The Dark Knight

2008. Dir: Christopher Nolan. Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine and Maggie Gyllenhaal. ●●●●●

I wasn't actually going to review The Dark Knight. I had planned on just watching, enjoying and saying there are better reviewers and reviews out there. That remains the truth but I would like to make my own comments anyway.

The Dark Knight is breaking box office records on pretty much a daily basis - it's now the fastest film to £200m US domestic. Last night I went to the Birmingham IMAX and got caught up in the whole excitement of it. And it's good, it's very, very good. I urge you all to go and see it as soon as you get a chance.

It is not however as good as some reviewers/rabid fan boys are making out.

It opens with a bank job. The Joker and the usual array of no-name expendable henchmen are robbing the bank of Mob money. Later it transpires that this is a ploy in order to lure Gotham gangster population into working together to defeat Batman, alternatively it's purely because The Joker enjoys the sport and wants to be up against Batman.

The violence and threats escalate throughout the film with The Joker backed by the mob on the one side and Batman, Lt Jim Gordon and DA Harvey Dent on the other.

Of course large elements of the plot don't really matter, comic adaptations are about the clashes and the themes not the minutitae, and the clashes certainly work. Aside from the opening heist there are three major confrontational scenes.

In Hong Kong Batman kidnaps a mob accountant. Wonderfully shot, with fantastic editing and fast paced action the scene grabs you from start to finish. Kudos to Wally Pfister for this particular section, as Batman soars so does the camera, perfecting highlighting the dizzying expance of the city.

Back in Gotham there's an underground chase sequence as the Joker, leading a convoy of lorries and dustcarts attempts to assasinate a transferring prisoner - I won't spoil it by saying who that prisoner is... With this section Nolan is comfortably showing the naysayers who rallied against the action in Batmn Begins how much his skills have improved. And we see the batpod - that is one cool bike.

Finally in the thrid act showdown between Batman and the Joker a building site under construction is the setting for some spectular fisticuffs between our dark knight and both the Jokers henchmen and the SWAT teams sent in to do the job.

All of these sequences are great fun, showcasing the high quality of the film, however they are not without their problems. There is the traditional underlit quality of batman fights, yeah it's moody and dark but if we can't see who's getting hit how can we care about them. The sonar gear is nice touch for a bat to use, but "Operation skyhook" looked and felt like a reject from a Roger Moore era Bond film. I also have a problem with the way the batpod scenes were edited together. Essentially batman drives fromt he wreckage of the Batmobile out of the undergound road via car parks, alleyways and shopping malls to get to the Joker's juggernaught. I'll ignore the question about how he knew where he was going, but I can't ignore that there seems little reason for the shopping centre section other than to show how cool the bike is. It's not needed - it only shows up that whilst we see glass doors smashed we have no idea how Batman negotitated the lift into the shopping centre in the first place.

On the acting side most of the cast acquit themselves very well. Heath Ledger is, as you will have heard, excellent. Is it the best performance in a comic film ever? Probably. Will it win Heath a posthumous oscar? Probably not. Whilst Heath inhabits the role like his tailor made clown suit I would be very surprised if it is the best supporting performance we see this year. Also I would hazard to say much of the congratulations going to him should really be given to Christopher and Jonathan Nolan for writing the role in the first place. Not to mention the Joker is a fan boy favourite who would always get rave notices. Although the moments when Heath works the funny aspect are priceless; the disappearing pencil trick and walking away from Gotham Genral come to mind.

Aaron Eckhart does a good job as Harvey Dent, less so as Harvey "Two-Face" Dent, although I feel his performance will improve on repeated viewings. Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Gary Oldman all make the best of expositionary speeches and the odd tear. Freeman also managed to get the biggest laugh of the night.

Bruce Wayne/Batman himself is a tough part to play, and I'm not sure Christian Bale gives us enough of the light and shade of the two personas to make him a rounded character.

The allusions to the way on terror are well made, and it's plea for tolerance and calm is refreshing. If some people walk away from the movie with the idea that brutalising prisoners is wrong and deciding to not pull the pin on the detonator is good then it will achieve more than a hundred Iraqi based "war is bad" movies will do.

Curiously I also felt extremely detached from the action, in spite of being in the IMAX. When I saw the Mist a few weeks ago I felt I was in the supermaket with the protagonists, watching the Dark Knight I felt I was merely an observer to the action.

In conclusion I have to say that whilst The Dark Knight is an excellent film and fully deserving of my 5 star arting (it would prbably be 4 and a half if I could do halves) I do not believe that it is the best film ever made, not even the best comic book adaptation - Spideman 2 was more fun, X2 hit on themes closer to me.

I'm looking forward to getting some feedback on this one...