Review: The Dark Knight
'Batman Begins' Sequel Impressively Surpasses 2005 Franchise Reboot
Jul 20, 2008
Set shortly after the events of the first film, The Dark Knight brings us back to Gotham City, where violence and crime is at an all time high, despite the best efforts of its Caped Crusader. Coming along to complicate things, is an anarchistic psychopath calling himself The Joker (brilliantly played to perfection by the late Heath Ledger -- Oscar, here we come!), whose sole endgame is to cause widespread panic amongst the populace, and watch it all fall down in ruins.
Jumping into the crimefighting fray is ambitious District Attorney Harvey Dent (solidly played by Aaron Eckhart, of Erin Brockovich and Suspect Zero fame), joined by his diligent assistant Rachel Dawes (blessedly portrayed by Maggie Gyllenhall, replacing the inadequate Katie Holmes from Batman Begins), as well as the no-nonsense Lieutenant James Gordon (Gary Oldman, no introduction required).
As Batman and The Joker face off in well calculated chess moves of respective heroics and mass terror, the audience is treated to a mindblowing series of impeccably well coordinated action scenes, intricate plot developments, and refreshing takes on the well documented Batman comics lore.
Heath Ledger is The Joker
Though the untimely death of young Heath Ledger last January caught the entertainment community unaware, one could hardly debate whether this was indeed Ledger's finest screen performance. His portrayal of gruff and gay cattle herder Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain was commendable and praiseworthy, yet the viewer cannot deny the level at which Ledger possesses every scene in which his Joker character appears. Granted, this is a Batman movie, and Christian Bale faithfully fulfills his role with gusto, as does Michael Caine returning as Alfred. However, none could have foreseen how potent Ledger's contribution to this project would be.
There is mounting talk of an possible Oscar nomination in sight for the gifted late actor, and though many could have seen this as effective marketing on behalf of Warner Brothers, this weekend's much anticipated release of this convincing action blockbuster easily justifies this boastful claim.
The Dark Knight as Part of Batman Myth
The Dark Knight is the lovechild of entrenched director Christopher Nolan, as well as his scribe brother Jonathan Nolan, with some story assistance from genre veteran David S. Goyer (who also contributed to the 2005 rebooted movie's script). Together, these creative minds have successfully drawn from the best elements of the DC Comics juggernaut, and lovingly recreated the most dynamic continuing confrontation in comic books today.
Dark Knight Surpasses Batman Begins
A few years back, Christopher Nolan was credited from all sources, with injecting new life into a pop culture icon that had undergone some questionable changes during its earlier theatrical franchise run (Bat nipples and codpiece? Shame on you, Mr. Schumacher). The audience can count itself both lucky and thankful that such an impressive follow up to an already great new restarted series, could be so well delivered with nary a dissapointing performance.
While some roles stuck out of the overall mold, the entire cast should feel proud of this film, which will no doubt appear in numerous top ten lists by year's end. This film was truly a treat for the senses, and an inspired tribute to the Batman mythos.
A Very Much Deserved 9.5 out of 10, for being the Best Sequel Since Empire Strikes Back
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