Misunderstood phenomenon

Rating: 10/10 (14 August 2008)

Being a Dark Knight fan of the comics for many decades, Batman in its true format, was NOT a comedy or a representation of anything that came out prior to Batman Returns. The TV sitcom was a joke. Tim Burton missed the context of Batman in its entirety. Finally, Christopher Nolan brings out the true essence of Batman, and its a wonder how so many people miss the context of what Batman represents. Even the vast majority of professional critics missed the true meaning of Batman.
There is a much deeper, allegorical meaning about Batman itself that has been perfectly recreated in The Dark Knight that makes this movie surpass any movie ever created. The Dark Knight is a work of true ingeniousness, far more complex, contemporary, poignant and relevant than any movie ever made. If you miss what its trying to say, then you are left without any ability to understand why people are raving about this movie. But that's precisely the point. Too many people have forgotten how to think.
Do you believe that Gotham City represents a fictional city? Do you believe that Batman and the Joker are based upon fictional characters? Then you missed the meaning behind Batman.
The Dark Knight is a true work of genius. Its the complete war of two diametrically opposite ideas that work in our system of western culture and its extension to other concepts as well. Its a war between liberalism and conservatism. Its NOT only a war between good and evil that most people think. Not by a long shot. Gotham City represents the disease of liberalism gone amok. The fact that liberalism is guilty of graying out the dividing borders between good and evil has been fully established within our own societies. Look at our legal system! The guilty are treated far better than the victims. We have made the perpetrator the victim and the victim the guilty within the system of law. What is good becomes bad, what is bad becomes good. This is what Gotham City represents.
Batman represents the conservative position to hold to what is right no matter what, and the Joker represents the conservative position of holding on to what is evil to the maximum. Its true that the statement there is a fine line between a genius and madness applies within The Dark Knight. Now lets take a good look at parts of the movie.
During the robbery, we know that the Joker has no allies, he has his own agenda and doesn't have a conscience whatsoever. This fact is also represented by the "pencil trick" where his actions to himself was nothing more than a simple act that meant absolutely nothing to him. The Joker is immune to death or remorse. He plays by his own rules of madness, but is in perfect control of his extraordinary intelligence. What delights the Joker more than anything is to create sadistic moral dilemmas for everyone, criminal or not. To the Joker, Batman is the complete antithesis of who he is, but so much alike in determination to stand separate from apathy towards right and wrong.
In the scene where Harvey Dent goes before the crowd and the crowd wants Batman to reveal himself because of the moral dilemma that the Joker created to weaken Batman's resolve, the crowd cries out for the Batman to succumb to the Joker's demands. This is pure liberalism at its best. Personally I believe its a disease of the mind. The inability to think rationally. We find this in our country where people cry out to stop the war that's going on in our world. Pure madness. How so you may ask? In the Joker's context, its so easy to see. Why? You can clearly see that he is a madman of epic proportions so you understand WHO the Joker is and what he represents. Know your enemy. The vast majority of people don't have a clue what the enemies true intension's are in this world. People refuse to see and believe that different mind sets exist within our world and how to understand them. Its there for people to see, but they don't see.
In the movie, someone wants to save others by revealing who Batman is, but who defends the secrecy of Batman? The Joker. The Joker isn't interested in who Batman is at all. It was all about breaking Batman's resolve and using the public to revolt against him. Its absolute brilliance!
You think two face has gone mad? Think about it. Use your brains! Harvey Dent stood for the conservative position that defied Gotham City completely. He stood for what is right. Absolutely. He understood that if his position was compromised, the legal system would be so corrupt that the flip of a coin exceeded the values of justice more than the liberal legal system that prevailed. Fifty-fifty odds were better than anything available. How true is this today in our world.
Batman stands as enigma towards our world today. If you stand up for what is right and fight for it, you are condemned by the very people you protect. If you do nothing to prevent evil from spreading, like liberalism is guilty of, then you become weak and useless to stand against the tide of evil that is certain to overwhelm this world.
I loved the ferry scene. Think about it. If you knew anything about the Joker, you would have realized that each boat had detonators, but being consistent to the Joker's mindset, each boat would have had the detonator that would have blown up their own boats, not the other. Its remarkable that no one clued in to this. I guess I know the Joker better than others.
This only touches the surface of how deep The Dark Knight goes. Its far deeper and meaningful than any other movie ever created.
It takes brains to understand Batman. Use it.