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'THE DARK KNIGHT' MOVIE REVIEW
Category:
Movie Reviews
Posted:
Friday, July 18, 2008
 Director: Christopher Nolan
Story and Screenplay: Christopher Nolan, Johnathan Nolan, David S. Goyer
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Eric Robers
Runtime: 142 minutes
MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and some menace
Genre: Action/Drama
Tagline: Why so serious?
The Dark Knight = Batman Begins x (Godfather II + Heat)
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 It's finally here! The most marketed, hyped and anticipated cinematic boner of the past million years is finally here! The Dark Knight opens in theaters everywhere today, and if you aren't peeing your pants with excitement, well, let's face it, you're probably dead - Rest in peace. For the rest of us still breathing, we've been counting down the breaths until that exciting moment when the lights go down, the popcorn's buttered, and we get that first glimpse of the famed bat symbol bursting through a fiery eruption of blue explosions - a very dramatic alternative to a movie's usual intro credits.
In a year bursting with action-packed comic book movies that all seem to rely on high-end CGI and two-dimensional character personalities, The Dark Knight raises the bar and sets a new standard not only for the genre, but also for quality film making itself. The story is intelligent, the direction is flawless, and thanks to the stellar performances of its magnificently talented cast, the characters are real. The Dark Knight isn't a film adaptation of a popular comic book. Instead, it's a complex analysis of the depths in human consciousness and the ever-winding waltz of good and evil as a single unit.
 In Christopher Nolan's sequel to the much-needed rebirth of the film-adapted Batman legend, Bruce Wayne (Bale) is well into his craft of guarding the good citizens of Gotham from the villainy that plagues the city. Significantly seasoned from the early years of Batman Begins, Wayne has grown tired with his portrayal of a lawless vigilante to the very people that he protects. As Lt. Jim Gordon (Oldman) and new district attorney Harvey Dent (Eckhart) find Batman's help beneficial to their cause, the people protest for his arrest. While Gordon and Dent look to Batman for hope, Batman seeks a distance from his dark plight in hopes for a chance at a normal life. Rachel Dawes (Gyllenhaal), torn between the love of both Wayne and Dent, single-handedly holds that hope. Despite the love triangle, Wayne sees Dent as a beacon of hope for Gotham, and as someone who can take on his heroic mantle as the new symbol of justice in Gotham. Bruce realizes that he cannot bear the dark cowl forever. In The Dark Knight, he comes to terms with his own mortality - much of which is reminiscent of Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns. Years of battling criminals ranging from lowly street thugs to the highest point of the Falcone mob family have been hard on Wayne's mind, body and soul. Batman has managed to clean up the streets and squeeze Gotham's criminal unit to its breaking point. With no other alternatives for their organization to regain their control over the city, Salvatore Maroni (Roberts) and his assembly of mobsters have no other alternative than to turn to the "freaks" to try and get rid of the Batman.
 But the evolution of Batman's protection doesn't come without a price. The Joker (Ledger) blankets a new, much more sinister shroud of terror over Gotham. Where in Batman Begins, the Scarecrow terrorized the city by invoking subconscious psychosis with the use of his fear toxin; the Joker takes it to the next level by reveling in masochistic pleasure of murder and sheer chaos. Even with the slightest trick of making a simple pencil disappear, the extent of the Joker's madness becomes grimly obvious. The Joker is an agent of chaos. Anarchy in its most pure form. While Batman attempts to unsheathe the Joker's malicious intent, he soon discovers that this new psychopath's motives simply don't exist. The Joker has no rules of engagement, and as he clearly explains to Dent, "I just do ... things." Discovering a formidable counterpart in Batman, the Joker tries to convince him to give into chaos, but Batman is an icon of an ideal. He has rules, but without letting go of everything that makes him the hero he is, he and the Joker are destined to battle each other forever.
 Cited as the major influence of the film, writers Nolan and his brother Johnathan drew much of their inspiration for the Joker and Two-Face from Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale's Eisner-winning mystery, The Long Halloween. A key element of the stories' comparison noted the disassembly of Carmine Falcone's crime organization, in which he has no other option than to get help from Gotham's "freaks." Story isn't the only trend that was inspired by this novel; imagery played a big part of the film's aggressive marketing campaign as well. One of the many viral marketing Websites displayed a decomposing pumpkin donning the bat-symbol as its mouth over the 2007 Halloween season, paying tribute to the cover of Issue #13 of the series. Although more of Dent's character traits mirror those of his role in The Long Halloween, the Joker's madness reflects more of the raging lunatic in Alan Moore's The Killing Joke, where, Nolan notes; "he can bring down anyone to his level."
 So much can be said about this movie, it's hard to find a starting point. The Dark Knight sweats Oscar nominations. Nolan, whose directorial talents have already gained massive accolades from his work on Batman Begins and Memento, has elevated himself to one of today's most visionary directors. Filming Gotham's city scenes primarily in Chicago over the span of 13 weeks, Nolan decided to film four of The Dark Knight's action sequences entirely in IMAX format. The Dark Knight is the first Hollywood movie to ever attempt this, and for the lucky ones who get to see it in IMAX theaters, you are sure to be completely awe-stricken.
