I suppose it's unnecessary to go into the context of this film, the prequel to it or the untimely death of Ledger so I will avoid all that and instead go straight into the meat of it.
My first point has to be that this is better than Batman Begins and BB was no slouch of a movie. It did reinvent the superhero genre and was deserving of the praise it received. Unfortunately it simply pales into insignificance when compared to The Dark Knight. Essentially, while BB was a film about fear and identity, DK is about morals and choice. I remember the second and third Matrix movies harping on about choice with school boy philosophy which was clumsily written however DK does it with more skill and while not subtle in its execution it manages to not come across as preachy. Indeed, this is a film which explores its themes and ideas fully. Finally we have a Hollywood movie which doesn't get scared in the third act and turn into an out and out action film. In fact during most of the extreme action of the film the ideas and themes are still being explored. The final confrontation between Batman and Joker doesn't come to a massive martial arts fight or ridiculous explosions, instead it is just two men at opposite ends of the moral compass confronting each other. In fact, Batman's character is in a constant fight with himself over his moral stance and while it might be easy to see Batman and The Joker as good and evil it's actually more of Commissioner Gorden and The Joker with Batman struggling to stay one side and Dent floating between the two.
There are some lovely set pieces in the film as well. Look out for the bit with the ships. This sums up the whole moral theme of the film in a set piece that would usually take up the whole running time for other films but is consigned to the third act for DK. Another brilliant un-Hollywood touch at the end of that scene really made me feel honoured for watching it. The question has to be, if Hollywood has proved themselves capable of a film like this, why do they produce so much tripe?
The performances of all the cast are spot on. Due to the early death of Ledger this was always going to be his swansong and the performance which people look back on and it is a wonderful closing act to his career but as praise is heaped on Ledger we have to remember the other performances. Bale is, as always, superb and his double act alongside Caine has some genuinely touching and funny moments. Gary Oldman simply is Commissioner Gordon and I cannot see how anyone could take that role from him but for me the real hit is Aaron Eckhart. Here is an actor who plays the whole scope of Dent / Two Face so believably that you are just carried along with him. I'd hate to have to decide which one gets a best supporting actor nomination from it.
Of course, it's not a perfect film. Bale's voice as Batman has gone through some post-production effects which seem a little too much and as much as the film doesn't feel like it drags it probably is too long. As cool as some of the scenes are (the Heat inspired bank heist being one) I can't help but feel that it smacks of tautology.
Essentially it is a brilliant film and misses out on being an absolute classic by a hair's width. Still, in a time of so much tripe this is a welcome relief and everyone involved deserves our gratitude.
So, in two words... watch it.
