In Nolan We Trust

This past January, I put together a list of the 12 films I was anticipating most this year.  I haven't seen all the films on the list that have been released, which reading some reviews was probably for the best.  But last night I saw my most highly anticipated movie of the year, the Dark Knight Rises.
     My original reservations centered around Christopher Nolan's casting of Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle (Catwoman).  These reservations are as unfounded here as they were when he cast Heath Ledger as the Joker.  She portrayed, in my opinion, the best rendition of Catwoman that I have seen.  Although considering this was one of the competitors it wasn't a terribly difficult task.
     This film had me from the opening scene, where the villain Bane shows himself as a masterful tactician.  Well to be honest, this film had me from Batman Begins and it would've taken an epic failure on the order of Spiderman 3 to crush it (seriously Topher Grace is Venom and Toby Maguire was emo, what the eff were you thinking Raimi?).  It does a tremendous job of tying Nolan's Batman trilogy together and almost caused me to call into work today so I could stay home and watch the other two films.   A trilogy is supposed to have an overarching story over the series, and this was achieved perfectly.  The Dark Knight Rises is not as good as the Dark Knight, but I think that has more to do with the Joker just being a stronger character then Bane.  Though Bane was phenomenally played by Tom Hardy and was certainly a bad ass, the Joker is Batman's arch-nemesis.  One can only imagine how the film would've been different if not for the untimely death of Heath Ledger.  The trilogy did peek with the Dark Knight, but the Dark Knight Rises is a tremendous conclusion to Nolan's dark Batman universe.
     My only real complaint is simply that Christopher Nolan's time with Batman is over and although there is always the possibility (more like high probability since the film pulled in 160 mil in it's first weekend) that another director will pick up the cowl, I find it hard to believe that they will do as exquisite a job.  Hopefully it won't be turned over to Joel Schumacher and his nippled batsuit again.
     Now all I can do is wait until the Dark Knight Rises is released onto blu-ray so I can watch the three films back to back, as they were intended...wonder if I can pre-order it yet.

Oh sweet Jesus, yes.

Too IP to be Square

Ip Man (2008)
Yip Man (original title)

currently #232 on the new list
From IMDb

A semi-biographical account of Yip Man, the first martial arts master to teach the Chinese martial art of Wing Chun.

Ip Man is a Chinese film starring Donnie Yen and directed by Wilson Yip.  I watched the film in it's native Chinese with English subtitles.

Ever since I was a child watching the Karate Kid, I have had a love for martial arts films.  In fact one of the first DVDs I ever purchased was Legend of the Drunken Master.  So when deciding what film to start my mini-marathon with, I wanted to choose something that I knew had a high probability of at least entertaining me for the couple hours it played.  Ip Man delivered.

The first act of the film feels as if it could have starred Jackie Chan, filled with moments such as Ip Man fighting another master with a bamboo feather duster.  It is light-hearted and was very remniscent of films like the Legend of the Drunken Master.  But as the film moves into the second act it takes on a darker tone.  This is marked with the Japanese invasion and occupation of China in the 1930's.  Ip Man falls from his prestigious position in society to a level where he must scratch together a living for him and his family doing whatever jobs are available.

Ip Man connected on all levels with me.  The fight choreography was fantastic and was grounded in reality (as much as martial arts movies ever are) unlike films such as Croaching Tiger Hidden Dragon.  The story was powerful and heartfelt which is all the more impressive since I discovered at the conclusion of the film that it is based on a true story.  How historically accurate it is, I am unsure but it still adds something to the film.  The performances were exceptional especially compared to other films in the genre.  Donnie Yen and notably Lynn Hung, who plays Ip Man's wife, were quite well done.

If you you are a fan of the martial arts genre of films, or are just a fan of action movies in general, stop what you are doing now and go watch this film.  You'll thank me later.