The Dark Knight Book Vs Movie

Over the past decade, comic book movies have tremendously grown in popularity. Spiderman, Superman, and Captain America are all superhero characters that have recently been developed onto the big screen. When judging superhero adaptations, there is one that all others look up to. Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight is the standard for which comic book movies should be compared to. Many people come to the conclusion that it is a great movie, but what makes it a great movie? The Dark Knight excels at the three criterion that all comic book movies should have. Well rounded characters, underlying themes, and exhilarating action are what separate the decent comic book movies from the great ones. From the beginning of the movie, it is evident that The Dark Knight has as intriguing
characters as cinema has ever seen. Many average comic book movies include static characters who do not assist the plot in any way. This is why The Dark Knight’s dynamic characters stand out from the usual mediocre characters presented in similar movies.
The Dark Knight’s most developed character is unsurprisingly the “Dark Knight.” Batman is a vigilante that has struck fear in every criminal in Gotham. He has been fighting crime for many years, and he is looking for one final victory so he can hang his cape. However, this all changes when a certain clown enters the picture. The Joker, a great character himself, wages a physiological war against Batman. Batman is pushed to his limits by the Joker, and this really affects his character development. At the beginning, Batman is seen as the cliche hero who always saves everyone and defeats the villains. As the movie progresses, Batman comes to the realization he can not save the citizens of Gotham and defeat the Joker all while being the ideal hero. Batman is pushed to becoming a true anti-hero for the sake of the city. At the end of the movie, Batman reiterates a line presented earlier in the film that states,“You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain” (The Dark Knight). This is an extremely iconic line and defines Batman’s heroism perfectly in the film. As
mentioned earlier, the character who causes Batman to become an anti-hero also a well-developed character himself. The Joker’s portrayal in The Dark Knight is arguably one of the greatest villain performances of all time. At the beginning of the film, the Joker orchestrates a heist that effectively defines the type of character the Joker is. What makes the Joker so great is how he is able to be characterized by more than just actions and words. The Joker’s appearance and mannerisms are both effective ways for the audience to learn about the character. The Joker’s makeup in The Dark Knight really differs from his makeup in other portrayals since his makeup usually looks well done and neatly applied. In The Dark Knight, he looks like he woke up and poorly applied it without even a mirror. His makeup combined with classic tics such as his quick lip-licking action makes the Joker such a well-defined character without even having to add words or actions. The Joker and Batman are perfect foils and represent good versus evil perfectly. The Dark Knight’s inclusion of perpetual characters is one reason why it separates itself from the crowd.
The characters in the Dark Knight contribute to the complex underlying themes presented in the movie. When a comic book movie is “more than meets the eye” it reaches levels more suspected in complex thrillers. Themes are important in all genres of movies not just comic book movies. The Dark Knight has many important themes that contribute to the complexity of the plot. The Dark Knight deals the concept of heroism and whether or not a city truly needs a protector over them. In the beginning, Batman believes Gotham does not need him anymore thanks to all the convicts he has put in prison. However, once the Joker’s actions are set in place, it becomes evident Gotham needs him. Batman’s struggle with heroism affects him as makes many impactful decisions for the sake of Gotham. His struggle is perhaps best summarized when Commissioner Gordon says,”He's the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now” (The Dark Knight). Another theme that has a heavy presence in the movie is chaos versus order. The Joker represents chaos to the highest degree. His plan is simply to cause as much chaos as possible so the rest of Gotham will join in on the act. The Joker executes his plan extremely well as the citizens of Gotham begin to lose faith in the protectors of the city. Batman, obviously, represents the order in Gotham. These two beliefs are put to test at the climax of the movie. Instead of the two beliefs being put to battle through their respective representations, they are put face to face through what matters most in the film, the citizens. The result of the climax gives the interpretation of order triumphing over chaos. The last theme derived from The Dark Knight is faith. Batman creates a paradox with faith since his existence as Batman is equal to admitting he has no faith in the citizens of Gotham. However, he has regained his faith ever since Harvey Dent has risen in popularity amongst the citizens. Of course, this changes once the Joker begins his plan of chaos. Not only does Batman lose his faith in the citizens but the citizens also lose their faith in Batman. When the ferries incident concludes, Batman has a restoration in faith due to the citizens choosing order over chaos. He decides to reward the citizens by placing his trust back into their hands and giving up his position as the watchful protector. Another person who loses faith thanks to the Joker is Harvey Dent. After the death of his girlfriend, Harvey Dent loses his stance on the virtues he had once fought for. Harvey replaces his belief of order with his own game of chance. Harvey’s downfall proves the Joker’s faith that there is chaos within everyone. The presentation of themes in the Dark Knight breaks away from the stereotypical basic plot of average comic book movies.
Despite being an unorthodox comic book movie, the Dark Knight still has exhilarating action. The judgment of comic book movies often relies heavily on how well the action is presented. Superhero movies are supposed to appeal to action lovers, so any great superhero movie is going to have superior action. Although the climax has both great action and suspense, there are many other scenes that also do a great job of presenting entertaining action. The opening heist scene of The Dark Knight is a great scene that not only has action but it also sets the tone of the movie. The Dark Knight adds a twist to the classic heist. The Joker has each henchman kill off one another so he escapes with the rewards all for himself. Great dialogue combined with the introduction of the Joker makes a great action scene. Another scene with an edge of your seat feeling is the famous chase scene with the police, Batman, and the Joker. With so many modern action movies constantly using CGI for their scenes, The Dark Knight’s chase scene is a refreshing take in terms of practical effects. Critics of the scene will point to how it is frantically paced and includes mass destruction of vehicles and buildings. This may be true, but Christopher Nolan presents the scene in such a thrilling way, so the audience becomes engulfed in the action and does not even notice the flaws. A comic book movie with subpar action will often be disregarded when it compares itself amongst others in the genre. The exciting action of The Dark Knight adds tremendously to how well respected the movie has become.
The Dark Knight has ultimately changed the way comic books movies are made. Before The Dark Knight, many comic book movies did not take themselves seriously. They preferred a more cartoon approach rather than developing an interesting story. The Dark Knight also had a gritty depiction of its main character which has continued to become a popular choice for superheroes. Another element it introduced was the anti-hero, as aforementioned. The anti-hero has especially become popular recently with the likes of Deadpool and Suicide Squad. The Dark Knight has paved the way for anti-hero comic book movies to become so successful. All in all, the Dark Knight will go down in history as one of the greatest movies of all time for it includes aspects that the comic book movie genre has yet to match.