The Dark Knight

2008

Director: Christopher Nolan

Distributor: Warner Brothers

My Review:

This was one of the biggest movie sequels ever.

Buzz surrounding this movie was generated early by the anticipation of Heath Ledger’s last performance. He didn’t disappoint.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen any movie villain – let alone comic book movie villain – as seductive and disturbing as Ledger’s Joker. There is so much darkness in this character, it’s mesmerizing.

First, he’s creepy. His appearance, his pattern of speech, the things he says and does, he just makes skin crawl.

Second, he’s unpredictable. He isn’t after money or revenge or anything that can be understood. He just wants chaos and destruction. This makes him untouchable because there’s nothing you can do to a person who doesn’t mind anything.

But the worst thing about him is that he’s enticing. There’s something about how clever, smooth and surprising he is that just draws people. It’s his charisma that focuses the movie more on him than on Batman.

Amazing characterization. Bravo Ledger.

But Batman is, obviously, important to the movie. The ending of the movie deepens his character. Bruce knows that Gotham needs to believe in Harvey Dent in order to have hope. Rather than revealing that Dent became Two-Face, Bruce allows the city to believe Batman killed Dent. This preserves the city’s perception of Dent as a symbol of hope. Unfortunately it also labels Batman as a villain. The hated of the city falls on the one most deserving of its love.

This is where we see the Gospel. Jesus, who knew no sin, became sin for us to give us the hope of a new life – Just like Batman, who was the hero, allowed himself to be seen as the villain to preserve the hope of Gotham.

Complex, but beautiful.

The only thing I can say against this movie is that it is too bad the Two-Face character was so short lived. In think a lot of people would have liked to see more done with him. But, all the same, his character was significant to the story’s message.

Incredible movie.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• Know your limits, Master Wayne.
  - Batman has no limits.
  But you do, sir.
  - Well, can't afford to know them.
• It's simple. We, uh, kill the Batman
• You're crazy.
  - I'm not. No, I'm not.
• Gotham needs a hero with a face.
• Nothing. No matches on prints, DNA, dental. Clothing is custom, no labels. Nothing in his pockets but knives and lint. No name, no other alias.
• some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.
• Wanna know how I got these scars? My father was... a drinker. And a fiend. And one night he goes off crazier than usual. Mommy gets the kitchen knife to defend herself. He doesn't like that. Not. One. Bit. So, me watching, he takes the knife to her, laughing while he does it. Turns to me and he says "Why so serious?" Comes at me with the knife,"Why so serious?" He sticks the blade in my mouth. "Let’s put a smile on that face!" And... Why so serious?
• You know, you remind me of my father. I hated my father!
• Come here. Hey! Look at me. So I had a wife, beautiful, like you, who tells me I worry too much. Who tells me I ought to smile more. Who gambles and gets in deep with the sharks... look at me! One day, they carve her face. And we have no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again, hmm? I just want her to know that I don't care about the scars. So... I stick a razor in my mouth and do this ...to myself. And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me! She leaves. Now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling!
• This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. You are truly incorruptible, aren't you? Huh? You won't kill me out of some misplaced sense of self-righteousness. And I won't kill you because you're just too much fun. I think you and I are destined to do this forever.
• What were you hoping to prove? That, deep down, everyone's as ugly as you? You're alone.
• This city just showed you that it's full of people ready to believe in good.
• Do you want to know why I use a knife? Guns are too quick. You can't savor all the... little emotions. In... you see, in their last moments, people show you who they really are. So in a way, I know your friends better than you ever did. Would you like to know which of them were cowards?
• The only sensible way to live in this world is without rules!
• You'll hunt me. You'll condemn me. Set the dogs on me. Because that's what needs to happen.
• You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength.
• You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.
• The night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming.
• Let me get this straight: You think that your client, one of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the world, is secretly a vigilante who spends his nights beating criminals to a pulp with his bare hands. And your plan is to blackmail this person? Good luck.
• Don't talk like one of them. You're not! Even if you'd like to be. To them, you're just a freak, like me! They need you right now, but when they don't, they'll cast you out, like a leper! You see, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show you. When the chips are down, these... these civilized people, they'll eat each other. See, I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve.
• Endure, Master Wayne. Take it. They'll hate you for it, but that's the point of Batman, he can be the outcast. He can make the choice that no one else can make, the right choice.
• You thought we could be decent men in an indecent time. But you were wrong. The world is cruel, and the only morality in a cruel world is chance. Unbiased. Unprejudiced. Fair.
  there's no going back. You've changed things... forever.
• I am whatever Gotham needs me to be. Do I really look like a guy with a plan? You know what I am? I'm a dog chasing cars. I wouldn't know what to do with one if I caught it. You know, I just... do things. The mob has plans, the cops have plans, Gordon's got plans. You know, they're schemers. Schemers trying to control their little worlds. I'm not a schemer. I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control things really are. So, when I say... Ah, come here. When I say that you and your girlfriend was nothing personal, you know that I'm telling the truth. It's the schemers that put you where you are. You were a schemer, you had plans, and look where that got you. I just did what I do best. I took your little plan and I turned it on itself. Look what I did to this city with a few drums of gas and a couple of bullets. Hmmm? You know... You know what I've noticed? Nobody panics when things go "according to plan." Even if the plan is horrifying! If, tomorrow, I tell the press that, like, a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it's all "part of the plan." But when I say that one little old mayor will die, well then everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I'm an agent of chaos. Oh, and you know the thing about chaos? It's fair!
• Why's he running, Dad?
  - Because we have to chase him.
  He didn't do anything wrong.
  - Because he's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now. So we'll hunt him because he can take it. Because he's not our hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector. A dark knight.

Stills: