Wow.
I mean, wow.
It's dark (um, hence the name?). It follows the tradition of trilogies in the second movie being darker. But I think these interpretations of Batman (meaning Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) are darker. And I think that makes them better. They dig deeper. To be honest, I was never a fan of Batman before Christian Bale and the Nolan Brothers. Bale and the Nolan Brothers have redeemed the Batman story for me. (In fact, seeing Christian Bale's in the new Terminator movie--a set of movies that I could take or leave--I wonder if he'll even redeem Terminator for me.)
In The Dark Knight, Batman matures. He's faced with the question of what it means to be Gotham's hero and is he willing to do that. Bruce Wayne grapples with his limits and Batman's limits. What's interesting is that the Joker presents this question for bad and Gordon presents this question for good. Neither times is the answer appealing, and this is Batman's struggle.
On to the Joker. Can I say wow again? Heath Ledger did an amazing job and fully deserves a posthumous Oscar for this role. I have to admit, the first time Heath appeared on screen, it was sad. I felt hurt for this man and his family. Ledger dives into this role of a man who delights in evil not because of what he gets out of it but purely because of what he strips from others. He is chaos. He brings people to their lowest possible place. He pushes them. He wants to see the corruptness in them explode.
This is one of the best portraits of Satan I've seen.
There were surprises in this movie, things I didn't expect but realized there was no other way. It's how it had to be. The movie weakened in the end a bit but remained overall strong and amazing.
It raised some interesting questions (there are spoilers from this point forward):
What is nature of being human?
There is a corruptness yet a presence of good (what I call the Imago Dei). What's more, this Imago Dei finds itself in unexpected sources (i.e. the prisoner), and the best of humanity (i.e. Harvey Dent) can be corrupted to he point of no return (or, as the movie foreshadowed in the beginning, he lived long enough to become a villian). The choices we make every day contribute to one side or the other. Will we fight in a way that is good or will we allow the circumstances in our lives, the evil surrounding us, to influence us and fight back in a way that is corrupt.
(Side note: like the first movie, this movie continues the thread, "Is it okay to fight injustice with unjust ways?")
What is the nature of Satan?
He is the chaos creator. His goal is to bring out the worst in people, to turn them against good (i.e. pure good = God), to watch the world burn (as Alfred put it). He desires to draw out the corrupt nature in humanity. He is deceiver (note that the Joker's stories about his scars are all lies; he lies to the mafia to get them to do what he wants; he lies to Batman).
What does it mean to be a hero?
(And stop singing, "I need a hero!") At the core of this is Gordon's statement that Batman isn't who the people want but who they need.
Batman as a Christ-figure: he took on our afflictions. What does it mean when the movie claims that we need more than truth? Do I agree with this or not? On the one hand, Christ is the Truth, and how can we need more than that? But let me argue something: what is truth other than we deserve to die and Christ did not? Yet we got more. We got mercy and truth. We got mercy becoming truth.
Batman as a model for us: we can't seek to be popular or trendy. We must seek to give what people need. I mean this in all its forms. We are Christ's body, his physical presence in the world. Through us, Christ transforms culture and redeems humans. As heroes, then, doing what is needed but not wanted includes evangelising, shepherding, living creatively, creating art that does not follow trends but transforms culture. Does this mean that we may do what is unpopular in the world's eyes and in the eyes of fellow Christians?
There's also the "white knight" approach of Harvey Dent. Which is needed? How do we fight injustice? Are both Batman and the Harvey Dent type appropriate and can they work together?
What is the nature and object of faith?
Here's where I had a problem with the movie's theology. In order to keep the people's faith and hope (for all of you with George Michael now singing in your heads, I'll give you a moment...), Gordon and Batman choose to present a false Harvey Dent (or a limited, one-sided, pre-two-faced Harvey at best). They choose to hide his "ugly side." This, at its core, is a false hope. It hides the ugly nature of humanity in favor of its good side only. It's an unreal optimism. And it denies the need of an outside Redeemer because of corruptness in the Imago Dei.
On the other hand--the object of faith is good. While the movie argues that this good is in humanity (and to a certain extent I believe there is good in humanity because of the Imago Dei), it also shows that Batman (an outside Redeemer--and yet one of them), is needed if Gotham is ultimately to be saved. I believe that ultimate good is in God and that a salvific faith comes from him alone.
To me, this movie ended at Good Friday. I look forward to the Resurrection in the third movie.
Updated: You can find other reviews at Christianity Today, C. Orthodoxy, Looking Closer, and Filmchat.
One of the elements of the film that I has been turning in my mind today is the aspect of free will in a fallen world. How do our choices affect this world? Was it Batmans' (God) fault that people died? If we review those who made choices, we see:
1. Bruce Wayne-did not reveal himself. Batman chose to save Rachael but "saved" Dent instead. This is interesting in that saving Dent only led to additional deaths and the need for Batmans "sacrifice"
2. The joker-Catalyst. Did he really give Batman the wrong addresses or did he truely not know they had been switched?
3. Corrupt cops-assisted in the abductions.
4. Harvey Dent-Sought DA spot. Went after mob. Refused to take responsiability for his actions. Claimed to be Batman (antichrist? false prophet?)
5. Racheal-Aligned herself with Harvey Dent. Brought attention to herself during penthouse party.
6. Mayor-As a show of strength, elected to have a 'standard police memorial" i.e. public funeral with large platform in the middle of the street. Good or bad it was still a choice.
7. Lt Gordon-Could have arrested Bruce Wayne at any time.
On a side note,
The speed at which the people in the "good" ferry were willing to sell out the prisoners in the "bad" ferry was astounding.
SPOILER ALERT!!!
my favorite moment was when that prisoner said, "i'm going to do what you should have done ten minutes ago" and then he tosses the detonator out the window. YES!
and if you have the opportunity to see this on an imax screen, i highly recommend it.
I loved that part, too! That unexpected moment of humanity.
I'm trying to convince my hubby that we need to see it again and on IMAX this time.
What is the nature of Satan?
He is the chaos creator. His goal is to bring out the worst in people, to turn them against good (i.e. pure good = God), to watch the world burn (as Alfred put it). He desires to draw out the corrupt nature in humanity. He is deceiver...
My 9 year old and I were just talking about this, not 15 minutes ago! We have not seen the Batman movie, and she probably won't for a looong time.
She was grappling with an innocent-minded quandry, "Is it better to love Satan since he hates love, or to hate him? Because if I hate Satan, aren't I doing the very thing he wants me to do... hate?" Both options present their logic problems.
I found myself quoting the Purpose Driven Life: "It's not about you." I don't think Satan really cares if we love him or hate him, particularly since he knows his doom is sealed already. His simple delight is to stir the chaos, to watch the world burn, and to scoop as many of us into his hand basket bound for hell as he can on the way there. If he can do that by means of garnering our love, then great. If it requires that we make missteps in an effort to passionately hate him, then so be it.
His main goal is not about us at all. We are merely his potential pawns.
Think of C.S. Lewis' White Witch. Another vivid picture of the calculating callousness of
Satan.
Whew! That was a long comment from someone who hasn't even seen the movie yet.
How did I miss jumping through all those identification hoops??
You know, this movie will not stop turning around in my head. I feel like I need to go see it again, like I'm missing so much more. There's something beautiful in the ideas of justice and goodness still shining in the midst of so much chaos and darkness. There's something beautiful in the sacrifices people make for these ideas--from Harvey Dent's sacrifices (yes, even if he eventually turned sour, I still believe the sacrifices he made at the beginning are worth something) to Gordon's to Batman's.
This movie leaves me wondering, what happens next? How will Gotham be saved? Will they turn to Batman or continue to reject him? Will Batman be revealed as the hero rather than the villian? And how will the public Bruce Wayne now handle things?
In some ways, this movie seemed to be cleansing. In the beginning, though things were on an upswing, there were mock Batman's trying to do good in all the wrong ways. There won't be any more of that.
How will the fight against evil continue? And what will ultimate victory look like?
So many questions. So many things left in my mind from the movie.
I don't know. Still thinking...
wonderful review -- I've been so torn about seeing it. The hubby loves the intense movies, and I shrink from them.
Heather, you win the "most prolific poster while I was on vacation award." Sheesh, girl, you are a word MACHINE! And I love them ;)
Before I get into this, I liked the movie. Everything H and Ch said was true. Some thoughts...
Ok, I saw this yesterday and couldn't help but wonder if Hugh Ledger invited something into his life when he took this role and performed it so well that led to his death. I can't prove it, but I couldn't help but think it. He was good, but he made me want to run away screaming...do we need to see something that demonic? I don't know...I guess maybe I don't.
I also HATED the fact that Wayne never got to see the note from wazzhername. It lets him live a lie, and I hate that. Truth is hard, but it seems better to know than not to. I would want to know, even if it shattered my soul and I had to pick up the pieces for the rest of my life. I felt the same way about the lie at the end about Dent. No, No, NO!!!!
All I could think at the end was, "It SUCKS being Bruce Wayne right now...and he's such a GOOD man."
You know me--I think every one should know every feeling I have at the moment I feel it.
(Fifty points for getting the movie reference. Your hint: it's the best movie ever.)
The Joker is dark and demonic, but I think it's a good wake up call for those of us who too easily forget about how far Satan will go. But you're right--I should be cautious about recommending it because it is hard to watch.
The journalists speculated that Heath Ledger got too into the part, but the actors who spent time with him on and off the set said that when the make-up came off, he let go of the part.
I left feeling the same way. I can't imagine that choice--to take on the afflictions and be hated by mankind knowing you're only doing it to save them.
ooh, that last part you just said right there makes the Christ symbol that much clearer: "to take on the afflictions and be hated by mankind knowing you're only doing it to save them."
Oh, man. This movie was SO POWERFUL on so many levels. I'm so glad you wrote this review!
You know, about 3/4 of the way into it, I was struck by how spiritual this film was, too. Thanks for drawing this out in your review. It helps put words to what were merely impressions so far inside of me.
Best performance by Heath Ledger I have ever seen, and in the top 3 of top performances I have ever seen by any actor, ever. He was that good. The tragedy of his lost life also made me sad throughout the movie and afterward. I can't help but wonder what kind of full, embodied career he might have had if he had lived, well, a full life. So tragic that his life ended in such a dark place.
It bothered me that Harvey Dent kept being heralded as the best humanity had to offer. I didn't trust the guy the entire movie. I personally think Lt. Gordon would have been a better alternative. Of course, that's because I love Sirius Black. Just kidding.
Thanks for sharing this, Heather! Kirk and I are probably going to see it a second time tonight. You know, since I'm celebrating a measure of freedom today and all. :)
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