Batman: The Dark Knight (PG-13)
Mike:
Mike: Tonight I am reviewing the new Batman film Dark Knight
, the second installment in the reboot of the comic book series.
Scott was unable to attend.
So what did I think?
Mike: Finally I get to review a worthy summer blockbuster. This movie joins Iron Man, And Wall E as one of the best movies of this summer. I really enjoyed this movie. This film is well done on all fronts. Great acting, great action and even a mostly great story. My only complaint, and I’ve said this about summer movies before, is that it is too long. Few movies actually need to be 2 and ½ hours long. That is not to say that nothing happens in the last half hour, but some editing could have brought this down to two hours.
I am as saddened as anyone else by his premature death, but I am going to ignore the Heath Ledger hype, and let you know he does a good job as the Joker, but it’s not earthshaking. The Jokers portrayal owes as much to the writers as to the actor himself. When it was announced I thought it was inspired casting to take one of the handsomest actors in Hollywood and make him the ugliest. The Dark Knight continues the premise set up by the first film that this whole thing seems like it could actually happen. No super powers, no guys bathed in chemicals that bleach his skin. This guy is just nuts. And as Alfred says, “Some guys just want to watch the world burn”. Actually, one of the interesting approaches is that there is no origin story or back story for the Joker. He just appears.
We do get one origin story later in the film, but this movie starts off running, with a bank heist pulled by thugs in clown masks hired by the Joker. Batman is in action 10 minutes into the story instead of like 60 minutes in Batman Begins. But like X-Men2 or Spiderman 2 the exposition has already been taken care of, so we can jump right into the action.
Christian Bale is the heart and soul of the film. I like Michael Keaton’s Batman as much as the next guy, but watching an actor of Bale’s ability builds your trust in this film. His performance in the previous Batman is what probably encouraged producers to go with a risky, but talented choice like Robert Downey Jr in Iron Man, rather than safe like Tom Cruise. These are the kind of performances that raise Comic Book movies from being kiddie fare into serious action drama. I will admit to being a little amused or maybe surprised by the voice Bale uses as Batman to separate himself from Bruce Wayne. I wonder if a voiceover wouldn’t have worked better.
Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman return to reprise their roles. It’s comforting to have old pros returning to take these roles so seriously. Worthy new additions are Aaron Eckhart as DA Harvey Dent and Maggie Gyllenhaal replacing Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes. If you’ve ever read any Batman comics or even seen one of the previous Batman films, then it is no secret that Dent will eventually become Two Face. This brings up one of the more disturbing parts of the story. This is not any Tommy Lee Jones makeup. This is horrifying burn victim makeup. Be prepared.
I have to mention the fantastic score I this movie by composer s James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer. The music punctuates the action in most every scene. The themes fit with the darkness of this movie.
Christopher Nolan continues an impressive streak of directing that started with the ground breaking Memento. He brings out solid performances from the actors and shows us visuals that will stick with you. I also admit that it’s refreshing not to be overwhelmed with CGI for a change.
How do I rate this movie?
I give this a 4 overall and 4 for comic book movie. This movie is going to be a huge hit and one of the few potential blockbusters this summer that live up to the expectations we all had heading in to the summer.
This week make sure to spend a Dark Night in the theater with Batman.
