A Bit Too Serious (The Dark Knight (2 DVDs))

Member Name: JayHall1991

Product:	The Dark Knight (2 DVDs)
Date:	27/09/08 (76 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Complex, Dark, Fascinating, Great Performance

Disadvantages: Boring, Long, Sluggish, Dull

Gotham City is getting a new lease of life thanks to Harvey Dent, a politician whose hard line views of crime and effective means of cleaning the streets of violence are making people have faith in their government. The crime lords are more scared than they have ever been before and the burden on Batman is steadily lessening. But can Bruce Wayne start a relationship with his sweetheart Rachel Dawes, who admitted her love for him but inability to be with the masked crusader. However, as a spate of extremely violent crimes sweep over Gotham the stakes begin to get higher and higher. And so begins The Joker's terrifying reign over the dark city .... and he'll only stop killing people when The Batman reveals his true identity.

The Dark Knight is a sophisticated, complex, gripping film experience; one filled with genuinely memorable sequences and amazing performances and one that has an interesting philosophical/moral backbone that makes for a truly refreshing change. It's solidly written, extending character development impressively, and is directed with style and substance - turning Gotham City into a living, breathing entity. Its mix of pathos and action is extremely effective/affecting whilst Heath Ledger's portrayal of The Joker is a genuine force of nature - adding a credible, threatening edge to the film and making the infamous villain a tragic, disturbing energy. The handling of the, rather complex, story is largely successful and it leaves on a heart-breaking note that opens a huge amount of scope for a sequel. However, I just didn't really like it (and I know that I am in the minority here.) I found it boring and repetitive, constantly hammering across a message which isn't all that interesting and meandering to the point of tedium. I found it fascinating and beautiful in short bursts - but remained detached; I didn't really care in the end and found my mind wondering as I secretly stared at my watch wishing the minutes would go by faster.

The Dark Knight is hugely successful in building a palpable, living, breathing sinister tension - the states are very high very fast and from the get go there is a real sense that anything could happen at any moment. It comes onto the screen like a tornado; it's unpredictable, scary, bombastic and kind of fascinating. As the tension mounts (and Ledger is given free rein to let loose) it comes alive as a wild animal and the fact that it fails to follow any real genre conventions means that it plays with your expectations in a dynamic and inventive manner. It's consistently disturbing, with many scenes that sent shivers down my spine, and the pure menacing energy that is pumped in makes it extremely memorable and unique. The sequences between Batman and Joker produce a truly tight roped tension, along with some probing character development that gives the whole thing more substance, and there are some moments that take on a terrifying life of their own. It's dark and crazed and takes itself extremely seriously - and it produces some of the most cutting, primeval and ambitious sequences in recent memory.

But it does take itself terribly, terribly serious... it is relentlessly grim, consistently unpleasant and surprisingly sluggish - never really making the leap from impressive to entertaining, from sophisticated to enjoyable. It has a toxicity to it that makes the whole thing fairly unappealing and I just don't think it is as clever as it believes; there are random plot holes sprinkled throughout and it has a murky, unclear plot that can make it feel uneven and slow. Nolan is fairly hopeless at developing his lone female character, Rachel Dawes, making her appear stand-offish, irritating and very one dimensional and it's really not as philosophically interesting, or probing, as it poses to be. I felt that it was so desperate to install a polemic that it sacrificed coherency and entertainment value and I found the last half an hour insufferable in its monotony, repetitiveness and unsubtle nature. It is dreadfully overlong and the finale fails to show the lightness of touch that makes the opening so compulsively enjoyable. The conclusion to Harvey Dent's story line is inventive and hits a poignant chord but is extremely drawn out and surprisingly uninteresting - going again to illustrate the flat message of the film.

Whilst the action sequences are extremely impressive in scope, with some amazing chase sequences that really astound and pump some adrenaline into the proceedings. However, I thought that the fight sequences where wholly disappointing - with very little combat and when it does come it feels silly and unchoreographed. It never seemed to rise above its lethargic atmosphere, it never got my heart raising and I found the languid pacing pretty excruciating. And I just couldn't get over the fact that I found it all a little stupid; I couldn't take it as seriously as it demanded..... it's still Batman after all and by removing any of the fun from the franchise it makes the whole thing feel slightly context less and in my opinion a bit ridiculous.

The performances live up to the buzz surrounding them; Ledger is fully amerced in this world and his character - his portrayal of the maniacal Joker is rubbed raw by pain, energised by menace and truly frightening. He is completely on target and infuses the whole film with an unpredictability and sinister edge and he is excellent at creating a hideous tension with his co-stars. It is a truly remarkable testament to his immense talent. I'm still on the fence about Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne; I think he embodies the character with intensity and style - but I found his uncharismatic and unemotive performance fairly off-putting and I didn't see that he had much chemistry with anyone else in the cast. Aaron Eckhart is surprisingly perfect; he is very believable as a politician and portrays the weight and hopefulness of his character with panache. He is pitches a nice mix of heroic and vulnerable and has a hidden pain behind his performance that makes his storyline more affecting. Maggie Gyllenhaal is an extremely unappealing and uninteresting presence in the film - she is really dull and doesn't do anything more than Katie Holmes did to make Rachel Dawses interesting.

Overall, I don't understand why the buzz surrounding The Dark Knight has been so intense - it seems a little crazy to me because I don't think that it is perfect in anyway. However, it is probably one of the best action movies in a really long time with it's amazing central performance, some nice directorial flourishes and a few really effective scenes.

Summary: A solid but drawn out affair