The Dark Knight

First, I read the whole "W" is Batman thing and, yes, I could see a little bit of it in one or two places, but the idea that George W. Bush would put on a cape and bitchslap Nancy Pelosi...well...there's always the sequel! There's a lot to see in the film, a lot going on with a number of subplots weaving their way through the movie. The special effects are awesome. A lot of movies have you looking behind the curtain, looks for the wires and the glass paintings, but this one looked seamless! Heath Ledger's Joker was a refreshing, if frightening change from Nicholson's over the top ham & cheese performance of the past. Ledger portrayed the psychotic killer as...a psychotic killer. The humor was there, but very dark. Spoiler alert: If you haven't seen the movie, stop reading here. There won't be a problem in maintaining continuity for Bruce Wayne's love interest Rachel (portrayed here by Maggie Gyllenhaal, Katie Holmes in Batman Begins). I'm thinking a small piece of granite could fill in for her in the sequel! An exciting thrill ride, punctuated by a few too many talking head moments. Worth the price of admission, but anyone who paid $150 to sit in a sold out theater to watch this one may be asking himself:

Why so serious?

I'd give it four out of five stars.