SSX's Blog

The Dark Knight Friday, July 25, 2008

Title: The Dark Knight

Genre: Action, Thriller

Length: 2.5 hours

"This city deserves a better class of criminals."

the Joker

Definitely a must catch of this season. Christopher Nolan and his team did an excellent job in writing the screenplay and directing this movie. It is impactful and everything fits together very nicely. The cast must be applauded for their (major) contributions too. Christian Bale (Batman), Heath Ledger (Joker), Aaron Eckhart(Harvey Dent), Gary Oldman (James Jordan), Michael Caine (Alfred Pennyworth) and Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox) fit their roles almost too well. And of course, not forgetting the special mention to Heath Ledger for his hideous portrayal of Joker, combining high pitched laughter, dodgy eyes, stiff movements, lip licking, and maniacal behavior all into one character. Joker is undoubtedly one of the most loved and hated character for seasons to come.

So, what makes the Dark Knight really good? The first thing is its script and screenplay. The opening scene left a deep impression on the viewers about what kind of character Joker is -- an intellectual homicidal sociopath who has no regards for his underlings (or no fixed underlings). Even that description might be an understatement, considering what he has been doing throughout. His character can somewhat be exemplified by his appearance, which makes him a unique villian as well as a frightening one. I digress, so pertaining to the original point, besides the grand opening by joker, the plot proceeded off smoothly, with each successive arc more interesting than the last.

Why did I say that each arc is more interesting than the last? Well, I am sure most will agree that the real action starts after joker begins killing people on a daily basis. However, that still isn't the peak. Things do seem like they will conclude after joker got caught, but the viewers are brought on another roller coaster ride as the life of rachel dawes and harvey dent are endangered and Joker ingeniously escape from the prison. And then there's Joker's "social experiment", aimed at exposing the ugly side of humanity, which Joker claims is the true face of humans that they reveal when their own life is at stake. The whole plot just builds up and keep you glued to the big screen.

I still have some issues with the plot, however. Joker just mysteriously disappeared from the Harvey Dent fundraising party when Batman jumped down the building to save rachel dawes without killing Harvey, and batman didn't try to track him down either. Everything just proceeded on to the next morning, which I find a bit unsettling. And, why did they have a security guy inside the interrogation room, and Joker left untied inside anyway? The security is a bit dumb there in my opinion, or is it that these corrupted officers actually intended to let Joker escape? (But Joker blasted all of them up anyway)

And when we talk about this movie, there's definitely one character that must be covered. It's not batman, he's just the standard superhero with cool weaponaries (and I want that Batmobile and bat-pod). I don't find anything that special with Batman, maybe except for his persistent principle of not killing anyone (not even Joker). And you probably know which character it is. Afterall, the hot topic now is on Joker. A really one-of-a-kind villian. He's not like Jigsaw Killer from Saw, though I see similarity in their fetish for mutilation and torture. Joker is more extreme, and is very actively involved in the stunts he pull, which really puts him in the limelight for he executes his plans almost personally. Joker is permanantly delirious and has really warped thoughts. Kudos to Heath Ledger for the excellent acting, but unfortunately we won't be seeing more of his films anymore. If you still don't know, he has died from an accidental drug overdose in January. Nonetheless, his acting is superb. Okay, to lighten the tone here, let's bring up a few of joker's quote here, starting with his epic "Why so serious?". And then, there is one "Madness is like gravity, all it takes is a little push." I commend joker for all his well executed plans, from robbing the bank to planning the arrest and escape from prison as though these are his playthings.

Anyway, here's a short video from the movie.

Notice that at about 5s into this short clip, the truck says "Laughter - The Best Medicine" with a red S drawn before laughter. What does that spell? Slaughter, you got it. It reminded me of this inspirational poster, featuring Shion from Higurashi no Naku Koro ni

Overall, this is one of the best action films I've watched so far and The Dark Knight has transformed from a kid's superhero to a movie this deep and dark, and no longer suitable for the younger audiences. It deals with themes such as the meaning behind power, politics and the true face of humanity.
My rating: 10/10 Must Watch!

"He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector. He's ... The Dark Knight"

Labels: Movie, Review

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Posted at 8:45 PM (0 comments)

TTGL Parallel Works 2 Sunday, July 13, 2008

Original Net Animation (ONA)

Theme: BafBaf! Sonna ni Moeru no ga... Suki Kai (Bafbaf! Do You Like Being That... Fired Up?)

Anime: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

Summary: Featuring viral and the pachinko machine! Content highly related to theme.

It's an ONA of the anime Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. It's just like another video where the scenes are planned out according to the music if you don't know the original story but you'll get more of a laugh if you do. And speaking of which, Parallel Works 1 offers the characters in a parallel universe and a whole different storyline, featuring the theme "Rap is a Man's soul!", which you will enjoy better probably if you watched the anime. Rap is a Man's soul is the piece with "Row row fight da powah!" epic phrase by the way.

Anyway, Gurren Lagann is a very good anime regardless of whether you like mecha or not. It's been described as epic by many and a guaranteed entertainment for that whole 20 minutes every episode. It's still at the top of my favourite list, and I'm not exaggerating. It's a gar anime with good character development and good storyline. But the most important thing that makes the anime epic is the way the protagonist can somehow overcome their situation no matter how and what. (Think power ranger or pokemon, but infinitely better.)

Labels: Videos