The Dark Knight

Those of you who know me know that I have been ANXIOUSLY awaiting the new Batman movie, cleverly titled the Dark Knight. It's not that I've always been big into Batman ( of course I grew up with him, my brother loved him, and we used to always watch the old school Adam West batman on Nick at Nite as well as the animated series), but more so that I'm just a fan of movies. I really, really enjoyed Batman Begins but I don't think my anticipation for this movie stemmed from the fact that it was the sequel.....moreso, it just looked like an awesome movie from the beginning.

Let me tell you-it did NOT dissapoint. I figure that most of you who were excited about this movie have probably already seen it, but I will keep any spoilers from this post. The Dark Knight was really everything that you could expect it to be. Creepy, sexy, funny, exciting (boy was it exciting!)......you name the adjective, it probably fits. The movie starts with an instense bank robbing scene (those of you who saw I Am Legend in IMAX know the one I'm talking about) and builds and builds from there.

The acting was incredible. And this is the kind of movie where you kind of feel obligated to compliment Heath Ledger because he's dead now and this was his last movie, but really and truly he was the best Joker EVER. He was more than I expected to be........creepy, yes, but also quite funny in an unexpected way. I'm not sure how they could ever bring the Joker back (assuming Christopher Nolan continues the Batman franchise) because I don't believe that anyone could top this performance. There is already Oscar buzz zooming around Heath Ledger's name......I find him to be very worthy (the film as a whole is. If freakin Juno could be nominated for Best Picture than this movie better rack up........acting, special effects, music......it's got the whole package)

Christian Bale......what can we say about Christian Bale? How about he's the best Batman ever??? Man, you have NEVER wanted a masked crusader to invade your bedroom more than Christian Bale. Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal...............the acting just does not get any better than this.

I was incredibly fortunate to be able to see a screener in IMAX on Wednesday night (shout out to Evan!) and then also saw it again on Saturday in a normal theatre. If you don't have an IMAX near you the movie is nearly just as good in a regular theatre. If you DO have an IMAX I'd recommend seeing it there. The differences are very subtle, and I could really only guess about which scenes were filmed with an IMAX camera (its not very obvious), but the picture size and quality as well as the sound quality in IMAX really enhance the film.

Bottom Line: Go see this movie. Even if you dont like Batman, go see this movie. I haven't heard from one person who didn't like it. And if you dont like it......I'm not sure we can be friends.

You think I'm joking....