The Dark Knight is the best movie since...

They owed DDL to such an extent after violating him after Gangs of New York, he wins.

They would have shrugged and said, "Heath, if you're this good, you'll get another shot."

That's how they think. They've thought that way for over three-quarters of a century.

 

I was thinking about this the other day. This movie is right now the defining movie of my generation's (I'm 21) prime movie-going years. Every single person in my age group who I talked to about this movie has or will see it soon. Many have seen it multiple times. I can't remember a movie that has brought together my age group in a way that's even close to the Dark Knight.

Having said that, I agree with others that other recent movies like No Country were better. This year, it's the best I've seen ahead of Wall-E, Ironman, In Bruges and Forgetting Sarah Marshall; all of which I enjoyed very much.

 

But here's the thing with Ledger - He did something with the Joker that transcended simple acting. There are those certain select movies where actors take a character, and leave you so impressed and stunned, you realize not only is this God-given talent you're seeing, you're witnessing someone get the very most out of their abilities. And that's amazing to watch. I think of Bardem last year, I think of Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man, I think of Duvall in Lonesome Dove.

 

This is the best movie I've seen this year since Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I think TDK is definitely better than FSM, but those two are without question my favorite movies of this year.

 

There Will Be Blood.

 

You are talking about an apples to oranges comparison between a movie like Juno or The Dark Knight, they are both movies, just really different.
To say one is better than the other, is really hard to do.
The question, to me, about TDK is how well it holds up on repeat viewings. Will it be the kind of movie when it makes the rounds on the different HBOs will I stop and watch it every time I am flipping through.
In some ways, I liked Wall•E better. In other ways I liked Juno or Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I also really liked TDK, but to say one is best, I can't do that.

And There will be blood, should be changed to There will be boredom. I found that flick highly overrated, even though Daniel-Day kicked some ass.

 

Ledger sure did come a long way from 10 Things I Hate About You. Man, his chops were outstanding in The Dark Knight. I think my favourite scene is when he's wearing the nurse uniform and walking away from the hospital.

 

Question:
Do you really believe Ledger's performance in Batman II was better than his performance in 'Brokeback Mountain'?

 

I cannot answer that question as I have not seen Brokeback.

 

I think they were about equal. He took two completely different characters with different motivations and turned them into real performances. I don't really think there's a way of comparing two drastically different characters like the Joker and Ennis Del Mar.

That being said, I enjoyed Wall-E a lot more than TDK. I'm going to go out on a limb and say it was better than TDK as a whole.

 

Same here.

I also liked Batman Begins more than I liked TDK...and I really, really liked TDK.

 

I think it's much more laudable to turn in a great performance that is both reserved and gut-wrenchingly emotional, a performance with shading and nuance.
To achieve real creative accomplishment within set parameters or rules or boundaries is much more difficult, and therefore more admirable.
I really enjoyed Ledger's turn as the Joker, but it is not the creative achievement of 'Brokeback Mountain.'