The Dark Knight

The dark days of Joel Schumacher Bat debacles are behind us. Director Christopher Nolan takes Batman and his bad guys very seriously, and his chapter two in the current Batman saga is a fierce, nasty movie. The Dark Knight is a worthy follow up to the excellent Batman Begins. It’s also so different in tone that it often feels like another director’s take on the iconic character. Nope … Nolan made both of them, and he’s done a great job of it. This time, the Batman (a raspy Christian Bale) battles the totally insane Joker (Heath Ledger). Ledger delivers one of the great all-time villainous performances, and all of that Oscar talk is legit. Aaron Eckhart does masterful work as District Attorney Harvey Dent, and his spiral into darkness is hypnotic. I’m hoping, in a big way, that Nolan follows this up, because he’s onto something great here, and I feel like it is just getting started.