 Aaron Eckhart's portrayal of the conflicted Harvey Dent is nothing less than extraordinary. The character's transformation from "Gotham's White Knight" to the dreaded and infamous Two-Face is both subtle and sensational. He strives to clean up the city's crime wave, all to become tragically disfigured and seduced by the sinister logic of the Joker. Even after his horrific disfigurement and psychological dismemberment, there is still an underlying hero fighting to do what he feels is the right thing. Like the Joker, Eckhart's version of Two-Face is completely departed from its Batman Forever predecessor. Dent believes that truth can only be attained by the hands of chance, and surrenders his decisions to a flip of his famed double-sided coin. But rather than mirroring the villainous character from the comic books, Eckhart's depiction of Two-Face amplifies Batman's crime-fighting plight. Dent, a true hero at heart, is a victim of his own ideals, and tragically foreshadows his own downfall when he explains to Wayne, "You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become a villain."
 Peter Travers' early Rolling Stone review dangled me right over the edge of excitement. He commended the work of Nolan's direction, and "could only speak superlatives of Ledger, who is mad-crazy-blazing brilliant as the Joker." Ledger peels away the clown and exposes the devilish reality of a hardcore sociopath. The Oscar buzz surrounding his performance boasts possibilities of "the first posthumous Oscar since Peter Finch won [Best Actor] for 1976's Network." There's almost no doubt that Ledger's performance at the very least will receive a nod toward the Best Supporting Actor category. According to The Dark Knight's Wiki page, "to prepare for the role, Ledger lived alone in a hotel room for a month, formulating the character's posture, voice and psychology, and kept a diary, in which he recorded the Joker's thoughts and feelings to guide himself during his performance." Ledger conjures demons deeply hidden within his own personal psyche to twist the Joker into a completely new, and much more devilish psychopath than the Tim Burton version we grew up with. (Not to discredit Nicholson's portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime from the 1989 Batman, because at that time, Nicholson did the very same thing, and did it incredibly well.) But this is 2008, we're all much more edgy, and we need our characters to evolve with us. Ledger's Joker dances on the very brink of human insanity. You can see it from the film's prologue. The way he staggers when he walks. The voice that cackles through the darkest halls of his mind. How tragic that such a talented performer, who was seemingly donned early on in his career as just another pretty boy actor, who received critical acclaim and a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for Brokeback Mountain, died at the young age of 28, at a time when he gave quite possibly the best performance of his lifetime. It's no doubt that Ledger's sudden death fueled the film's hype machine. Fortunately, it didn't overshadow his brilliant performance one bit.
 Christian Bale once again reaffirms that he is the true dark spirit of Bruce Wayne. The powerful burden that Wayne bears emanates through every growl of Bale's performance. Batman, donning a newly designed costume with sectioned padding and a separated helmet, is allowed more fluid movements when kicking ass - and it definitely helps. Maggie Gyllenhaal joins the cast to replace alien queen Katie Holmes, and brings a little spice to the role. As both Dent's assistant and love interest, Rachel Dawes finally plays an important part in the story this time around, as Gyllenhaal stretches the role beyond a mere damsel in distress. Gary Oldman continues to expand his inexplicable talents as one of the greatest actors of our generation. Both Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman bring their A-games as Wayne's lifelines. Their quick wit and unshakeable support for Batman's quest humanizes their characters beyond what you've read in the comics. It's virtually impossible to find any fault in this lead cast. Their ability to virtually become these characters makes the viewer empathize with each part they play in this breathtaking and tragic struggle.
 There is a peak moment at the end of the film's second act where everything completely falls apart all at once, and combined with Hanz Zimmer and James Newton Howard's ingenious musical composition, creates an ambiance of utter tragedy followed by complete silence that made the hair on my arms stand up. The complexity of Zimmer and Howard's musical score parallels that of the characters' psyche. Both Zimmer and Howard composed the film's heroic theme beyond that of Danny Elfman's original catchy score. The composition, which heavily features demonic brass and thundering percussion, accompanies the "complexity and darkness of the character" precisely as intended.
 To many of us, Batman stands as the world's finest manifestation of the ultimate hero. He is a man without super-capabilities of any sort. A man whose only power is his wealth of intelligence and his unshakable determination to protect the innocent people of Gotham, and rid the plagued city of crime and corruption. A man bound by the desolate and dark areas of his personality. A formidable pillar of justice in a disgusting world of corruption and fraud. Batman is what we strive to be. The Dark Knight is a classic cinematic tragedy, and every bit the masterpiece you were hoping it to be. It's truly difficult to imagine any fan of the Bat, let alone top-quality cinematography, being disappointed by this amazing film. I'm sure that many will share the notion that The Dark Knight is arguably the greatest Batman movie ever made, as well as a modern divine tragedy in all of its cinematic glory.
 Bonus stuff: Because you couldn't possibly imagine being any more excited about finally getting to see The Dark Knight, the rad dudes at geekologie.com have found a picture of what Batman's Tumbler might look like as an Autobot. Be forewarned, viewing this image will probably make you achieve geek enlightenment.
- Micah E.
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