A bit of criticism to counter the praise ...

Rating: 6/10 (2 December 2008)

Admittedly, Christopher Nolan has been incredibly successful at what I would consider a doomed endeavor. After all, what sane director would try to fashion a realistic, rational universe from a sophomoric fantasy about a self-indulgent playboy with a costume fetish and a penchant for stylized bedlam? Still, I find the Batman premise more palatable when overshadowed by the fun spectacle of carnival freaks, kitschy art, and psychedelically rendered pulp lore. Without such accoutrements, the story largely relies on the poignant characterization of caricaturesa difficult task, to be sure. At times, Nolan tries to circumvent the problem by turning The Dark Knight into a didactic meditation on terrorism or a vehicle for its catch phrase, "You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain." However, terrorism loses its contemporary salience when exploited for plot and entertainment purposes, and Nolan seems reluctant to subject his protagonist to the implications of a dubious aphorism or to explore adequately the transformation of his less fortunate foil, Harvey Dent. Because each character serves as a mouthpiece for Nolan's ideas rather than a living manifestation of his themes, even a cast of capable actors cannot save some of the more unconvincing scenes. In the film's best moments, the camera lingers over a face or a cityscape and allows the image to transcend the script. Sadly, such moments are few and far between. Nolan reminds us that the Batman legend will always fail as social commentary because it focuses on allegorical, larger-than-life individuals while relegating the masses to cowering factions of homogenized corruption, selfishness, or ineptitude. Such a perspective underestimates humanity, which is lost in the frenetic whirl of action sequences on screen.