“The Dark Knight”

Christian Bale as Batman and Heath Ledger as the Joker in Warner Bros. Pictures' The Dark Knight - 2008

Well to be honest, I waited a week on seeing this one to avoid the crowds.  So last night I grabbed a ticket and headed into a late showing with around 40 people.  I had heard nothing but rave reviews, and I had very high expectations…  All I can say is WOW.

Not only does the movie begin already ‘in progress’, but it is full of Incredible acting, a fantastic storyline, and much like its predecessor – Nolan and company are able to convince a person that Batman could really exist.

With hype at an all time high due to the unfortunate loss of Heath Ledger (Joker) The Dark Knight is a cinematic marvel that truly delivers.  Ledger actually managed to scare the crap out of me (Holy Toilet Paper!) and I found myself laughing awkwardly enough at his psychotic antics.  While Bale’s Bat-voice is much to be desired and sounded like a bad impression of Michael Keaton’s 1989 Batman, his overall performance as Bruce Wayne really hit the mark, and his playboy style finally makes itself known after years of sliding down a Bat-pole.

Is it for children? Hmm… Let me say this; There is very little to no blood actually shown on screen, but there is ALOT of violence and the film is speckled with moments of sheer terror.  Aaron Eckhart’s (Harvey Dent) performance also raises the bar above any previous Bat-film: His face however, could have some of you wondering, “How’d they do that!?”

Overall, you need to see this movie whether or not you are a batman fan or not.  In a world of so much violence and hate, all of us could use a Dark Knight.

See you next week, same Bat-Time… Same Bat-Blog!

THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE

David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson in 20th Century Fox's The X-Files: I Want to Believe - 2008

As an avid fan of the X-Files television show I wanted to believe in this movie.  Since learning that the studio would be bringing Mulder and Scully back to the big screen I have been counting down the months, the days, and then the hours until the film’s release.  This is no doubt a must-see for any X-Files fan, but perhaps only the die-hard fans will truly appreciate the film.

Normally I receive early screening passes for review purposes, but the “The X-Files: I Want to Believe” movie was shrouded in complete marketing mystery, and now – I can see why.  The following is a list of my likes and dislikes:

Liked:

- Gillian Anderson & David Duchovny’s chemistry on screen
- The film’s dark, mysterious tone
- The character development (Mulder and Scully)
- Charming dialogue from time to time
- Editing was quick and sharp, it felt like an episode of CSI – it worked!
- The ending

Disliked:

- The constant reminder we were watching an X-Files movie because of the constant use of the 6 toned  music cues.
- Blatant attempts at pulling the audience away from the more serious points in the movie through the use of silly sight gags.
- Lack of coherent story. At times it seemed quite obvious where deleted scenes may have originally been.
- The supporting cast lacked any emotional impact (or acting skill)
- Mark Snow’s score (Mark has composed better music for the original show and for the television cult hit Smallville on a much smaller budget)

This is simply my opinion of the film, and it is my hope that you go and see the movie to explore your own thoughts and feelings about it.  Feel free to submit you review to us and we will post them here!

Each week I will be updating this page with my reviews!

Patrick Phillips
AWS Conductor.