"Do you know how I got these scars?"

Rating: 10/10 (28 July 2008)

After Batman Begins, The Dark Knight was always going to have a hard act to follow, particularly introducing arguably the greatest Batman character, The Joker. In addition, with Heath Ledger's untimely death, there was a strong possibility that the film would become over-hyped, and overwhelmed with sentimentality over the tragic circumstances which brought about his death, taking the attention away from the artistic qualities of the picture.
However, as soon as I watched the trailer, I knew something special had happened. The slight eye movements, the voice, the subtle lip licking, the harrowing laugh!! But still, before seeing the film I was afraid everything had been judged out of proportion, ie. not fully on the merits of the film itself.
Well, I am still contemplating the brilliance of "The Dark Knight" 12 hours later. With obvious influences from Michael Mann's "Heat" (one of my all time faves) at the start, we are thrown into the complete unpredictability of the Joker's criminal mind. This is something that resonates throughout the film, as you never really know or trust what he tells the other characters, whether good or bad. Christian Bale is brilliant once again, particularly as Batman, who is now questioning his place in the fight against Gotham's criminals, and Aaron Eckhart is astonishing and perfectly cast as Harvey Dent.
But without a shadow of a doubt, this film belongs to Heath Ledger's representation of The Joker. Every time we cut away from the psycho, all you want is for the story to go back to him. His performance is fascinating, engaging you with so much intrigue you want to delve into his character more and more, although with much apprehension and fear. At times you laugh hysterically, while others your spine tingles with terror, and that is the essence of The Joker, complete and utter madness intertwined with the highest levels of intelligence. As far I'm concerned, I don't care if he wins an Oscar for this role (I think he deserves 5!), regardless it is one of the most powerful performances put to film. Only Christopher Nolan could have accommodated, and directed, such a brilliant actor in such an amazing role, in such a rich and creative movie.
The Dark Knight stands alone in it's own category of exceptional quality, with a performance that will never be fully comprehended because of its unprecedented depiction of the most complex and psychotic character ever brought to life. One thing is for sure, we should be thankful that we were able to witness the greatest role of a modern genius.