I've always been a fan of the Caped Crusader, listing him just behind Spiderman as my superhero of choice. But I've never really enjoyed the movies, even the good ones, because they were so dark.
Batman is of course a creature of the night, forged in the shadow of his parents murder and very much at home in the seedy underbelly of his hometown. I get that. And I know the movies are 'seen' through the worldview of Bruce Wayne. You're not going to see rainbows and butterflies in his world.
But, watching the films I've always felt Gotham was hopeless, a corrupt and violent town without a future and not much of a present. Like I said as the DVD was loading "Who'd ever want to live there?"
I finished the movie wonderfully surprised. This wasn't a movie about death and mayhem, it was a movie about Redemption, of a city and its people rising from decay and reaching for the sun. Yes, yes, there are dozens of scenes of violence and horror, and Gotham isn't quite ready for a 'Best of . . ' list.
But throughout the film the city is filmed in daylight, with color, with pride. A police commissioner is murdered, threats are made, and yet the city turns out to honor their dead and look evil in the eye. Setbacks are made and but the city moves forward, slowly but forcibly, towards their goal of peace and integrity. Batman senses this change and vocalizes it at times, but even if he didn't it's readily apparent in his actions. He is not the Savior of his city, he is its band-aid. It is not him who saves hundreds in the end - no, it is the citizens of Gotham themselves.
You can almost - almost - picture wanting to visit the city.
As for Heath Ledger, my word what a performance. I felt he came into his own during his interrogation by Batman, and from that point on the role was his. His hospital scenes . . wow.
Long live Batman, and long live Gotham.
Batman has always been my favorite superhero, because I love that dark side. (You knew I would.) He is a man with gadgets, rather than one with superpowers, and his tortured past makes him a superhero with a little meat to him, you know?
ReplyDeleteAs much as I loved Michael Keaton as the original movie Batman (and yes, I also loved Adam West in the TV series, as campy as it was), Christian Bale is now the man. He plays the winged one perfectly, although I thought he needed a throat lozenge in this last one. :)
I felt the same way about Heath Ledger's Joker. I had heard all the buzz, and went into the movie with an open mind. I was blown away by his evil good humor and complete insanity. After the movie was over, I turned to Ken and said, "Wow." The Bond franchise was revived with Daniel Craig. The last two Batman movies have revived this franchise.
B.
I'm not into superhero's that much, but your writting was such, that I might just see the DVD...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the write up
We just watched it last night. We loved it. Heath Ledger was definitely worth all the hype.
ReplyDeleteI haven't watched it and probably won't. I'm not much of a comic book film lover.
ReplyDeleteI do love Heath Ledger though...and I'm so glad he received the Oscar for this role.
XOXO