My Thumb Way Up: The Dark Knight

Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Co-Starring: Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine

Yes, yes, yes. I know. Could I be any later with a review of The Dark Knight? Is there anyone left who hasn't seen it?

It seems that the Joker has descended upon Gotham to wreak havoc. Sure, he's stealing lots of money, but he's more interested in random antics that maximize chaos. Effective police and prosecutors offices, with the help of Batman, have turned the city around by running the gangsters out of town. Over-the-top characters compete for the soul of the city.

This doesn't seem like a Batman movie because camera time is shared equally by the starring characters. As Batman tries to vanquish the Joker, the villain Two-Face emerges, which extends the plot as if we've caught a second wind.

What I Liked
• The acting is first rate. Go for Heath, but stay for Eckhart, Bale, and the rest. I even liked Michael Caine who gives me the creeps. His last decent movie was Dressed To Kill decades ago.
• I like this style of movie making. Most of the action takes place at night so the special effects are more believable.
• Speaking of special effects, this is the way that George Lucas should have made his three Star Wars prequels that ended up ruined by a CGI mess.

What I Didn't Like
• Maggie Gyllenhaal does a fine job on the acting, but I want the person in that role to be more physically appealing to me.

I haven't seen a Batman movie since Jack Nicholson was the Joker so I was a bit apprehensive that I wouldn't know what was going on or have the sense that I'd dropped into the middle of something. There must have been much more to the Bale/Gyllenhaal romance but it wasn't necessary to enjoy the film.

There was tons of action and it moved quickly. I thought the movie was winding down, as I suggested above, and then a whole new plot unfolded. It was like there were two movies in one.

The movie is really good and I give it my thumb way up!