Violence makes for dark night in cineplex

This summer, in terrific films and craven ones, violence threatens the populace. Why should this season be any different? Think of the Joker, fomenting terrorism and nerve-racking pathology in “The Dark Knight” (terrific). Think of Angelina Jolie slaughtering all those deserving losers, or James McAvoy shooting the wings off a fly in gargantuan computer-generated close-up, in “Wanted” (craven). Think of Pierce Brosnan slaughtering “SOS” in “Mamma Mia!” Now that “The Dark Knight” is on its way toward sleek Goth superstardom and enormous profits, it’s a good time to note that not everyone is in love with its nightmarish vision of a world without order. There are those who find its aura of foreboding and free-floating menace, spiked with some outre acts of sadism (the Joker’s disappearing-pencil bit, over in an eye-blink but... [read full story]