A true summer blockbuster indeed. But what makes The Dark Knight (TDK), such a cultural phenomenon as it stands today? Only after 10 days of release the movie has raked in about half a billion dollar bounty at the global box office and more than three hundred milion in the US alone. Along the way, scores of records were broken. Not just financially, but critically too the movie is a phenomenon. Displacing Godfather from number 1 (with more 150,000 votes as of July 29,08) spot on IMDB Top 250 list, getting a score of 95% on the highly respected Rotten Tomatoes website and getting glowing reviews from the east coast to the west, TDK seems to have reached a cross-section of audience that is bewildering, at the least. A real pop culture phenomenon indeed...
Movie producers and businessmen often talk about what is known as a four-quadrant hit. A movie that appeals to kids, women, adults and old people. If you think of such movies in the last decade, there are only a handful that come to mind. First, Titanic (although it dint appeal to me), Spiderman, Pirates, LOTR and maybe Indiana Jones. Titanic was leaning more towards young women and older audience not men and kids. Spiderman and LOTR had a great appeal to kids and young adults not older audiences. Women did not digg too much into the adventures of Indiana Jones or the fantacies of LOTR. But TDK, a movie which is not supposed to be shown to kids below 13, seems to have broken all these barriers. Similar to Pirates, which had a mass appeal to almost all the four in the quadrant. Tough thing to accomplish, since its only a comic book movie and besides, it has already been done to death before. Think of this. Before Batman Begins' relaunch in 2005, there were four Batman movies so, for the general audience (not the hardcore fanboys like me), TDK is in fact a sixth Batman movie. Would you watch a sixth Ironman or X-men with this kind of anticipation that TDK is getting? I doubt it. We have seen these characters before (Joker in 1990 in Batman and Two Face in 1994 in Batman Forever) and we also remember Jack Nicholson's Joker very fondly. But TDK rebooted all those memories. Well, I realize public memory is short but the point is, the true value of a franchisee is only known to be appealing when it keeps churing out hits after hits, right? Batfranchisee was sent to grave in 1996 thanks to the efforts (or lack of) of Joel Shumacher (well, he also took a lot of rap of doing so anyways) and after 12 years, we again have another Batmovie, and a true blockbuster, unstoppable behemoth at that.
What is this appeal? Why are people dressing like the Joker and wearing capes to movie theaters? Why are some watching it more than 3 times on screen? Why, even critics (New York Times, Wall Street Journal) who gave terrible reviews of TDK were vehemently attacked by fanboys (I never did, I respect others opinions and agree to disagree). Screening after screening is booked out weeks ahead by repeat audience. Are we seeing a true pop culture blitkrieg?
I strongly think following points offer some insight into this blitzkrieg.
- Heath Ledger: Initially, the movie created fantastic anticipation on the web by the supern marketing campaign launched by Warner, for the Joker. Through clever websites (http://www.whysoserious.com/ etc) and Harvey Dent's campaign ridicule (I believe in Harvey Dent too), and the official Joker look of Heath launch last year-end, the response from fans and others was sky high in this movie. Every serious movie buff knows the caliber of Heath. I havent seen all his movies, but I did see some and to imagine that man was playing Joker was amazing to believe (Watch TDK and Brokeback, back to back to see what I am saying). He is one fine young actor, and from the day TDK launched, the word was out. HIS PERFORMANCE IS TERRIFIC! Heath nailed the Joker, if you read the comics like I do, you will agree and even if you dont read the comics, I am sure you will agree. He created a psychotic, purposeless fiend, who just loves mayhem for the sake of mayhem. His lines, he walk, everything was bang on the money. Well, finally, we all know that the pent-up demand to see TDK was sky high since Heath passed away six months before TDK hit the screens. So, this factor was really crucial to pique the consumer interest. Warner did a fantastic job not to overdo the hype since Heath was no more. I am sure he must be smiling looking at this below, well, why so serious?
