A Joker and a Dance

My review of The Dark Knight is going to be short because it will be like all the other ones...positive. The movie fulfilled expectations. It was, perhaps, a little too long, but it remained so captivating that I didn't notice the length that much. As expected, Heath Ledger's Joker was the highlight of the film. His performance was not at all any better because I knew he was dead, rather, it made it more painful to watch because this was his last performance. It couldn't have been any better.

If you haven't seen the movie and want to avoid spoilers, don't read the next paragraph.

How do you have another Batman movie with the Joker still alive? You don't. Or you cleverly make it a trilogy and just don't address the fact that the Joker isn't killed off in The Dark Knight. This is a problem because there is no replacing Ledger's interpretation of Joker.

Another movie that you should see, and one that is much better if you are looking for a movie that provokes thought and succeeds in more than merely entertaining you, is War Dance. This is a new addition to the documentary DVD section at the Oak Creek Library, and a much welcomed addition. War Dance chronicles a group of schoolchildren from the Patongo refugee camp in northern Uganda who travel to Kampala for an annual music festival. Not surprisingly, this movie was incredibly sad, but if you stick with it through the hellish testimonies of how the orphans lost their parents, brothers, or sisters, you will be rewarded with not only a hopeful story, but one that spurs action. I really can't recommend it enough.

Try to watch it and not cry. You will fail.