The Dark Knight

For the past year I've been teaching a freshman writing seminar called "Capes & Capers: the Antihero in American Literature and Film." When I began preparing the course, one of the first antiheroic character I thought of was Batman, and, inevitably, Batman Begins, since that was the first film to truly capture his dark side. Plus, it lacked Bat Nipples and neon lights, which I appreciated.

I've found Batman Begins to be a great film for freshmen. Many of the things that critics had a problem with (the endless repetition of the word "fear," for example) are useful in the classroom. The movie really spells out most of its themes: duality, fear, darkness, justice and revenge are made explicit in the dialogue, the shot composition, the use of lighting and color. The meaning of the film is rather transparent, and for that reason I chose it as the first of the semester.

So when a student of mine from last semester emailed me to get my take on The Dark Knight, I started thinking about how I would teach this new film. It couldn't be the first film we'd study, that much is clear. Here's an excerpt of what I sent back to him (WARNING: HERE THERE BE SPOILERS):

I do agree with one review I've read which says that The Dark Knight is not an action or superhero movie but actually a horror film. In a lot of ways, that's true. The Joker's talent for chaos is unsettling - his actions are truly unpredictable, and this poses a problem not just for Batman but for the audience, as well. The movie doesn't fit any formula we as movie-goers are used to, and that's inherently disturbing, as is the Joker's willingness to attack us at our most vulnerable points. There are certain places (hospitals among them) that would seem off-limits to most villains, but that's not true in this instance. These are techniques you'd be much more likely to find in a horror film than in one of the Spiderman movies.

I did notice some thematic similarities between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, notably that idea of duality, but also self-myth-building. Bruce Wayne consciously constructs himself as a symbol in the first of the two films, and in The Dark Knight, the villains get to take a stab at building their own mythologies. The Joker, of course, as an agent of chaos, constantly changes his backstory, never explaining his scars the same way twice. Harvey Dent builds himself up as a hero and a martyr, but rewrites his story after his disfiguring accident: he rejects skin grafts and surgery so that he can better conform to the name "Two-Face," a moniker that Gordon and the other officers gave him long before that.

I have a lot more thoughts on the movie, but I'd like to get other people's takes. Do you think The Dark Knight it deserve its current IMDB rating as #1 moving of all time?