The Dark Knight

The hype seems justified. This film delivered in every area it needed to, the most important for me being Heath Ledger's performance. I so wanted it to be great, and it was. He was truly terrifying, and not only in that cartoonish, cackling villain way but in his portrayal of a man who is essentially a void. The most nerve-tingling parts were his multiple re-tellings of his "how I got these scars" story, changing it each time, each one as terrifying as the other, each time the void opening up a little more. This man is hollow - no name, fingerprints, even his clothes arecustom-made. There were echoes of Silence of the Lambs in the scenes after his "capture" - not only the physical space (the cage in the middle of the room surrounded by cops) but his haunting menace, the audience knowing that the cops' confidence was woefully misplaced.

The film's "battle between good and evil" conceit (which normally turns me off like no other trope in cinema) was a perfect prism through which to view this film. It's not a battle between good and evil so much as a portrayal of the power of those ideals. Whilst the Joker is in some sense intended as a personification of pure evil, Ledger's performance - and Christopher Nolan's direction - manage to tug the edges of this simplistic idea. And of course we are all aware of Batman's much-trumpeted ambiguity. He is complexity writ large, and Christian Bale is perhaps the best actor who has so far taken on the cape to portray this. His Batman is one unable to deal with the pressures of being a hero, unsure if he even is one, resigned to the attempt but always looking for a "real" hero. The film was mired in the complexity of human morality, a muddied world full of conflicted loyalties and the lure of big money and power.

Summer + film - does it work?

It's not only lack of consistent internet that has led to the downturn in entries on this blog. I really haven't seen many films recently. (Although I think I've seen something I've forgotten). Summer isn't really a time for films for me - the cinemas are dominated by big blockbusters and arthouse cinema dries up a bit. Having said that, I'm going to see The Dark Knight tonight - an 11pm screening - and I'm looking very, very forward to it!

The West Wing

Finally got into this! Seasons 6 and 7, but am now starting Season 1.