The Dark Knight

Ray and I finally hired a baby sitter (second time this year – I know, at this point, we likely qualify for classification as “hermits”) and went to see this highly rated, greatly praised, loaded with hyperbole movie. Thankfully, it didn’t disappoint.

Christopher Nolan, who directed this movie to smashing success, has now established himself as both a very artistic (Memento) and very commercial (the Batman franchise reboot, but also The Prestige) moviemaker. I particularly like him because he always makes sure to thoroughly develop the characters in his movies. That he can also make successful commercial summer tent-poles simply puts to shame any filmmaker who tries to do the same and miserably fails (Brett Ratner’s X-Men 3 installment comes to mind, but so does Joel Schumacher’s third and fourth Batmans as well as George Lucas’ Star Wars prequels).

Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Gary Oldman all slip back into their characters for a second time, and the results are as enthralling as the first time around. Oldman is the only one whose character’s presence seems to actually improve upon the first installment, although it could just be because the first time he wasn’t given as much material to work with.

New cast members include Maggie Gyllenhall as the romantic interest, a vast improvement over Katie Holmes' ridiculously bad caricature of a character, and Aaron Eckhart, who is excellent in the role of the new District Attorney who, like Batman himself, is trying to rid Gotham City of its criminals, although he does it in bright daylight, in a courtroom, and upholding the law.

A special mention goes to the new addition that steals the show, not only because of his acting abilities and particularly meaty role, but, alas, because of his premature death. Heath Ledger, who suddenly died this past January of accidental drug poisoning, had already established himself as one of the most promising actors of his generation, primarily through his constrained but intense role in Brokeback Mountain. The Dark Knight, in which he plays the Joker, was his last complete role, which certainly induced more people to go see it. And they weren’t disappointed.

When I first realized that the sequel to Batman Begins would feature the Joker as the villain, I was upset by the fact that some other actor would play the role so histrionically brought to life by the great Jack Nicholson. I also wondered which actor would actually have the courage to put himself in the unavoidable position of being compared to Nicholson’s achievement. The spellbinding performance Ledger delivered only made me sadder for his loss, because if anyone could go up against a legend like Jack Nicholson, it was him. And we won’t have the good fortune of witnessing any more wonderfully crafted roles from this greatly talented thespian.

The most surprising revelation about the new Joker was, however, that it doesn’t diminish Nicholson’s accomplishment, simply because the two Jokers are so completely different from each other, they can each live in their own universe. Nicholson’s Joker was more of a caricature, funnier and more stylized, with his bright colors, crisp makeup, and criminal acts performed to the upbeat tune of Danny Elfman’s score. That Joker was perfect for Tim Burton’s version of Batman, the first big screen adaptation of the super hero comic, that reflected the bright, shiny, and upbeat sensibilities of the late ‘80s.

Nolan’s Batman, on the other hand, reflects today’s darker times of economic uncertainly and ongoing military conflicts. This is the age of terrorism, and the new Joker is the quintessential terrorist, a guy who destroys, kills, and inflicts pain simply because he can, simply to test the human limits of morality and ethics. This Joker is personified chaos, and he revels in it.

Naturally, no movie could have been this good without a well fleshed out screenplay that linearly takes us on a roller coaster of intense emotions. From the violent robbery that opens the movie to the elegiac forced run of our hero that closes it, we feel for the people of Gotham City, we root for Batman, and we are rendered speechless by the Joker’s villainy.

Finally, the technical aspect of the movie is also, as one would expect, flawless. From the costumes to the visual effects, from the cinematography to the sound editing, every detail has been taken into consideration to make sure that nothing is detracted from the audience's experience. Of note is especially the makeup sported by Aaron Eckhart, which still gives me the chills for its veracity.

What else can be said about a movie that has broken all records but one in the Hollywood books (at the time I write this, The Dark Knight is the second most successful movie of all time, behind Titanic, whose record should, when the dust settles, still stand)? Just, Don't miss it.

Grade: 9