Wanted: The Dark Knight!

My mother was in town over the weekend so that gave me not one but two midnight movie opportunities which
I and the little one took absolute advantage. On night #1, we went and saw Wanted, which I've been
wanting to see because it looked like an absolute blast (and it was) and it was directed by the great
Russian visual stylist Timur Bekmambetov. Yes, it was contrived, and yes it was a little silly,
but it was a full and rich theatrical experience that got my heart pumping and my juices flowing. The scenes
were so exciting, and even the shots from the trailer I relished. Kind of a goofy twist, but hey, whatever,
it was pure escapist fun. It was, as they say, a movie. Now, the next night we went to see The Dark Knight,
which (as of this writing) is the number 1 f**ing movie on imdb. I naturally went
into both films with super-high expectations, and was pleased with both, but...I liked Wanted better as a
filmmaking experience, even though I more or less constructed the movie in my head based on the various
trailers I had already seen online. Now, of course, as mentioned earlier as I have about it being the #1 movie
ever created on God's earth, The Dark Night was amazing. Incredibly well scripted, all though you'll get
no spoilers from me. Half the earth, it seems, has paid money to see this movie already. I find it funnily ironic
that in director Cristopher Nolan's first feature length, Following (see pic) the main character,
who hasn't gotten work even though Nolan's got plenty of bit parts to throw out, has a giant "Batman" logo
on the door to his impoverished London flat. It seems Timur managed to get a decent supporting role (in English,
no less) from his Night Watch/Day Watch leading man, Konstantin Khabensky. The script for Dark Night
was great. The Nolan Brothers and Goyer knocked it out of the park. Christian Bale was a little bit
edgy. Honestly, I think he sounds really stupid and brutish when he modulates his voice from the supple tones of Bruce Wayne
to that of the Caped Crusader. Maggie Gylennhal sounded whiny in most of the film, but lets be honest. Hers is a whiny
part. Many accolades have befallen the late (and also great)Heath Ledger, who is very good at playing the strange
clown that is the Batman's perennial nemesis, but he just wasn't that creepy. But let's be honest, Bale, Gylennhal, Ledger,
Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and even the great Gary Oldman were only supporting characters for the real star
of the movie, Aaron Eckhart as the formidable Harvey Dent, a public servant who is actually the only character to
rise and fall in the arc of tragedy. It's funny that Gary Oldman played Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy about
another doomed character, and inspired the production's realization of Ledger's Joker in this film. The structure of this
movie was airtight. It was long, but paced very well. It had a great combination of humor and pathos. It was just, not the greatest
movie ever made. When I left the movie I was like, "That was a good superhero movie. I'm hungry." It wasn't anywhere near the
thrill I get when watching a movie like Equilibrium, also starring Bale or Gymkata starring the great
Kurt Thomas. It just didn't leave me feeling anything. Christopher Nolan is a great director, even though
his remake of Insomnia was terrible, his movies are really good. Take the aformentioned Follwing, the brain
bending Memento, or the excellent magician's drama(is that a genre?)The Prestige.
By the way, screenwriter Blake Snyder, the writer of the "Save The Cat!" series and the author of the film Stop,
or My Mom Will Shoot! probably saw The Dark Knight over the weekend, curled up a little, and thought about
how much he wanted to kiss Christopher Nolan's pasty, AmerBritish ass for talking such crap about Memento because it
did such relatively small box office. Christopher Nolan is an unmistakably great filmmaker and The Dark Knight is a
great film. But not the best. There's still Gymkata. ...and Equilibrium. Geez...I'm a peasant.