- Other cast: This cast can do Shakespear forget a comic book adaptation. When you have Bale, Cain, Freeman, Eckard and Oldman can pull any damn story off on the big screen and make it believable. I agree Joker was terrific, but all these guys above deserve praise in their own right. TDK would not have been possible without these fine contributions.
- Economy: What? Yes, economy. The gas prices hit the highest before TDK released and housing problem continue (Fanni mae, freddi mac), while the uncertainty on the political front for the Presidential race is higher than ever. The consumer wants to escape from all this dammit! I want 2 hours of entertainment that will make me forget the real world outside. TDK gave that vicarious pleasure that no other summer tentpole came close this year. With breaktaking action, minimal CGI, great acting and a superb narrative, Nolan nailed it with TDK.
- Chris Nolan: Last and not the least factor, whats TDK without Nolan at the helm? The visionary, along with his brother wrote the screenplay, and hand picked everything in the movie and eveything on screen. The batmobile became tumbler, batcycle became batpod, the caves were left out for a rad apartment overlooking Gotham. The gorgoyles were gone, replaced by slick city scrapers. The nipples were replaced by torn flesh wounds :), and the blockbuster theme of Danny was replaced by the psychedelic music of Hans. Nolan did to TDK what I guess no other director could have done, he got an element of reality to this otherwise unbelievable franchisee. He also got a seriousness and sense of brooding you will get when you finish reading say, Miller's The Year One or The Dark Knight Returns. He got a sense of beauty and chemistry between the hero and villain on screen not seen since The Good, The Bad and The Ugly..you guess who are what in TDK. He also brought the complexity of gangster movies like Godfather, Heat and Untouchables into, of all things, Batman movies. Without Nolan nothing would have been the same with these two Bat movies he made. I just hope and wish, he gives us one more, or many more!
All these factors, along with astounding word of mouth contributed generously in making TDK one of the finest commercial entertainment seen in a long time and the reception vouches for the quality of the film making. I rated TDK as the best comic hero movie ever made and of course the best Batman screen adaptation ever. But I never said, its the greatest movie ever made, nor will I say its the greatest comic book based movie ever. I have a strong contender for that title, which is Road to Perdition (by another great British film-maker Sam Mendes). But what we are seeing as a public reaction to TDK is truly unprecedented. People read comics for escape reality. I know, I do it too. Well, all movies are escape mechanisms anyways and comic book movies even so. Can you imagine how ludicrous the idea in general is if I tell you that, there is a billionaire strapping young lad in my town who dresses like a rodent at nights to fight crime? Hihihiihiih, but I like the idea.
If art can wipe the dust away from the soul, the dust of everyday living, so be it dammit. As expressionist as early German film-makers like Fritz Lang, as noir as Billy Wilder and as sizzling as Coppola, Nolan did a great realistic take to Batman, which is quite incredible. This is a true pop culture phenomenon; to appeal to the mass audience, including the few "more enlightended" ones including and hitting a pulse that hasnt been hit in a long long time. And indeed this is a swell blitzkrieg!!!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Remember The Titans - John Huston
I thought I should write about the man who made The Maltese Falcon, since I just watched it a few days back. In this series, I will write about the few directors who contributed greatly to the art of film noir.
A man of many interests and talents, John Huston, made great contributions to cinema in general and noir art in particular. His stellar career began in 1941 with a film many consider as an all time noir classic, The Maltese Falcon. This movie single handedly established Humphrey Bogart, who was playing second fiddles till then, as a superstar. This classic combination of Huston and Humphrey went on to make many many classics. Some of the more notable ones include Key Largo (1948) and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1949).
Huston also made several crime thrillers with other actors. The most notable of which is The Asphalt Jungle (1950), which is again considered as one of the most original heist movies (even inspiring the classic French heist movie Du Riffifi (1955).
Huston won an Oscar for Tresure of Sierra Madre and received 15 Oscar nominations in the course of his career. He also went on to make classics such as The African Queen (1951) and The Man Who Would Be King (1975), the latter remembered fondly today for stellar acting by Michael Cane and Sean Connery.
