The Dark Knight is currently poised to destroy every major box office record in the history of cinema. Having already smashed opening day and weekend records, the trends indicate it may overtake 1997’s Titanic as the high-grossing film of all time. This is an impressive feat for any movie, but my interest is held by the fact that it’s a Batman movie.

The concept of Batman has always had a place in pop culture, constantly reinventing and adapting itself. In the early comics, it was the darker approach of a regular guy righting wrongs from the shadows that caught the attention of a country already growing weary of the boy scout image portrayed by Superman and the characters he inspired. In the 1960s, there was the camp TV series that brought Batman and Robin to the public forefront with a take on the characters that would forever stain any serious discussion with “POW”s and “WHAM”s and “Holy this and that, Batman!” Counter to how the Dark Knight was portrayed in the original comics, this version provided a new lexicon for reporters to use when talking about anything related to comics (even now, as the public gets used to the darker, grimier version brought to us by Christopher Nolan). Tim Burton blended the dark and the camp in 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns. The other pre-Nolan Batfilms don’t warrant mention (aside from their resaturation of the stains on the character’s image). The various Batman cartoons have all had their whack at the legend, most notably Batman: The Animated Series, a show that was kid- and fanboy-approved.

Batman, it seems, has always been around, forever adapting and changing. So why is it that The Dark Knight has risen to such mind-boggling heights? While ever-present, Batman has never been as popular or admired as the superheroes in brighter tights like Superman and Spider-Man. More than likely, The Dark Knight has set the world on fire based simply on the fact that it never lets itself act like a superhero movie. Unlike its predecessor Batman Begins, which only started acting like a comic book film when the big microwave bomb was headed into the heart of Gotham, The Dark Knight is a thriller, an action film, and a sociopolitical allegory wrapped into a tightly-weaved (yet needlessly long) film.

Batman Begins wasn’t without its own allegorical moments. A terrorist group (one that literally caused terror with a fear gas) using a public transportation method to crash down everything in mid-town Gotham? That story has been lived through, although admittedly with less Gary Oldman. But The Dark Knight sets itself up from the get-go. Batman is America (vascillating between its citizens and its government), the Joker is terror, the Underworld is the rest of the world. The Joker is wild, unpredictable, and impossible to reason with. Batman goes to extreme lengths (such as essentially wire-tapping the entirety of Gotham City) as way to restore order. At the same time, the ultimate symbol of hopeful justice, Harvey Dent, is corrupted along the way. Even the Joker’s creation, which we assume is a direct result of Batman’s presence in Gotham, rings of the true reasons behind the terror attacks we’ve faced in this country. In the end, we’re watching our world on screen for two and a half hours, played out with puppets in armor and purple suits.

The resolution, however, is ideal. And it’s the build to that resolution is what keeps people in their seats. Batman (America) catches the terrorist leader (The Joker) using his own means. He becomes reviled in the name of How It Should Be Done, but it’s for a good reason. As the credits roll, we see Batman in the perfect position. Safer yet still living by his own terms. He lost some things that were important to him, like his girl and the shining, scarred version of Justice represented by Harvey Dent. Are these losses acceptable? That’s to be determined in the final film of Nolan’s planned trilogy. One that will, no doubt, make another outlandish payday for those involved and hopefully frighten, entertain, and empathize with the American public. As long as it doesn’t suffocate itself in convoluted plots like Pirates 3 or Spider-Man 3, I think we’re in for another treat.

It’s still amazing to think that Batman will likely sit perched atop the list of film records, cape billowing in the wind. To a point it helps legitamize the industry of comic books, but it transcends that “genre” with such facility that it’s hard to even apply its success to its source. It would be great to see a reversal, in fact, and see some comics coming out that match The Dark Knight in its twisting plot-lines and solid, real-world characterization of unreal characters but using those elements unique to graphic storytelling to take it even farther. There are a few out there, but they are few and far between. The immediate thought is Watchmen, but even that is so grounded in the fantastic that it’s hard to compare.

What The Dark Knight teaches us is that source material and flash are irrelevant when you have a solid interpretation, a masterful storyteller, and the right amount of social resonance. I’m not saying I want to see a Superman movie fitting the same template, but The Dark Knight makes me crave more intensity in my moviegoing, not just in the action sense, but in the emotional and psychological. Tell me a story I already know, but do it in a format and a way I never knew could work so well. Teach me about myself and the world around me. Make me think and cringe and cheer all at once. The Dark Knight did it. And it’s going to be as much of a legend as Batman himself ever was.

It took them 20 years, but Monster Squad is finally out on DVD. I remember watching this movie over and over again on tape and HBO, soaking in every moment like a Gillman soaking in swamp water. I watched it again last night to see if it would hold up and, somehow, it got better. If you’ve never heard of or seen Monster Squad, that’s a personality flaw in need of immediate correction. Because the Wolfman has nards. And that’s important.

I did get sad during the bonus features after realizing that Fat Kid died 10 years ago of pneumonia. As we watched the retrospective and they talked about everyone else, I quipped “Oh, watch…they’re not showing Fat Kid because he’s dead.” Then they started showing slow motion clips of Fat Kid whining, whimpering, and brandishing a shot gun with soft music playing behind it. Then I knew that I was right. Poor Fat Kid.

His name…was Horace.

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I have to warn you now that the term “douche bag” is thrown around rather regularly during this discourse.

Original E-Mail: “Be advised that [such and such client] will soon change [IDs]. Stand by.”

My Awesome Response: “Red Five standing by.” And then it continues (with me in bold).

