The Dark Knight Trilogy: Film Reviews #2

The Public: We never said “Thank you!”

Chris Nolan: And you’ll never have to!

Okay, I know that’s actually a conversation between Gordon and Batman (spoiler alert: who is actually Bruce Wayne, if you happen to have been born on one of Jupiter’s moons and just arrived on Earth today), but I believe we all need to stand up, look at the sky and thank Christopher Nolan for restoring our beloved character to his former glory. Not only that, he introduced him in a whole new down-to-earth, realistic light to the mass audience. Not only that, he did so in such a graceful manner that kind of kept a bit of the gothic feel that the 1989 Batman built. NOT ONLY THAT – IT IS A COMIC BOOK MOVIE WITH AN OSCAR IN A MAJOR CATEGORY! I need to lie down, got too excited…

I am slightly against looking at the three movies separately, for they complete each other too much, but I reckon if I add chaos to the lack of writing talent in this article, it would be too much to bear.

That being said, let’s start off with Batman Begins. Stupid title. I remember when it first came out I DID NOT want to see it! And I’m the biggest bat-fan I know! There was too sour a taste left from the previous movie that had all but drained my faith in ever seeing a decent dark knight movie ever again (fuck you, Schumacher! Bat-skates?! Really?!). In the end I went to see it just before it came off cinemas… and it was THE BEST BATMAN MOVIE EVER! It captured the torment of the character like nothing on the big screen ever had! (Apologies to Tim Burton, but Michael Keaton as Batman!? Kind of shot yourself in the foot there, didn’t you?) Back to the point – what really grabbed me is that the movie takes itself seriously; the reality of Gotham is actually real. The cast has perfect harmony, no one overshines the others and in this way everyone fits perfectly into the story. Ever Katie Holmes, I swear. The stage was set…

The Dark Knight is to date the only movie I went to see four times at the cinema. In one week. I couldn’t get enough! This movie is what every bat-fan could ever dream of. It has the complex story, the emotional fuse, the tormented hero and brilliant villains! Heath Ledger gave us the performance of a lifetime. He put so much into portraying the Joker it is almost as if he knew it would be his last complete performance. You can rarely see an actor remove himself from a character as much. He gave himself completely to the image of the Clown Prince of Crime to such an extent that people will actually remember him with the paint on his face. Which I believe is the way he would want them to (given his career choice). The only thing I dislike about the movie is Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her face can put a cock to sleep. In the end, The Dark Knight is somber and delicate, morbid and artistic. It is the movie we deserve.

With Ledgers death, one can only wonder what plans Nolan held for the end of his trilogy. Respectably he refused to re-cast the Joker (which would have been an abomination) and instead went for a new villain. Bane was supposed to be the most horrific thing to happen to Gotham City. Unfortunately, you cannot follow Ledger, despite Tom Hardy’s best efforts. It just isn’t possible. Bane is a threat, he actually beats Batman, but still, you know that he will recover. With the Joker that was not certain, there was always room for Batman to lose. That being said, The Dark Knight Rises turned out to be the swan song that the trilogy deserved. It gave the films a sense of completeness in an epic and hugely emotional way. It was the best possible good-bye Nolan could say to our beloved universe. And we are forever grateful, that he created it.

Henry Ducard: A vigilante is just a man lost in the scramble for his own gratification. He can be destroyed, or locked up. But if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can't stop you, then you become something else entirely.

Bruce: Which is?

Henry Ducard: Legend, Mr. Wayne.

~G.