Batman and Dark Knight

Well since I got Dark Knight for my birthday I finally watched Batman89 and Dark Knight and rewatched Batman Begins [might go into detail a bit more now].Why did I wait? Mostly because both of them have Jokers,both were great phenomenon's for their time and both had dark themes.

So first off I think I'll do the innovative,slight misnomer,humorous,dark and slightly cheesy.......

Batman (1989)

Presentation: 20/20 (Now this is the kind of beginning a movie should have,ok ok the very first scene with a family trying to get around is a bit boring but you don't have to wait to long for Batman to arrive and kick butt in style)

Plot: 20/20 (Ok so basically Gotham is a hell on earth practically in the hands of Carl Grissom,his second-in command Jack Napier pisses Grissom off to the point that he sets up the poor guy.Batman gets in a fight with Jack and co. [after being set up] and it results in Jack falling into a vat of acid thus mutating into a white skinned green haired human. Seeing his reflection he loses his last bit of sanity and calls himself The Joker.Upon becoming Joker,he decides to massacre off the whole town with gas and defeat Batman. On a side story Bruce wayne is trying to get into a relationship but dual identities and torment makes things hard. I just love the sound of that for some odd reason,it's a bit sketchy I suppose but it's still really good)

Characters: 17/20 (All characters feel a little underdeveloped which is a problem.I mean really how did Batman become Batman? I did like the idea of a tormented hero who doesn't truly enjoy doing what he does.The villain is really good,good humor,and almost the perfect mix of killer and clown [The Joker is supposed to be about both but most are too much one or another]. The best chracter initially to me is the reporter guy who has a crush on the love interest,this character is the comic relief in a sense when The Joker gets too over-the top and when the others are too serious.The love interest was a real good character at the beginning but became a cliche damsel-in-distress. Harvey Dent was cool,but he was too underdeveloped)

Keaton's Role: 18/20 (He makes a great Batman,easily the best Batman you could've asked for,then came Batman Begins. Regardless I favor Keaton's voice which is intimidating and understandable,but he didn't have the best script which put a damper on things. As Bruce Wayne he was good at being assertive and good at the wise cracks but he didn't have the obnoxious aura Val Kilmer or Christian Bale would later portray plus he came off as a bit too sad at the same time)

Nicholson's Role: 20/20 (The first time I saw him I couldn't stop laughing,he put out his character greatly,how he delivered the lines,to me Jack Nicholson was and is THE JOKER.Plus he gave The Joker a random twist I mean how many villains would say something like "Did you ever dance with the devil in the pale of the moonlight?" or "Never rub another man's Rhubarb".Keaton was good but like most people out ther I am of the opinion that Nicholson stole the show)

Basinger's Role: 16/20 (At times I felt Basinger didn't deliver the lines right and came off as self-righteous but all the same she was supposed to play the average woman dealing witha boyfriend with some issues frankly I'm gonna have to cut her a little slack)

William's Role: 18/20 (So what if Harvey Dent is supposed to be white,I liked this potrayal of a naive DA just trying to what's right and not stir too much controversy. Considering he was hardly in any scenes his potrayal was good. They should've let him be Two Face in Batman Returns instead of adding that useless 3rd villain Max Schreck or kept him into the Schumacher series so we wouldn't be stuck with Tommy Lee Jone's sorry mistake)

Set: 14/20 (Could've been a bit better but it looked a lot like how I'd picture Gotham,still the shape of some of those building were ridiculuos namely Axis Chemicals plant. I loved the Wayne Manor and the art museum was beautiful)

Execution: 18/20 (Everything fell into place perfectly except 2 things. The first gripe, why the heck do we not get an idea of how Batman became Batman,all we see is one flashback in which we see Jack Napier as a young man kill Bruce's parents in cold blood.I'm all for the idea of using flashbacks to piece together these things but come on how can you piece together how Batman becmae Batman if you only have one short flashback? The other gripe is at the very end when Joker falls to his death? First of all there really wasn't a reason for him to die,next it made Batman a killer avenging his parents which in a way defeats the purpose of Batman.)

