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So far, 2008 has been a good year for comic book films. The first one of the year was Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, and Gwyneth Paltrow. It had everything that a good comic book movie needs: good special effects, it was funny and entertaining at times, but tense when it needed to be, good overall ensemble acting (Paltrow was easily the weakest link, though), and most importantly, good action sequences that didn't go over the top. In fact, the majority of the film was driven through dialogue and not its action. Plus, Robert Downey Jr. excellent performance as the billionaire superhero Tony Stark helped to make the film even better. Overall, it was a very good film. While I haven't seen others such as The Incredible Hulk or Hellboy II: The Golden Army, everything I've heard about them tells me that they were good films as well. So, all in all, it's been a good year for comic book adaptations. 

Then along comes The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan's highly-anticipated sequel to his stellar precursor film Batman Begins and the next in the line of comic book adaptations of 2008. I was lucky enough to not only see this film on the opening day, but twice: once with my family, again with my friends about three hours later. As you can imagine, the theaters were packed at both showings, but surprisingly, no one was being loud, annoying, or distracting throughout the entire film (something that unfortunately can't be said about the Wall-E opening day crowd).  So, giddy with anticipation, we all piled up in our theater seats, the lights dimmed, and the movie began (right after a couple interesting-looking trailers, including Terminator 4, 007: Quantum of Solace, and Watchmen). Upon walking out of the theater after the credits began to roll, I only had one thought in mind:

Hooooolllly shit.

I saw this movie twice, and both times, I was left speechless. To say that this film surpasses its predecessor is not enough of a statement to describe its quality. Batman Begins could just have easily not existed and this would still be a cinematic work of art. When we all met in the theater lobby to discuss the film before leaving, many of us found it difficult to highlight specific scenes because the film as a whole plays out so well. Only a few scenes stuck out from the veil of quality the film had, whether they were funny, intense, or just plain kickass.

*Spoiler Warning*

The film starts out with a bank robbery orchestrated by The Joker (Heath Ledger) himself. We get an early taste of his menace as his cronies begin to systematically kill one another as the robbery comes closer to completion to make larger each individual person's payoff, an order given to them directly by The Joker before the robbery even began.

We then get to once again meet Bruce Wayne/Batman (Christian Bale), who's underground acts of justice and heroism are going overlooked by the hysteria Gotham has flung itself into over him, calling for his arrest and the end of his act. Meanwhile, the new District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), steadily gaining in popularity in his acts to thwart criminal activity in Gotham, begins to work with Batman and Lieutenant Gordon (Gary Oldman) to help take out mob control in the underbelly of the city. Together, the three help to put hundreds of criminals behind bars. It is then that Bruce begins to recognize Harvey as a chance to lay down the mask and return to being just Bruce Wayne. Bruce sees in him the hero with a face that Gotham has so long deserved, not a masked vigilante living in secrecy from authorities that Batman has been. He can finally return to living a normal life once again, and more importantly, winning back the heart of Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal), who is at the moment dating Harvey. But then The Joker cometh...
The Joker is a self-described agent of chaos. He acts with no conscience, no morals, and most frighteningly, without reason. He is a true psychopath, approaching his acts of terror with a devilish smile, that infamous laugh, and a child-like excitement, like a boy burning ants with a magnifying glass. The sole purpose of his existence is to eradicate organization and order with pure, unrelenting anarchy. Is he in it for power? Notoriety? Cash? No, just to prove that anything right and benevolent can be turned against itself (a great scene that shows his indifference to monetary gain is when he burns a stack of $68 million). As he so eloquently puts it, the clash between him and Batman is "what happens when the unstoppable force meets the immovable object." He says to Batman at one point that he doesn't want to kill him, his reasoning: "What would I do without you? You complete me." If Batman is the symbol of all things right and just, The Joker is the antithesis. Two unstoppable and irreversible, counteracting forces colliding into each other.

Most people walking into this movie are at some level seeing it to see Heath Ledger's final completed performance (rest in peace, Mr. Ledger. We lost you way, way too soon), and of course, no review of The Dark Knight would be complete without a review of his performance. Heath Ledger, as you probably have heard by now, is absolutely extraordinary as The Joker. He creates one of the most menacing movie villains ever shown on the silver screen. Will Heath get that posthumous Oscar nomination that everyone's been talking about? I certainly hope so.

If Ledger weren't the more anticipated and talked-about performance, I think that more people would be paying attention to Aaron Eckhart. Next to Ledger, Eckhart gives one of the finer performances as the do-gooder District Attorney transformed into a monster (in multiple senses of the word) one of the film's more involved and emotionally-stirring stories. When a kidnapping plot arranged by The Joker leaves Harvey Dent horribly disfigured and Rachel Dawes dead (one of the films biggest surprises), The Joker sees Harvey in the hospital. The exchange between them is a brilliant scene, a fine example of great dialogue and acting on both of their parts. In their conversation, The Joker convinces Harvey to take his own matters into his own hands and seek revenge on those who set him up in the first place. From then on, Harvey becomes the grisly Two-Face (and when you see him, you'll know what I mean when I say grisly), exacting vengeance on all of the conspirators that in some way were responsible for his and Rachel's kidnapping, his disfigurement, and more importantly to him, Rachel's death, deciding his victim's fates through a coin toss. It is in Harvey Dent's fall that we find that The Joker has truly won.

My only gripe with this film is that it could have been shortened. I don't have a problem with long films as long as they can keep me entertained and interested throughout their running length (such as The Lord of the Rings films), and I'm not saying this film didn't, but there were a few spots that I think could have been cut down or told in a shorter fashion (the Lau plot at the beginning could have been shortened a tad). However, the film makes up for it by not only being totally awesome overall, but sporting some of the coolest scenes in recent film history. One of them is the scene where the Joker walks out of the hospital as it blows up behind him (I should mention he is also dressed in drag as a nurse. Can't afford to miss that!). The other, which will probably go down as one of cinema's greatest scenes ever, is the "disappearing pencil trick" (anyone who's seen this movie, and more importantly, this scene, will agree). Godfather's Horse Head, Alien's Stomach Buster, Psycho's Shower Murder, eat your hearts out.

The Dark Knight is so much more than just a superhero movie. It's not just a good vs. evil story, but a morality tale of the true nature of justice and the true definition of "hero," what happens when order collides with chaos. It's certainly unconventional to the standard superhero film, where the foundation of heroism and justice is compromised, and at its very core is a tragic tale. It's a haunting experience that's certain to stick with you long after you leave the theater. One thing's for sure, it's certainly left an impact on me. However, you might find yourself wanting to demonstrate to your friends a new magic trick as a result of this film, which might be a bad thing.

The Dark Knight: 9.5/10 (woo, my first positive review)