Dark Knight, The

Synopsis
To say that Christopher Nolan's THE DARK KNIGHT is the best comic book adaptation does the film a bit of a disservice. It may be a Batman film, but this isn't a kid-friendly action movie full of the bams and pows of the original series. This is a pitch-black thriller with enough drama and tragedy to please even William Shakespeare, but it will certainly keep both comics fans and uninitiated audiences equally happy. THE DARK KNIGHT starts in the wake of BATMAN BEGINS: with the appearance of Batman (Christian Bale), Gotham City's criminal underworld is unnerved. They're also plagued by the new D.A., Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), who, in his quest for justice, remains above the city's corruption. Enter a new villain, the Joker (Heath Ledger), who wants to unite the criminals for a common purpose: to kill Batman.

THE DARK KNIGHT is one of the most hyped movies to date, and a lesser film would be crushed under the weight of all that expectation. Some of the publicity stems from the early death of Ledger, who turns in an excellent performance. He provides moments of humor, but this Joker is terrifying, sharing more with classic villains such as Hannibal Lechter than with his comic book predecessors. Eckhart is equally good as Dent, and Maggie Gyllenhaal deserves praise for taking over the role of Rachel Dawes from Katie Holmes. Though there's more emphasis on plot and character development than in most comic book adaptations, that doesn't mean Nolan has skimped on any of the action sequences. Each set piece is done perfectly, leaving the audience breathless. THE DARK KNIGHT is filmmaking at its best; its subject matter may be dark and depressing, but it's tough not to feel exhilarated by its artistry when the credits begin to roll.

Reviews
4 stars out of 4 -- "THE DARK KNIGHT is a more thrilling, intelligent, morally complex and masterfully crafted film than any summer blockbuster in recent years. It's probably the best superhero movie to date." (USA Today)

"Always a consummate professional, Ledger threw himself into a role he clearly relished, giving a transfixing performance..." (Los Angeles Times)

"Pitched at the divide between art and industry, poetry and entertainment, it goes darker and deeper than any Hollywood movie of its comic-book kind..." (New York Times)

"[T]he movie exudes a predatory glamour that makes the comic-book films that have come before it look all the more like kid stuff." -- Grade: A- (Entertainment Weekly)

5 stars out of 5 -- "[A]n anarchic, malevolent fury of a movie....Ledger's Joker is pure, powerful, immense..." (Empire)

"[A] sleek detective story....Bale and Eckhart centralize the movie's thematic concerns, causing the Joker's outrageousness to stand out." (Premiere)

"This last development is a fine example of Nolan's flair for multivalent plot points....Nolan is aided by strong performances. Bale is focused, intense and committed to being terrifying..." (Sight and Sound)

"Working from Michael Mann's visual template and seemingly indebted to the hard-nosed savagery of THE DEPARTED, Christopher Nolan's second BATMAN installment has some thrilling moments..." (Film Comment)

"The best of all the Batmans, Christopher Nolan's haunted film leaps beyond its origins and becomes an engrossing tragedy." (Chicago Sun-Times)

Ranked #3 in Rolling Stone's 'Movies Of The Year' -- "[A] Batman movie that offers enough moral relativism to give you knightmares." (Rolling Stone)

Included in Entertainment Weekly's 2008 Films Of The Year -- "[A] triumph of comic-book relevance, starring Christian Bale as a superhero uneasy with his calling in a city anesthetized to matter-of-fact evil..." (Entertainment Weekly)