Darker than the Dark Knight
Do I really look like a man with a plan, Harvey? I don’t have a plan. The mob has plans, the cops have plans. You know what I am, Harvey? I’m a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do if I caught one. I just DO things. I’m a wrench in the gears. I HATE plans. Yours, theirs, everyone’s. Maroni has plans. Gordon has plans. Schemers trying to control their worlds…
…Nobody panics when the expected people get killed. Nobody panics when things go according to plan, even if the plans are horrifying. If I tell the press that tomorrow a gangbanger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will get blown up, nobody panics. But when I say one little old mayor will die, everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little anarchy, you upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I am an agent of chaos. And you know the thing about chaos, Harvey? It’s fair.
The Joker in The Dark Knight (2008).
Without spoiling the plot, I can tell you this: It is DARK. It is sheer terror. I mean, yes it is certainly one of those Hollywood Blockbusters. But it is more. Yes, you will love the gadgets, the effects, the car chase, the explosions, but in the end, it is that 4-letter word that will stay and linger — EVIL.
Not those Japanese blood-coming-out-of-the-nose-and-eyes evil, not those monster-looking-with-slimy-glue-dripping-out-from-the-body evil. It is evil in absence with all those things. It is the twisted mind, the irrationality, the lack of any motives or reasons to do or not do…
There is no logic to evil. It is not the opposite of Good, but the absence of it. And just how frail are we humans? Just look at DA Harvey Dent; look at those people on the 2 ferries; look around…
I don’t think I need to say more for you to understand what the movie is trying to say: No, we don’t need a hero. In fact, there is no need for a superhero. The White Knight has failed, and the Dark Knight is no hero neither. Gotham needs someone who can avert such despicable evil. One that can put things right.
Out of such incredible darkness, we need someone that can bring us dawn.
We need a Savior.
Filed by edmund at 3.18 pm under Culture,Faith |
3 Comments
Peggy
Something might be out of topic…
Being a big fan of Japanese mysteries I can tell you the Japanese kind of evil is no longer blood-coming-out-of-the-eyes-and-nose. If you look at the work of the “new generation” writers such as 乙一 (born in 1978)﹐佐藤友哉 (born in 1980) and 舞城王太郎, you will find the same darkness, twisted minds and violence, and yet they were often referred to as genius.
What is this telling us? The message is the same across the globe….
Yes we need a savior.
Jul 23rd, 2008
edmund
Yes, it is genius because Death is often glorified in the Japanese culture.
Thanks Peggy, it is always good to learn new things from people who knows what is really going on… : )
BW3 also reviewed the movie here:
Jul 23rd, 2008
Karen
I thought of 死亡筆記 (which was so popular) when Peggy mentioned about this kind of Japanese mystery. Well, definitely death is glorified… and even the ending is so twisted because it speaks of a God that delights in torturing people (if I’m not wrong..). The whole tv series is so dark… it just makes your hair stands..
Jul 27th, 2008
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