“Red Five is Luke Skywalker. I don’t think you are as whiny as Luke Skywalker. ”

“Well, thank you. I appreciate that. What was Wedge? Red Two? I’ll be Wedge.”

“Just don’t be Porkins, because he has the worst name of all time.”

“You know, Porkins was also the corrupt cop in Batman.”

“The one who said ‘Where you been spendin’ your nights Jack?’ Dang. At least he got smoked in that movie too.”

“Yeah, Wedge is Red Two according to wikipedia. Who said ‘Just a peckin’ on the surface?’ I want to be that guy. Wasn’t Porkins the guy how was trying to pull up and crashed? Douche bag.”

“Porkins was the fat guy, making his name all the more unfortunate. Seriously, though, the rebels lived on a moon with limited resources. How was there a fat guy? And I always thought it was “just impacted on the surface.” That, I believe, was Red Leader. I think he led the first attempt.”

“I don’t know who that was, nor do I really know what that guy says. You said ‘peckin’ and I recently said ’skimmed,’ but ‘impacted’ also crossed my mind just now. either way, Porkins was a douche bag in both Star Wars and Batman.”

“True. Impacted it is. there’s also a fat guy on Lost, which I always wondered about because they’re on an island. which is kind of like a moon with limited resources where fat douche bags who blow up and then play corrupt cops in Batman are found.”

“It’s sort of baffling in the first season, but then they find the magic hatch that’s got a huge food storehouse. Maybe Porkins didn’t have his own quarters and slept in the rebellion’s rebellious pantry. And was a sleep snacker. A rebellious sleep snacker.”

“It’s the ‘Mysterious Fat Guy When There are Limited Resources’ Hollywood phenomenon.”

“Ha ha…I might have to put this whole conversation on my website.”

“Dude this is hil-AR-ious. Put it on the website. Did Porkins fly the X-wing or Y-wing? Brandon?”

“X-Wing. He was in the Red Squadron, after all. Gosh.”

When people ask me what I do at work all day, a smile always crosses my face. “Oh you know,” I’ll say behind a coy facade, “the usual. Same ol’, same ol’. Anyone want to watch Star Wars and Batman back-to-back!?”

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The Nightmare Collection.

I’ve spent the last several days watching seven of the crappiest films ever captured on celluloid and enjoying every blood-soaked, tongue-phoned, claw-scratched moment of it. I thought you’d like to know what I’ve been doing with my time. Because I know you worry.

By the way…don’t fall asleep.

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Rent played a very important role in my life. The lyrics bolstered my courage to take advantage of an important interpersonal situation that presented itself, as “Another Day” gave way to “No Day But Today” (I know I’m losing non-fans here, but whatever). Rent gave a bond to me and several people in a way I couldn’t have imagined before. The liberating feeling that really getting Rent provides can takes a slightly conservative somewhat reserved college roommate and have him wearing girls’ pajama pants at Wal-Mart at 3:00 in the morning or howling out songs in a small amphitheatre at 4:00. There’s a punch and power to Rent that if you haven’t spent time getting to know it, seeing it, and really welcoming its lessons, can’t translate to other forms.

But, man, I think they’ve done it. Director Christopher Colombus (Home Alone? Harry Potter? GREMLINS?) would have never been my first choice (for no justifiable reason…I just wouldn’t have thought of that). But watching the newly-released trailer gives me a really, REALLY good feeling about it. Check it out here:

So? Goosebumps? If not, it’s okay…you’re not all dorked up about this flick like I am. Trust me, though, you’ll want to see it…and you’ll enjoy it. I’ll be talking about it again as the date approaches. Maybe we can trade thoughts on it in Mid-November after we’ve all seen it.

Oh yeah, the movie’s official site is here.

The plot was a thing of sitcom silliness (with a touch of 1959’s Doris Day/Rock Hudson film Pillow Talk) involving a womanizing playboy magazine columnist (Ewan McGregor) taking on a simple, down-home false identity to trick the author of a book decrying love (Renée Zellweger) into falling in love.

I liked the movie quite a bit. It was nothing more or less than the zany comedy I expected it to be. And for a movie set in the early 60s, it’s incredibly sexual…both in the “Austin Powers” style of images coming together and in verbal miscommunications leading a secretary, for example, to believe that it’s more than McGregor’s sock that’s 16 inches long.

McGregor is a charming if slightly quirky leading man, not quite the man’s man of a Cary Grant or Rock Hudson, but slick enough to slide across the screen without looking goofy. In the guise of his character’s alter-ego, McGregor played a fantastic backwoods, naive southern astronaut in a charming if slightly quirky way. Zellweger was entertaining, but one more hammy look of shock or moment of puckered lips and I may have had to just start looking at other parts of the screen every time she appeared. She didn’t ruin the movie by any means and, in fact, kept up the illusion of the 1960’s era romantic comedy. I just felt like I was seeing more Zellweger than Novak most of the time and that always grates on me.

David Hyde Pierce (formerly of Frasier) and Sarah Paulson (currently of Deadwood) put in some of film’s best performances as the sidekicks of the unlikely primary couple. I’ve loved David Hyde Pierce’s work since first seeing him on the short-lived Norman Lear sitcom The Powers that Be and he was just as flustered and engaging as ever. Paulson, who I haven’t really seen in very much, was a good even match for Pierce’s goofiness.

All in all, I was in the mood for fun without strings and got what I wanted out of Down with Love. The flick’s take on twists and surprise endings is cute, if a little long-winded. Enjoy!