Movie Review: The Dark Knight

I have never been so proud of Heath Ledger as I was with The Dark Knight. It was everything they hailed it to be, and everything we expected it to be. It was respectful of Heath's memory, and to the fans of the Batman comics. It might just be one of the best summer movies this year, and possibly the whole of 2008.




Kudos to director Christopher Nolan for projecting an image of Gotham City unlike its predecessors so far: it was surreal but not fantastic. Its grittiness, particularly the violence, was mired in reality and not cartoon. For all intents and purposes, it should have been given a rating other than PG. But Nolan's careful direction steered the violence in quick cuts, enabling us to focus on the story and the underlying psychosis instead of the graphic nature of the act. When the Joker proposes a "magic trick" on one of Gamble's henchmen by slamming a pencil into his eye, the deed was quick and seemingly painless, and the action simply establishes his control over the group of mobsters, allowing him to move on to negotiations. When the Joker threatens Gamble with a knife, you find yourself cringing in anticipation, and yet the eventual slash seemed blood-free, and you find yourself focusing on the intent of the scene itself – which was to provide a brief backgrounder on how the Joker got his scars and why he uses a knife (because guns are too quick – an eerie yet logical argument). When the Batman drops Maroni on the curb three stories down with dispassionate indifference, we gasp but only briefly as the Batman realizes that the Joker's random acts of evil serve an actual purpose. And when we find Harvey Dent in the hospital, it was like a tango on whether they were going to show the burns or not. And when it was eventually revealed, the shock is all the more disturbing given the emotional scars and angst Dent had verbalized previously. At this time of year, Christopher Nolan should be worthy of an Oscar directorial nomination. His take on the Batman franchise – psychology, villains, Gotham City all – was daring and unique and very well-done.

It must be admitted that much of the film's brilliance also rested on Heath Ledger's fanatical and maniacal performance as the Joker. Congratulations are also in store to the wardrobe and makeup team for being up to par with the actor's performance. As was mentioned in several interviews with the crew, the wardrobe was able to not just replicate the comic villain's persona (with the dashes of purple on the clothes), but also bring out the evilness of the character with the scruffiness and the grunginess of the overall look (as they said, as if you could "smell" him).

And the makeup crew was simply amazing in deciding to go into a different direction for the Joker. Instead of the campy clown look that the Batman franchises were known for, in The Dark Knight, the makeup on the Joker went beyond the signature look. It depicted the raving psychotic within and followed the peaks and the downward spiral of his villainy. As the Joker slowly descended into madness and randomness, so did the makeup – slowly peeling and melting into a frenzied, unruly mess by the time he goes to jail. It's an excellent way of propelling a story forward and shares credit for characterizing the Joker fully. In fact, in the initial scenes, instead of referring to the Joker's look as a clown makeup, it was referred to as "war paint", instantly portraying him as a more frightening figure. In addition, the makeup given Two-Face was perfect, just as it was in the comics. The real-life video reincarnations of Harvey Dent never fully lived up to the scarred mess of burns as depicted in the comics and The Dark Knight cartoons. And for this, I also feel that the makeup team needs to be commended with an Oscar nomination.

But back to Heath Ledger. It was truly a magnificent, albeit sad, performance. It was magnificent because he was amazingly wicked and malicious, and gave off a powerfully unpleasant aura. It was a good decision of Nolan to rein in the Joker backstory because the mere randomness of his appearance as a vile criminal coming from nowhere lends to his crazed malevolence. Even without makeup, when the Joker masqueraded as an honor guard, he seemed just as evil. When the camera pans to him, it was a quick display of his intensity, and the scars on his face flashed to us in an instant, giving us a disturbing image of the man underneath the wickedness. Heath Ledger gave us all that and more.

And of the few best, most engaging and challenging scenes of the film, Heath Ledger shone. His monologue to Harvey Dent in the hospital was magnificent and frightening at the same time, both because it made insane sense, about introducing anarchy to the world that had failed him and his Rachel. Here, the Joker displays his uncanny ability to watch his own back, as he ensures the ruin of Gotham City by manipulating and corrupting another to join him in his villainy. The gradual transformation from Harvey to Two-Face was evident with each word uttered and it was just fantastic acting from both characters.

The scenes in the jail after the Joker's capture were the best, in my opinion. I had no idea that his sardonic applause after Jim Gordon was promoted to Commissioner was unscripted, and kudos to Nolan for keeping the scene as it emphasized the Joker's disrespect for authority. In fact, the whole Joker persona has evolved from evil playfulness (as had been the case for all Batman franchises) to amoral irony – which makes it even more upsetting. And that scene behind bars was a great display of that.

The interrogation scene between the Batman and the Joker was the best in the film. Here are two dark characters, each wrestling with their inner demons – the Batman's urge to kill, and the Joker's desire to break an opponent. Both had no interest to follow through (particularly the Joker because, as he said in another scene, "What would I do without you? You complete me…"), and yet the conflict – not just the physical conflict between the two individuals, but the mental conflict in their heads – is palpable. When the Joker finally gives him a choice, between saving the hero of his beloved Gotham City or simply saving his beloved, the conflict shifts and rises and we are treated to an excellent morality tale.

