The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008): USA
Reviewed by Amy Kim. Viewed on DVD.
Although this film was tragically Heath Ledger’s final film, it was first-handedly his best performance ever. The first time I saw The Dark Knight, I was absolutely blown away. Ledger’s performance alone gave me chills. This film is one of a kind. Ledger’s portrayal of “the Joker” was so creative and dark. Compared to the other Batman films, the Joker in “The Dark Knight” was so scary and crazy. What I admired most about Ledger’s performance was his ability to create a background story for the Joker without actually saying anything. He was able to encompass the personality traits of a human who was at once a normal person, but was so hurt and abused all throughout his life that the outcome became physically permanent; he became a monster. Pain was not a word in his vocabulary. His goal in life became to kill and torment.
Christian Bale did such a great job as well in The Dark Knight. He is such a great actor that he took the character “Batman” to a whole other level. As the film unravels, the audience not only gets jolted into fourth gear and zooms down action lane, but another surprise awaits them around the corner. As it turns out, another villain comes into the picture: “Two Face”. When I saw that Aaron Eckhart was in the film, I was really excited to see who he would play. But when he was kidnapped and his face got burned, I knew it was he was who would play “Two Face.” As a child, I followed the Batman cartoons religiously, and I knew the story with Dentin, so when Eckhart was introduced as Dentin I was extremely excited to see how his performance would turn out. I was again blown away. First we get “The Joker,” who is Ledger, then we get Scarecrow, and the other villain who worked with Ledger, then finally we get “Two Face.” Could it get any better? I can honestly say this is by far the best film I have ever seen. Also, because of Ledger’s tragic death, I was so glad that he went out with a bang. This film is going to be an all time classic that generations will view in awe because of the extraordinary performances given by the whole cast, especially Ledger’s.
On top of having a great cast and crew, the film’s special effects and filming techniques were extraordinary too. My favorite was the recreation of the Batcycle, “The Batpod.” My favorite feature was how a person rides it belly-down and can move up and down to dodge bullets and stuff. I really liked the idea of the huge tires from and back for stability. Another great special effect was Eckhart’s appearance as “Two Face.” It looked so real but not gross at all. It was powerful and yet realistic. The editing of the movie created such a cohesive yet powerful feeling, and each scene was intense and serious, and yet could have humor at just the right moments. The Joker’s costume design was very edgy and different. I really liked how they emphasized his grunginess and sloppiness.The film did such a great job capturing the look of a crazed man.
The film had a couple of themes. One major theme was Dentin’s downfall to evil. He begins as being the town’s “White Knight” and as the story goes on, he becomes engulfed with anger and hate.
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