The Dark Knight

Holy shit. This is what you'd have if William Blake had drawn comic books: not just an action hero story, but a true vision of Hell--a realistic vision of Hell, an all-too-possible vision of Hell. The mayhem in Gotham City is what happens when the "terrorists" stop having rational motivations; when it's all about madness & randomness, when the violent act is the only end in and of itself. No wonder this movie has affected so many people (to the tune of so many millions of dollars). I too was blown away, not so much by this film as a piece of moviemaking; more so for the deep waters in which it treads. There's so much here that you can almost forget the amazing performance by Heath Ledger (if not for the publicity, you simply wouldn't know it was him under that make-up) and forgive the few minor faults. I wouldn't necessarily call it a masterpiece, but this is truly a film worth seeing. Posted .

Brokeback Mountain

This movie is totally gay! There, I said it. Of course, it's got lots of gorgeous scenery, beautifully filmed, and you even get to see Anne Hathaway's tits, so what's not to love? Oh, right--the ass pounding. Well, setting aside orientation questions, the film itself has a solid story at its kernel, but feels a little stretched out, possibly an attempt to be "epic." That, plus the slowed down pace, can make this one tough to stay with, though the fine performances of the leads (Ledger and Gyllenhaal) as the conflicted cowboys are themselves worth watching. Probably worth your time, unless you really don't like gay cowboy movies.

The Brothers Grimm

We've come to expect more from Terry Gilliam than this, but here the problems lie mostly with the writing. The story is stupid, sloppy, and nonsensical, and contributes the lion's share in making for a flat and tedious movie. Gilliam's not the only sad sight here; good performances by Matt Damon and especially Heath Ledger were wasted in this effort. Everyone's heart was in the right place, apparently, but that's not always enough.

Monster's Ball

One of the most melancholy movies I have ever watched. But that's not a pan, just the nature of the beast. Despite its heaviness, the story ultimately gets past all of its pain, anger, and sorrow to bring us somewhere near redemption. Not to be missed by any serious film watcher.

A Knight's Tale

A bit disorienting at first, with the medieval setting and rock 'n' roll soundtrack, but once you get past the anachronisms, you get a thoroughly entertaining and intelligent movie. Great characters all around; and of course special pats on the back to Paul Bettany, who plays an outrageous Geoffrey Chaucer and just about steals the entire show.

The Patriot

A movie which too often indulges in overkill, though it still makes its point: many hard sacrifices were made in order to found this country. Mel Gibson gives stud-in-training Heath Ledger some lessons in being an action hero. Overall, worth a look.

10 Things I Hate About You

I can't really justify it, but I actually did like this movie. I guess I'm just a sucker for Shakespeare in any form (it's based on The Taming of the Shrew).