Journal #5199

The Dark Knight officaly opens today, July 18th.

I was lucky enough to have seen the midnight show last night, and I must say, it was totally worth it.

The first huge thing that stands out in the new Batman movie series directed by Christopher Nolan is the great acting. This second movie of his is no exception.

The acting was absolutely fantastic, and it's a real shame Heath Ledger had to die, because he's my new favorite actor.

If he doesn't win some for of a award, I'll be kinda disappointed, because he's simply brilliant. Playing the Joker was a role made for him. He went all out on the part, and I must say, it shows. From he maniac of a laugh, to his anger he gets when he's called crazy, it's all just pure genius.

Heath Ledger also made The Joker my new favorite villain.

Christian Bale brings back the greatness, too. You've seen how great he is in Batman Begins, and he's great in the Dark Knight. I can't really say much more than that, because if you've seen the first film, you'd know what I'm talking about.

Besides those two, also making a triumphant showing is Aaron Eckhart, who plays Harvey Dent, and later Two-Face. At first he plays a citie's District Attorney, and later into a crazed vigilante. He plays both parts very well, and his great acting makes the transformation that much better.

The second thing that stands out in Nolan's rendition is the story. This movie has one of the best, if not THE best story in a movie I've seen all year. There's no holes to be seen, just flat out great story telling. I really hope the Nolan brothers continue what they've started and don't change a thing. It's simply too perfect.

This also fixes what a lot of the old stories had. In the old Batman movies, there was something like 3 or 4 villains per movie you had to keep track of (correct me if I'm exagerating, there was a lot, though). This sort of seems that way, but in the end, there was only 2: The Joker and Two-Face.

I would tell a bit of a story, but I'm always one to post spoilers and not mean to, and that would just suck on your part.

One thing I noticed this time around is the setting. In Batman Begins, sure, Gotham looked a little bit like New York. It had some more "epic-ness" to it, however. This time I really didn't see a difference between New York and Gotham. Not sure how significant that is, just something I noticed.

I probably have a lot more to say, but I can't think of anything, so I'll let my numbers speak for me.

Story - 10/10
Acting - 10/10

It seems like there's something else I'd put there... whatever.

Highly recommended. Go spend your 9 or 10 dollars, or if you're really up for it, spend your 20 dollars on IMAX, it's totally worth every penny.