OK, first things first... I have a confession to make. It was me who scored The Dark Knight a 9 out of 10, I'm very very sorry! After a second viewing this afternoon I have now retracted my 9 to be replaced with a 10 as it rightfully deserves.I think the reason I gave it a 9 originally was because its quite different to Batman Begins. That to me was my perfect Batman movie and the fact that it was almost entirely shot in Britain gave me a sense of patriotism when watching it.
I loved the mythology behind 'Begins', it was so well done. This made the Batman character (Christian Bale) seem believable, a step away from most comic book adaptations. Director Christopher Nolan did such a fantastic job that Batman's past no longer needs to be covered, a refreshing step away from the films of the 80's & 90's.
The Dark Knight continues very close to where it left off, with Batman doing his usual unorthodox heroics. Saying that however, Batman isn't really the main character in The Dark Knight. Don't get me wrong, he's there doing his stuff but the focus seems to be on the other characters through the majority of the story like detective Gordon, the Joker & Harvey Dent/Two Face. This works well and on my second viewing I really appreciated it.
Dark Knight is a lot "darker" than Begins. For example the interrogation scene between Batman and the Joker is really brutal.The late Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker is absolutely brilliant. He's totally crazy and psychotic! All the reports of praise are true, he does deserve that Oscar nomination.
Harvey Dent (played by the excellent Aaron Eckhart) is again a different portrayal of the character I was expecting to see. Throughout the film he is seen as the main hero. His transformation into Two Face is brilliant and the FX on his half mangled face looks incredible.
The rest of the cast are great, featuring many recognisable faces just as simple extras. I guess since the Batman re-imagination lots of actors now want work in a Batman movie as its more than just a crappy kids action film, it has credibility!
The end of the film is not at all what I was expecting. Original in every way, what happens next I haven't got a clue but I'll be looking forward to it. In the meantime I'm sure the internet will be rife with rumours/suggestions!
***RUMOUR ALERT*** Johnny Depp as the Ridler, I heard that today (01/08/08). Hmm...?
