A few weeks ago, I conducted a poll asking readers to select a movie for me to watch that I hadn't yet seen. The Dark Knight won in a landslide and as a result, I watched it shortly thereafter. Here is my review:
- Heath Ledger was absolutely terrifying as The Joker. I was practically on the edge of my couch wondering what that psychotic S.O.B. would do next. I have no doubt that Ledger's performance will go down as one of the all-time greatest. It's a shame that he didn't live to see its success.
- Christian Bale was once again smooth as hell as Bruce Wayne and formidable as Batman.
- Aaron Eckhart was a revelation as D.A. Harvey Dent/Two-Face. As a matter of fact, I think he was good enough for at least an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actor.
- I really got into the relationship dynamic that Bruce Wayne shares with his butler/advisor Alfred (Michael Caine) and CEO of Wayne Enterprises Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman). I'm looking forward to seeing how those relationships get explored in the future.
- When Tiny Lister showed up near the end as one of the convicts, I knew his role was going to be pivotal. Even though Tiny's screen time was minimal, it was one of the most memorable parts of the movie.
- Although Margot Kidder still holds the title of the "Least Hottest Love Interest of a Big Screen Superhero", Maggie Gyllenhaal isn't far behind in her role as Asst. District Attorney Rachel Dawes. Maggie is one of those women who's hard to categorize on the Hotness Meter. Although she's not hot, she isn't ugly either. Having said that, I thought it was a bit of a stretch to believe that two of the most powerful men in Gotham City would be fighting over her.
This past Thursday, I finally got around to seeing another popular movie for the first time. I will be writing about that soon so stay tuned.
5 comments:
I agree with your review...esecially about Ledger's performance. I had chills during his second scene in the movie (when he made the pencil disappear). At that moment I realized that this character was a bit different than Jack Nicholson's portrayal of The Joker. Anyway, I only have one issue with your review and that is the comment you made about Maggie. I need to ask you: "Why so serious?!"
http://orvillelloyddouglas.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/maggie_gyllenhaal_300x400.jpg
I loved Ledger's Joker. He took crazy and deranged to a whole new level. He delivered one of my all time favorite movie quotes, "I'm like a dog chasing cars, if I caught one I wouldn't know what to do with it". I actually get what you mean about Gyllenhaal, but somehow she seemed right to me.
Now you see why I got the finger tattoo!!!
And I think, since looks are so subjective, that it's unfair to criticize anyone for "not being pretty enough"; maybe they were fighting over her because of her kindness or intelligence ...
Heath Ledger was amazing.
And while Katie Holmes may be conventionally prettier than Maggie Gyllenhaal, I'm so glad that they made that swap from the first movie to the second. Every character Holmes plays just comes off as a simpering, boring Joey Potter clone. THAT is someone I would never expect to see two powerful men fighting over. Maggie's Rachel had cajones.
Dave: That was an amazing scene when The Joker made the pencil disappear. Shame on me for not mentioning it in my review. Serves me right for writing the review weeks after watching the movie.
Thanks for the link to the cheesecake pose by Maggie, but she doesn't do much for me. Having said that, her presence in the movie didn't ruin it for me (after all, I gave it an 8.5). I just couldn't buy her being part of a love triangle involving Bruce and Harvey.
Pjazzy: I liked that quote too. Another line I enjoyed was when he said that all he wanted was his one phone call.
Janet: Normally, I don't criticize someone's looks for the reason you cited. However, since Maggie's character being the object of desire of Bruce and Harvey was a plot point in the movie, I think it was fair game.
Beckeye: To me, Katie came off as a kid playing "dress up" when she portrayed Rachel in "Batman Begins". Hopefully, your mention of Joey Potter won't get a certain Paula Cole song stuck in my head.
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