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Rating:  -
On one hand it's the easiest thing to make a comic book movie -- the characters, the plot, the fan base are already there. On the other hand it's the hardest thing to make a comic book movie -- the characters, the plot, the fan base are already there.
There is an inherent contradiction in "Batman": a billionaire vigilante who prowls the streets to beat up poor thugs must be a psychopath, megalomaniac, and narcissist -- yet he accepts most social norms, the most important being that murder is wrong. Batman's a psychopath with a conscience -- he's an impossible contradiction.
Nearly everyone before has chosen to ignore this contradiction but the director Christopher Nolan chooses to confront it outright in "The Dark Knight" by asking what a hero is, and what kind of a hero society needs.
Strangely enough Mr. Nolan chooses to ask these questions by showing what a hero is not -- the real star of the movie is Batman's arch-nemesis the Joker, who in his actions and logic begins and drives the plot of the movie.
The strangest thing about a villain named the Joker is that he's not funny. And he's certainly not mad, otherwise he would make sense. In a hospital scene with another villain Two-Face the Joker tries to explain his motivations -- and is completely incoherent. Joker rails against those "with a plan" and the order of things but unlike Tyler Durden in "Fight Club" doesn't point any fingers.
Because he's an amoral thinker and tinkerer of the human condition the Joker would be better off calling himself "Philosopher" or "Professor." Remember how in college you attended classes where a very serious man stood on the lectern and lectured on endlessly with big words and complicated syntax? You have to believe he was talking about something serious but you just don't know what he's talking about, and in the end you have to believe he doesn't know either -- well, that's the Joker in "The Dark Knight."
After two and a half hours we learn absolutely nothing concrete about the Joker -- and he's just implausible. He's brilliant but incoherent. He can plan the perfect bank heist, and kill anyone he wants -- but he can't articulate his motives. So we're stuck with this brilliant villain who likes to kill and maim but doesn't know why -- and we all know that what brilliant villains can do best is rationalize -- Hitler and Stalin and Mao all thought they were saviors and saints.
It is impossible to watch the Joker, and not think that this is Heath Ledger playing the Joker. Heath Ledger gives a marvelously subtle performance in "Brokeback Mountain," and you have to believe he's trying his best to articulate something in "The Dark Knight" -- possibly re-create Milton's Satan for the 21st century? -- but either the script or the director or the producer doesn't co-operate, and he's left with saying nothing whatsoever. He's trying and he's talking but he's been muted -- isn't that one of the most frustrating, unsatisfying positions an artist can find himself in?
Because of Heath Ledger's death we'll all remember the Joker, and what will we remember about the Joker? That when the whole world was paying attention he said nothing at all.
And how about the director Christopher Nolan? His debut "Memento," though rough and jagged and excessive, is still nevertheless powerful and shocking -- one of the best films ever made. And with "The Prestige" -- his best film to date -- he shows what a very skilled craftsman he is. And "The Dark Knight" is competently made -- the music is superb, the various subplots weave together nicely, and the cinematography is stunning and innovative. But the director is clearly unsure of what kind of movie he wants to make, or capable of making. Does he want to make eye candy, and delight the 16-year old boys who are the cornerstone of the Summer Blockbuster industry? Or does he want to make a thought-provoking character study that will affirm his status as one of Hollywood's best young filmmakers? Unfortunately he wants both, and the result is thoroughly unsatisfying. He asks hard questions but gives easy answers; he wants to be an artist but he wants to appeal to popular tastes.
And thus the consistent and competent Mr. Nolan may be stuck making consistently competent films all his life, and already Mr. Nolan must be asking: why? "The Dark Knight" says nothing, and even worse it tries too damn hard to say something.
And then there's Christian Bale. He's proven himself a brilliant actor in "American Psycho" and "The Machinist," and why he's chosen to play a Phallus for two and a half hours is an even harder question than why Joker chooses to kill and why Christopher Nolan chose to direct "The Dark Knight." At least the Joker must enjoy killing and Christopher Nolan enjoy directing but Mr. Bale does not look happy playing Batman -- he looks bored out of his mind. Neither Batman nor his alter-ego Bruce Wayne has any personality -- he's a hero, and he's not allowed to have any flaws.
And so let's end with the question we began with: just who is Batman? Again, in our popular culture, Batman is one of the great contradictions. But more importantly he's one of the greatest inventions. Boys all think it'd be cool to be powerful and unique -- they all think they can be a superhero. Parents and teachers rightly are concerned that this aspiration unchecked could easily lead some very special children to become mass murderers. So adults imbue every comic book superhero with a conscience, and adults always tell kids it's this conscience that makes the superhero really a superhero.
