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PAGE 12, JULY 28, 2008, THE ISLANDER
“Goin* to
the Show...
♦♦
with...
Roland
Willis
THE DARK KNIGHT
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger,
Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman,
Michael Caine & Morgan Freeman
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Written by Christopher Nolan & Jonathan Nolan
Story by Jonathan Nolan & David Goyer
Characters by Bob Kane
Running Time: 2 hours, 42 minutes
Rated PG-13 - Violence & horror
The Batman series continues with
The Dark Knight, action-packed story
told by wonderful characters portrayed
by exceptional actors operating from
an excellent screenplay and beautifully
created by the writer/director Christo
pher Nolan.
As the movie opens, the cops in
Gotham City, under Lt. James Gordon
(Gary Oldman) with the help of Bat
man (Christian Bale), are successfully
putting pressure on the Mob led by
Salvatore Maroni (Eric Roberts) and
the Chechen (Ritchie Coster).
In their desperation the mob turns
to an unknown quantity, the Joker
(Heath Ledger).
The Joker describes himself as a
compulsive agent of anarchy and chaos.
He’s like a dog chasing a car... wouldn’t
know what to do if he caught it but he
can’t be dissuaded, can’t be bribed, and
can’t be reasoned with, because it’s in
his nature.
He doesn’t operate from plans; the
cops have plans and the mob have
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THE DARK KNIGHT (PG-13)
Mon-Thurs 12:00, 3:15, 6:30, 9:45
HANCOCK (PG-13)
Mon-Thurs 12:10, 2:30, 5:00,
7:30, 10:00
JOURNEY TO THE CENTER
OF THE EARTH (PG)
Mon-Thurs 9:45
KIT KITTREDGE:
AN AMERICAN GIRL (G)
Mon-Thurs 12:15, 2:40, 4:55,
7:20, 9:40
MAMMA MIA (PG-13)
Mon-Thurs 12:45, 4:00, 7:05, 9:50
STEP BROTHERS (R)
Mon-Thurs 12:30, 4:20, 7:40, 9:55
WALL-E (G)
Mon-Thurs 11:45, 2:15, 4:45, 7:15
X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE
(PG-13)
Mon-Thurs 12:50, 4:30, 6:50, 9:30
plans, but he is not a schemer. He
believes that if he introduces a little
anarchy then everyone will lose their
minds. Madness is like gravity, he
believes, all it needs is a little push
with cheap explosives and a few bul
lets.
He is not mad; he’s just ahead of the
curve!
Batman and the Joker are alike in
that both are uncontrollably compelled
to take any action to achieve their
goals. Just that their goals are oppo
site. .. order versus chaos.
Brilliantly, the one could not exist
without the other!
Poor Batman thinks that one day
he’ll be able to give it all up and his
girlfriend, Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyl
lenhaal) has promised to wait for him.
In the meantime, she is the main
squeeze of the handsome, rugged,
blond, new district attorney, Harvey
Dent (Aaron Eckhart).
Here is a crusader to right the wrongs
and eliminate crime from Gotham City.
He is their White Knight and an ideal
test of the Joker’s premise that every
one can be turned to the dark side.
The Dark Knight is about the con
flict between Batman and the Joker
with Harvey Dent and Rachel caught
in the middle.
Batman’s valet and advisor, Alfred
Pennyworth, beautifully played again
by Michael Caine, adds charm and
humor while trying to keep Batman's
head straight.
“You may end up being an outcast
and hated by everyone, but that is who
you are!”
Morgan Freeman returns as Lucius
Fox, the CEO of Wayne Industries and
Batman’s supplier of high tech suits
and weapons.
All of the actors give top-notch per
formances, but The Dark Knight is
dominated by the performance of the
late Heath Ledger as the Joker. Nomi
nated for an Oscar for his portrayal of
Wyoming cowboy Ennis Del Mar in
Brokehack Mountain, he deserves to
win this time.
The young writer/director Chris
topher Nolan, who attracted much
attention with the thrillers Memento,
Insomnia and The Prestige, and who
reinvigorated the Batman franchise
with Batman Begins, excels with this
complicated psychological thriller.
He will likely be nominated with
his brother, Jonathan, for this screen
play and for his direction of The Dark
Knight.
The emphasis on the dark side of
human nature, however, does make for
an uncomfortable viewing experience.
Near the beginning, Harvey Dent,
the White Knight, tries to inspire the
citizens by quoting from Ralph Stan
ley’s song, “The darkest hour is just
before the dawn.”
Problem with The Dark Knight is
that there is no dawn.
This movie is more depressing than
Godfather II, The Deer Hunter, and The
Departed, even more depressing than
Sex and the City\
The other current movie, also based
on a comic book, Hellhoy II, is positively
uplifting in comparison.
Also, there is a lot of coin flipping by
a major character in this movie because
he believes that in a chaotic world the
50:50 odds are all you can rely on.
Unfortunately, this seems to be taken
straight from the 2007 film, No Coun
try for Old Men, in which the crazy
killer Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem)
flips a coin to determine the fate of his
next victim.
This is an unfortunate coincidence.
With these reservations, I recom
mend The Dark Knight.
Remember, with a running time
close to three hours, you need to keep
the soda-pop to a minimum!
My rating is A. □
Movie Night
Sponsor L.byJtHfe St. Simons Library League
God Grew Tired of
Us: the Story of the
Lost Boys of Sudan
Friday, August 8
7:00 a.m.
Casino Theater
"God Grew tired of Us: the Story of the Lost
Boys of Sudan." USA, 2006, directed by Christopher
Dillon Quinn and Tommy Walker. This Sundance
Fest audience winner follows the plight of the
Sudanese "Lost Boys." It focuses on three of them,
as they struggle to adjust to life in the United State
- from their perspective, a very strange place— in
this affecting culture-shock documentary
1 pcoming Movie Include:
August 20 - You Kill Me
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