The Pandemonium Of The Sun

First, let me state my allegiances. I am not a “comics guy.” Sure, when I was a teenager I had some superhero comics…Superman, Batman, Captain America, Shazam. Chances are though, you would probably find me nose deep in Mad magazine. The original Superman and Batman television shows were just a little too campy for me. When superheroes started hitting the big screen, I liked them well enough. It was still the era when big budget special effects didn’t overwhelm the story. Recent years have seen an explosion of superhero films, and for good reason…box office receipts. Most, if not all, have left me a bit cold. X-men, Spiderman, and Fantastic Four, not to mention the cavalcade of superhero wannabes (Elektra and Blade, for a start) are tall on the special effects and short on pretty much everything else.

This brings us to The Dark Knight. Another confession…I haven’t seen the first film in the rebirth of the Batman franchise, Batman Begins. I’ll get around to it soon. The Dark Knight is hard to ignore any longer though. With Heath Ledger’s death (and possible forthcoming Oscar nomination) and the utterly explosive box office take, which, upon it’s re-release in January in theaters and IMAX, may just make it the all-time highest grossing film (only a little more than 70 million to go), I would have to say that you’ve gotten my attention.

The Dark Knight is a near flawless film, at least for the first hour and forty-five minutes. There is a hiccup or two, and then a bit of a slow period, until it maniacally descends into its mesmerizing conclusion. It is indeed, without a doubt, the best superhero movie ever made.

Most of the attention surrounding The Dark Knight revolves around Heath Ledger, who died several months prior to the film’s release. There is significant Oscar-buzz surrounding Ledger’s performance, and deservedly so. Every second that Ledger appears on screen is absolutely riveting. It’s a pity that if he is nominated, it will likely be in the Best Supporting Actor category, since he clearly carries the film.

In stark contrast to Ledger’s inspired performance are the run-of-the-mill turns by its other actors. Christian Bale is a bit wooden. Maggie Gyllenhaal seems to impress me only in movies where she gets full-frontal. Morgan Freeman is, well, Morgan Freeman. Even the great Michael Caine doesn’t break out of the slimest of supporting roles. This makes Ledger’s performance all the more amazing.

The one exception is Gary Oldman’s performance as James Gordon. As always (or just about) Oldman is fantastic.

The Dark Knight gives me hope that mainstream entertainment can achieve the level of true art.

Buy The Dark Knight (+ Digital Copy and BD Live) [Blu-ray], The Dark Knight (Two-Disc Special Edition + Digital Copy), The Dark Knight Video_On_Demand