The Dark Knight - Another Review

Ah...The Dark Knight. Finally got around to seeing it on Saturday night. This is the third weekend it's been out and the theater was packed. I'm not sure why this keeps packing theaters - is it repeat business or is it Heath Ledger? Either way, here's a rundown of my thoughts. Overall, I really liked the movie and I liked that it was dark dark dark. I was going to reply to Tyler's post but I'll just address things here:

That looked like a new title logo for DC Comics, which kinda rips off of the Marvel Comics logo with comic pages flipping through. I'm heavily pro-Marvel, so maybe I'm being nitpicky about it.

The film has a lot of plot lines going on, but they kept intersecting in neat ways so that was okay. It still felt like a long movie at times. I think the coolest part of the movie (call me lame) is when someone goes to remove Batman's mask and gets an electric shock. I thought that was so clever and was like, "How come no one else thought of that in their version of Batman?" Such a small detail, but I really liked it.

I was surprised by how much Harvey Dent was in the film. I thought we'd just get the introduction of Two-Face but then they ended up rushing his plot through and killing him off. I know he needed to be there because he's Batman's foil. Harvey Dent is a public and heroic figure, while Batman keeps to himself and is a vigilante. I liked how Batman is struggling with his role, too. He knows he can't go on forever and the people need public heroes they can believe in. Seeing that personal struggle side was very well done.

Heath Ledger as the Joker was badass. He kind of kept popping in and out of the storyline, which I liked. Oscar worthy? I'm still out on that one. I lean towards yes, but I know the academy usually goes with more established / older actors.

I like how Scarecrow popped up in the beginning of the film. I've often wondered why Spider-Man movies don't start off with him beating the crap out of someone lame, like The Shocker. It's not like Spider-Man only faces supervillains every two years in the comics. So that was a nice touch back to Batman Begins.

I liked the ending a lot. Batman, by his nature, kind of has to be an outcast and now he knows, and more importantly, accepts it. Although it will be difficult, I think they'll have to bring The Joker back. They totally set it up for that and I don't know who could fill Heath's shoes. Batman vs. Joker is that eternal struggle in Batman's life. Christopher Nolan has stated that The Penguin is a bit too cheesy to fit in with what they've established so far, so I'm guessing that also rules out Riddler. I've heard early rumor for the next film is Catwoman, which might be okay. They did a great job with a second rate villain like The Scarecrow in the first one, so whoever they bring in for the next one will be done well, I'm sure.