[fatso]

Well, I loved it. As many have pointed out, the acting was great, and Heath Ledger alone is worth the price of admission. Creepiest villain of any film in a long, long time.

Jammies I'll definitely agree with you that the editing was troubling. There were jump shots that didn't make sense, and a lot of scenes seemed to end a little too abruptly for my liking. I would have liked, as well, if the dialogue in some scenes would have been slown down a bit, just to savour the visuals and the dialogue.

And yes, I'll even agree with you that some of the plots were a little ridiculous. But, that's to be expected I think.

I disagree with your point, though, about style vs. substance. I thought the whole point of the film was style AS substance. If the first one was an exploration of the underlying psychological/mythical origins of the Batman, the second one was an examination of its gritty surface reality. In the end, all of his inner turmoil and noble intentions didn't really amount to much more than beating on thugs and scaring the crap out of many citizens. Ok, but it's working: crime is down. But what's the logical conclusion of his actions? Eventually his goonery, for lack of a better word, would get unhinged from any intentions, especially when those intentions, like his identity, are secret... it would be violence for violence sakes. Enter the Joker who philosophically is the opposite of the Batman, but in a weird way, is his practical 'better'.

For example, the Batman is so deeply in his own head, trying to fight that initial trauma of his parents loss, that he's never really been fighting the city... just himself. We know that, because we've seen that side of him. That trauma is the same reason why he's always pining over Rachel. I don't think he really loves her... how could he? He just loves what she symbolizes: his lost youth.

Conversely, the Joker is a destructive force without any reason. We're not provided with any reason or truth behind his actions. We're not even given his origins, as he changes the story of his scars throughout the film. THere's simply nothing there but sadistic style... destroy everything in site, with no substance behind it. And that's what this film was about to me anyways... maybe I'm reading too much into it.

I liked 'Iron Man' as well, but it couldn't hold a candle to this... at all.