Does "The Dark Knight" prove that Hollywood is kind of conservative?

by Preston 3 Replies latest social entertainment

• 

  Preston

  I saw "The Dark Knight" again last saturday and after a second viewing what suprised me is... how a film like this could have actually been made.

  It tackles.....

  (SPOILERS!)

  1.) Torture - Notice how Batman beats the Joker within an inch of his life before he reveals to him the "ticking time bomb scenerio" of Harvery Dent's and Rachel Dawes' location.

  2.) Rendition - "Batman has no Jurisdicition!" The line uttered by the Joker in one of his first scenes plays out later when Batman travels to Hong Kong to retrieve the crooked accountant who comitted a crime in Gotham City.

  3.) Terrorism - Is it any surprise that Batman's most formidable opponent is a terrorist who just wants to "watch the world burn"? He doesn't even have the arsenal of weapons Batman has, just rudimentary tools (knives, explosives, string, phones) and a large army of followers.

  4.) Law vs. Force - Harvery Dent believed that law superceded what he referred to as Batman's vigilantism. Batman looked forward to the day that Gotham City would no longer need Batman and Harvey Dent could take over for him. But ultimately Batman's use of force, technological expertise, and prowess was what saved the city.

  5.) Wiretapping - Batman's use of Lucius Fox's sonar concept to tap every phone in Gotham City to find the Joker.

  Were you surprised at how conservative "The Dark Knight" actually was or... did you think that some of the themes and values of this film were universal?

  - Preston
• 

  mkr32208

  I kind of see it differently. The torture was ultimately unsuccessful as that ugly chick got blown up anyway.

  Fox used the technology once and even though it helped them and would have helped in the future he destroyed it.

  The rule of law ultimately won out with batman leaving the movie as a hunted man...
• 

  B_Deserter

  Yeah I agree, I think this movie highlighted the importance of the rule of law. That even Batman saw himself as a temporary, necessary evil until someone uncorrupted and legitimate could take over for him. He saw Harvey Dent and the law of the land as the permanent solution, and himself as the means to take Gotham from being beyond saving to salvageable. Fox used the surveillance just once, but then destroyed it when he was done, making the point that having that much power for anyone is too much.
  
  I think though that there are some conservative elements in the movie, but very good ones. What do you do when the person who's attacking you doesn't play by the rules? What if the rule of law isn't enough? The rule of law isn't enough in some situations, and exceptions have to be made, boundaries have to be crossed in order to get the job done.
  
  Even so, the movie stressed the importance of making sure those compromises can't be permanent. Temporary measures have to stay temporary. The difference between Batman and the War on Terrorism is that the Joker was a real, legitimate threat. In the so-called "War on Terror," the threats are manufactured, the evidence fabricated. One could look into the eyes of the Joker, see directly what he was doing. There was no question whether the Joker was real. Terrorists on the other hand are these shadowy, untangible figures the government assures us exist and that we need to keep them indefinitely without trial or charge in secret prison camps. Certainly, there is a threat of terrorism, but the government hides the details of most threats, and we the people are unable to verify the information. When the information IS scrutinized, a serious history of lying and deception on the part of the government is found.
  
  EDIT: I also like to point out that the torture had no effect on the Joker. Everything he did was meticulously planned, and he was enough of a sadist to ENJOY the torture. He told Batman where Harvey and Rachel were because HE wanted to. But, if you didn't catch it, he also REVERSED the addresses. In the end, the torture accomplished nothing because it reaped bad information, and the one Batman wanted to save was killed as a result.
• 

  Preston

  Thank you mkr and B_Deserter for your points,

  They were actually quite informative, and... actuallly made me see the film in a different and better light.

  - Preston