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- First reviewJuly 21, 2008
- Last reviewJuly 21, 2008
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JRichview's Reviews
Overall rating
4
/
5
The most grown-up Batman to date
PostedJuly 21, 2008
JRichview
from Florida
The Dark Knight is a psychological thriller whose tone matches that of the graphic novels which attempted to take both the art and the story of Batman to a more adult level. Trust me, after seeing this you will want to rent a comedy to lift your spirits. That should be taken as a very high compliment, however. It means that The Dark Knight lives up to its name.
The overall quality of the acting is sky high in comparison to many Batman attempts of the past, although I am not a big fan of Aaron Eckhart in particular. As you will know by now, Heath Ledger's performance steals the show. The Joker is no longer a caricature, but a very real, and very threatening psychopath. Though Jack Nicholson's performance in the 1989 Batman significantly raised the bar for portrayal of a villain in a comic-themed film, Ledger's portrayal is a landmark step toward legitimizing the genre for the general public. Purists will dislike that the Joker's origin is never really explained in this movie, but in the age of terrorism Ledger's Joker seems as if he may have stepped straight out of the New York mayor's worst nightmares. He is very believable and very frightening.
As for Christian Bale's performance, it is once again a cut above his predecessors. I have been impressed with Bale's acting since he first came to my attention and I don' t think the public has quite yet acknowledged his prodigious talent. He may not get the recognition he so richly deserves from this genre of films, especially with Ledger overshadowing him in this instance, but like Gary Oldman he will eventually be seen as one of the finest actors of his generation. True fans of the genre should be grateful that he accepted this role.
In a few ways The Dark Knight still misses the mark. The action can still be a bit over the top in places, and there are still some stunts that stretch your suspension of disbelief so far that you are reminded that Batman is just a comic book hero. But overall its focus on character, plot and mood makes it far and away the best Batman to date. You are probably going to want to see this more than once.
Yes, I recommend this movie.
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