The Dark Knight

There was a time not so long ago when you went to a movie based on a comic book and got your money's worth: action, fighting, explosions, great special effects, cool costumes and gadgets, and an ending promising sequels bound to deliver more of the same "as soon as we can make another one." All that ends with The Dark Knight. You definitely get your money's worth and much, much more.

In Gotham City, Batman (Christian Bale) is both worshiped by imitators and condemned by many as a vigilante. He's so fed up with being the hero that when new District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) comes along, he seems the logical replacement as The Good Guy. While Bruce Wayne's doubts and inner demons stew, along comes the Joker (Heath Ledger), full of twisted games, carnage and anarchy.

At this point, The Dark Knight moves beyond (way beyond) the realm of a summer action movie, venturing into places many moviegoers simply looking for action and special effects may not fully appreciate. Ledger's Joker is about as far from Jack Nicholson's 1989 rendition as you can get. There are what could be construed as "comic moments," but (possibly due to Ledger's tragic death in January) Ledger plays them in such a way that if you do find yourself laughing, all traces of humor quickly vanish into a crevasse of utter despair.

Without giving away too much, the chase and battle scenes (which are excellent) take a backseat to the psychological war waged by the Joker against Batman. A recurring theme in the film is the inevitability of all heroes, given enough time, to become the worst villain imaginable. The Joker knows how to play on Batman's fears and doubts, urging him to give in to chaos and anarchy, the only reasonable choice left to him. This is far more than a clumsy attempt to lure "the noble crime-fighter" over to the Dark Side, it is an examination of ethics and morality in an arena where there are no easy choices, no easy answers. The Joker has made his choice; he has a firm grip on his own twisted philosophical worldview. He's just waiting for Batman to make his. He even taunts Batman at one point with the helplessness of his situation, saying "There's nothing you can do to me."

The Dark Knight is very, very dark indeed, and we're not really talking about cinematography. Filmed mostly in Chicago, director Christopher Nolan's vision of Gotham is frequently grounded in far more realistic tones than Tim Burton's films. When you realize that you're looking at a real city, not some elaborately structured sets that reach up into the clouds, the film just feels darker, grittier. Yet the real darkness occurs inside the minds of the characters, something the writers and director understand very well. The Dark Knight gives you a lot to enjoy visually, but even more to ponder during the drive home and long after you've parked in the garage, turned out the lights and are left with your own reflections on ethics, morality and what it means to be human....or inhuman.