An avid painter, Huston painted throughout his life and was particularly interested in Cubism and the American school of Synchromism. He died in 1987, having received an Oscar nomination just two years earlier for Prizzi's Honor (1985), the oldest person ever to be nominated for the Best Director award.
If you want to check Huston's work out, start something like this, these are my top five Huston flicks (as of this year):
- The Maltese Falcon
- Key Largo
- Treasure of Sierra Madre
- The Asphalt Jungle
- The African Queen
Friday, July 18, 2008
TDK - Review
Watched TDK this morning on Imax, in all its splendor. First thought, how do you create a work of art? Secondly, how do you create a mythos, established in fiction and actually make a grown up person believe it? How can you make summer blockbusters brainy? Well, I dont know about that but I surely know this. TDK is not what I thoght it would be, its more than anything I ever imagined Chris Nolan would make Batman comics to be.
First of, I am a huge fan of the Batman universe. Although not all, I have collected a large amount of the comics from the past seven odd decades. Loved Batman Begins and hated everything before it. Besides, I admire the work of Chris Nolan, Chris Bale and a large part of the main cast in these two movies (BB, TDK). So, you could say I am biased. Let me be for now.
The movie begins right where Begins ends. If you remember, BB ends with Gordon telling Batman that there is a new criminal in town and he goes by the name Joker (Armed robbery, double homicide, a penchant for theatrical...), so TDK starts with a armed robbery and the escalation of crime in Gotham. And escalation it is. The action keeps flowing from one scene to another as we watch in high anticipation what to expect next. On the edge of my seat for most of the movie, what I found remarkable was that although the action was loud, it never took you away from the narrative. It was an essential part of the plot. Things did not get blown up for show off or to be just loud. The special effects are fantastic but the beauty is in them not overwhelming the storyline. Right after the bank robbery we have Batman on his toes along with Gordon and the new knight in town, Harvey Dent.
Meanwhile, a triangular love plot develops between Dent, Bruce Wayne and Rachelwithout really being corny or too sentimental. On the one hand, you have Joker creating mayhem after another in the city. A deeply conflicted hero (is he?), addressing his personal demons as well as his public, Batman is constantly kept on his toes by this Joker. Along the way, Batman makes his first international appearence in what I thought was a homage Nolan paid to the James Bond movies he loves. There is a great action sequence in Hong Kong that made me numb with happiness since I always wanted to see Batman outside Continental United States, like he does in the comics. Back home in Gotham, things are only getting worse. Crime bosses (Falcone famly) conspire with the Joker to make the lives of Dent, Gordon and Batman miserable. As crime escalates into crazy proportions we have the creation of another monster, Two Face. With some classic special effects, we finally see Two Face in all his gore. This version of the Two Face will make Tommy Lee Jones' version piss in his split pants. Finally, you have a tragic confrontation of all main characters at the end, while one of the main characters is killed along the way. What a beautiful tragedy that left me with more questions than I had at the end of BB. Starting with hope, TDK slowly but steadily disintegrates into anarchy and complete chaos by the end of it all. Can you ask for more if you are a true batfan?