I am not a comic book fan, although I appreciate the old-school comics as a kid (Superman and Batman, mostly). And what I loved about Batman is the fact that he is not a straightforward superhero. He was never put on a pedestal by adoring constituents, and had no superhuman powers. He relied on his gadgetry and his billions. And he wasn't moral. Sure, he never killed for the sake of it. But he was always cursed with a vague moral compass, even as Bruce Wayne. He was a misunderstood masked vigilante, which that in itself shows that he was never committed to do the right thing. He used violent and underhanded means to dispense his own brand of justice, and he was always faced with complex choices that damned him if he did, and damned him if he didn’t. The Batman was complicated and human, and I liked that aspect of him. He was extraordinarily human.

Christian Bale was great as Bruce Wayne and the Batman. His past movies have given him a mysterious and complicated aura as an actor that lends itself well to The Dark Knight. Plus, he is talented himself, and ably went toe-to-toe with Ledger and Eckhart in their memorable confrontation scenes. I am still uncomfortable with the rasp that he takes on whenever he is in the Batsuit, and I miss his nonchalant playboy air from Batman Begins. But he succeeds in this sequel because his gravitas suits the movie's anti-camp direction very well.

Aaron Eckhart is another standout actor in this film. His complete turnaround as Two-Face is brilliant, and completely factors in within the Joker's story. Initially, I was concerned that having two villains would compete for the audience's attention and weaken the plot structure, but it was carefully well-executed. I was introduced to Two-Face in the Dark Knight cartoons, and even on that childish level, he had an emotional backstory that pulled at me. He had a similar complicated moral compass that was completely dependent on his coin. He was one of the very few Batman villains that I liked (the others being the Joker and Clayface), and it was great that this film portrayed him with no strings attached. He was the consummate good guy gone bad. And the honest thing was that he was only a few rungs lower than the Batman himself, whose memory of his murdered parents kept him from being murderous himself.

The whole cast acquitted themselves really well in this film. Michael Caine's fatherly but snarky Alfred, Morgan Freeman's classy and tough Lucius, and Maggie Gyllenhaal's emphatic Rachel. Even B-lister Eric Roberts found his luck with a nice turn as Sal Maroni (although he never got to throw acid at Harvey Dent's face, the scene in the courtroom with Falcone's henchman was a good indirect nod to that). I also loved the cameo by Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow. It gave a comic-y feel to the whole film by providing us with a random rogue appearance.

While the direction was superb, the script had some plot holes and overall could use a bit more tightening up. There were some unanswered questions, such as: how did the Joker got hold of the DNA traces? Who actually pulled off the Harvey-Rachel abduction and setup? And it would help to clarify whether Det. Ramirez really was a dirty cop and how she went there. It was all too vague for me. Plus, there was also a feeling that the movie stretched on for too long. But while the gasoline explosion and Rachel's death made for an exciting climax, the scenes that followed hold up well in terms of substance (even though they were not up to par with the former). And the eventual ending gave us even more misery on top of the anticipation for more of Batman's (and Two-Face's) story. In addition, the script held some little verbal gems, such as Harvey's (and eventually, Bruce Wayne's) "You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain." There was also Alfred's succinct yet insightful observation of anarchy: "Some men just want to watch the world burn." And of course, there was the Joker's fear-provoking line: "Why so serious, son?"

The film, in all its dark gravitas, provided some unexpected humor, too. I say unexpected because, for all the weight given to the Joker in this film, there was very little humor coming directly from him. There was the humorous appearance of the RPG during the famous tunnel chase scene, and the delayed explosion of Gotham General. But there was also that short scene in Wayne Manor, as Bruce was getting ready to deal with the Joker as Batman, when he stumbles upon a couple obviously post-coitus in the sanctity of his own home. In true playboy fashion, Christian flashes a believable smirk (which lit up the screen for me) and proceeds to go into his "Bat lair" (no longer a Batcave anymore, I guess). It was funny how the woman expected Bruce to usher them into the "panic room" and how disappointed they were when he disappeared into it without a second glance in their direction. That was completely unexpected and hilariously subtle.

Heath Ledger's performance was definitely magnificent, because it transcended his death for a brief moment. In those two-and something-hours that he was the Joker, he was maniacally alive and resplendently vile. His death only entered my mind while he was dangling from the building, laughing in that mad and possessed way of his. I was aware that it was his final scene, that he will be sent to an asylum as it always had been in the comics. He did not die, and should live to torment the Batman again. He even tells Batman that the two of them are destined to fight each other forever. The sad thing was that Heath himself will never be the Joker again.

What was also sad was how the whole film seemed to foreshadow the impending importance of a new roster of rogues for the next sequels. With Two-Face's criminal evolution taking the emotional center stage, audiences will likely prefer to see a continuation of this story. And this sadly makes perfect sense with Heath Ledger's death. With the Joker's capture, this franchise's most perfect and brilliant villain has given us the closure we need, and the anticipation of looking forward to that other villain with whom we grew interested in as his character got fleshed out more and more.

But in the event that the Joker will make a comeback in some sequel further down the road, you wonder whether another actor can step up and have the dubious distinction of following Heath's masterful portrayal of the Joker. Only time will tell. As of now, Heath should be proud that he was able to finish this deliriously exciting character, as befits the beautiful legacy he left us with. As a fan since his Patriot and Ten Things days, I myself am so proud of it. I do miss him, but I'm glad I can remember him with this.