Final: 18/20 (Good film,great promise,a joy to watch but the character's could've been better developed.Some argue that the film is more interested in Joker but I'd say they were all a little bit too underdeveloped.Harvey Dent should've either had more to do or not have been in the film. Either way most watch this for Joker,Joker is hilarious and scray. If only we knew more about Batman that would make this film the best Batman.Before Batman Begins there wasn't a betterfilm in the series,sure Batman66 was ok but it wasn't the same)

19 years later we get a huge budget film,with lots of controversy,lots of explosions,and considered one of the best films of all time but is it truly?

The Dark Knight

Presentation: 20/20 (The film begins with a real bizarre bank robbery in which the perpetrators have clown masks and are tricked into killing each other off,then we have Batman taking out Scarecrow and 2 fake Batman's which I thought was intersting.These scenes set me up for an "Oh this is gonna be good" feeling)

Plot: 20/20 (Basically you have a tormented hero ready to give up the throne to a regular hard nosed DA called Harvey Dent who has become the "White Knight" of Gotham but then this robber called The Joker sets up shop in Gotham and starts to manipulate people's minds and scare them causing chaos [The mob included].Throughout the film Batman, Commissioner Gordon, and Harvey Dent make an alliance to clean up crime and stop the wily Joker.Ultimately this should make this a great film but did it?)

Characters: 12/20 (I didn't like any of the characters at all,but at least theyw ere well developed and worked well with the movie. Batman seemed more like a villain causing all the problems in the first place. Joker was more killer and blasphemous than clown sure he had some jokes but they were far and few. Two Face was too much like a cry baby but Harvey Dent was a really good character in this mold.The one love interest was a bit too spineless for my liking )

Bale's Role: 2/20 (He potrayed Batman more as a twisted vigilante destroying, spying, and beating the crap out of anything in the way just to kill Joker rather than that hero trying to be an ideal that can't be corrupted. It truly wasn't until the end with the ferries did I realize which side he was on. As Bruce Wayne Bale while not as good as his work in Batman Begins is still somewhat respectable.He came off as a bit of a wuss giving up when the going got too tough but oh well. Either way George Clooney's Batman was much more enjoyable than what Bale did in this film)

Ledger's Role: 14/20 (Everybody is like OMG! He so awesome,BEST JOKER ever! and all that good stuff.But really he wasn't that good. He did well with the horror,creepy,chaotic and manipulative side of Joker but he did too much talking and not enough action.He wasn't funny and honestly I really think Ledger could've done better {I don't care if he lived in isolaion to do this role,I don't care he still didn't cut it].He came off more as a blasphemous guy in make up playing destructive pranks rather than someone I can take seriously.But he delivered the lines really well.)

Eckhart's Role: 20/20 (I know Ledger was supposed to be the star of the show,but I was more impressed with Eckhart.His Harvey Dent was incredible,I didn't think when I looked on screen "OOOh look there's Aaron Eckhart" no,he fit into character really well.His Two Face came off a little bit too much like cry baby killing off anyone who knew his girlfriend with the flip of a coin)

Oldman's Role: 20/20 (This is what Comissioner Gordon should've been about back in 1989,instead he's a fat shlub who's completely incompetent and only actually does something in one scene.He is the perfect stressed policeman trying to keep things in order not only with joker's antics but inside the departent as well.I might add the score for him in my Begins review down the road. Either way his work was stunning)

Set: 15/20 (Really high budget set but waaaay too over the top for Gotham City,it was clearer than Begins,but I think Begins had the closest interpretation. The lack of Wayne Manor and Batcave were huge bothers)

Execution: 16/20 (Despite being great,it wasn't genious. Joker's plan was too unbelievable,I really think Batman should've sent the Batcycle at The Joker but got off thus making a " I'm not gonna kill you,but it's up to you to live or die" moment,instead of swirving around.Two Face didn't get enough screen time and it's hardly believable that Batman could survive a great fall but Two Face not.It reminds me a lot of Joker's death in Batman89. In truth I think the film should've ended at Harvey Dent getting his face burned thus making for a good 3rd film instead of making ways for it to be longer. With those minor problems everything else fell quite well into place)

Final: 15/20 (This should've been the best film like suggested but the director went in too many directions,overspent,and ruined Batman.If it wasn't for Christian bale this could've been the best movie. The execution was sketchy but not that bad.Overall I'd say in the end it was Aaron Eckhart that stolethe show rather than Heath Ledger)