Had Heath Ledger been still alive, I would have loved his Joker just the same. Its out now, so go and gauge for yourself, his portrayal of the clown price of crime is bang on the target. Drawing inspirations from perverts and punks as diverse as Alex (A Clockwork Orange) and Sid Vicious (Sex Pistols), Heath delivers a maelstrom of performance that gets under your skin and stays there. When he is not around on screen, I missed him. When he is on screen, I could not take my eyes off him. Right now, I can hear him wispering in my ears, "Why so serious"? I dont know about the Oscar hype, but here is the lowdown, this Joker is the creepiest and most menacing comic villains on the silverscreen, without even a close second! The genius of Heath is in keeping things simple and true to the core. Whats the core? If you check the first appearence of the sinister jester/arch criminal/masterfiend Joker in Batman 02 (1938), you will know where Heath in TDK is coming from, you will know how close he stayed to the source. Lets also not forget that Joker actually is based in The Man Who Laughs (1926), which Heath quoted as an inspiration. Pure genius, in his walk, laugh and body language. Heath will be badly missed for the fearless actor he is and the many great roles he could taken up! Rest of the acting is all top notch. Bale continues to evolve as the tormented Bruce Wayne/Batman. There are some classic nods to the source comics in his portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Unlike his predecessors, he is someone who seems to have taken the efforts to know what he is doing, and Bale does that for all roles he takes up anyway. As a Batfan, I could not ask for more. Bale is effortless as the suave and sexy public Bruce Wayne, introspective and brooding private Bruce Wayne and ruthless / dark Batman, all at once. One man playing three roles in one movie and all bang on. Aron Eckhart is on the money and actually made me feel bad for his predicament. Great actors Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman do what they do best. I actually would have prefered Katy for Rachel than Maggie, but thats my preference.
Special mention about the creepy music pieces composed (Why so serious?/I am dog chasing cars/A little push) by Hans Zimmer for the Joker and moving and touching music composed by James Howard for Two Face. Brilliant! The mood of BB was similar to The Blade Runner and the mood in TDK is Blade Runner, and the ganster movies like Heat (Which Nolan wanted anyway), Untouchables and should I also drop the G bomb? Constant tension, constant heat and just no respite...
Comic book movies are not going to be the same anymore after TDK, hopefully not atleast. To watch this movie and slowly digest the fact that its source material in comics, is truly incredible. The range of emotions TDK brings out in you (even if you casually watch it), and the range of thoughts it leaves you with, afterwards is amazing. The film address and raises questions on moral complexity and ethical dillemmas not should be part of mainstream popcorn summer entertainment. The thin red line between justice and revenge, the corruption of harmony in civil societies, the systematic breakdown of justice and the internal torment of a hero who doesnt want to be, but wants to be one, everything is in TDK. In a much larger and darker proportions than in BB. Well, if this is the road ahead, its going to be a road less travelled for comic movies when the next installment comes out. Nolan did something magical with TDK, he created a work of art out of comics. Now I slowly realize how one can create a work of art. If you believe in it, and feel the love from the bottom of of your soul for it, and I can just imagine Nolan sitting and reading The Killing Joke, The Long Halloween, The Dark Knight Returns, The Man Who Laughs.....and loving it! Keep digging out the classics, Nolan, you are a rare breed!
First of, I am a huge fan of the Batman universe. Although not all, I have collected a large amount of the comics from the past seven odd decades. Loved Batman Begins and hated everything before it. Besides, I admire the work of Chris Nolan, Chris Bale and a large part of the main cast in these two movies (BB, TDK). So, you could say I am biased. Let me be for now.
The movie begins right where Begins ends. If you remember, BB ends with Gordon telling Batman that there is a new criminal in town and he goes by the name Joker (Armed robbery, double homicide, a penchant for theatrical...), so TDK starts with a armed robbery and the escalation of crime in Gotham. And escalation it is. The action keeps flowing from one scene to another as we watch in high anticipation what to expect next. On the edge of my seat for most of the movie, what I found remarkable was that although the action was loud, it never took you away from the narrative. It was an essential part of the plot. Things did not get blown up for show off or to be just loud. The special effects are fantastic but the beauty is in them not overwhelming the storyline. Right after the bank robbery we have Batman on his toes along with Gordon and the new knight in town, Harvey Dent.
