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Rock Talk, Vol. IX
Believe the title, folks. This isn't your father's Bruce Wayne anymore; no campy, cartoonish or even remotely comedic elements will be found here. The second installment in Chris Nolan's increasingly deep and complex Batman series is indeed dark.
Houstonist ambled up to the movie theatre on Sunday afternoon, intending to catch a matinee showing of The Dark Knight and expecting, despite reports of sold out shows across the nation, to secure a couple of tickets pretty quickly. We should have paid more attention to those reports, it seems. The only showing of the movie not sold out was at 4:40 p.m. (still matinee pricing, though!), and by the looks of the line even that one was going quickly. With a little over an hour to kill before the show started, we sat in a nearby cafe and discussed what we were expecting from The Dark Knight.
We were unconvinced that Heath Ledger was going to be an Oscar-caliber Joker. We were unsure that seemingly mild Aaron Eckhart was going to be a plausible Harvey Dent or Two-Face. And we were skeptical of reports that this wasn't your average "superhero" movie, but something that instead transcended the genre and created its own niche in the cinematic firmament.
We were wrong.
The Dark Knight all but blew us away. Some have complained that the movie is too long, too dark, too complicated, especially when viewed as simply a "superhero" flick. Those should be popcorn-eating, coke-slurping, throwaway films that provide mindless entertainment, right? Not this Batman.
The length of the film, running a little over two-and-a-half hours, isn't overly long at all. Instead, it takes its time laying the groundwork for the battles (both emotional and physical) to come and creating a richly textured universe which is unlike any other in the Batman franchise. Instead, it's more akin to a grand, multi-layered film trilogy such as The Godfather films. You care about the characters, you empathize with them, and you feel as if you too inhabit the world that Chris Nolan has created on-screen. Before you know it, you're as deeply invested in the story as any of the characters are.
Is the movie too dark? Too complicated? Again, perhaps for a superhero movie, but The Dark Knight plays as a drama, a disturbing look at corruption, motivation, redemption, humanity's multiple layers and the ultimate need for hope in a dark world. The plot is nimble, complex and requires constant attention to appreciate the many subtle nuances and turns that have been sprinkled throughout.
Christian Bale's Batman is a deeply flawed character, even moreso than when we last saw him in Batman Begins. He is viewed by Gotham City as an anti-hero, despite all the good he does, and this has begun to take its toll on him. He's lost Rachel Dawes (now played brilliantly by Maggie Gyllenhaal, as Katie Holmes had other "committments") to the bright new "white knight" district attorney, Harvey Dent, and even Lucius Fox (the unparalleled Morgan Freeman) has begun questioning Bruce Wayne/Batman's motives while Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) has problems of his own to deal with inside the Major Crimes Unit. The steadfast Alfred (Michael Caine) remains the only rock in Bruce Wayne's quickly-shifting world.
The Joker makes his first appearance early on, in an opening segment so tightly plotted and acted that it grips you immediately, serving as a warning that this will not be a warm and fuzzy movie. Heath Ledger is unrecognizable as The Joker, an "immovable object" that is sick and twisted from the get-go, a "mad dog" who has been let off a chain by the mobsters that rule Gotham City, although that's as much as a backstory as we get on him (so far). This Joker is not an eccentric prankster; he is a vicious, sadistic sociopath in the most clinical sense of the terms. Every moment that he is on screen with his "warpaint," mysterious scars and sickly taunting voice is captivating and repulsive at the same time, and will surely be remembered as one of the best villains in movie history.
Chris Nolan, the actors (including several key cameos to watch for) and -- perhaps in overlooked roles -- his cinematographers and stunt coordinators have created a piece of art with The Dark Knight, something which we never imagined possible with a Batman movie. The ending still leaves you desperate for that third and final act, wondering what Chris Nolan and Christian Bale could possibly still have up their sleeves after playing a hand like this.
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Photo courtesy of flickr user bart234465 via ibelieveinharveydenttoo.com.
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Some friend and I saw it last night. You nailed the feeling of being a part of this movie right on the head. The four of us were a bit jittery on the drive home. I paused when passing a 18-wheeler tanker truck; afraid it was going to blow up next to me. It's just an emotionally charged film that belongs in any Oscar conversation this year.
While I agree that the movie was incredibly well done and I enjoyed it immensely, I have huge issues with the fact that this is getting an Oscar buzz. I'm sorry, but the hype around this movie is trumped up due to Ledger's death and I'm just not so sure that him winning a little golden statuette posthumously is actually deserved. Sure, he did a helluva a job, but was it really Oscar worthy?
Yeah, while I thought Ledger's performance was Oscar-caliber, I don't actually think he'll get a nomination, much less a win. There have been a lot of Oscar-caliber performances that haven't been nominated over the years (one little example that springs to mind is Kevin Bacon in The Woodsman), and I think that Ledger's will be remembered as an outstanding performance regardless of an Oscar nom or win. :)