The Dark Knight

(Original posting July 19, 2008)

I never thought I'd enjoy this movie as much as I did! I was never much of a Batman fan but this release hooked me in. This Christopher Nolan film is complete with all the ingredients of a great superhero movie: high octane action sequences, praise-worthy and believable performances by the cast, great plot, unexpected humor, minimal drama.

The cast is just simply stellar! I'm sold even with just the supporting actors (Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Caine). Caine is perfect with his dry wit as Alfred and Gyllenhaal gave more depth and strength to Rachel's character which would have otherwise been reduced to run-of-the-mill damsel in distress.

Christian Bale reprising the role of the Caped Crusader delivered. Complete with fangs and adopting a growling voice for the said character, he was a perfect choice. Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent was great in that he was able to show the emotions and psychosis that drove the "white knight of Gotham" to become the tormented freak known as Two-Face.


But the one who really shone in this film is the controversial actor Heath Ledger as the Joker. He was simply awesome in his portrayal of Batman's arch-nemesis. People say it is now the definitive Joker performance and will probably be one of the most celebrated villains in movie history. My favorite highlight was when Joker, hanging upside down, was giving Batman a piece of his twisted mind -- how an unstoppable force crashes into an immovable object and how these two will be destined to do battle forever. Then Joker says to Batman, "You complete me!" I laughed so hard i coughed! Simply clever and in perfect timing. It put a whole new spin to that line originally by Jerry Maguire.


However, as much as i loved Heath's performance, I don't see him in the Oscars, not even a nomination. I'm hoping the hype sustains him until the awards season but it really is a longshot.

The movie left some interesting observations on human behavior and the society at large, raising questions on who's life has more value, how pathetic our efforts are to take control of our own little worlds, how sick the world we live in now that no one remains pure, and other dilemmas of the human condition. These for me, elevated The Dark Knight from being just a popcorn blockbuster to truly becoming one of the great releases of an otherwise barren year for the movies.