An Amazing Christopher Nolan Movie!

Rating: 10/10 (7 September 2008)

First of all, let me start out by saying that Christopher Nolan is a director to watch out for. With each movie he is producing and directing, he is proving himself to be a man of great intellect and the craftsmanship of a virtuoso. We saw him define the most ideal Batman in the movie Batman Begins. And now we see him define the ideal Joker in the movie The Dark Knight. In comparison to all other superheroes, Batman stands out as different and unique. So, it is not easy to handle the deeper aspects of the Batman. Nolan did this with finesse and burdened himself to live up to the expectations. And boy oh boy, has he delivered.
It is completely useless to have a great director with a poor cast. A few people doing good and others doing average is a disaster in the making. A great movie has always been great because it was a moment in history where all talent was combined in a perfect manner so as to produce a perfect product. The Dark Knight is one such piece of work. Everyone in the movie has done an amazing role. A great deal of credit to Nolan and his team to manage the tight rope walk of concentrating on the evolution of all characters.
Heath Ledger (rip) plays the Perfect joker. He manages to convince us that he is truly the most mysterious and the most scary villain in the history of super hero stories. His ability to manipulate his voice, the body language and dialog delivery make him believable and scary. Bale does an equally amazing job as well. His struggle to understand his duty, his responsibility and his process of learning how to handle the burden of being the dark knight that Batman is, all define this movie's greatness.
The IMAX experience is worth every bit of the money. Action sequences, photography and sound effects are all well done. Batman was always suppose to be a normal human being with an abnormal past and skill set. He is not the one who was gifted like other superheroes. The whole movie keeps this in mind and makes Batman a believable character. And I guess this is what is important if you want to portray Batman correctly.
What is perhaps the most touching part of the movie is the ending. Batman demonstrates that the qualities of being a superhero are more mental than physical. The Batman is ready to be hated by the people of Gotham, the very people whom he has done a favor by cleaning their streets of all the criminals who were hell bent on making their lives miserable. The ending dialog between Gordon and Batman is a highlight of the movie and not only justifies the the title of the movie but also defines the true meaning of being a superhero.
All in all, The Dark Knight is the ideal sequel to Batman Begins and is an extremely well done movie. Thumbs up! Great direction, an incredible story, a solid cast, great music and overall a great package.