The Dark Knight (2008)

Welcome to NOLAN WEEK!

Before reviewing his latest big budget opus (The Odyssey), let's revisit the beloved superhero sequel which helped push Oscar-winning writer/director Christopher Nolan (Inception, Oppenheimer, Dunkirk) into the pantheon of master modern filmmakers.  As a direct sequel to 2005's word-of-mouth hit Batman Begins, this was released with much fanfare as it was not only about the continuing adventures of Batman/Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) but also the reintroduction of a classic villain who happpens to be the latest threat to his beloved home of Gotham City. :o This new threat is mysteriously known as the Joker (Oscar-winner Heath Ledger) who has been havoc around the city, not only terrifying citizens but even threatening local organized crime.  And what results is an epic battle for the soul of Gotham involving not only Batman and the Joker, but local law enforcement lead by Comissioner Jim Gordon (Oscar-winner Gary Oldman), District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckart), and Assistant DA Rachel Dawes (Oscar-nominee Maggie Gyllenhaal).  Also co-starring at least two other Oscar-winners (Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman), this mega-smash would also receive eight Oscar nominations that year including two wins for Best Supporting Actor (Ledger) and Best Sound Editing - it would not only set a new bar for superhero movies moving forward but also action blockbusters.  

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

Transcript

THE DARK KNIGHT - 2008

Directed by Christopher Nolan

Starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Monique Gabriela Curnen, Ron Dean, Chin Han, Nester Carbonell, Ritchie Coster, Michael Jai White, Anthony Michael Hall, and Eric Roberts

Genre: Superhero Crime Epic (Audio clip)

Whoooh….take a deep breath!  What IS there to say about this film which hasn't already been said? For better or worse in less than twenty years, it has now become one of those totemic blockbusters which EVERYONE has seen and they can ALL cite the highlights....like Star Wars, Jurassic Park, or Titanic. That Chris Nolan's epic Bat-sequel has even surpassed - with regards to sheer hyper-awareness - the original franchise game-changing blockbuster (Batman '89) which it clearly built its success upon AND the much obsessed-upon crime epic (Heat) which it's clearly very much homaging....is all the more impressive. In all likelihood, it's probably the most relentlessly quoted film of the 21st Century so far....

"Why so serious?"

"I'm not wearing HOCKEY PANTS!!!"

"Some men just want to watch the world burn...."

"You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain."

"You wanna know how I got these SCARS?"

I mean say what you will about how too often The Nolan Brothers (Chris, Jonah) drift into pure exposition with their dialogue, this screenplay still features a lot of gems. :) What Chris (with his brother of course) essentially did was blend two classic genres: the straightforward superhero action movie and the denser operatic epic crime saga. It's ambitious to say the least....and clearly the timing of when this film came out was literally a major factor: coming out just barely seven months after the tragic death of its most anticipated co-star Heath Ledger, delivering an all-time portrayal of what was already an iconic character, The Joker.

And while I think he can sometimes overpower the film, he's surrounded by a very strong cast....most of whom deliver intriguing little gems performances. THIS was my (and I'm pretty sure most of the world's) discovery of now-prevalent genre character actor David Dastmalchian truly stealing his ONE memorable scene as "Joker's Thug" (that's really how he's credited) with that haunting gaze of his as Aaron Eckhart's Harvey tries to question him.

I kinda LOVE that the late, great genre player Tom "Tiny" Lister Jr. as "Tattooed Prisoner" (come on, they couldn't just borrow names from Batman lore?! :p) has the unenviable task of having to deliver THE most on-the-nose moralistic character moment of the film (when he tosses the detonator off the ferry) and he STILL just nails it! It's kinda crazy that Mr B-Movie Go-To-Guy - ERIC ROBERTS of all people (the next proper franchise sequel he would co-star in after this would the THIRD Human Centipede) - would be given such a prominent role as Carmine Moroni but he's such fun to watch it and pretty much nails it himself.

Nolan has always excelled at casting his even bigger films with just a great assorted bench of supporting players....and he fills this Gotham City with a memorable crop. Yes it was a genuine acting upgrade to go from Katie Holmes (who was just so woefully miscast in Batman Begins) to Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes, no matter the questionable circumstances. (She is just SO much more believable as a DA) On paper, casting Aaron Eckhart as "Two-Face" made perfect sense after a decade of him working his way up, shifting effortlessly between portraying nice guys (Erin Brockovich) and genuine cads (In the Company of Men). And of course when you need some key veterans on board to deliver the weightiest dialogue, you can't do any better than bringing back The Tender Trio of Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Gary Oldman.

