Dark Knight

I just got back from watching the highly anticipated sequel to Batman Returns titled Dark Knight. I'm going to set aside the Heath Ledger comments for now because that seems to be all that anyone is talking about right now. Wow, where to begin. I feel as though I had just finished watching a rarity in American cinema. Not only was this film extremely rewarding, it was also very well done. It broke off from what viewers typically expect from an action/hero film.

The one thing that stands out about this movie was Christian Bale's noticeable size difference. One recommendation for Mr. Bale in the future: don't act in a role as demanding as The Machinist if you're planning on doing an action film following that. In Batman Begins, Bale is very large and tone. In Dark Knight, Bale has a more frail appearance. I don't know if this was Chistopher Nolan's intention, but Christian Bale's performance was actually quite grounded. Dark Knight focuses a lot more on Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, and Gary Oldman's roles. As hard as it is for me to say this, I really wasn't feeling an on screen presence from Maggie Gyllenhaal.

As for the action, I was actually expecting a lot more action. Don't get me wrong, the action scenes were plentiful, but I was expecting much more.

All of the characters really developed themselves and came into their own. I can't do this for much longer, I need to talk about Heath Ledger.

If you put me down to watch Dark Knight I couldn't tell you who was playing the Joker. Heath Ledger was that good. He was creepy, funny, and as convincing as you'll ever see someone play a character. From the very beginning you knew that the Joker was the worst kind of criminal you could ever deal with. I've got to get to bed, but this movie was great and was worth the lack of sleep that I'll have tonight. Cheers!