Best movie of all time

Rating: 10/10 (14 August 2008)

There is a reason I have waited quite a long time to finally post this review in actual fact I saw this movie (on Imax) a few weeks back, and since then I have seen it again on a regular cinema screen. You see I have been waiting three years for The Dark Knight, followed it from the very first signs of post production, and got caught up in the huge amount of hype surrounding the movie from very early on. The tragic death of Heath Ledger added tonnes more interest to the movie and has no doubt helped increase the huge box office the movie has been receiving, to date in the USA alone it has over $400 million and looks set to overtake Star Wars as the second highest grossing movie of all time. So the big question really is, does the Dark Knight live up to expectations. Good god yes! I would go as far to say now it is my favourite movie of all time. The Dark Knight is pitch perfect. Christian Bale once again is amazing as Bruce Wayne and Batman (although I still do at times question his voice for Batman), but this movie does truly belong to two actors. Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent, and of course Heath Ledger as the infamous Joker. This is a very smart and brave movie, while there is a lot of action it doesn't take centre stage. At the very centre of the movie there is a pivotal story revolving around three men, Bruce Wayne, Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent, three men who want to do good in a very bad city. And then of course The Joker comes along to mess things up, because its just so much fun! The story is extremely grand and uses the most of its two and half hour run time, in fact any shorter and the movie might fail, it really needs its length and is involving throughout.
So onto the performances. Christian Bale is not getting half as much press he deserves for this movie. Bale really is perfect as Wayne and Batman, he is the definitive Batman of our time and makes him extremely believable. I'll confess I prefer him playing Bruce Wayne to Batman, I just find the Batman voice a bit odd every time I hear it for the first five minutes. Still he does no wrong for the most part. However as I have said the movie belongs to two people. Heather Ledger and Aaran Eckhart. Ledger to be honest deserves the Oscar for next year, he really does. The Joker is completely insane, there is no other word for it. He's funny, manic, but also downright scary. The scene where he tortures a cop on video camera is downright scary because of Ledger's voice in the background, just hear him growl "Look at me" and feel the shivers go up your spine. Also he is never overused. That was always one of my biggest gripes with Nicholson's Joker in the original Batman, while he was a laugh, he was also used way too much. His best scene by far involves a brilliant pencil trick, that is truly priceless. Aaran Eckhart is the other shining light of the movie. I have never seen Eckhart in anything before, but here he is pitch perfect. For the none-Batman fans among us I will not spoil what happens to Dent, but let me say it is brilliant how it is done. His best scene has to be the speech to the public regarding "the dawn", once again chills went up my spine. The rest of the cast do equally as well. Gary Oldman once again shows his talent as Jim Gordon, his character gets a hell of a lot to do this time and it made me appreciate the character all the more. Maggie Gylenhaal does a better job than Katie Holmes as Racherl, once again will not spoil the story surrounding her, but it gives her character much better moments than she ever had in Batman Begins. Morgan Freeman does well in his all too limited screen time, and Michael Caine provides excellent comic relief once again as Alfred.
Of course the key to The Dark Knight, as it was with Batman Begins, is brilliant storytelling and direction. Christopher Nolan really ups the ante with this movie, in my mind this is by far Nolan's best movie and I will be amazed if he ever tops it. The story here is extremely compelling and I love the fact The Joker is never really explained, he comes onto our screens fully formed and its a breath of fresh air. Its nice not to have his madness truly explained, he's a mad dog unleashed on the world and he's brilliant. There are several surprises to be had in the movie, not least of all a scene involving a hell of a lot of cans of gasoline, which I cannot spoil, it shocked me to the core and left me on edge for the rest of the movie. The action is mighty impressive here, the bike sequence is thrilling and by far my favourite of the action sequences, a hospital scene is brilliant but also funny as anything, and the big final fight, while not the best choreographed has a huge amount of tension surrounding it. I highly recommend people watch this on Imax if they can, it was my first Imax experience and it didn't disappoint, the opening shot especially is a stunner.
So as you might have gathered I liked the movie, a lot, and I cannot wait to see it again. Really if you want the best Blockbuster in many, many years then you have to see this movie. Hell its by far the best superhero movie ever, and so much more. Dark, violent, but brilliant. The Dark Knight really is the definitive movie experience of my time.