As we all knew it would, The Dark Knight--Chris Nolan's second installment of his adapted Batman trilogy--broke the box office record for both opening weekend and single day gross ($155.3M and $66.4M, respectively). And they did it all without a green screen (the same cannot be said for the now second place weekend grosser Spiderman 3). If you've seen the film, and you didn't already know this, your jaw should be dropping about now. Yes, that villain snare of Lau from his Hong Kong office, beginning with an 88-story base jump into the window of another equally tall office building, only to be "Sky-Hooked" back out of the window holding the now thoroughly intimidated Chinese criminal? Real. 3 week prep time.
God I love Chris Nolan.
Beyond the authenticity of the explosions, stunts and machine gun spitfire, there is an element of deep darkness that surrounds, in my opinion, the greatest villain performance of all time. The late Heath Ledger's Joker instills a sense of total abandon for human decency, a feeling that stays with you long after you exit into the fluorescent light. Rounded off by true crime thriller plot weaves, twists and turns, and nods to some of film's greatest crime dramas (including Dog Day Afternoon and The Seven-Ups), this film really has it all. My one negative was the lack of closure the audience gets on the Joker, as we are left hanging, as he is, from an unfinished skyscraper by the ankle.
Go see this movie, and if you have already, go see it again.
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