When You Gotta Post, Post With A Smile!
Last night, ( knight, even ), I went to my local cinema to watch The Dark Knight. And I can happily say that I join the legions of cinema goers who think it was a fantastic film, and utterly deserves its box office success, its high rating on the Internet Movie Database, etc.
So it's time for the lowdown on said film. For this review, I'll take the characters Bruce Wayne/Batman, The Joker and Harvey Dent.
Batman/Christian Bale: Now I don't know if you've seen the previous Batman films, starring Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer and George "Why am I Batman?" Clooney. Of those, none comes close to surpassing Christian Bale, in my opinion. Michael Keaton was able to play the role of cheeky billionaire playboy well, and Val Kilmer ( partly just due to the script of Batman Forever ) handled the psychological stuff similarly well.
And George Clooney...well, Batman and Robin is generally accepted to be the reason the Batman franchise needed to be revived by Christopher Nolan. Like in Batman Begins, Bale is a great Bruce Wayne, even if there's more proof of that in the previous movie than in TDK. An interesting decision carried over from Begins is to alter Batman's voice until it becomes a fiercely deep growl, which is almost comic at first. It's clear Batman hasn't ever tried taking throat lozenges. But after a while, it's clear that it's all part of his attempt to intimidate criminals and to replace Bale's softer accent. In all, I have no problems with the Batman. Moving on to he who stole the show, Heath Ledger.
The Joker/Heath Ledger: It is a terrible shame that our star here will not be making another Batman film. Clearly, he would have been asked to return, and the fight between Joker and Batman would continue for the rest of eternity, similar to the comics, or the Adam West Show. Jack Nicholson made a terrific Joker back in 1989, but times have changed, and Nolan's grittier, more brutal Gotham City calls for a more eerie villian. He has the one-liners and punch-lines of the original Joker, along with the deranged smile, ( although the origins of it have been changed ) but is a lot more psychotic than JN's portrayal. The tension in The Dark Knight that is sustained throughout the film is mainly down to the unpredictability of the Joker, liable to do anything in his twisted games of chaos. There are some terrific scenes ( my favourite being "Do you want to know how I got these scars..?" ) and his messy make-up and catchphrases have the potential to become iconic. Heath was funny, but he was also fearsome. And far more brutal than any other Batman bad guy thus far.
Harvey Dent/Aaron Eckhart: I'll tell you something. I believe in Harvey Dent.
Well, I did believe...
According to my dad, ( and not Wikipedia, for once ) Aaron Eckhart used to be in a lot of made-for-TV films, back in the day. I hadn't heard of him before this, but I'm pretty sure The Dark Knight will do anything but harm his career. In this film, Harvey Dent is the DA who is intent on rounding up the hoodlums of Gotham, who are starting to take over the city. Again, Eckhart impresses, proving a likable character until his er..downfall. I'm trying not to give away any spoilers, but if you're a Batman fan, you'll already know what happens to the prosecutor.
And rounding up the rest of the cast. The love interest, of both Wayne and Dent is pretty weak, I'd have to say. Her character is Rachel Dawes, but I can't be bothered checking up her real name. She replaces Katie Holmes from the last film as Bruce's life-long friend, but there's nothing much to see here.. There's Gary Oldman ( Sirius Black, folks! ) who turns in a strong performance as Commissioner Gordon.. And Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman provide drinks/comic relief/Q-like gadgets.
All in all? A brilliant film. Compared to the other superhero films that are churned out by Hollywood these days, Batman is more serious, more realistic, and depicts a city which has been ransacked by crime. There's the sense of an underworld which doesn't exist in Spiderman, Hulk, etc. The villains are OTT, but remain a sense of realism. Batman, too, is a more powerful symbol for our society, to be deep for a second. He doesn't have any special powers. He can't fly ( well. Without technology ) and has to do things the hard way, by building it himself or using his own ingenuity. The film is shot using IMAX technology, apparently, which contributes to the excellent cinematography, as there are wonderful sweeping city shots and some of the best explosions I've seen. The plot is simple-the Joker is working with the mob ( sorta ) to kill the Batman, and he's out to cause chaos for Gotham. "A new breed of criminal, " he says of himself. It's the characters in this case, that strengthen the plot, as their motives/personalities are the cause of each new convolution and detail in the plot.
Following all this, there's only one thing left to say.
Why so serious?