Meanwhile, a triangular love plot develops between Dent, Bruce Wayne and Rachelwithout really being corny or too sentimental. On the one hand, you have Joker creating mayhem after another in the city. A deeply conflicted hero (is he?), addressing his personal demons as well as his public, Batman is constantly kept on his toes by this Joker. Along the way, Batman makes his first international appearence in what I thought was a homage Nolan paid to the James Bond movies he loves. There is a great action sequence in Hong Kong that made me numb with happiness since I always wanted to see Batman outside Continental United States, like he does in the comics. Back home in Gotham, things are only getting worse. Crime bosses (Falcone famly) conspire with the Joker to make the lives of Dent, Gordon and Batman miserable. As crime escalates into crazy proportions we have the creation of another monster, Two Face. With some classic special effects, we finally see Two Face in all his gore. This version of the Two Face will make Tommy Lee Jones' version piss in his split pants. Finally, you have a tragic confrontation of all main characters at the end, while one of the main characters is killed along the way. What a beautiful tragedy that left me with more questions than I had at the end of BB. Starting with hope, TDK slowly but steadily disintegrates into anarchy and complete chaos by the end of it all. Can you ask for more if you are a true batfan?
Had Heath Ledger been still alive, I would have loved his Joker just the same. Its out now, so go and gauge for yourself, his portrayal of the clown price of crime is bang on the target. Drawing inspirations from perverts and punks as diverse as Alex (A Clockwork Orange) and Sid Vicious (Sex Pistols), Heath delivers a maelstrom of performance that gets under your skin and stays there. When he is not around on screen, I missed him. When he is on screen, I could not take my eyes off him. Right now, I can hear him wispering in my ears, "Why so serious"? I dont know about the Oscar hype, but here is the lowdown, this Joker is the creepiest and most menacing comic villains on the silverscreen, without even a close second! The genius of Heath is in keeping things simple and true to the core. Whats the core? If you check the first appearence of the sinister jester/arch criminal/masterfiend Joker in Batman 02 (1938), you will know where Heath in TDK is coming from, you will know how close he stayed to the source. Lets also not forget that Joker actually is based in The Man Who Laughs (1926), which Heath quoted as an inspiration. Pure genius, in his walk, laugh and body language. Heath will be badly missed for the fearless actor he is and the many great roles he could taken up! Rest of the acting is all top notch. Bale continues to evolve as the tormented Bruce Wayne/Batman. There are some classic nods to the source comics in his portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Unlike his predecessors, he is someone who seems to have taken the efforts to know what he is doing, and Bale does that for all roles he takes up anyway. As a Batfan, I could not ask for more. Bale is effortless as the suave and sexy public Bruce Wayne, introspective and brooding private Bruce Wayne and ruthless / dark Batman, all at once. One man playing three roles in one movie and all bang on. Aron Eckhart is on the money and actually made me feel bad for his predicament. Great actors Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman do what they do best. I actually would have prefered Katy for Rachel than Maggie, but thats my preference.
Special mention about the creepy music pieces composed (Why so serious?/I am dog chasing cars/A little push) by Hans Zimmer for the Joker and moving and touching music composed by James Howard for Two Face. Brilliant! The mood of BB was similar to The Blade Runner and the mood in TDK is Blade Runner, and the ganster movies like Heat (Which Nolan wanted anyway), Untouchables and should I also drop the G bomb? Constant tension, constant heat and just no respite...
Comic book movies are not going to be the same anymore after TDK, hopefully not atleast. To watch this movie and slowly digest the fact that its source material in comics, is truly incredible. The range of emotions TDK brings out in you (even if you casually watch it), and the range of thoughts it leaves you with, afterwards is amazing. The film address and raises questions on moral complexity and ethical dillemmas not should be part of mainstream popcorn summer entertainment. The thin red line between justice and revenge, the corruption of harmony in civil societies, the systematic breakdown of justice and the internal torment of a hero who doesnt want to be, but wants to be one, everything is in TDK. In a much larger and darker proportions than in BB. Well, if this is the road ahead, its going to be a road less travelled for comic movies when the next installment comes out. Nolan did something magical with TDK, he created a work of art out of comics. Now I slowly realize how one can create a work of art. If you believe in it, and feel the love from the bottom of of your soul for it, and I can just imagine Nolan sitting and reading The Killing Joke, The Long Halloween, The Dark Knight Returns, The Man Who Laughs.....and loving it! Keep digging out the classics, Nolan, you are a rare breed!
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