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film): 

As a follow-up to their excellent propulsive score for Batman Begins three years prior, James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer returned to compose the score for the sequel, with Zimmer apparently taking more of the reins this time.  And with that return, he took on a new challenge: how to craft memorable music for the character of the Joker? Well we are introduced to this music with that now ICONIC opening heist sequence. (Audio clip) 

So instead of a creating a distinct new theme for this character, Zimmer decided to forgo an actual Joker theme by creating a uniquely non-melodic soundscape for the character – he says he was very much influenced by old school punk rock with this sound, that it was more akin to a bow being STRETCHED inside the character of the Joker himself.  And what he accomplished was basically providing a uniquely unnerving audio backdrop for WHENEVER we see this character on-screen – it’s not dissimilar to those tense synth notes we would hear building from John Carpenter whenever Michael Myers would appear on-screen during the original Halloween OR….yeah John William’s iconic notes for Jaws.  If there was ANY doubt that we were being introduced to an all-time screen villain, THIS music pretty much cemented that.  The track is called, “Why So Serious.” (Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

Notice I haven't mentioned Christian Bale as of yet? 🤔 Yeah well that's where my issues with the film begin and it's not because I feel like he's actively BAD....he's fine as Bruce Wayne, serviceable as Batman here. The problem is that he really DOES feel like an afterthought here....whereas I thought he was pitch-perfect as both characters in Batman Begins. 'Begins also happens to be what I consider to be THE Greatest Superhero Movie Of All Time. 🫡 And therein lies the rub about The Dark Knight as a sequel for me: no matter how astounding Ledger was nor how elevated the setpieces were, 'Begins set just such a high bar for it to clear....and in my opinion, it falls below that.

Don't get me wrong about 'Begins...it has JUST as much expository dialogue as TDK, much of the first half even feels like a really well-crafted extended trailer at points. 😆 But most of that exposition is given to Katie Holmes and Liam Neeson, the latter of whom makes a pretty good meal of it regardless. Bale is allowed to play Bruce Wayne as genuine character....whereas in TDK, his character is pretty much swallowed up in exposition. And even worse, he has to deliver WAY too much of that exposition in the cape and cowl as the story progresses....and it just feels awkward at points. Especially that final sequence which is SUPPOSED to be the emotional highpoint of the film....

In what should have been a powerhouse sober exchange between three top-flight actors - Bale, Eckhart, and Oldman - it ends up feeling more like amateurish kabuki theater thanks to very overwrought dialogue and sorry only one of the three having decipherable facial expressions. 🫣 The cape and cowl just overwhelms Bale's face with no lighting around and as bold as Eckhart's Two-Face look is, it's just feels too ghoulish to take seriously within the (mostly) grounded world which Nolan created.

And what's nuts is that as a long-time Nolanite, I have found that his endings usually KILL - both 'Begins and TDKR had wonderfully poetic and clever endings. I have never been as high on Interstellar or Oppenheimer as most but they BOTH still end really well! As a result, one key aspects of TDK which have always prevented it from reaching masterpiece-status FOR ME is that it has a pretty lackluster conclusion (I'm not even gonna get into the logic mess of Batman taking blame for murders when the Joker's RIGHT there....much smarter cinephiles than me have already picked that apart)....but that it also peaks way too early. 🤔 Roughly with almost an hour remaining....but OH WHAT a peak!

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

So now let’s get to that PEAK. There is roughly a half hour chunk of this film stretching from the parade Gordon fake-out to the truck/Bat-pod chase leading into the interrogation room leading to two (deservedly) iconic shots - Joker's head out the police car window, Batman crouching at the explosion wreckage – which is pure 100% full-throte CINEMA. 😀 

Not only is Nolan proving the naysayers wrong about his inability to direct action but he's almost out Mann-ing Mann at points! And he's doing this with a great assist from DP Wally Pfister. (Where HAS he been the past twelve years??) Post-2000 Chicago actually looks more majestic than mid '90's downtown LA (Actually not that difficult when you think about it) But the piercing sound design of large vehicles barreling through Lower Wacker, THAT reveal of the Bat-Pod, and of course the TRUCK FLIPPING over. 🙂 My wife was living near The Loop at the time and said they could hear that thing smash several blocks away. (Or the helicopter crashing, she was never completely sure)

MVP (person most responsible for the success of this film):

Even beyond that aforementioned middle half hour, there are still numerous other highlights: of course the opening bank heist (including Fichtner's over-the-top accent), Lucius setting Coleman Reese straight (funniest moment in the film), Joker's "what me?" pantomime in the nurse outfit, a fun brief re-appearance from Scarecrow, and that VERY unsettling Joker video featuring the Batman copycat. 

So SPEAKING of the Joker….no it's not remotely controversial to say that Ledger deserved every plaudit even if it was sadly posthumous....but he undoubtedly did! :( He not only OWNS the screen every time he appears with the awkwardly applied make-up and that distinctive Tom Waits-inspired raspy voice....but you can't help but anticipate when he's going to return.  There is LITTLE doubt that when folks remember this movie, the aspect they most remember is his performance….and for delivering not only one of THE MOST ICONIC performances of the 21st Century so far but also what is likely among THE TOP FIVE movie villains EVER, the late, great Heath Ledger is the MVP. (Audio clip) 

Final Rating: 3.6 stars out of 5 

Overall this remains to me a very good but pretty flawed movie. I don't consider it to be among Nolan's best nor even among the top tier of Batman movies OR superhero movies though it's possibly among the better Heat homages....and I hope that's OK. ;)

Streaming on HBO Max and YouTube TV

And that ends another WHY SO SERIOUS review!