.::BATMAN-ON-FILM.COM OPINION - A Review of the 1st TDK Trailer (December 14, 2007)::.

Whoa, wow and holy you-know-what. THE DARK KNIGHT trailer -all 2 minutes and 5 seconds of it -- is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

That very, very tiny voice of cynicism in my head about TDK POSSIBLY not living up to BATMAN BEGINS can now just shut up. Permanently. If I'm this stoked about the trailer, I can't imagine how incredible the full length film will be!

The footage feels very close to what we saw inBEGINS but you don't get a sense of the plot. That means the trailer does what it's supposed to do -- teases you and gets you excited. TDK is just as dark as BEGINS - and that's a good thing.

Not only did I see it on the big screen, I got to see it several times via the shaky bootlegged version that has infiltrated the Net.

But that doesn't matter. This baby rocks!

Remember the TV coverage of the tractor-trailer being flipped over in downtown Chicago? It's there. And so is what appears to be a host of Gotham SWAT team members and a lot of buildings exploding in Gotham.

Remember how The Joker laughs at the end of the teaser trailer that was released last July? Fuggitaboutit! Heath Ledger nails an even creepier laugh this time around. Twice.

Remember the "Why so serious?" tag line for the promo posters and the TDK viral campaign? Ledger's delivery is creepy -- very worthy of a psychopath.

The trailer just flies by!

There's a lot of footage of The Batman speeding through the streets of Chicago, I mean, Gotham. There's a couple quick shots of Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes, but I never spotted Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent, much less Two Face.

You get a good sense of how Ledger will handle The Joker with one of his voice-over quotes:

Bruce Wayne obviously will be dealing with some self-doubt when he says: "People are dying. What would you have me do?"

Alfred's response is simple and reassuring: "Endure. You could be the outcast. You could make the choice no one else could face. The right choice."

Bruce obviously gets his Bat-mojo back when we later hear Morgan Freeman's Lucius Fox say: "Now that's more like it, Mr. Wayne."

The juiciest scene is when The Joker says, apparently to Dawes: "You got a little fight in you. I like that." And out of nowhere, the Batman is face to face with his archenemy. "Then you'll love me," he growls.

"You changed things. Forever. There's no going back. To them, you're just a freak -- like me!"

It ends with another Joker voice over: "Let's put a SMILE on that face." That's certainly no problem with this trailer!

July 18, 2008 -- Why can't you get here sooner?

BOF contributor Cary Ashby writes a twice-monthly comic book column for the "Norwalk Reflector." He is the newspaper’s crime reporter. Cary has an extensive collection of Batman comics and has been an avid fan for nearly 30 years. He can be reached via e-mail at cashby@norwalkreflector.com.