The Dark Knight

Midway through The Dark Knight, the Joker reveals why the knife, not the gun, is his weapon of choice. He explains that, with a knife you get to slow down, take a closer look, and really see what your enemy is made of. It is as if Christopher Nolan and his crew followed this same creed when making their movie. They have slowed down the superhero movie, even more so than with Batman Begins, so that the audience can take a closer look at each character and get to know what each is made of.

To make a character driven summer blockbuster is a bold decision, what with the millions of dollars spent and a franchise on the line. The effect however, is rather remarkable. It is the interplay between the actors that stands out as far more memorable than any particular action sequence (most of the explosions prominently displayed in the preview are spread quite tastefully throughout the movie). The mood cast is so ominous and dark that all of merchandising tie-ins don’t quite fit.

Such a film requires above average talent in front of the camera and most of the actors thrive in this picture. Heath Ledger is given the space to convey exactly how terrifying it would be to have a scarred (physically and emotionally) lunatic in clown make-up loose in your city. Much has been written about the power of Leger’s final complete performance, but it remains a revelation in spite of the hype. Given the chance to play the most iconic comic book villain ever, he simply took the role and ran to further, deeper, creepier places than any other actor in the genre. Ever.

In the rush to praise Ledger, Aaron Eckhart’s performance as district attorney Harvey Dent should not go unnoticed. The movie hinges on the continuum between good and evil with Batman on one end and the Joker on the other; Harvey is unfortunately caught in the middle. Eckhart plays the fall from grace well exuding equal parts charisma and chaos. It is not often that an actor playing the “other man” (Dent has taken up with Bruce Wayne’s ex Rachel Dawes) can pull such sympathy from the audience. This feeling remains even as Dent travels down a very dark path.

The actor who has the least to work with is Christian Bale, the man playing the titular role. Bale plays Bruce Wayne and his alter ego with the same complexity as seen in the first movie (though why he uses that weird husky voice as Batman is still unanswered; perhaps that is what the third installment is all about) but his character doesn’t really change or progress in The Dark Knight. It is as if Nolan was more interested in exploring the newly introduced characters and Batman was just a conduit for this to be done.

This unevenness can be seen in other aspects of the film. There were points where the filmmakers missed the mark regarding what the audience needed or wanted in this film. Some minor characters were given way too much screen (no one cares that much about Commissioner Gordon’s family). There is a completely superfluous trip to Hong Kong taken early in the movie that adds nothing to the narrative (seriously, if someone can explain why this segment was needed I will give you $1.50). All of this could have been jettisoned for more face-to-face time between Batman and the Joker.

Much like Iron Man, The Dark Knight shows us what can happen when smart people are put in charge of huge blockbuster movies. The result can be thought provoking, entertaining, but most importantly satisfying. In the next few years there will be dozens of superhero releases in theaters. One can only hope that at least some of these filmmakers will approach their work with a knife instead of a gun.