After my scathing encounter with Batman Begins, I wasn’t quite sure of what to expect with The Dark Knight. I had formed several expectations going into the movie. I expected the action to have better direction than its prequel, and I’m happy to say that the action sequences in this movie are acceptable. It’s not outstanding, but it’s serviceable nonetheless. But honestly, that’s not saying much when you consider the kneejerk directing that was Batman Begins.
I consider Iron Man to be the definitive superhero, comic book movie. With its glowing reviews, will The Dark Knight (TDK) surpass the high-water mark that is Iron Man? Read on to find out. (Disclaimer: this review contains spoilers. Do not continue reading if you don’t want to be spoiled.)
Firstly, that’s a lot of hoopla regarding Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker. People always seem to be worth more, especially when they’re dead and famous. I wonder how many Americans cry for soldiers who die in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have a feeling more Americans cried for Heath Ledger when he passed away. But before I digress further into the hypocrisy of American culture, allow me to highlight the cynicism in which I view Ledger’s performance. It’s important that you keep that in mind when I tell you that I found his performance to be good.
This Joker is unlike any other I’ve ever seen. I do not mean that as a complement. Ledger’s performance is good. I’m not quite convinced if it’s Oscar-worthy, but frankly I don’t really care. He stands a higher chance of winning one simply out of sympathy.
Is his performance better than Jack Nicholson’s Joker? That depends on how you choose to view that question. After making a career of playing madmen (ala The Shining), Nicholson’s turn as a psychotic clown wasn’t an enormous stretch of his acting ability. However, Ledger performance as the Joker is a dramatic departure from his previous roles. However, I still prefer Nicholson and Burton’s Joker.
The Joker is clearly a better antagonist compared to Ra’s al Ghul. The plot in TDK is more compelling than Batman Begins. Duality is a central theme in this picture. Batman is the good, the Joker is the bad and Harvey Dent is the ‘ugly’.
Personally I found that this Joker lacked motivation. We are expected to believe that his psychosis is a driving factor in his decision making. Yet, he shows great lucidity and planning in becoming the crime boss of Gotham. In theory, a villain that is intelligent and psychotic sounds good on paper, but in this instance I felt that the script was unconvincing in proving that the Joker was both.
And therein lies another problem. The Joker’s superiority dramatically highlights the incompetency of the Batman character; a key flaw apparent in Nolan’s interpretation of the Batman. This Joker outsmarts and nearly outmuscles the Batman.
Throughout the movie, the Batman gets outplayed by the Joker. And in their ‘climatic’ showdown, the Joker gets the upper hand on Batman and nearly blows up two ships that are filled with hostages. Apparently, having an additional 20 pounds of muscle, millions of dollars in combat gear and equipment and training from a secret order of ninjas is not enough to stop an untrained, skinny clown with a knife.
If that wasn’t humiliating enough, Nolan’s Batman nearly commits a cardinal sin when he succumbs to the Joker’s demands and nearly reveals his identity in a press conference. This is prompted after the Joker threatens to continue his killing spree unless the Batman reveals himself. This is in stark contrast to Bruce Timm’s Batman.
So here we have a timid Batman who pees in his tights when a clown makes a threat. Nice.
Then there is the ambiguity of the symbol that is Batman. Early in the movie, the Batman stops impersonators who are willing to kill in his name. These Batmen-wannabes brandish shotguns and firearms as they embark on their Batman-inspired crusade of vigilantism. They are quickly rebuked by the real Batman.
At the end of the movie, Batman takes the blame for Harvey Dent’s murders. So, the Batman, an incorruptible symbol of justice, is now willing to become a symbol of murdering vigilantism?
I felt that Nolan got the Batman character wrong in Batman Begins. I feel that he has yet to correct this mistake. Nolan’s Batman is neither a hero I like nor is he a hero I would look up to and cheer for. He remains a dumb, easily broken, easily manipulated man who can’t make up his mind. Some Batman he is.
Also, I found the finale with the Joker to be disappointing. I would have preferred to see Batman lose his cool and nearly kill the Joker (ala Hush). That would have been a more interesting instance in the Joker’s manipulation of the Batman. There’s nothing scary about seeing the Joker go crazy. He’s the Joker, you expect him to act like that. But every time I see the Batman go crazy, a chill runs up my spine. I felt that the ending was the waste of an excellent opportunity.
And the introduction of game theory and the prisoner’s dilemma to the hostage crisis felt tacked on. I felt no sense of urgency during that sequence. Perhaps it’s because the tug-of-war battle for the hearts and minds of Gotham’s citizens was completely underdeveloped. Do you honestly expect me to believe that a ship full of Gotham criminals wouldn’t blow up another boat full of Gotham citizens to save themselves?
Am I nitpicking? No, I’m stating facts. If I was nitpicking I would highlight the fact that the Batpod can climb up a wall and do a vertical u-turn flip, yet it’s unable to break or go around a stationary Joker on a road with no traffic. If I were nitpicking I would mention that the Batpod is eerily similar to the Batmissile sequence in Batman Returns or that the Joker falling to his death in the finale is comparable to Burton’s Batman. That would be nitpicking.
I’d be the first person to tell you not to expect logic from a superhero, comic book movie. But frankly, I found TDK to be insulting to my intelligence. The movie was filled with plot and character inconsistencies.
In closing, I feel that TDK was a marked improvement over its predecessor. Eventually, I feel that Iron Man is still a better movie. At least when Tony Stark conducts a press conference, he has the balls to tell people who he is.
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