The Popcorn Editorial (The POP-ED) - Is The Dark Knight really the GOAT?

I ran into Seekonk Showcase with the rain coming down on me in sheets, fully expecting to be a soaked, smiling movie-goer withing the half-hour. It was the second week that The Dark Knight had been out in theaters, and as was to be expected, I had heard nothing but rave reviews. One particular appraisal caught my eye, however, simply because it was so preposterous that it couldn't have been true. On my go-to movie website, IMDB.com, The Dark Knight had received a sufficient amount of excellent ratings to warrant the #1 movie of all time crown. Initially, this rating came as a complete surprise to me, but then, I started thinking. I became angered with movie-goers everywhere for making such a mockery of the system.The Dark Knight had vaulted itself above movies of the likes of The Godfather, The Empire Strikes Back, and The Shawshank Redemption, among dozens of others, and simply because it was so overly over-marketed and shoved down our throats. The Heath Ledger tragedy notwithstanding, I guess the PR department executed their task to perfection, building their movie to be the most anticipated sequel ever, but I couldn't understand why the majority of Americans, usually knowledgeable and sensible with their movies, bought the garbage. America had already decided, before they had even seen the movie, that they would love it unconditionally. Were they really that stupid?Were they really that anxious to immediately rate this movie a 10 without question? I was sorry to say it, but yes, they were. Don't get me wrong here, though. I love my Batman, too. But I like to be a bit more practical when it comes to these things. I mulled over this situation as I entered theater number 9. Would I somehow be let down, disappointed because it had already been so hyped? Or would I stay level-headed and keep my wits about me in the midst of the barrage of hoopla? We would soon see......

...Two and a half hours later...

I walk out of theater 9 jumping out of my boots. The movie was excellent. Christian Bale was born to play Batman. He brought a performance just as good if not better than his in Batman Begins. Maggie Gyllenhaal played a much more mature Rachel Dawes. I thought she stepped up to the plate in a way that Katie Holmes could not. And Aaron Eckhart played a wonderful District Attorney Harvey Dent, endearing us to this character that was the main symbol of hope in Gotham before he takes the ultimate plunge into the darkness. Surely, however, not one person in the theater that day or week or month went to examine Gyllenhaal's Dawes or Eckhart's Dent. They went to see Heath Ledger and his utterly demonic portrayal of The Joker. Ledger stole the screen every time he appeared and commanded the movie every time he didn't. Each scene he graced us with gave us a glimpse into a truly troubled character, hell bent on his theory of chaos, and each scene without left us yearning for more. I must have caught myself saying, "When the hell is Joker coming back?" or "Alright, where's our man Heath?" about a dozen times throughout the film. And each time he came back, he delighted me even more. It was truly one of the best performances that I had ever seen.

All hugs and kisses aside, this movie was not a 10. It is NOT the best movie of all time. I personally wasn't the biggest fan of Eckhart's Two-Face. He came off as whiny. Furthermore, for a man who prided himself on such strong will and character early in the film, he turned over to criminality rather easily. Perhaps, that was the director, Chris Nolan's problem there. I also thought the movie's length was a small problem. It seemed to linger on more than it needed to later in the movie. This may be attributable to the fact that Nolan attempted to include the plots of two major villains in the film. I saw that as a slight problem as well. Two-Face arguably deserved his own movie. He seemed be entirely underappreciated as a villain, while Dent grabbed all of the spotlight. These are all manageable errors, however, and it should be noted that the movie is a must see regardless. I give it a 8.5 to a 9. See it immediately if you haven't already.

For the record, The Dark Knight is still ranked in the number one spot at IMDB.com, but now it is tied for first with The Godfather and Shawshank Redemption. Maybe our movie fans are beginning to come to their senses.