The Dark Knight is more than a movie, it is a standalone piece of art. Something with which there is nothing to compare.

Rating: 10/10 (18 July 2008)

This afternoon I saw The Dark Knight. I'd been waiting for a long time to see this movie...but it didn't take long for me to realize that it was not a movie at all. It was something else...something beyond. I'm still not sure what it was exactly that I watched this afternoon, as there is nothing I can see fit to compare it with. There is no standard or rubric by which to critique it, as one simply hasn't been devised yet as far as I'm concerned. In that way...I can only see fit to call it flawless. When the experience was finished, I had no words to describe what I had just gone through. All I knew was that I had just watched what will be a significant part of cinema history, and I drew up in my mind the idea of how important this piece of work is...an impact of which I can only draw a likeness to the effect The Godfather must have had 30 years ago.
It is an experience which transcends genre. The special effects, the action, the fighting...were not the point. They were there....and they were fantastic....but every aspect of the experience was there for one reason...to perpetuate the story and the world which was created. It was Wagnerian in scope, with the sheen and polish of modern cinema. There were no self-serving fight sequences...no cheap thrills...no cheap laughs...nothing other than the world, the story, and you. Such a feeling of weight...and darkness...and dread...it was the most immersion I have ever felt in a film. There was no pretense, no assumptions...it was reflective only of its own nature as a stand-alone artform. A work of art with no contemporaries.
The poster boy for this new movement Christopher Nolan has created was Heath Ledger, who himself gave the most selfless performance of any screen performance I have ever witnessed, or am likely to witness any time soon. The man checked his vanity at the door of the hotel where he lived in isolation for a month preparing for this role. I doubt he even cared if his performance was good. It wasn't a performance. It was a crazy man up there. No character acting...nothing over-the-top...Heath Ledger became someone else, something which up until now I considered a trick...a mindset taken by actors to be more effective. Even method actors. But not here. This, as far as I'm concerned, was the next step in the evolution of film acting. And it cost a man his life.
The rest of the cast was very good, but I hardly remember them. All I can think of is The Joker. I must mention, though, how impressive Aaron Eckhart was. I've been a fan of his for a while, and when I heard he was to portray Harvey Dent, I was thrilled. He did not disappoint.
Don't go into this movie with expectations, because they won't be met. There won't even be an attempt to meet them. The Nolans re-invented the wheel with this film. It's more than just good...this will likely be one of the more important films of the past century.