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The Dark Knight


The Dark Knight
Christopher Nolan 2008



Ledger's swan song lights up Nolan masterpiece.

Superheroes are like sports teams, in that most people have a favourite, one they follow, idolize, and root for. My crusader of choice has always been Judge Dredd, the leather clad lawman and fascist anti hero, who appears to of recently had his motorbike stolen. Ever since Danny Cannon made a complete pigs ear of the Dredd film back in 1995 however, I've become bitter, I've developed a beef with the superhero movie, I'm jealous. Why should Spiderman, The X-Men, and Batman have all the fun? Well I suppose it's because like Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Liverpool, they've simply got the most fans.

Sigh
...life is just too cruel sometimes...but on with the review...

For those of you who've been living under a rock for the last six months, 'The Dark Knight' is Christopher Nolan's eagerly anticipated follow up to his 2005 success 'Batman Begins'. That film completely reinvented the Batman franchise, in that it effectively fleshed out the origins of the character, without sacrificing a climactic story arc. It was Nolan's dark and gritty approach however, that was most welcomed by the fans. A style all too lacking in Joel Schumacher's campy 1997 fiasco 'Batman and Robin', a film that nearly put an end to the series.

'The Dark Knight' picks up the story some time after the events of 'Batman Begins'. Gotham has a new hero in Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), an Elliot Ness like whiter than white DA, who's taking down the mob piece by piece. The city also has a new enemy, The Joker (Heath Ledger), a criminally insane lunatic who we're introduced to in the films opening sequence; an elaborate bank robbery. Batman (Christian Bale) is conspicuously absent, still viewed on with suspicion by the public, preferring to stay in the shadows, watching on approvingly as Dent clears house. But when the Joker strikes up an uneasy alliance with the mob, his criminal activity escalates threatening Dent's progress, and Batman is forced to intervene.

To call that the tip of the iceberg would be an understatement, 'The Dark Knight' is complex and multilayered, with a depth of narrative rarely seen in todays action pictures. Christopher and Johnathan Nolan's script juggles numerous character and plot threads with jaw dropping virtuosity. Indeed this is a film that demands your undivided attention, and most likely multiple viewings in order to fully grasp its magnitude. The film presents some profound moral dilemmas, satirizes political and media manipulation, and asks serious questions of the motivation that lies behind Batman, Dent and The Joker. The fact that it does all this, and still manages to be thrillingly entertaining, is wherein lies its genius. You'll want to see this movie again, I already do, and as I hinted earlier, I don't even like Batman.

When it comes to the performances, looking at the list of actors involved is like a casting director's wet dream. With the likes of Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman providing assured support, the leads are allowed free reign to shine, and shine they do, 'so very very brightly'. Aaron Eckhart really impresses as Harvey Dent, a character that undergoes a radical transformation during the film. He perfectly captures Dent's gradual slide into despair, and is never less than completely convincing. Christian Bale is always worth the admission, he's given less to do here, but when the story calls for Batman's intensity, he's right there like a vice cranking up the tension.

Radiating charisma brighter than all of them though, is the late Heath Ledger, no review of this film would be complete without a neck straining nod in his direction. His interpretation of the Joker is quite simply mesmerizing, and shows up Jack Nicholson's turn as the exercise in mugging it really was. Ledger owns this film, he injects a gleeful sense of mischief into the character, whilst maintaining a ruthless edge that's deeply unsettling. When he's not on screen, you miss him, when he is, you hope he stays there. A group of teenagers sitting behind me in the cinema would giggle and joyfully murmur amongst themselves every time he appeared. I know exactly how they felt. Ledger's Joker lives up to, and smashes apart the hype, he's undoubtedly a shoe in for an oscar, and will be sadly missed.

In an era where many people are complaining about the dumbing down of mainstream cinema, 'The Dark Knight' is a rare thing indeed. It's an engrossing sprawling crime story, like 'Heat' or L.A. Confidential' with superheroes and bigger explosions. You need to see this film, you owe it to yourself.