I'm not sure I can put into words what happened in that movie.
There are concepts that were brought up that I'm not sure I can wrap my mind around, yet.
My brain thawed a bit on the walk home from the movie theater, but it's still a little overwhelmed. I'm trying to break it down into smaller bits, and analyze those bits one at a time.
Human beings have such capacity for goodness. So why is the world so messed up?
What is a hero?
A title? A symbol? Justice? Revenge? A guy in a mask? The one in a uniform? The one in the suit?
A hero inspires hope. Sometimes, Hope is more important than Truth. And sometimes, the hero has to be something else in order to do some good. I don't mean that the hero has to be a bad-ass, moody, kick-your-butt Dude. I mean, sometimes the hero has a role to play in the minds of the people. Sometimes the hero has to be hated. You'll understand all this when you see the movie.
Batman is the epitome of selflessness. Everything he does is about sacrifice, about saving people. It's not about showing off, and it's not about trying to prove something. This Batman doesn't fight with big flashy moves. He gets the job done as quickly and cleanly as possible, without killing anyone or allowing anyone to be killed.
What about Regular Joe on the street?
There is a recurrent theme throughout the movie about who is qualified to be a hero, and who is not.
Spoiler alert--Take the fake Bat-men at the beginning, for instance. Are they actually trying to help, or are they doing this for personal gain?--end spoiler
And I think the ultimate conclusion is that we are all qualified. It depends on our choices, whether or not we are the hero or the villain.
The Joker, however, believes that even the staunchest heroes, when pushed past their breaking point, are corruptible. But he doesn't just test our heroes, he also tests the Regular Joe and Judys of Gotham City. And therefore, he also tests us, the audience.
What would you do? He asks, mocking us with his chilling eyes and blood-curdling smile.
He places the power of life and death in the hands of ordinary people. And not just their own lives, but the lives of total strangers. And we ask ourselves, what would I do? How would I vote?
It is not an original question. It is one that has been asked throughout time in literature and movies. And comic books. Definitely comic books. But new light is shown on the possible answers, as well as some surprising messages about human nature.
That's ultimately what this movie was about. Human nature. And whether or not there are some who slip beyond human into something closer to monster. And if that's the case, is that monster still worth saving? Is there enough human inside to be considered one of the precious human lives that Batman has devoted himself to protecting? Should he? Who is he to judge the value of a life? Who are we?
I could tell you that this was a great action flick with fantastic performances and cinematography to die for, but that doesn't encompass the whole of what this movie is.
Every movie, every book, every TV show, painting, sculpture, interpretive dance...whatever, they are concepts. They are a collection of ideas which reflect and make observations about the world and the people who inhabit it. Some do this better than others. The Dark Knight does it better than most I've seen.
That's all. My thoughts are scattered. Maybe I'll be able to focus them more after I've seen it a few more times.
Also, the theater was really cold. I brought a sweater, but DANG!
Later,
Jules
Batman is the epitome of selflessness. Everything he does is about sacrifice, about saving people. It's not about showing off, and it's not about trying to prove something. This Batman doesn't fight with big flashy moves. He gets the job done as quickly and cleanly as possible, without killing anyone or allowing anyone to be killed.
What about Regular Joe on the street?
There is a recurrent theme throughout the movie about who is qualified to be a hero, and who is not.
Spoiler alert--Take the fake Bat-men at the beginning, for instance. Are they actually trying to help, or are they doing this for personal gain?--end spoiler
And I think the ultimate conclusion is that we are all qualified. It depends on our choices, whether or not we are the hero or the villain.
The Joker, however, believes that even the staunchest heroes, when pushed past their breaking point, are corruptible. But he doesn't just test our heroes, he also tests the Regular Joe and Judys of Gotham City. And therefore, he also tests us, the audience.
What would you do? He asks, mocking us with his chilling eyes and blood-curdling smile.
He places the power of life and death in the hands of ordinary people. And not just their own lives, but the lives of total strangers. And we ask ourselves, what would I do? How would I vote?
It is not an original question. It is one that has been asked throughout time in literature and movies. And comic books. Definitely comic books. But new light is shown on the possible answers, as well as some surprising messages about human nature.
That's ultimately what this movie was about. Human nature. And whether or not there are some who slip beyond human into something closer to monster. And if that's the case, is that monster still worth saving? Is there enough human inside to be considered one of the precious human lives that Batman has devoted himself to protecting? Should he? Who is he to judge the value of a life? Who are we?
I could tell you that this was a great action flick with fantastic performances and cinematography to die for, but that doesn't encompass the whole of what this movie is.
Every movie, every book, every TV show, painting, sculpture, interpretive dance...whatever, they are concepts. They are a collection of ideas which reflect and make observations about the world and the people who inhabit it. Some do this better than others. The Dark Knight does it better than most I've seen.
That's all. My thoughts are scattered. Maybe I'll be able to focus them more after I've seen it a few more times.
Also, the theater was really cold. I brought a sweater, but DANG!
Later,
Jules
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