Best Batman Yet

Rating: 9/10 (20 July 2008)

I went into The Dark Knight as a skeptic. Similar hype has led to enormous disappointment the last few years and I thought it would hurt the latest movie in one of my favorite franchises. I was wrong. The movie captured the essence of the older, darker Batman comics while ignoring the gimmicks, and cheesiness that have made it popular in the past. In this regard, Nolan provided the world with an absolute gem of a movie. Helped by his tremendous cast including Christian Bale as a Batman at will not soon be forgotten. Heath Ledger's Academy Award worthy performance as the Joker will leave audiences chilled all over the country, and interestingly, his makeup, unique from other visions of the joker, seemed to be customized for the darker direction he took the role. Nolan's choice to exclude The Joker's background story helped to accent the chaos and mayhem that surround the character. Maggie Gyllenhaal, the incredibly talented off-beat beauty, made the character of Rachel Dawes believable, memorable, and down-right gorgeous. And once again, Gary Oldman, makes his role as Gordan seem more and more like it has been destined for him since Batman's creation. Overall I give this movie a 9/10 and already have it on my top ten list.