Months ago I was reading various eulogies and “in memory of” type articles on Heath Ledger after his apparent suicide in January 08. The writers would remember such roles as Patrick Verona in 10 Things I Hate About You, Sir William Thatcher in A Knight’s Tale or Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain. It’s unfortunate that one of the best roles that the actor has ever played was one that only shone after he had expired: The Joker in The Dark Knight.
Calling the movie “Heath Ledger’s Dark Knight,” wouldn’t have been too far fetched. As clowns often do, The Joker stole the show. Highly regarded as Batman’s greatest nemesis in the DCU, The Joker does what he is does best: chaos, mayhem and wanton destruction but always with a smile.
Director Chris Nolan once again brings the perfect balance of noir, action and humor to the film. He stayed away from the kitchy 60’s TV show, the goth dark-fest of the Tim Burton flicks and the campiness debacle which put the franchise to sleep directed by Joel Schumacher.
The story starts off with Bruce Wayne’s alter-ego Batman (Christian Bale), as he fights to handicap Gotham City’s crime syndicates by putting an end to their money laundry operations. Along for the ride are Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and the new D.A. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart).
When the man who holds all of the mobs’ money is caught and incarcerated, they hire the Joker to get rid of Batman once and for all. Casualties, vanishing pencils and mayhem ensue and the whole city panics. For anybody who has read the comics or even seen Batman Forever starring Val Kilmer, you know that despite the righteousness of Harvey Dent (aka the White Knight), he will fall and become Two-Face, that’s no real surprise. What was a surprise though is just how damn well Eckhart pulled it off, it was practically flawless. He does have the superhero chin with clef after all.
So without wanting to reveal too much more about the movie, let me just say that it was great fun. My criticism is reserved for minute details rather that gaping holes. For examples, Bale’s Batman voice is grating and made me want to hand him some throat lozenges. It didn’t so much sound like he was trying to mask his voice as much as he just had a severe case of strep throat. I much prefer the animated Batman’s voice, at least he doesn’t sound like he is trying to hack out a handful of kitty litter…and a cat.
Before even being able to deposit our movie trash into the bins, and watch the credits roll up onto the screen, debate has begun anew:
Who’s the next villain?
Will they hire someone else to play the Joker since Heath Ledger died?
Will it be the Riddler?
Will it be Killer Croc?
Will it be a trio of femme fatales (Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Talia Al Ghul)?
Will it be Mob Wars (the Penguin, the Black Mask and the Ventriloquist)?
Stay tuned for this and more answers, same bat-time, same bat-channel…
Posted Saturday, July 19, 2008
