DARK KNIGHT makes no funny business for the Bat.

Rating: 10/10 (1 August 2008)

My Take: A bold, visionary modern classic.
No joke here! THE DARK KNIGHT, the new Batman thriller from Christopher Nolan, has a lot of buzz that comes along the merchandise and the marketing, but it avoids all the shortcomings, and even in fact going beyond audience expectations. After Nolan's own brooding and realistic version BATMAN BEGINS, audience expected a similar approach on DARK KNIGHT. The arrogant Bruce Wayne, the darker vigilante Batman, no nipples on the Batsuit, all that is fulfilled in this new film, but this is also darker and much better than anyone in the audience expected it to be. In fact, it's the darkest, deepest and most significant and exciting one in the series since BATMAN RETURNS. While it takes a different path from the original series (although thankfully, staying much away from the awful BATMAN & ROBIN), this is the new Batman for the new ages.
Christian Bale reprises his role as the most arrogant (and best) Bruce Wayne, and alter ego Batman, who once again sets out to restore order in the crime-ridden streets of Gotham City (not exactly the land of opportunity), as it is once again leaking with criminality and injustice, in the form of the evil Joker (the late Heath Ledger, who makes a brilliant performance in his last film that made the evening news) and crime lords who terrorize and make their own circus of chaos. It's up to the Bat to put a stop to it all, but this time, it ain't juts gonna be his job. District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is the hero without a mask who lends his own hands to keep Gotham in high stands against crime, despite the every growing urban chaos. Dent also happens to be dating Bruce Wayne's best friend Rachael Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal, replacing Mrs. Cruise Katie Holmes), blooming up a little love triangle that doesn't go corny at all.
Nolan's Batman worlds are fantastic and effective ones. Whilst not the visually eye-popping Blade Runner-era Gotham City that Tim Burton's BATMAN RETURNS was, but surely much closer to the reality of current situations. This time, the threats are real, and the solutions to the problems are far more desperate than kicking ass. Crime is real, crime is bad, and Nolan emphasizes on every frame. The absolute reality of the picture is one of the reasons why it's the best and most topical Bat-film to date. But DARK KNIGHT is a mere subject discussion. The excitement comes in waves, from chases down the dark streets with trucks, vans, and the Bat's own Batmobile (which transforms into a speeding motor-bike when it self-destructs), or battle sequences that are intense as they are well-made, DARK KNIGHT satisfies as pure entertainment. The screenplay is bold and daring, venturing into a subject so much deeper than where it usually settles upon (enough to make you forget the fiasco BATMAN & ROBIN was). Then there are the performances, mentioning the late Mr. Ledger's performance front and center, are excellent and nearly flawless. To date, it may be the best performed superhero flick I've ever seen.
All-in-all, THE DARK KNIGHT is the superhero mainstream of the summer you have got to see if you see no other (and I may doubt that you'll see more). No joke!
Rating: ***** out of 5.