The Dark Knight - The AMG Review
July 18th, 2008 | 1:55 pm est |
The caped crusader gets a stunning dose of hardcore dramatics in The Dark Knight, director Christopher Nolan’s ambitious follow-up to Batman Begins. Hailed as the first real big screen adult take on a popular comic mythos, the film goes to great lengths to show that costumed characters can indeed exist in genres outside of their comfort zone – which in this case, spells gritty crime drama. Nolan’s Gotham City might be beautiful, but it’s decaying from the inside out – as are most of the people in control of it. So at what point do the efforts of a costumed vigilante cease to have an impact on the society he vows to protect – and when does his mere presence present a detriment to them when it’s all said and done? It’s these kinds of hefty issues that embody what could accurately be touted as a reinvention of the entire superhero film altogether. Thick with rich dramatics, daring performances and a few knockout scenes of action gusto, The Dark Knight strives to not only one-up its precursor, but to also lay down a measuring stick of quality for the rest of Hollywood to live up to.
The casting will no doubt have a lot to do with the strong reaction to the picture. Heath Ledger’s sad passing gives his fearless performance – and in effect, the movie – a sense of importance that is hard to counter. For his part, the talented performer gives a full-on show each time he is on the screen. His approach to this anarchist embodiment of The Joker is something truly special to behold and easily one of the boldest portrayals in comic-to-screen history. Take him away and there’s still plenty of A-game being brought to the screen, thanks to the talents of Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman and Aaron Eckhart, whose solid performance as Harvey Dent makes up the tragic backbone of the film. For his part, Christian Bale does a fine job at embodying the lonesome hero of his city, even if he persists in giving Batman’s voice the same guttural growl that hurt his performance the first time around. Thankfully, the costume has been given an overhaul to address some of the “rubber suit” issues that have plagued the franchise since its Tim Burton days.
Yet just as Burton reshaped the character to fit his own gothic tastes, so does Christopher Nolan paint a picture all his own. By luring audiences in with a consistently light first half and then turning things bleaker as the movie progresses, the filmmaker has created a truly engrossing tale of modern decay. By the end, much has changed and no one is left unscathed. It’s not an easy story either to tell or to sit through. There are casualties – and this most certainly is not a crowd-pleaser in the typical sense of the word. By eschewing what many others in his field are doing with similar comic properties and seeking out his inspiration elsewhere, Nolan shows that mature thematic material can have new life when adapted for even the most beloved heroes of the printed page. Critically, he does overshoot things a bit by bringing slightly heavy-handed messages into the final chunk of the film – and it seems that a few characters really got the short end of the stick (Scarecrow, anyone?). Perhaps the rumored 3-hour cut would iron out a few of the film’s issues, including rushed character arcs and especially one seemingly needless late set piece. The action, while improved in this installment, also is a bit hampered by some confusing techno-gadgetry (in one of the only moments where the action is dictated by fantastic spectacle).
Still, with its virtuoso vision and near avant-garde score from James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer fueling the picture’s ever-growing dread, The Dark Knight stands on its own in a world full of easy entertainment. Perhaps someday someone will be able to happily marry the best that both Nolan and Burton have brought to the screen — until then, this remains an impressive feat of studio-backed artistry. Like its own crime-fighter, the movie is a symbol that aspires to greater things; where it will lead is anyone’s guess.
yes! ive been waiting to see this review for so long. and im so glad this movie is doing so well. i cant wait to see it, but im going to have to wait a few days to see it in the preferred IMAX screening. its too bad that it has fallen short of perfection, but i know its still gonna be great.
thank you!
I don’t think it fell short of perfection, and I’m a little confused as to what exactly was the “needless late set piece”. I did initially find Batman’s Death-Growl to be a little annoying, but then it does ultimately make sense as he’s trying to hide his real voice (listen to it though; Christian Bale could front a Death Metal band). For my money, this is the greatest comic movie ever made, a Godfather Part II for Superheroes, and it will usher in a new age of comic movies.
Finally an objective review. Spot on. Thanks.
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Nice post, you got some good points there - thank you.
I really like this review, but I’m confused as to why you think “gritty crime drama” is outside of Batman’s comfort zone. The best incarnations of Batman, outside of this movie, come from Frank Miller, who’s comics define gritty crime drama. As a character born from the pulps, gritty crime drama is in Batman’s dna.
Yeah, I said who’s for whose. Awesome.
i really noticed when you said “perhaps someday someone will be able to happily marriage the best that both Nolan and Burton brought to the screen”
I really do hope so, but i’ve seen Dark Knight, and ………………… AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Overall Mr. Wheeler has it right. The Dark Knight is a “virtuoso vision” but it confounds me that for a film of such masterful craft and intelligent, complex storytelling the word “masterpiece” is not mentioned. So many critics throw that word around on more “serious” oscar-season films but for a so-called “comic book” film they are all too reluctant.
If they only knew how difficult it is to make a film on this scale, and the level of commitment it takes to get such high-quality results - but no - they’re holding out for some day when there will be a “Super-Director” who will make a perfect film…
… Who could ask for more? I guess everybody should see Hellboy II instead…
Overall some good points though…
Its one of the best movies of the year, for sure. I think that chris Nolan has done an incredible job.
Hellboy 2 and The Dark Knight should not have been released so close together. Seriously, it’s getting smoked.
This is the first I’ve heard of the 3 hour cut… where else has that rumor been mentioned?
It’s been a very long time since you guys rated any new releases. So I would just like to say thank you, because apparently you posted around 20 ratings today. And I’m very happy with the four star rating for Hellboy and 4.5 for Dark Knight! So thank you. This has been much anticipated.
Ps. On the main entry for Cloverfield, the review is missing.
at times the Joker seemed almost too smart, borderline clairvoyant, but i guess that makes him a good foe…
JW is right this Movie hands down sets the bar for the next gen super hero comic rave of movies that should sprawl across the big screen for the next couple of years.
p.s. JW this is NA