor seated in a mostly-empty theatre, there were actually people with us. And all in all, they were fairly quiet.

The new Batman movie series is really well built. It's set upon the dour, ever-grim dark hero that we came to know and love with every reiteration of the comics and cartoons. Escaping from a Disney affected Fisher Price "no edges" comic book super heroes. Of all things unacceptable for Batman.

The Dark Knight was good.

It was long. It had some issues with breathless timing and it seemed like it went on forever—but it did an excellent job of dragging out the very nascent pleasures of Bruce Wayne, Batman, and the Joker.

There were explosions, mayhem, sorrow—twists, traps, and terrible revelations. Even the stupid sappy over-narration that comes along with comic books. Gotham is decidedly a little more like New York this time and a little less like Chicago (as from Batman Begins and it's elevated trains.)

I would go on about the various elements that made it an interesting movie. From the emergent hilarity of the Joker and the transformation of Twoface…but I'm not quite ready for spoilers.

What I am annoyed about is how Heath Leger found his death in a bottle of pills. We lose more amazing entertainers to their vices. I'd like to call a moratorium on that for the next ten years.

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