The Darkest Knight?

In a week’s time the Dark Knight hits the cinemas and boy has it received publicity (for the wrong reason). There’s talk of posthumous awards for Heath Ledger and criticism that said awards are just a promotional ploy, according to Terry Gilliam, but I’d like to leave all the gossip and bickering aside and focus on the film.

The trailers for the film look incredibly promising and if they are anything to go by it may well be the best Batman film to date. You’ll get the incredible gadgets and vehicles, stunts galore and most probably explosions and car chases. But I have a sneaky suspicion that this Batman will fall short in one area, just as all previous ones have done. Will they manage to get the caped crusader right?

Batman is supposed to be a headcase, just like the Joker, that is why they work so well together. Bruce Wayne is a man with some very serious issues and who woudn’t be after the murder of their family. The main driving force behind him is split between revenge and getting rid of criminals in his city (so they don’t kill other people’s parents), and that is what offers the main conflict for the character. Not so much catching the Joker, but not becoming the Joker. He could wander around the city and just pick the bad guys off, and yet none of the films have shown this turmoil. I am hoping that he will at least verge on becoming a babbling vigilante that redeems himself, rather than being a broody goody-two-shoes. Christian Bale can do it, if only he is directed a bit more towards American Psycho and less towards Equilibrium. There is reference to “becoming what you are fighting” in the trailer, so all I can do is hope.

A moment must be taken of course to talk about Heath Ledger’s performance which gives me goosebumps from just watching the trailers. I’m sure we can expect more excellent performances from an exceptional cast that includes Michael Cain, Garry Oldman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freemen, Cillian Murphy, Aaron Eckhart and an appearance I am really looking forward to, Anthony Michael Hall (even though that is only because I am a huge Breakfast Club Fan). Warner Brothers expect it to do so well in fact, that they are releasing the Dark Knight to 4,366 cinemas, a new record beating the third instalment of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Enough with the suppositions though, I will have a clearer view in a couple of weeks when the film gets its theatrical release and I get a chance to see it. For anyone out there who has not yet seen the trailers and TV spots you might want to check out Trailer 1, Trailer 2, and Trailer 3. I also got the chance to see the first five minutes of the film and I have to say that it looks intense and incredible.