In this, Christopher Nolan’s sequel to his superhero reboot, Batman Begins, wastes no time at all. Setting a more epic canvas; the new villain is once again shot through with Nolan’s “Urban Horror” ethic but taken to more extreme lengths, the secondary characters are brought to the fore and fleshed out and ultimately the stakes are raised.

The Dark Knight is in almost every way Batman Begins let off the leash to roam rabidly free with its terrifying intensity.

Set a few months after the original film, The Dark Knight starts off with a hopeful outlook. Gotham is slowly being drawn into the light; Batman (Christian Bale in full scowl and growl mode) is making a positive difference, to such a degree that the merest hint of the Batsignal is enough to send criminals running for cover. From these embers of hope springs a new crusader in the form of driven district attorney, Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) who in a lot of ways is the antithesis of Batman in his approach, willing to stand up and be counted where as from a certain point of view Batman happier skulking in the dark hidden behind a mask. Elsewhere, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), is slowly assembling a trusted team of cops, who will lead the way and fight the good fight targeting the cities organised crime syndicate.

But everything isn’t all roses, as alluded to in the original film; there is a new breed of criminal stepping up to the plate, something that may inadvertently have been caused by Batman’s appearance. Now the worst of them is loose, The Joker (Heath Ledger), an insane, chaotic, malevolent force, intent on reintroducing fear back to Gotham, willing to do anything, to anyone to simply watch the world burn.

Too often a comic book movie will profess to be “Dark”, this is usually something said by hopeful fanboys desperate to have their favourite past time endorsed by the general public, having it seen as “not for kids” but for adults. Now normally this darkness pointed to with such vehemence by the fanboys usually manifests itself as a few childish attempts at maturity, swearing, sex and death usually, rarely touching true psychological darkness they seem to think this implies. But in Dark Knight, this darkness so often yearned for by the comic fan community has finally arrived and at the heart of this particular darkness is Heath Ledgers phenomenal performance as The Joker.

The script by Batman Begins scribe David S Goyer and Christopher Nolan, focuses primarily on this disturbing creation, a man so utterly deranged that there simply is no line he will not cross, no low he will not stoop to and ultimately a man who cares so little for anything, himself included, that he is the true mirror to Batmans frankly unhinged obsession with Justice.

The story and moral quandary that dogs Bruce Wayne throughout this movie are pure film noir hard boiled crime caper and the many online comparisons to Michael Mann’s Heat are certainly valid if not necessarily as strong as many reviews would suggest. The central idea that Batman as a symbol inspires, not only the good but the bad is a strong one and fuels the conflict between the two main protagonists. It’s a point that is underlined by Harvey Dent as he exclaims prophetically that you can only be a hero for so long lest you outstay your welcome and ultimately become the villain.

Dent, is arguably the most interesting character of all in this film. His rise and ultimate fall are what underpins the whole narrative, showing that when pushed to extremes even the whitest knight can be broken. Dent in this film, is worlds away from the smarmy Billy Dee Williams or the techno-colour camp of Tommy Lee Jones, he is a sympathetic and smart, a man not a super hero who stands up to the darkness in a way that’s far braver than Batman.

It’s this nobility and pitch perfect acting from Aaron Eckhart that is sells this character and when he eventually becomes the demented Two Face, Nolan and Goyer’s script delivers a villain potentially every bit as dangerous and psychotic as the more flamboyant Joker, but more poignant because we see what the situation has made him. Yet its a sad fact that in the cold light of day Eckhart’s portrayal of Dent is every bit as good if not better and more nuanced as Ledgers much lauded work, but due to events outside of the film itself he will likely forever sit in Ledgers shadow.

No film is perfect and despite what the popular press and the foaming ravings from some corners of the internet, Dark Knight is not without its problems, Nolan for example as a director is clearly more at home directing characters and dialogue than he is with directing Bat-Pod jousting sessions with trucks. Two Face and his final showdown at the movies conclusion feel’s tacked on. Additionally a lot of the problems can be attributed to the events with Ledger in public, specifically regarding how the need for a tribute affects the movie’s running length.

Long films are not uncommon these days, since Peter Jackson proved to studios that if the story is good people will sit for hours regardless of the running time. But while the luxurious running time of over two and a half hours allows for Nolan and co to craft some utterly compelling characters, there are moments where the running time feels like it has been artificially extended by additional Joker sequences. These moments it could be argued, while interesting, fleshing out the psychotic, no holds barred, nature of the character might not have made it to the final cut had Ledger been alive to see the premier.

Not that this reviewer would ever be so crass as to suggest that Ledger’s unfortunate death was capitalised on, but given the perfect storm of hype and interest around the film, lead by calls from some areas for a posthumous Oscar to be bestowed upon Ledger, it’s hard not to believe that in some way the movie was compromised, if not overtly, by the terrible events and the need to show the world what is clearly a defining role for the actor.

The feeling of the film being extended and rife with over indulgence is enforced by a number of subplots, involving everything from Batman impersonators, to a Wayne Enterprises accountant who works out the truth and begins to blackmail Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman).  All of these appear to muddy the waters and distract from the main tale, and most of them are ultimately discarded without resolution. These sub plots, especially one which requires Batman to go to Hong Kong, all acts to bog down the main story and leaden the pace, whenever Ledgers psychopath isn’t tearing up the town.

In the end the biggest failing of the film is simply its structure and position in the series. It has an up-in-the-air feeling of a middle act, “Two Towers Syndrome” if you will. Starting with direct continuation of events from Batman Begins and ending in a way that leaves Batman as a character himself requiring some much needed story resolution, this film feels unresolved and as a consequence not nearly as satisfying overall compared to its predecessor. Though in the final analysis, Dark Knight will probably be better evaluated when an inevitable third chapter emerges.

Ultimately, The Dark Knight is not a bad film, far from it. It has the same gritty feel of its forerunner, with oodles of grim, disturbing atmosphere ladled on top to make it a tough and exhausting watch at times. The cast are uniformly good and all serve the story perfectly, whilst the Jokers set pieces are as inventive as they are disturbing adding to the overall atmosphere and feeling of dread all of which combines to make a very good, if flawed, comic book movie. But does this movie deserve the plaudits of Godfather 2 comparisons or the ecstatic cries of “Masterpiece”, sadly not in this reviewer’s opinion. It is as accomplished and enjoyable as one could expect a film of this genre to be, perhaps even one of the best examples of a comic book adaptation ever, but it’s easy to see that the marketing departments virtuoso campaigns combined with the tragic death of an actor in his prime who gave an outstanding performance, have united to lift this film on a wave of unstoppable hyperbole that in years to come will be seen for what it is.

At the end of the day, Dark Knight is an accomplished movie and certainly deserving of your time, but leave your over hyped preconceptions at the door.

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