Why so serious, right?

Rating: 8/10 (17 July 2008)

"The Dark Knight" is a movie that honors its title. Dark, twisted and complex, Christopher Nolan's latest wonder concerning Batman is a movie that sets a before and after in its genre and joins its perfect companion; its predecessor "Batman Begins". It had been a long time since I had seen so much adrenaline on a screen, but then again Nolan's Batman is what it is because it isn't just about the adrenaline.
It's still daylight in Gotham when a masterful opening sequence (supported by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer-again-magical score) gives way for a robbery to take place; organized by a man who calls himself The Joker (Heath Ledger), someone we would instantly take as a villain. If normally villains don't call themselves villains in superhero movies, this one says a lot of things about himself. He loves to talk and share his life philosophy with everyone he meets; he likes to joke, of course; he likes to watch people suffer with or without him watching; he dislikes rules and he likes Batman.
This last statement maybe more understood once you've watched the film, but there's one of Bruce Wayne (yes, Christian Bale IS Batman) many interesting conversations with Alfred (Michael Caine) in which they discuss the nature of The Joker, and the old man points out that maybe Bruce doesn't understand this villain in particular. There will be a moment of confrontation later in which the villain will tell the superhero: "You complete me". That phrase reminded me of the great movie "Unbreakable" is.
But, actually, what is a hero and what is a villain? In Nolan's brilliant screenplay (written with his brother Jonathan, a usual collaborator), full of psychological insight, this is one of the issues that floats over our head as we get lost in the ever exciting action sequences, fights and things blowing up in Nathan Crowley's spectacular production design.
"It's not what underlies you, but what you do that defines you", a Rachel Dawes now played truthfully by Maggie Gyllenhaal told Bruce in "Batman Begins". Her words resonate, as Batman continues to fight evil with her, Gordon (Gary Oldman) and a new ally, the D.A. Harvey Dent (a superb Aaron Eckhart).
Let's not forget that Batman is more human than any of the other superheroes of the comic books. In this film, he's never able to call himself a hero and he thinks of quitting; without knowing if he's the guardian the city needs or deserves. But in all this realness, to continue watching him fall, to see him using his gadgets and his vehicles as a pro, to see that intelligence may surpass a gun to win a little fight or to generate fire without the need of any explosive; is one of "The Dark Knight's" treats to the viewer.
Another major treat for the viewer is the presence of a villain (or criminal, if you prefer, as The Joker refers to himself when he says the town "deserves a better kind of criminal"-again the issue of deserving someone or not; a villain or a hero-) that equals Batman in human qualities. I don't mean that The Joker has principles we may admire (although many people will find inspiring things in his weirdness), I'm simply referring to the fact that he doesn't fly through the air or owns magic powers and he just uses what he has in hand to serve some kind of purpose.
Heath Ledger steals the film (and will get an Oscar nomination, because dreaming has no cost) and makes a wonderful Joker, mainly, because he embraces this human aspect of the character Christian Bale understood so well in "Batman Begins". Without overacting, Ledger creates an individual that we can call a freak, because it's the first thing that crosses our mind when we meet him. He has all this makeup in his face and two scars; he has a lot of stories to explain the origin of these scars. Ledger tells every story convincingly, and leaves no room for the viewer to fully understand him. His character has no name, nor he possesses the background story we see many times with heroes and villains; however we get to perceive an amount of grimness in his look and we want to know exactly where it comes from. It's Heath Ledger's great acting what generates all this.
The rest of the ensemble, as in "Batman Begins", is top-notch. Michael Caine is given more screen time and makes the best of it; so does the great Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman. There are surely many other perspectives in which the film can be viewed and discussed, and that reflects the very good piece Nolan has created; a movie that's profound in the best sense of the wordA word we don't use so much for comic book movies.
AnywayBatman may not know if he's the protector Gotham needs or deserves, but "The Dark Knight" is undoubtedly the superhero movie the film-goer deserves and has been waiting for since its predecessor; a film that even someone who knows nothing about comics, like me, celebrates with a big smileWhy so serious?