The Dark Knight

Cast: Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart, Heath Ledger
Direction: Christopher Nolan

It’s easy to see why most people would avoid movies based on superheros; because of that inevitable, hackneyed good over evil war. And it’s easy to see why most people would still want to watch The Dark Knight; because in a Batman movie there is just no telling how the war will end.

I haven't seen Batman Begins, but from what I read up on the net, the darkness was all there too. The Dark Knight has retained all the elements that made the first a box office hit and then added some more. Based on the DC comic series that introduced Joker and Two-Face, the movie gives Batman a new suit, the much hyped bike, Batpod, and a new set of difficult decisions to take.

What sets Batman apart from other superheros is that he in fact has no super powers! And the Nolan brothers (who penned the screenplay) exploit this to the fullest, giving us an intelligent, yet vulnerable and angst-ridden Bruce Wayne, who must sacrifice his own interests for the safety of Gotham’s denizens.

Perhaps the District Attorney’s transformation into Two-Face could do with better justification. But Aaron Eckhart is just amazing in his role. Compared to his earlier, Thank You For Smoking, in which he is an unapologetic bastard, this one was the idealist who changes when the love of his life dies. What I loved espically about his character was the coin. The coin which had both sides the same represented a Harvery Dent who was inside out the same good person. But soon after Rachel's death one side darkens. And so now when he poses questions to his coin, he genuinely has no clue what the answer will be.

Still, Nolan’s genius as director is undeniable in the racy action sequences, macabre violence minus graphic detailing and in subtly letting Batman’s character take over Bruce, until you don’t need to see a batsuit to feel like rescue is at hand. Awesome is also the play with music. There is the batman theme when piano and drums, creating the sense of impeding doom. But also there is silence. And that silence plays with you, like no music can. If you've seen the movie, you will certainly remember when Joker's 16-wheeler topples; or when Batman swoops across the skycaper skyline of Hong Kong. Thoses moments truly make the movie a legend even before its time.

But mostly the movie will be noted for an unforgettable and, paradoxically, heroic interpretation of the anti-hero Joker. Heath Ledger, with his running mascara highlighting the crevices of his painted face, plays the sinister ‘clown’ whose mocking one-liners (‘Why so serious?’) will have you cowering in your seat. In a performance, that will unfortunately come to be known as his last, Ledger keeps from portraying Joker as a caricature and instead gives us a chilling, anarchist villain, reminiscent of Alex from A Clockwork Orange; that same desire for chaos and violence accompanied by a cunning and intelligence.

Equally memorable are Michael Cain's lines about the real hero; unforgettable lines those are ('Because he can do it'). Heath Ledger's "Either you die a hero, and live long enough to become the villian' and Batman's own response to it, to willing be seen as the villian are just some of the grandest moments of cinema.

And finally a word about the graphics used: Brilliant!

It would be wrong to assume that the movie is only for comic lovers. Though, by the end of it, you might just find yourself a convert.

Thank you guys, the pleasure was all mine.