Now do kids really buy this? Is a superhero with a conscience really cool? But -- wait a minute -- does a superhero with a conscience make any sense? Isn't the point of having superpowers to do whatever you want, to kill whomever you choose? What's the point of being God if you have follow human laws and rules?
Well, adults get away from these difficult questions by making Batman cool. How? By outlawing him -- by branding him a vigilante, and trying to arrest him. Batman is a misunderstood superhero -- and for kids that's really cool, and if their misunderstood superhero has a conscience that's okay because he's being chased by the police.
That ultimately is how "The Dark Knight" ends. By becoming a fugitive and being outlawed Batman shows he's cooler than the Joker. We may not know the difference between what's good and what's evil but we certainly know the difference between what's cool and what's not -- and that's more important. Isn't it the coolest thing in the world not to kill but to have everyone think you killed? You have a clean conscience, and you have the respect of all your peers. That's why we can leave the movie theater exhausted but smiling -- we were right to cheer for Batman all along.
Rating:  -
When I went to see this movie for the first time, I had very low expectations because Batman Begins wasn't in my taste. I am not Christian Bale's biggest fan, but I love super hero movies. To my surprise the movie turned out to be very entertaining. It's funny, dramatic, clever, and full of action sequences. My main issue with this movie is that it has a few noticeable continuity problems. This movie should be labeled: Joker Begins. In my opinion, there has never been an actor who could portray the Batman character properly (besides the voice of Kevin Conroy), but most of the supporting actors in this movie are fantastic, especially Gary Oldman aka Harry Potter's "Sirius Black" and Heath Ledger aka Brokeback Mountain's "Ennis Del Mar".
Rating: -
All I have to say is this; after seeing Heath Ledger's portrayl of The Joker, I left the theatre realising that is the kind of character I'm going to be...
Rating:  -
Batman of the comics was the hero with the "wow!"-factor, the hero who took care of "everyman". A hero has to grow up and move along with time, adapt to a culture in which drive-by shootings are not something of Bonnie and Clyde but "that neighborhood", in which the sports-hero shows miraculous muscle growth over time, in which every certainty starts having a question-mark.
We deserve this Batman; the man in the hero has his doubts and question marks, he struggles and comes through. He has become us. Go see the movie and let your mind do the wandering over the various levels at which this movie speaks to you, from the gut to the brain to the emotions. Live it and let your inner self grow.
Rating: -
Now, like a lot of people, I was really hyped up to see "The Dark Knight" when it came out a year and half ago. First day, middle of the theatre, waiting patiently and anxiously.
And if I am being totally honest with you, I was bored to tears.
I didn't really think anymore about the movie, if I'm being honest with you, until, while bored one day, sitting alone in my apartment, I noticed my roommates copy of "The Dark Knight" sitting on the top of the Blu-Ray player. I thought to myself, "well, maybe I was wrong and I was just letting the hype get in the way." So I put it in and started it and watched the entire thing again.
And was once again bored to tears.
Now I know that many people view this film as some modern version of "The Godfather" or "Casablanca", but I just can't buy into it. What I see is a mediocre version of "Heat" with a great performance from the late Heath Ledger, but a movie where everyone else flounders with one dimensional roles and broad characterizations.
Of the main cast only Ledger really brings anything interesting to his role, an astonishing thing seeing as the role he has is one note throughout. Christian Bale as Batman is a dull as Val Kilmer, while Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman both appear to be cashing checks. Aaron Eckhart plays his part as Harvey Dent surprisingly well, seeing as it is a different sort of role than what I have seen him in before (Neil LaBute movies mostly), but can't do much with his transformation as Two Face. Some of that may have to do with Maggie Gyleenhaal, usually a reliable actor, who looks bored and unsure of how to play her part in this movie.
Storywise, I just wasn't engrossed with the story of "The Dark Knight". For the most part I wondered how much nonsense the Nolan brothers were trying to shove into one movie. The story continues on and on and seems like it's trying to say something major, but never does. To add to that, to me, it seems like anytime the narrative seems to be gaining steam, the movie throws in another action scene and it loses all narrative movement.
To add to that, Nolan still has yet to find out how to shoot action scenes effectively and coherantly, and problem that also plagued the superior "Batman Begins".
I wanted to like "The Dark Knight", I did. I just couldn't. I guess nothing is for everyone. I guess this one just isn't for me.
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