Whilst the ongoing pandemic continues to halt the production and distribution of several major titles, this has given cinema chains the chance to screen some great throwback films.
One of which is the genre defining and (in my opinion) greatest film in the trilogy, The Dark Knight. Released in 2008 this was the sequel to Batman Begins and the second film in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy which pits Batman against his greatest adversary the Joker, in a war which wreaks havoc upon Gotham City.
It was a real treat to get to experience this again in the comfort of a cinema screen having spent months without the atmosphere and our precious cinema snacks.
Christian Bale reprises his role as Bruce Wayne/Batman while Heath Ledger gives an iconic performance in his portrayal as the Joker. Hans Zimmer provides the accompanying soundtrack once more as well.
When it released in 2008 16 year old me was in awe of what I watched on screen, this film really was and continues to be the pinnacle of superhero films for me personally. Yes what the Marvel cinematic universe achieved in an 8 year span was unprecedented. However its hard to compare the two franchises as the MCU is an overarching story arc that spans 20+ films which the Dark Knight trilogy is a self contained story that tracks Batman’s origin all the way through to his (SPOILER!) end.
It’s The Dark Knights use of villains as well, yes it’s the Joker who takes centre stage and stays with us however the integration of other classic villains as well from the rogues gallery makes the film all the more entertaining, with Scarecrow making a return and the introduction of Harvey Dent whose journey we witness from Gotham’s white Knight and District attorney, a man who helps bring real change to Gotham, disintegrate into Two Face. Not to mention this is conveyed in a way that’s much more believable than the 1997 Batman Forever film plays out, however that’s another topic of discussion for another time.
Whilst there are some out there who believe this is the weakest in the trilogy or perhaps an overrated title altogether, you can’t take away from the recognition that this film deserves and what it did for the character and the DC brand altogether. In the years that followed after the conclusion of the trilogy we received questionable entries from DC, most notably David Ayers Suicide Squad but we also received gems as well which proved we don’t need an overall extended cinematic universe. These titles include Wonder Woman which was directed by Patty Jenkins and the underrated Man of Steel and its follow up Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice.