“The Dark Knight” [18 Jul 2008] - dir. Christopher Nolan

• View date: 29 Jul 2008

• Format: IMAX

• Location: Irvine Spectrum

• Documented: 30 Dec 2017

I don’t know which viewing this was, but I suspect it may have been one of the first viewings in what likely became an eventual 6-7x over the course of 2008.

While “The Dark Knight” has understandably fallen off my top 10 lists over the past decade, I still vividly remember the awe and haunting feeling left by Heath Ledger’s uncompromising performance. Every time he came on screen, it was like the breath was yanked out of your lungs; all you could do was stare at evil incarnate, laughing at your demise.

I rewatched “The Dark Knight” both to revisit the thrill of that unabashed terror, and to learn from Nolan’sfilmmaking style. I will say this movie was one of the first times I would revisit and rewatch movies in the theatre multiple times, for various reasons at the time. In the case of ten years ago, it was likely the sensation and realization that gravitas of my own meaning and making could be inferred and assigned to whatever I was watching, entertainment notwithstanding.