The Dark Knight

As with all sequels to awesome movies, my second biggest fear is that they'll crank it out too soon, and we'll get a crappy sequel. Not so with The Dark Knight! The first episode in this Batman series was awesome because it was so dark. Batman is supposed to be a dark character with a dark past, and just crazy enough to be a superhero despite no actual super-powers. The second episode takes that darkness and runs screaming into the streets.

The movie is called The Dark Knight, but it may just as well been called The Joker. I don't know if Heath Ledger deserves an Oscar for his performance (though it would be cool if he did), but he sure is a villain custom-made for our world today. He's an anarchist, there's nothing he won't do to achieve his goals, and he's single-handedly able to bring Gotham to its knees. In other words, he's a villain fit for an age of terrorism, and we've all lived under his kind of fear for several years now. That's why the Joker works so well in this movie.

About the only thing not perfect with this movie is that it's so very long, and has a few too many endings. Don't get me wrong, every second of it is pure cinematic gold, but too much of even an awesome thing is too much. The only other thing I would have changed is that when in costume, Christian Bale is just a bit too growly, and sounds like he has a stuffy nose.

Everything else about The Dark Knight is every bit as awesome as everyone says. The characters, the sets, the special effects, the story... everything. See it, and get the large popcorn, but small drink... trust me.

high points: That part between the opening scene and closing credits, creepy Batman, creepy creepy creepy Joker, not your average girl-or-citizens choice, no Katie Holmes
low points: Long long long, how about a spot on your utility belt for some cough drops there Brucey.