BACK COVER SYNOPSIS: The follow-up to “Batman Begins”, THE DARK KNIGHT reunites director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale, who reprises the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne in his continuing war on crime. With the help of Lt. Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to destroy organised crime in Gotham for good. The triumvirate proves effective. But soon the three find themselves prey to a rising criminal mastermind known as The Joker, who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces Batman closer to crossing the fine line between hero and vigilante. Heath Ledger stars as the archvillain The Joker, and Aaron Eckhart plays Dent. Maggie Gyllenhaal joins the cast as Rachel Dawes. Returning from “Batman Begins” are Gary Oldman as Gordon, Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox.

FILM REVIEW: “The Dark Knight” is one of those exceptional films that makes you believe in the full realisation of the magic that can Hollywood deliver on the silver screen. With a few very minor caveats, this film is perfect. It has powerful storytelling, rich characterisation, strong drama and thrills, sensational sequences, all rolled in to a big budget Hollywood entertainment (and all for under a $200 million budget I might add!). It’s hard to believe that such a description would be levelled at a film based on a comic book, and especially one that is as dark thematically as this one is. This is not a film based on smiles, sunshine and pretty rainbows like most Hollywood blockbusters are. This is a gritty, some times harsh crime saga where there are no real happy endings, and in that respect, its success, both critically and commercially, makes for an amazing piece of cinematic history.

Batman has ventured on to the big screen several times before, most recently in the excellent “Batman Begins”, also directed by Christopher Nolan. With that film and “The Dark Knight”, Nolan has effectively made the best Batman films ever. It’s hard to see how it could get any better than this; unless of course Nolan makes a third Batman film, in which case, he has the potential to make one of the best trilogies in cinematic history. All of this is due to Nolan’s strict adherence to the rich source material that made Batman such a memorable character in popular culture. Using that as a basis, Nolan and his team have created something truly memorable, and a film that can be watched countless times without losing the dramatic impact it conveys to you every time you watch it.

This film starts tonally where “Batman Begins” left off on the idea of escalation. In attempting to rid Gotham of its seedy underbelly of criminals, billionaire Bruce Wayne, in creating Batman, has raised the stakes. On the one hand, he has become a symbol of hope that people do not have to be afraid when they walk the streets. However, things are not all as they seem; having launched an assault on the criminal underworld, Batman inadvertently lays the groundwork for the emergence of the supervillain, The Joker. Not bound by any rules, The Joker seeks to bring chaos to order, and to show how pathetic and hypocritical the civilised people of Gotham are. With the Joker causing mayhem and destruction, Batman suddenly finds himself fighting an adversary who is not intimidated by him, beginning a heated battle where the soul of Gotham City is at stake.

“The Dark Knight” is complex, rich and satisfying. Much attention has been paid by Nolan and his screenwriters of ensuring that all aspects of the film come back to the major themes of hero versus villain within the context of escalation. As a result, the film delves in to those darker areas of the human psyche and dares to explore themes of how good people can turn bad if the circumstances are right. The Joker, as played so boldly and memorably by the late Heath Ledger, is the ultimate representation of escalation. Batman, played with an insatiable intensity by Christian Bale, finds himself pushed to the limit. In one crucial interrogation scene, Batman gets very rough with the Joker, but with no effect, as the Joker keeps laughing in his face, taunting him to cross the line. In that one scene, we see the look of desperation in Batman’s eyes as he realises he has no power to control this homicidal maniac. It is in that creation of heightened drama that this film excels. Batman now has an equal, and he has to re-evaluate how to handle the Joker if he has any hope of defeating him.

Heath Ledger is absolutely brilliant in this film. He has created a villain in the Joker that easily rivals such impressive screen villains such as Hannibal Lecter. He electrifies the screen every time he appears, creating a character that is impossible not to keep watching, or to forget.

The Joker however, is not the only drawcard in this film. Aaron Eckhart plays Harvey Dent, who later becomes the villain Two-Face. His character has the most tragic narrative in the story, as his turn from Gotham’s White Knight in to the villainous Two-Face is a result of the Joker’s insane, but brilliant schemes to prove that even the best of people can be turned to bad. Much attention has been given to Heath Ledger’s performance, but Eckhart deserves just as much praise as his creation of Harvey Dent/Two-Face is just as memorable.

The remainder of the cast are first rate, and they are afforded some great moments and through-lines in the plot. Gary Oldman does well as the straight-main Lt. Gordon. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman add much weight in their supporting roles as Alfred and Fox respectively.

Despite all these powerhouse performances, director Nolan does what Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher failed to do before him by creating a film where such performances do not overwhelm the film itself. The story contains layer after layer of intertwined complexity which completely envelope you as a viewer, leaving you on the edge of your seat all the way through its two and a half hour running time. The film itself is its strongest asset, not any individual component (eg like Jack Nicholson’s take on the Joker in Tim Burton’s “Batman”). The film has many spectacular set-pieces, and manages to go on location much more than its predecessor, including some great scenes in Hong Kong. “The Dark Knight” did not have a budget as high as some other blockbusters, but it somehow feels as if every cent that was spent on the production actually found its way on to the screen. On this point alone, the film deserves much praise.

The only real issue I had with the film was that Two-Face dies at the end of the film. From a narrative point of view, it has to happen, but it’s a shame this character does not have a chance to continue in to the future as his development and execution is quite fascinating in this film. I felt that one of the major mistakes in the Burton/Schumacher Batman films was the idea of killing off the villains. Nolan chose right not to kill the Joker, but it’s a shame Two-Face did not make it, even though it makes sense.

“The Dark Knight” is as close to perfect a film as you’re going to get. Get it out now on DVD and prepare to be thrilled!

TECHNICAL REVIEW: Given the high profile nature of this film you would expect nothing short of perfection for the transfer and we are not disappointed. The visuals are stunning, sharp, clear and clean with great use of colour. The soundtrack thunders out of the home theatre system, and provides stunning detail, even in the quieter character moments. Overall, this is how films should be transferred to DVD.

EXTRAS REVIEW: The extras package is somewhat disappointing. The film is a masterpiece and it would have been great to see documentaries exploring what went in to the making of the film, but aside from a number of featurettes totally an hour in length which go through the laborious process of explaining the technical aspects of the production, there is nothing here that talks about the inspiration for the film, director’s commentary on the story and themes, or even a tribute to the late Heath Ledger. The technical featurettes are okay, but they are a little dry and basically don’t really offer anything we haven’t seen before in technical featurettes, with the only two exceptions being the sections on IMAX filming and interviews with composer Hans Zimmer as he created the Joker theme. Rounding out the extras include a series of news segments shot for the film but not used, all the IMAX sequences transferred in the original IMAX aspect ratio (but not all that interesting given you cannot get the IMAX effect on a DVD), all the trailers made for the film and a series of photo galleries which include concept and poster art, and production stills. Overall, there’s enough to keep you watching for a while but nothing here gives you a strong insight in the film which is disappointing given the artistic and commercial success this film had and the interest of the cinematic public to know more about the detailed origins of the film and its execution.

BOTTOM LINE: Buy it now.