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!
1 comment:
A few questions. Please answer. (These have been copied from somewhere on internet)
1: The story with the Asian banker was so pointless. It added nothing to the plot. Just a cool looking extraction scene
2: During the Bruce Wayne party, when The Joker enters with his goons and Bruce hides Dent, why wouldn't The Joker kill all the innocent people he now has. Think about it. Batman flys out the window to catch Rachel and leaves The Joker with all the guests at the party completely unprotected. The next scene just cuts to the next day, with no mention of the party. If the Joker was such a crazy, he would of killed everyone of the guests at the party. Or better still, would have used the hostages to negotiate the hand over of Dent.
3: Why does Gordon fake his death. Just so he can drive a truck. What the hell. There's much easier ways to go into hiding.
4: Why did Batman have so much faith in the fact the the people on the boat wouldn't blow each other up. If I was on that boat the criminals would have been a million little bits in about 3 seconds.
5: How the hell did Bruce build the sonar machine.
6: If Dent was so angry about the death of Rachel, he would have killed the Joker in the hospital.
7: Why didn't Batman tell Dent at the end when he had Dents son that he was trying to save Rachel and not him. Tell him that the joker tricked him.
8: And the best. Why did they blame Batman for the dead cops and civilians. Gordon is the commissioner he could have said the Joker did it and people would have believed it. The Joker held the city hostage so he certainly could have killed a few cops. It was such a ridiculous ending.
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