First Review Confirms That ‘The Dark Knight’ Will Be Awesome, Probably -- Vulture -- Entertainment & Culture Blog -- New York Magazine

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. has given Rolling Stone film critic Peter Travers first crack at The Dark Knight and, unsurprisingly, he loved it: "Heads up: a thunderbolt is about to rip into the blanket of bland we call summer movies," he writes. "The haunting and visionary Dark Knight soars on the wings of untamed imagination. It's full of surprises you don't see coming. And just try to get it out of your dreams." In a three-and-a-half-star review, Travers raves pretty much about everything and campaigns for a posthumous Oscar for Heath Ledger's final completed performance as the Joker: "Miles from Jack Nicholson's broadly funny take on the role in Tim Burton's 1989 Batman, Ledger takes the role to the shadows, where even what's comic is hardly a relief."

Travers's rave would appear to (mostly) corroborate the pants-shitting fan review posted on Ain't It Cool News yesterday ("The best thing I can think of for comparison is The Godfather Part II"), though Hollywood Elsewhere blogger Jeffrey "Ellen Page Not Doable Enough" Wells is awaiting further confirmation. "[Travers has] responded in his usual eager-beaver town-crier way, applying lotsa passion and saliva and goo-goo gah-gah," says Wells. "Knight may be a good or even great film, or at least a wild slam-banger, but there's no trusting Travers. About anything. Especially when he's the first one out of the gate."

Since we can't really envision any possible reality in which Dark Knight isn't totally awesome, we're inclined to side with Travers and Ain't It Cool News on this one. But we've been warned, we guess.

The Dark Knight [Rolling Stone]
Travers-ing Knight [Hollywood Elsewhere]
A truly lucky and blessed bastard has seen THE DARK KNIGHT and damn... I'm so frickin' jealous! [Ain't It Cool News]
Jeffrey Wells Says Peter Travers Not To Be Trusted Over 'Dark Knight' [Playlist]