The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008)

***½
USA



Christopher Nolan delivers another solemn, bloated Batman spectacle in a trendy haze of profundity. Thanks to Heath Ledger's hypnotic, maniacal Joker however, the sense of perpetually lurking evil is stronger than at any point in the franchise since Tim Burton bailed. So the film maintains its pull even though: Christian Bale looks constipated throughout (and when the mask comes on, he also sounds it); the fights are not visceral, or impressionistic, or anything other than a mess; and the epic, convoluted climax is beyond silly.