The Mighty Mighty CK

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All the movies that were featured this
year had been nothing but disappointing. Maybe “Iron Man” proved
to be a last gasp saving grace that kept me in the cinema, but the
rest were truly not up to their mark, not even the latest Indiana
Jones adventure. In fact, it was the most disappointing of them all,
so disappointing that I almost gave up on the whole franchise. I
didn’t even bother to write a review on it, or on any other
productions, because it will turn rather nasty, owing to the fact
that I never had anything nice to say, and even if I did, the con’s
would most certainly outweigh the pros. 

All but one.

The Dark Knight was the most
anticipated movie this year, especially when all the other didn’t
live up to their expectations. But unlike all the other movies, The
Dark Knight lived up to it, perhaps even more.

From the very beginning until the end,
the movie didn’t look or even feel like a superhero movie. It was
more like a psychological crime drama, with lots of twists and turn,
which in fact was the movie’s plus point. The artfully crafted
opening scene puts the movie in full motion, and the rest just
follows through. Even though the 2 ½ hours runtime proved to be a
bit too long, I would be disappointed if it was even one minute
short. All the scenes fitted well in that time slot; there were no
misplaced scened or unnecessary shots. Everything was well placed
like the way it should be.

The Joker’s role was the most
applauded, but for me, Heath Ledger did underplay the role a bit.
Sure, he did stole the movie, but if the role was anything that
followed “The Killing Joke” graphic novel like he said in an
interview before his untimely death, then I’d say it wasn’t enough.
Sure he was psychotic in a very funny and sickening way, but I
believe that it could have been done with a much better tone. Still,
despite the minor shortfalls, he did carry the role like it should
have been done, instead of being the comic relief like the disaster
called “Batman and Robin” (remember Bane? I don’t think so-many
would rather forget).

My money was on Christian Bale. Not
only as Batman, but as Bruce Wayne as well. He managed to split the
two personalities in a very balanced manner. Michael Keaton proved to
be too serious as Bruce Wayne; Val Kilmer didn’t fit at all for both,
and George Clooney should have avoided the movie in the first place.
But Bale managed to bring out the playboy persona of Bruce Wayne, who
at times don’t seem to care about anything but himself, like the
Lamborghini crash scene, but at the same time cared enough to believe
in Harvey Dent and his effort to clean up the city. Yet, as Batman,
he was the true warrior, who puts his life on the line before other
as well as their reputation, as he did to protect Dent’s reputation
at the end. The only complaint is that out-of-place voice he was
doing as Batman. AT times like these I wish Kevin Conroy did the
voice over, but that wouldn’t be right, how tempting that could have
been.

Another role who deserves the applause
was Gary Oldman’s Jim Gordon. Playing the rarely casted good guy
role, Oldman’s stellar performance reflects the true persona of
Gordon, a by-the-book cop who trusts The Dark Knight implicitly
without putting the city at risk. Aaron Eckhart undoubtedly gave a
fresh boost to Harvey Dent’s role; a man bent to clean up the city,
at all cost. His transformation to Two-Face was beautifully crafted,
from the emotional aspect right up to the remarkable FX work on his
face.

Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and
Maggie Gyllenhaal’s role as the support characters proved to be more
than that. Caine and Freeman managed to bring out the most of
Wayne/Batman, and Gyllenhaal managed to pull her character to live
unlike Katie Holmes who literally panned it to dead waters. The rest
of the supporting characters like Eric Roberts were played very well
in the movie, which gave the movie a great crime drama tone.

Setting the movie great was none other
that Christopher Nolan himself. The director managed to cut the
movie’s setting to match the dark and gritting tale of Batman, not as
a superhero, but as a human being that can be hurt, bruised and also
hated. Batman was not the mask; Bruce Wayne was, and he made sure the
audience were clear about it. The dramatic twist that was well
orchestrated by The Joker kept the audience at the edge of their
seat, as each scene were manipulated to it’s fullest but never quite
reach the ending at it’s every turn. Although some would still wonder
why was Two-Face were killed off at the end (or was he), or why
Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow was only given a cameo role, he did it in a
craft fashion that didn’t gave the movie too much villain to juggle
with, at the same time gave a reason why Gotham needs Batman but also
resents him at the same time. Every part was polished, assisted by
classic portrayal of roles by character actors and actresses making
the movie a great and unforgettable watch.

A serious movie for serious fans and
moviegoers alike.