The Dark Knight

© The Dark Knight

Hopefully, by now, you have seen this movie. If you haven’t, then you really should.

The Dark Knight, for the unaware, is the sequel to Christopher Nolan’s first film: Batman Begins. Which is also the rebirth of the Batman franchise. To be honest, I haven’t really been into the Batman series since Tim Burton’s Batman (which I recommend seeing and owning, BTW). Unfortunately, the sequels that followed caused the series to get progressively worse. Especially Batman Forever and Batman & Robin which are horrible films. I didn’t care for some of the campy humor let alone the different actors that were chosen to fill the Batman role. For me, Michael Keaton was the ideal candidate for playing the Bruce Wayne/Batman role.

Now, over a decade later, the Batman franchise is being reborn and in a major way. Some are even saying that The Dark Knight is equal the The Godfather: Part II in terms of quality and impact. I would have to agree with that. It really is that good. So much so, that it got me excited enough to go to the theater again (which doesn’t happen very often these days).

Aside from the fact that the film is well written, well executed, and well worth watching. It also has some technical merit. I had read an article in Wired Magazine where I learned that Christopher Nolan had shot the film in IMAX format. Which, if you haven’t had a chance to experience yet, you really need to before it leaves the theater. However, I do want to point out than not all scense are in IMAX format. Which, for me, was a little disappointing. That being said, the scenes that were in IMAX format were truly astonishing, especially the beginning of the film as well as all city and aerial shots. There is just something to be said about having a movie totally engulf your vision and, for a short while, throw you into this dark world of super villians and super heroes.

The Dark Crystal

© The Dark Crystal

Genre

Fantasy

Review

“Another world. Another time. In the Age of Wonder. A 1,000 years ago this land was green and good, until The Crystal cracked.”

The Dark Crystal, a Jim Henson film released in 1982, is one of those films I missed out on as a kid and have only recently discovered (thanks, Kate). The film is the story of a Gelfling, raised by the Mystics, who must find the Shard of the Crystal to restore peace to a world now controlled by the evil Skeksis. The story is your basic tale of good vs. evil but the world crafted by Jim Henson is wonderful to watch (especially considering that the entire cast is all made of puppets), rich in detail for its time, and expertly done. This is a movie that I have come back to watch a couple of times now and imagine I’ll watch it many times more.

Rating

10/10 - Outstanding, make sure to buy the 25th Anniversary Edition.

Trailer

While this is a poor quality trailer (hey, its from YouTube), it will give you a taste: