The Dark Knight: Batman at New Heights

94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Four stars from good ole Ebert. A flow of unending praise from reviews all over the net. And they are all saying the same thing: The Dark Knight is perhaps the greatest superhero movie yet.

Really, they might be right. As a superhero movie/comic book fan, I’m going through the ole movie rolodex in the head, comparing it to all of my favorites. To tell the truth, the top of the list has been Batman Begins for three years now.[1] Does the sequel surpass the original? This could become the common debate, much like considerations of Godfather I and II or Star Wars episodes four and five. At any rate, beyond comparative questions that must always be arbitrary and are probably not helpful,[2] the truth of the matter is that The Dark Knight is probably going to be the biggest movie of the year. It is a true force to be reckoned with, a film of sheer power, and is going to change the way superhero movies are made, conceived, and received. “There’s no going back,” the Joker remarks to the Bat, “You’ve changed things…forever.” I can’t help but agree.

Of course, I wonder if we should even classify it simply as a “superhero” movie. I think it might be better thought of as an action/crime drama. Like Heat, the near-three hours are simply mesmerizing, and pass very quickly. I’m told that Heat was actually a great influence on Nolan in making the film. This very well could be true. They share a similar event-driven plot that is continually accented by personal character struggles and colliding story lines. We build to the climax in much the same way: slowly, methodically, but consistently and with dark excitement. The bank heist scene, as well as the interrogation scene, also felt to me a lot like the classic crime drama.

The scientist/detective we all know and love is definitely here. Batman Begins, of course, didn’t paint Bruce Wayne as a dummy, but here we really see him break out. As the Joker terrorizes Gotham, attempting through a steady series of ingeniously planned[3] assassinations to engage Batman in a strange psychological game, the caped crusader relies not just on his gadgetry but also on his incredible intellect to capture the crazy clown prince of crime. But perhaps more importantly, the psychological struggle in this film has been taken to a whole new level for the Batman film franchise. And this is not just for the haunted billionaire alone; Harvey Dent, Rachel Dawes, even Gordon, all are brought through incredible mental and ethical struggles throughout the story.

In one of the few bad reviews I’ve found of the film, The Dark Knight is accused of being a philosophically cheap world of polarities and dualities. This could be the case. The Joker says to Batman with a crooked smile, “You complete me.” The question is revisited again and again as to whether or not the Joker is exactly the kind of inspiration that a vigilante like the Batman would bring about. But I think this is only a shallow analysis of a much more complex portrayal. It would, I believe, be a mistake to simply see Batman and the Joker as polar opposites representing good and evil. Clearly, the kind of struggles and choices that the “hero” makes throughout the film muddy our image of good in him.[4] If anything, the movie may say something to the effect that there is no true, pure good, or maybe (just maybe) that kind of good can always be corrupted. Again and again, the truly great decisions of the film come from very imperfect people (we especially see this on the boats towards the end). The movie has a very complicated view of people, of their motivations, and of the struggles they have in the decisions they make, both for good and evil. And really, I don’t know that just because the Joker says something means we should take it as the message of the film. He is a constant liar throughout,[5] and in the end, his philosophy of corruption is clearly portrayed as incorrect.

To be honest, I think there are much deeper, and in our age and part of the world, more pressing political/philosophical speculations in the film. In a room deep in Wayne Enterprises, the Batman comes up with a way to put surveillance on all the citizens of Gotham, and Lucius Fox says, “This…is…wrong.” It is, of course, reminiscent of a similar issue that has been at the forefront of American politics recently.[6] In a conversation between Wayne, Dawes, and Dent, Dent praises the Romans for, in times of military crisis, putting the all the power in the hands of one man to get a job. Dawes counters that this is how Rome ended up with Julius Caesar – one of history’s most famous dictators. “Either you die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” Dent responds. Indeed.

But in the center of this psychological thriller truly does stand one, lone villain. Heath Ledger’s Joker is what everybody is talking about, and with good reason. He steals the show – he really does, and it is a good show to begin with. The acting of the movie is certainly above average. Bale is, of course, solid as a rock in his interpretation. Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, and Michael Caine are everything you could ask for from such veterans. Gyllenhaal is good, and Eckhart, who is facing some criticism as the only flaw of a nearly flawless film, I think does very well in his own right. But honestly, no one holds a candle to Heath Ledger’s Joker. When I first heard that Ledger would be doing the Joker, I’ll admit, I was really suspicious. After the first teaser, when I heard his voice,[7] I said, “He’s going to be the best Joker interpretation there ever was.” I was not disappointed.

For me, the pinnacle interpretation has always been Mark Hamill’s voicing in Timm and Dini’s masterful Batman portrayal, Batman: The Animated Series. He was the perfect synthesis of humor and bedlam – he was funny, and yet so evil. Well, I think, with ALL due respect to Timm and Dini’s masterpiece, the animated Joker has been surpassed. Ledger was brilliant. Incredible, really. Every twitch, every delivery, every laugh and every expression is pure magnificence. He deserves every consideration for the Oscar, and perhaps we really are going to see the first posthumous Oscar since Peter Finch (Network).[8]

The principle scene of the film was between Bale and Ledger in the interrogation room. It was like watching Pacino and De Niro at the restaurant in Heat, or Eastwood and Malkovich from In the Line of Fire. The incredible charisma between the actors, the tension between hero and villain, the intensity of the moment in the film. Absolutely brilliant, and yet believable. Nolan’s Joker is something special: he appears out of nowhere, with a back story as clean and clear as his grimy make-up, an absolutely delicious psychotic who is dark, and yet still retains that gruesome, humorous quality. This Joker will be, I think, remembered as one of the great villains, along with Darth Vader and Michael Corleone. No one will ever think of a magic trick with a pencil the same again.

There are flaws in the film. Some of the technology was not as believable for me. There are a few monologues, especially the last scene, which feel contrived. In true comic book vein, there is an endless supply of henchmen that Bats must fight at every turn. And as a Batman fan, I really don’t know if I feel the Two-face story arc received the attention it deserves.[9] But they are few, and they are hardly noticeable. Nolan’s direction is smooth and tight. The story is well-conceived. The acting is believable. For me, I need to see the movie again. I don’t know that I will really know how I feel about it until the DVD comes out and I can watch about five more times. But this I do know: this truly is a new height in the Batman franchise.

4.92/5

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[1] Unless we were to count Shyamalan’s brilliant film Unbreakable as a superhero movie.

[2] I mean really, who cares which Godfather is better; they belong together. They are masterpieces that need not be compared but appreciated as two parts of a whole.

[3] Well, maybe. We must, of course, consider the scene in the hospital room.

[4] Indeed, if there is a polar opposite, I might think it the Joker with Harvey Dent – although, of course, this polarity must take a nasty turn.

[5] His continually changing story of how he got his scars was brilliant indeed, and may have even been a nod to Timm and Dini, whose own Joker also has a chameleon-esque background story.

[6] Vis à vis FISA.

[7] “Starting tonight…people will die…I’m a man of my weeerrrd.”

[8] That’s the one with the famous line, “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore!”

[9] Unless (KIND OF A SPOILER) something changes concerning that story in the sequel; which is not too hard to conceive – I think there is more than meets the eye in the end of the film.