The Dark Knight - The Best Superhero Movie

The Dark Knight

By: Noah Newcomb

        What can be said about this movie that hasn't already been said? Batman is by far my favorite superhero. Nearly all the comics in my closet are Batman ones. It also helps that Christopher Nolan is my favorite director. The Prestige, Dunkirk, and Inception are some of my favorite movies of all time. The Dark Knight, however, is by far his best film. No film gets close to rivaling it for me. (Well Inception may be close.) Nolan's take on Batman is something truly special and will be remembered for a long time in the history of film. I spoke earlier about how George Miller was the only one who could come up with the world of Mad Max. I think the same could be said for Nolan. This is his take. This is also one of the best-looking films of its decade. Chicago has never looked better than here. You can feel something is missing in The Dark Knight Rises when they didn't shoot there. Nolan is revolutionary for how beautiful his films look. I still think Inception is his best but this still feels like a beautiful Nolan film. Nolan often gets criticized for his action and I'm not going to defend him. I think the one thing that's wrong with Inception is that the action on the snowy dream area isn't that good. Nolan is rather choppy with his action and that doesn't work all the time. I will defend the action in this film, however. The Bat-Pod and the Joker Truck chase is one of my favorite action pieces so I think Nolan should be cut some slack on this one.

        Nolan was also blessed with a brilliant cast. (Well I guessed he picked them but whatever.) I think I'll start by bringing up the Rachel Dawes recast. Now I think one of the few problems with Batman Begins is how terrible and lame Katie Holmes is in that movie. I think Maggie Gylenhall's recast is one of the best recasts in Hollywood. Maggie respects what Katie Holmes did in the previous film. She doesn't just throw it out the window like most actors and actresses would. She also adds something to it that makes the character even better. I'll dig in deeper into her character once we've passed the spoiler wall. Next, we have Aaron Eckhart who plays as Harvey Dent. Eckhart does a great job with this character and brings a mix of charm and menace that Eckhart does so well. Gary Oldman returns as James Gordon with a larger role than he had in Batman Begins. Oldman does well with the larger role and remains as my favorite Gordon, finally becoming Commissioner. Michael Caine is giving another charming, Michael Caine performance that I enjoy. Caine is usually in every Nolan film and it's always a pleasure seeing him enter the movie. Morgan Freeman is always a great presence to have in a movie and is a lot of fun. Then, of course, there's the highlight of the film, Heath Ledger's  Joker. If you're wondering whether or not Ledger's performance lives up to the incredible hype it absolutely does. I believe I stated in my review of No Country for Old Men that there were only two performances out there that gave me chills whenever they were on screen was Javier Bardem's performance in No Country and Heath Ledger's performance as Joker and I stand by that statement. Ledger gives one of the best performances of the century. I'm not going to go into if playing as this character is the reason he died. I think that sounds like a fan theory. I've only seen Ledger in one over movie: A Knight's Tale. One of the most underrated movies in my opinion. When I saw that movie I only saw it because I knew Heath Ledger was going to be in it. I think he does a great job, but Paul Bettany was the best thing about that movie for me. I'm not sure how on earth Ledger made this transformation but whatever he did it truly is incredible. I would recommend this movie if only for people to see this fantastic performance. If you are at all interested in acting this is a performance you must see. The look and tone of this character are unlike any adaptations that came before or came after. We've now reached the main character: Batman/Bruce Wayne. I think the argument could be made that Bale is outshined by Ledger's performance but I think Bale is still fantastic. Bale is definitely my favorite Batman. I think the Joker always being one step ahead of Batman helps us relate to Bruce, helping us relate to him. The whole point on Joker wanting to make Batman break his one rule. The interrogation scene is one of my favorite scenes in all of cinema. Everything pops in the scene. Batman is throwing Joker around yet we all know Joker is the one with all the control. I'm going to go into spoiler territory so if you want to hear my final thoughts skip past this next section to the final one. 

SPOILERS!!!

        I think the biggest spoiler that can be said for this film is the fact that Rachel Dawes dies in this film. I said we'd go back to this character and now we are here. The fact Nolan kills the damsel in distress is both shocking and groundbreaking. I wish I remember seeing this for the first time (age 9 don't recommend it) and seeing her die was both gut-punching and emotional. I think the case could be made against this film that the recast of Rachel Dawes makes her death, less emotional but I think that's missing the point. This isn't a damaging death because of her death, it is because we know what it will do Bruce. Rachel was his way out of this fight and now that's gone. He has no reason for being Bruce Wayne anymore. This was the first movie that killed the damsel in distress. Sure Gwen Stacy dyed in the comics but that hadn't happened on screen yet. I think that adds something to the film and makes it something truly special. There's so much you can read into this death that makes it that. This death also leads to the birth of Two-Face. I don't recommend this movie to young kids because of this character and the Joker. The design of Two-Face is both unnerving and gross. This is a character Nolan does a very good balancing act with Joker and Two-Face. Two-Face isn't really a huge threat, he's rather petty and I enjoy that take. Two-Face just wants what's fair even if it isn't really right. The conclusion of his character is something I enjoy and yet it's rather crushing. In the end, the Joker wins. Batman is forced to go into hiding and it doesn't end on a high note for our characters. People often wonder whether or not Joker should've died in the end and I think that just wouldn't work. The main theme of this movie is that Batman doesn't kill which is one of my favorite things about the character. If Batman would've killed him then the Joker would've won the whole thing even after he won with Two-Face. Also, I think it would've been disrespectful to Ledger.

Final Thoughts

        Many superhero movies have tried to copy the success of the Dark Knight and none of them reach its greatness. This is the best superhero movie of all time. Some have gotten close Logan and Joker might've gotten close but they didn't make it. There was another successful superhero movie that came out the same year, Iron Man. That is definitely a more fun film than The Dark Knight. I think there are two types of people. You have your Iron Man people then you have your Dark Knight people. I think I'm more of a Dark Knight person even though I adore both films. Both are great movies. Let me know in the comments which type of person you are. I've seen The Dark Knight a dozen times by now but it's not one I go back to all the time. I think out of all the Dark Knight Trilogy, I go to Batman Begins the much. In The Dark Knight, we see our heroes get hurt so much where it's a hard movie to go back to and I think that makes it something special. This is my second favorite movie for a reason. It truly is the best superhero of all time and I doubt any will surpass it. I'm excited about the Mat Reeve Batman movie but I know it won't be better than this. Your no superhero fan if you haven't seen this. Strongest of Recommends.

The Dark Knight Official Trailer