Review: The Dark Knight (IMAX)

*Scurvy Dogs beware…spoilers off the port bow!

After a month of waiting, I finally got to see The Dark Knight last night.  I had wanted to see it in the IMAX and seeing that there is only one IMAX screen in town, I did not feel like waiting in the two hour + lineup to see a 2 1/2 hour film.  Luckily, yesterday the timing was right and we were third in line to see the film and we were only an hour before it started.  Unfortunately for me, I sat down on the carpet and I didn’t even notice some liquid that was there and it proceeded to get absorbed by my underwear.  Trish, Vero and Mike had a good laugh.

Comments on the film: Oh Batman, how you have changed since the 60s TV show.  The Dark Knight takes what it did well in Batman Begins and runs with it…I enjoy Christopher Nolan’s portrayal of the Gotham universe because I feel it’s one of the more…realistic takes on superheroes.  While I can’t imagine ever seeing a man like Doctor Octopus or Magneto running through our streets, I can imagine villains like the Joker and Two-Face skulking about.

That’s what I love about these films…they have a gritty, real edge to them.  I also love how the film is moved more by character development than other films…it reminds me of a good 70s film where there’s more time focussed on the characters than on action sequences.  My favourite part was the focus on Harvey Dent who we all should know (from comic book lore) becomes Two-Face, the man who leaves everything to chance.  He has always been an interesting villain in that he has good in him as well as evil but he doesn’t allow himself to choose between the two.  I really, really enjoyed their portrayal of this tragic figure.  It was a slow buildup of character to see the tragedy which befalls him.  Much more that the cartoony-like Tommy Lee Jones performance in Batman Forever.  Can I also point that the face of Two-Face was amazing and was very true to the comic book verson?  Kudos.

The plot was all over the place and I enjoyed how I didn’t feel that it dragged on.  While there are a lot of action sequences in the film, I felt the film kept moving along without them.  I also enjoyed a few twists that they put into the film that has the viewer not knowing what’s going to happen next.  Can I also point out that I am disappointed in the french radio station in town for ruining a major plotpoint in the film telling me that Rachel bites the dust.  COME ON.  That would have been a terrific sequence in the film if I didn’t already see where it was heading.

I found that there really wasn’t a lot of focus on Bruce Wayne/Batman in this one.  It was a Joker/Two-Face film.  Maybe it was on purpose, in that Batman has grown from the dual nature of Bruce Wayne/Batman from the first film into someone who is comfortable with being who he is (although he’s ready to hang up the cape for good for the better of Gotham).

I enjoyed the portrayal of the Joker in this film and I enjoy how each version we have seen in moving picture is always a different take on the character.  From what I know of the Joker in the comics, the same holds true as he can be a trickster in one comic, and a vile sadistic madman in others (see The Killing Joke) who never lets on to his true origins and we are always left wondering how a madman like this can truly exist.  I really enjoyed how the film dug into these specific points about the Joker and how he is simply anarchy in its purest form who has nothing to lose.  Batman can’t handle this figure as he has limits whereas the Joker has none.  I really enjoyed the final conversation with the two of them as it nailed their relationship on the head; they are always meant to be opposing forces who can never truly destroy one another.  They will always be fighting each other throughout time.  Can I also comment that I loved how the Joker just comes and goes in this film…no real introduction of who this madman is, and no real conclusion of where he ends up either.  Two-Face’s story is a closed book, but the Joker just remains open and ambiguous…which I loved.  He’s just another player in the universe which is probably the most realistic portrayal of how a villain operates.

I really enjoyed the film but in terms of super-hero films of the year, I thought Iron Man was better.  Heck, that doesn’t mean The Dark Knight sucked…it didn’t.  It’s really carving out a niche for more crime-centric, realistic superhero films.  But Iron Man had more of the grandiose feel to it and the characters were FUN to watch and listen to…I love Christian Bale but Robert Downey Jr. was awesome in his role as Tony Stark.

My only beef with the Christian Bale Batman?  That dang voice.  I cringe everytime he uses it because it’s so lame.  There’s sometimes where I can’t even understand the guy!  Imagine that happening in real life?

Batman: You’re coming with me to jail.
Joker: What?  I couldn’t catch that?  Repeat again?

Go see the film!  You won’t be disappointed.

Fave Part of the Film: Seeing the Joker on a truck that says “Laughter is the Best Medicine” and he added an ‘s’ to the front of it to write “Slaughter is the Best Medicine.”  Awesome.

Comments on seeing the film in IMAX: The main reason I wished to see the film in IMAX is that there were specific sequences filmed with IMAX cameras and this was a first in cinematic history (first being that there was actual IMAX cameras used in a big budget film).  I had never seen a feature film on IMAX hence I figured this would be a good time to do so.  Someone told me (I believe it was Alex) that he didn’t really see the big difference and was disappointed when he once saw a film on the IMAX.

I must admit that I agree with him.  While I did appreciate the larger screen, your eyes cannot judge unless it’s in comparison mode.  I would need to see the two screens side to side to realize the immense difference.  It’s like when you have a 32″ TV screen and a 60″ Plasma screen.  You don’t really notice anything wrong with your viewing experience while you’re watching the film.  But if you were to see the two side-by-side you could tell who the victor is.

That being said, I don’t think I will pay big money to see a film in IMAX again in the near future.  I did appreciate that the shots filmed by IMAX were vast in its scope…the sweeping shot of Hong Kong or the grand shots of the Gotham General Hospital blowing up…it was immense!  I need to go back into other films to see if they capture the same area in the picture like The Dark Knight did.  But either way, if I saw the film on the (small) big screen, the same shots would have been there.  So yes, I appreciate that they used IMAX cameras to film those sequences so we could see the vast landscapes, but in the end, it didn’t make that much of a difference to me and I could have easily seen it in the (small) big screen theatres three weeks ago.