“Let’s put a smile on that face.” —The Joker
Today’s quick review: The Dark Knight. With the masked vigilante Batman (Christian Bale), veteran cop Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), and the fearless new district attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) cleaning up the streets of Gotham, the city’s remaining mob bosses turn to the Joker (Heath Ledger) to rid the city of its heroes. A demented criminal genius, the Joker unleashes a sadistic crime wave that threatens to shatter the city’s fragile grip on law and order.
The Dark Knight is a superhero movie with heavy crime drama and thriller elements. The second entry in the Dark Knight trilogy from director Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight picks up six months after the events of the first movie, as Batman’s example begins to improve Gotham. The execution of the film is stellar, with a phenomenal cast, memorable writing, and plenty of action, making The Dark Knight a rare superhero film that appeals to fans across genre lines.
The Dark Knight offers the same dramatic, realistic take on the DC superhero as the first film. Bruce Wayne is not a billionaire in spandex, but a uniquely driven man with the years of training and arsenal of tools needed to wage a one-man war on the criminals of Gotham. This tone works remarkably well, combining the grit and dramatic potential of the crime genre with the flexibility and staunch moral conflict of the superhero genre.
The Dark Knight is even more grim than Batman Begins, but it has an undercurrent of heroism and faith that keeps it from becoming bleak. Where Batman Begins was an intricate origin story for Gotham’s first superhero, The Dark Knight is a dramatic clash of symbols: heroes and villains wrestling for the soul of Gotham. With a few welcome additions to the main cast and a few new gadgets for Batman, the second film enriches and expands upon the tone of the first.
The plot is a complex, twisting affair involving a city on the verge of redemption, its desperate remnants of organized crime, and an anarchic wildcard who sends the situation spiraling out of control. The Joker proves his seriousness as a villain with a series of crimes that hit Gotham where it is most vulnerable. Between his elaborate schemes and the heroes’ frantic attempts to keep up, the plot quickly becomes tense and unpredictable.
The heart of the film involves the relationship between Gotham’s three greatest defenders: Batman, Jim Gordon, and Harvey Dent. The conflict between them is driven by one simple fact: for all his effectiveness, Batman can never leave the shadows. And while Harvey Dent has shown what can be done in the light, his actions have made him a target. At this crossroads, the appearance of the Joker complicates the difficult question of what kind of hero Gotham truly needs.
The movie’s plot is backed by a deep cast and a set of strong performances. Heath Ledger steals the show as the Joker, a maniacal villain with an uncanny talent for staying two steps ahead of the law. Ledger’s take on the character is different from any before it: sinister, unnerving, and memorable. The classical elements of the character meet new quirks and a renewed sense of lethality, all held together by Ledger’s potent acting.
The rest of the cast is impressive as well. Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne and Gary Oldman’s Jim Gordon are pushed further by the trials they undergo. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman return as Alfred Pennyworth and Lucius Fox, respectively, Bruce’s friends and mentors. Maggie Gyllenhaal replaces Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes, Bruce’s last tie to normalcy. Finally, Aaron Eckhart does a fantastic job with the pivotal role of Harvey Dent, Batman’s charismatic counterpart.
The Dark Knight boasts tight execution all the way around. Hans Zimmer provides a tense, dramatic soundtrack that sticks with the viewer without being overtly catchy. The film is well-paced and maintains excellent tension throughout. Its direction is solid, and its script is filled with memorable lines. Despite a few flaws, such as a difficult plot and a lengthy finale, The Dark Knight is a powerful feat of filmmaking.
Watch The Dark Knight if you have any taste for crime dramas or superhero movies whatsoever. Its magnificent execution and quasi-realistic take on the superhero genre give it broad appeal. Only the truly disinterested should skip it.
9.0 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it an 8.5 to 9.0 for outstanding vision and execution.