The Nomasphere

The Final Cut: Review of The Dark Knight
        Well, this is my 3rd time saying it this year, but The Dark Knight is the new best film of the year for me.  First it was In Bruges, then Wall-E (even though personally I’d still prefer In Bruges based on Subject) and now the honor goes to the Bat.  More specifically you could say it goes to a terrifically well acted film, with two particular shining stars in Heath Ledger, who rightfully deserves an Oscar for being the most believably psychotic, down-right frightening Clown in movie history (take that Pennywise, the Joker would give you Nightmares) and Aaron Eckhart playing at the duality of Harvey Dent and the monster he becomes.  Bale, Oldman, and Caine also step up far above par, though as the Batman, Bale’s voice gets exhausted on you very quickly. 

        The film is very high octane and accomplishes a whole lot within 2 and a half hours, like any Nolan film you have to either view it a few times or pay close attention to follow the whole of the plot, I did the later and it held up extremely well.  On top of everything, I was happy to see they delved deeper into many of the themes found in the comic and came out with a truly remarkable story.  By the end, you find yourself wishing it was longer, longing to see more of Ledger and Bale as Bruce Wayan. 

        The whole cast adds a lot and in the end you wind up with a dark, hard PG-13 film, with enough violence, romance, dark comedy, suspense, shocks and drama to appeal to a wide audience.  I went into the film expecting it to be the hype it was given, sadly I wouldn’t call it the greatest film ever made, but I would say it’s the greatest film I’ve seen all year and while it may not have the cultural impact of something like the Godfather or Schindler’s List, it does so much to keep you enthralled, entertained and above all smiling from the edge of your seat.  With some highly memorable lines, a deep satisfying ending and an awe inducing performance led by Ledger the film will likely be the best you’ve seen in a while.  So smile, Why so Serious?   

Overall: 5/5

See it, maybe even twice, buy it when it comes out