Review : The Dark Knight

First things first : is The Dark Knight better than Batman Begins ? The answer is a resounding yes , but one must say that after watching this film , those who follow Batman´s adventures closely , will feel a bit disapointed ( for reasons I shall not explain ) . Batman is bent on fighting the wave of crime that is corrupting the city of Gotham , but that does not mean that the citizens of the New York like town have grown fonder of his actions , quite the contrary . Batman is still seen as a rogue , so the city´s inhabitants welcome the appearance of new district attorney Harvey Dent , who manages to arrest some of the city´s most important thugs , with the help of his girlfriend , Rachel Dawes . Everything seems to be going almost perfectly well until a criminal mastermind , known simply as the Joker , decides to wreck havoc , always with a smile on his face . Batman must come to terms with the existence of someone who´s bent on turning the caped crusader´s world upside down , driving Batman nearly off the deep end , for sometimes we do end up thinking that Batman is going to break his most important rule : he must not kill his foes .

The biggest difference between this new Joker and Jack Nicholson´s approach to the character is that we really feel that this Joker isn´t really interested in funny pranks , even though he does enjoy seeing panic in the faces of the millions who inhabit a larger than life metropolis . He is , in the words of the late Heath Ledger : " a mass murdering clown , a new type of terrorist " . Ledger´s performance does steal the show . He steals every single scene he´s in , maybe because once we´ve seen him , we can´t take our eyes off him . The way he moves , reminds us of some talk show hosts , but far from making us laugh , like Conan O´Brien , this host , he´s one who makes it clear from the get-go that someone will die , and the only one laughing will be him . But perhaps the best thing about this new Joker is the fact that , in the end , he does manage to change our perception of Batman , for the hero himself must duel his split personality . And if the Joker explores Batman´s dark side , Harvey Dent , masterfully played by actor Aaron Eckhart , explores the cape crusader´s lighter side , the side of him that believes in the people of Gotham , such as Comissioner Gordon , played by Gary Oldman , and Rachel Dawes , Bruce Wayne´s former sweetheart . Bruce sees Harvey as the one who can bring peace to Gotham , until he´s forced to reconsider his point of view , something that leads to a very catastrophic conclusion , something that will change the Dark Knight , forever.

Christian Bale delivers another great performance , for he shows that Batman is far from being your average super hero , just like Spiderman , he shows that with great power , come great responsibilities , and the thoughest part of being a hero , is knowing how to handle those responsibilities . Maggie Gyllenhall also deserves to be praised for she manages to represent a sort of light in this world of darkness , standing by her love interest , but caring about the one whose secret identity she is aware of . Michael Caine can do no wrong , and the things he says may give us a glimpse of the challenges that lie ahead , if the studio decides to make a third film. Last but certainly not least , we´ve got the brilliant Morgan Freeman , whose trust in Batman is shaken by a unexpected decision - we can´t help but feeling that deep inside , the ones who deserve is support are the citizens of Gotham.

Praise for director Christopher Nolan , the special effects team and everyone who was behind the film´s larger than life artistic direction . One of the year´s best films .

The Dark Knight : 0 a 10 : 8