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The Dark Knight (2008)

Director: Christopher Nolan

Time Out rating

Average user rating

189 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out London

Christopher Nolan follows the sombre origin myth of ‘Batman Begins’ with a less introspective, more frenetic sequel. Once again there are lots of ideas on the boil, this time mostly to do with community action and leadership, but an endless flow of bullets, bombs and bat business drowns out most debate. Right from the off, Nolan sidesteps the analyst’s couch and plunges us straight into battle.

He starts with a disorienting bank robbery and from there barely allows us to breathe – or think, even – over the next two and a half hours as we swing from the US to Hong Kong and back to the streets of Gotham. Here, the crime rate is soaring, it’s always night, and any daylight leaves you squinting. It’s always downtown too; the city is inescapable, a confusing mix of the pedestrian and the paranoid.

For this sequel, there’s a whole lot of story going on, which reduced to basics involves the wildly unpredictable Joker (Heath Ledger) wreaking havoc on Gotham. This perverse clown’s keyword is chaos – crime without sense – and there’s more than a nod to the post-9/11 order. ‘Some men just want to watch the world burn,’ chips in one onlooker. Later, when a good guy turns bad and half his face is burnt to reveal bone and sinew, it’s hard not to recall those images of charred bodies in Iraq.

Ledger makes a great, freaky Joker, with dirty, lank hair, a voice that soars and dives, and a tongue that slithers and salivates. Two scenes stick in the mind: him walking away from a doomed hospital in a nurse’s dress right before an explosion, and later hanging out of the window of a speeding car, tasting the air like a reptile, with the soundtrack falling silent in tribute, freezing this psychotic, iconic villain in time and allowing for a moment of sadness amid the noise. If he wins an Oscar, who’d begrudge him that tribute?

Meanwhile, Christian Bale’s stately if unmemorable Bruce Wayne/Batman reassumes relationships with Michael Caine’s affable man-servant Alfred, Morgan Freeman’s man-sage Lucius Fox and Gary Oldman’s modest cop, Lieutenant Gordon (whose quietness is drowned out by the film’s bombastics). New to the scene are District Attorney Harvey Dent (a slick Aaron Eckhart), who Wayne wants to promote as a human alternative to his vigilantism (an interesting sideline on the need for humility and choice when picking a leader), and Maggie Gyllenhaal as a replacement for Katie Holmes’s Rachel Dawes, but she barely gets a look-in.
It’s all very monumental, and the film’s more self-conscious moments, of which there are many, would provoke a giggle if you weren’t distracted by yet another explosion, chase or ratcheting up of a score that shrieks importance.

The challenge that Nolan has set himself is to make a comic book film that’s serious, entertaining and popular. It’s a tall order, but an admirable one. ‘The Dark Knight’ is a film that’s fantastic on the action front, seeds its acrobatics in its own reality, and always feels relevant even when its ideas are drowned out by clatter. That said, every once in a while, you’d like to be able to lean into the screen and tickle somebody’s ribs.

Author: Dave Calhoun 2008-07-22 12:40:41

Time Out London Issue 1979, July 24 - 30, 2008

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User reviews of this film

smerdz said...

Posted on Sep 15 2008 12:16 the best film ever!!!! i cant see why people have bad reviews about this film!! loved it and loved heath ledger!!

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Quibsy said...

Posted on Sep 14 2008 20:57 I fell asleep during this film about 10minutes after this film should have ended (atleast another hour still to run). Maybe I missed something hypnotic about this film and I will probably rent it out on DVD just to see if there was anything meritable during my nap. The storyline was rubbish, the dialogue was rubbish and Bruce Wayne's fiance was ugly, noticebly so and looked miserable (Eastenders style). I was looking forward to it but it just didn't work. Oh I only fell asleep for about 5 minutes, seat wasn't that comfortable.

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ciaron said...

Posted on Sep 14 2008 09:56 The best film of the year in my opinion, it was so good i had to go watch it again. i really cannot wait until it comes out on dvd.

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fdfd said...

Posted on Sep 13 2008 19:03 this film was the worst batman film eva!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Bexx said...

Posted on Sep 08 2008 19:52 Absolutely brilliant !!!!
Heath Ledger is irreplacable as the Joker, I can't even put into words how impressed I am with his performance :)
It was a first-time batman movie viewing for me so I didn't really know what to expect, but now I'm really pleased that I went to see it.
A must-see !! :)

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Baza said...

Posted on Sep 06 2008 08:19 Yawn - it it done yet?.....

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hassan said...

Posted on Sep 05 2008 18:56 it is a good film

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SB said...

Posted on Sep 05 2008 16:01 The Dark Knight was the best batman movie i have seen. Heath ledger was Very good at being the joker. Quite a long film but altogether was Good. Batman himself was useless in the film all he did was cause more trouble.

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debs said...

Posted on Sep 03 2008 18:00 FANTASTIC. I was dreding it as i am not normaly a fan of super hero films, however my 2 boys insited, and i was shocked to have thoroughly enjoy it. Well worth watching. Action all the way so it goes over really quick 2.

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King Louie said...

Posted on Sep 02 2008 22:15 Amazing, menacing, too reaistic? The best Bat Man movie by far.Other super hero movie directors take note, this is how it should be done. Excellent!

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James said...

Posted on Sep 02 2008 16:26 I found the movie too long, very dark and extremely violent, but that probably had much to do with my expectations: I was hoping for some nice relaxing Saturday-evening entertainment, but got an immediate shock when in the first few minutes a dozen people brutally get shot from up close. I definitely agree that the Joker is the most interesting character of the movie, Batman is most of the time just an emotionless idiot falling (despite his hi-tech equipment and toys) for every cleverly-constructed trap that was set up by the Joker.

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Pippa said...

Posted on Sep 02 2008 10:05 A truly stunning turn by the late great Heath Ledger, supported by an intelligent script, first class performances,, superb direction and total atmosphere. Can't fail to appeal to all ages. This one will run and run and let's hope stay fresh in the minds of the Academy.

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davey jones said...

Posted on Aug 31 2008 13:09 totally bemused by tony's opinion, The dark knight totally fulfilled expectations after watching the great first film. Though possibly a bit too long the action was always in suspense and all actors especially ledger put in a great show, bringing realism to the joker character, making him irreplaceable for the role. Overall, thoroughly enjoyed this film and love the new style of a dark and disturbing superhero theme that the batman franchise brings to the cinema.

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james said...

Posted on Aug 31 2008 12:18 was an immense film, a great film to watch at any time. superb acting by heath ledger, and absolute blinder of a film, the best ive seen this year. if you havent seen

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Darkling said...

Posted on Aug 30 2008 22:17 omg, are you guys insane?! the movie was AMAZING, i've seen it twice and would watch it again anytime! i absolutely loved it and not a fan of batman at all. THE JOKER STOLE THE SHOW no one cares about batman lmao heath ledger is THE BEST! :)

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