RARA-AVIS: Re: Super Heroes, Comics, and Noir

From: davezeltserman (davezelt@rcn.com)
Date: 25 Jul 2008

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    --- In rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, "Nathan Cain" <IndieCrime@...> wrote:
    >
    > If Bruce Wayne was simply motivated by civic duty, he's set up a
    > scholarship fund for disadvantaged youth and call it a day. He's a
    > billionare who dons an elaborate outfit to go out and beat the living
    > crap out of other people in the middle of the night. I'm not sure you
    > can call him a public servant, and I think that's made abundantly
    > clear in The Dark Knight, where Dent is, at one point, labled a "white
    > knight" for his organized crime prosecutions, while Batman, in this
    > film, is out running around trying to keep stupid Batman wannabee's
    > from getting themselves killed. In fact, his vigilantism interferes
    > with his having any sort of normal life, driving a wedge in between
    > him and the woman he loves and his friends. It's unhealthy, and
    > selfish when you get down to it.
    >

    Bruce Wayne several times throughout the film voices his hope that Dent's way will prevail so he can retire Batman and live a normal life. Wayne's reason for being Batman is obligation--he makes the point clear that he desires a different life, but before Dent, he saw Gotham as corrupt and overrun by the mob, and that he had no choice but to fight these criminals, and Gordon's complicity in this validates these beliefs.

    I think the one thing we can agree on is that The Dark Knight is a very textured film that raises interesting moral questions.

    --Dave Z.

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