Very Dark Knight

Last week I saw both the new Batman flick and "Hellboy 2." Each film is based on a comic book, each film featured no real blood, sex or profanity, and each landed a PG-13 from the ever-arbitrary and mostly irrelevant MPAA. Yet "Hellboy," being cartoonish and silly, probably deserved a PG, while "The Dark Knight," being sadistic and intense (replete with numerous threats to women and children, not to mention lots of innocent folks being tortured, tormented or otherwise terrorized) probably could have passed for an R. Which would have been remarkable, given the lack of all the usual things that land an R.

Yet if the innocent and beautiful "Once" can get an R, then why not "The Dark Knight?" Just goes to show once again the hypocrisy of the ratings board, which would stamp a restricted sign on a film that mutters "fuck" once or twice in a thick Irish brogue, yet gives a PG-13 to a film featuring a madman that slashed a smile into the faces of his victims with a knife, impales someone's head on a pencil, and blows up an (empty?) hospital. Among other things. But, hey, he never curses, so bring the whole family, y'all!