I never see super-hyped movies on opening weekend. It's my "Pulp Fiction" theory. That movie was so hyped by my friends when it came out that when I finally saw it in the theater, I thought it stunk. Now it's a classic.
So when DJ friend Reptile kept smacking me in the shoulder while repeating "Go see 'Batman'" for 22 minutes straight in the days leading up to its theatrical release, I had to sit back and wait.
When everyone else I know raved about "The Dark Knight" after opening weekend, I had to sit back and wait.
When it became the biggest movie opening of all time, I had to sit back and wait.
Finally, this past weekend, I stopped sitting and waiting. I finally manned up and saw "The Dark Knight." Holy ish!
Within 20 minutes, we had already given it the coveted "See in theaters" status in our Pet Rock Movie Rating System. In fact, we're in talks right now to add a "See it twice in theaters" rating.
Judging by its $314-plus million domestic gross at the box office so far, we're clearly not alone in our thinking. Assuming a $10 average per screening, that represents more than 31 million tickets sold, or slightly more than 10 percent of the American population (not including those who saw it more than once.)
This movie is fantastic. It even has a real ending, something most big movies these days fail to deliver. Christian Bale is decent as Batman, and as everyone has already said, Heath Ledger is beyond brilliant in his turn as The Joker. While I hemmed and hawed about the need to remake a decent movie that was only 18 years old, clearly I was wrong. Moving it from comic book to "real" movie was a strong move.
Dead or alive, Ledger deserves serious consideration for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. That's not to sound callous, but rather to exclaim that sentiment should have nothing to do with the voting process. This role as a serious, maniacal Joker was written brilliantly and acted brilliantly.
So please go see "The Dark Knight" immediately. Drop what you're doing at work, find the nearest theater and go. I'll make it easier: Click here and enter your ZIP code. And, just for fun, here's the trailer (Note: The trailer sucks in comparison to the actual movie).
Comments (4)
What do you mean remake?? This was a completely original script. You don't call something a remake because of one character, or because it is 'based on' several comic storylines. David Goyer, Jonathan and Chris Nolan are geniuses.
excellent film! i would see it twice in a heartbeat. too bad harvey two face didn't get his own film. can't wait to see who plays the penguin.
After seeing this movie, everything else really pales in comparison. Just brilliant!
It's a remake in the sense that Batman already battled the Joker on film. Although, you make a good point in that it's a different script. Perhaps remake isn't the proper word here. Perhaps remix works better.