Truly Magnificent

Rating: 10/10 (18 July 2008)

I'll have to admit, I had high expectations going into The Dark Knight. I think a lot of people did. Batman Begins was very good and showed great potential for a sequel. All the reviews were saying that Heath Ledger's performance was Oscar worthy even before his tragic death. All of the previews were very well done. It's not very often when a movie can live up to the hype. This movie far exceeded it.
The acting was superb. Christian Bale proves with every performance that he is the real deal. He is the new standard as Batman/Bruce Wayne. Aaron Eckhart was very good as Harvey Dent. It would have been easy to overlook him as a hero seeing as how it is a Batman movie but the character Harvey Dent was playing on a level playing field with Batman and that is a tribute to the acting. Maggie Gyllenhaal did a good job at playing the Rahel Dawes character very close to the way Katie Holmes played it, which is all that could be asked of her. You could write a book on how great Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker is. From the moment he speaks you know you are watching true greatness. He is fully committed to making you believe he is the Joker. The Joker is a complete psychopath, and Ledger conveys this brilliantly with every word spoken, every facial expression, every movement. Certainly Oscar worthy, definitely unforgettable. It is truly a shame we will never get to see Ledger in this role again. But for the 2 and a half hours I did, it was an honor.
Christopher Nolan is proving to be one of the great directors of his generation. From Memento to now he has grown and had great successes all the way. He has been quoted many times as saying he wants to keep the Batman story as realistic as possible and has done a great job doing it. Watching his work you truly feel like you are in the Batman universe. From lighting to special effects he and his crew do a phenomenal job. Nolan was a brilliant choice to bring Batman back to the screen.
The Dark Knight is not just a great comic book movie or great summer blockbuster. It is so much more. I believe it should be nominated at next years Oscars. If this isn't one of the best 5 or movies of the year then we as fans are in for the best year in film history. I've seen it once, I'll see it at least one more time at the theater. This movie is as close to perfect as they come. Hopefully it and the performance of Heath Ledger will live on forever.