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Postmodern hybrid neo noir. Digital essay on The Dark Knight
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“Sometimes the truth isn’t good enough.” And neither is a cliché. Postmodern Hybridization in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight
Melanie Benford March 15, 2013
Hybrid? What’s That?
“Two basic tendencies are at work in
postmodern noir, revivalism, which
attempts to retain the mood and
atmosphere of classical noir, and
hybridization where elements of noir are
reconfigured in a complex generic mix,”
(Andrew Spicer, 150). Although Cox
might argue that this movie lacks
complexity and depth due to clichés, The
Dark Knight is truly composed of
elements such as plot, characterization,
and theme that are from noir which makes
up a hybrid.
Postmodern Hybridization
The Guardian’s David Cox writes that the
characterization, plot, and themes
(specifically the destruction of moral
authority of The Dark Knight (Christopher
Nolan, 2008) are lost through Hollywood
clichés. I see where Cox is coming from.
For example, the plot of The Dark Knight
is about the rise and fall of a superhero
(Christian Bale), a conventional good
versus evil story. Moreover, as the Joker,
Heath Ledger plays the typical villain who
looks for revenge and finds pleasure in
causing mayhem. Finally, a common
theme of self-reflection presents itself in
this movie when the superhero and
Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart)
discovers things about themselves
due to the life or death situations
they are put it in. said, I would argue
that all of these Hollywood clichés
in The Dark Knight actually
reinforce the film’s status as a
postmodern, hybrid neo noir.
“Sometimes the truth
isn’t good enough,
sometimes people
deserve more.
Sometimes people
deserve to have
their faith
rewarded…”
Batman
Batman (Christian Bale) looks over
a corrupt Gotham City.
“Ah, the good cop, bad cop routine?” –the Joker.
Here we have the her o, Batman, ready take down the villain, the Joker as they come
face-to-face. The Joker still has some tricks up his sleeves in this complex narrative.
Neo Noir
• revivalism
• hybridization
• complexity
Page 2
antics. In the movie, the story
goes deeper than just the hero. It
shows the fall of a superhero and
makes the audience question what
is right and what is wrong. In the
“5 Days of Batman: The Dark
Knight Revisited” by Umar
Shameem, he states: “Since this is
a more realistic depiction of
Batman, each of the questions of
morality is far more complex than
what would ordinarily be shown
in movies or comics.”
For example, Batman (Bale)
wants to stop the Joker (Ledger)
and his mob from corrupting
Gotham City, like any good
versus evil story, but Batman
must go to extreme lengths to
stop him. The Joker requires that
the Batman reveals himself to the
townspeople. The secret identity
of the Batman is what makes him
just that…the Batman.
The Hero versus The Villain
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The Hero is Batman and the Villain is the
Joker. Postmodern noir would argue this
story isn’t cliché but complex
First, let’s focus on the story line of this movie.
Is it about good versus evil? Yes, it is. However,
the “cliché” good versus evil, hero versus villain
story has actually been a part of classical noir for
some time now. Chinatown, Touch of Evil, and
Maltese Falcon are just a few classic noirs that
are based on the “good guys” versus the “bad
guys”.
The Dark Knight makes references to classical
noir both in story and style which makes up one
part of this postmodern, hybrid neo noir.
Postmodern noirs are about the conception of a
corrupt city along with feelings of paranoia and
complex narratives that become intensified
(157).
The superhero, Batman, is known to audiences
for his crime fighting and saving the world
Page 3
“Alright, so listen why don’t you
give me a call when you
want to start taking things
a little more seriously…Here’s my
card.”
-Joker
Heath Ledger does a superb job in bringing the Joker
alive in this movie. The Joker is the typical villain who
corrupts the city with his evil ways and causes
paranoia amongst the townspeople. However, referring
to film noir, his character can be viewed as a serial
killer and psychopath.
Characterization of the Joker in Neo Noir
The
Hero
Versus
The
Villain
This is just one of the complex
obstacles the superhero must
face in dealing with the Joker.
The plot also can be categorized
as a postmodern hybrid by
focusing on the end of the
movie. The ending is not your
typical Hollywood happy
ending. Harvey Dent (Eckhart)
becomes corrupt and dies yet
Batman takes the fall for Dent
wanting the townspeople to still
think highly of him. Meanwhile,
the Joker doesn’t die and is put
into mental institution while the
image of the superhero becomes
tarnished. The way this story is
told through cinematic style is
even intensified to make this
become a postmodern hybrid.
The awkward and enclosed
angles, the shadows, low
lighting, vertical lines, excess,
and fast action sequences all
work in unison to create an
unconventional plot in neo noir,
not to be confused with a
Hollywood cliché.
“Why so serious?
Page 4
“This interest in amoral, disturbed
personalities has been most fully
developed in a distinct subgenre of
noir-horror that depicts the serial
killer, the ultimate transgressor, a
mythical figure composed of
Gothic elements together with the
deviant criminal and noir
psychopath. All of these facets are
condensed in serial killer narratives
which are themselves hybrids of
Gothic romance, police procedural,
murder mystery, horror story, and
noir thriller,” (162). In agreement
with this statement, it can also be
considered that The Dark Knight is
a psychological noir thriller as well
as Heath Ledger’s character
possesses the characteristics of a
deviant criminal, conscienceless
killer, and a mastermind.
For instance, within in first ten
minutes of the movie the Joker
(Ledger) arranged a bank robbery
with the intentions of keeping the
money he steals for himself. In
arranging the robbery, it is clear
that he instructs every man who is
a part of this robbery to kill one
another which would leave the
Joker the last one standing. He
kills people with no remorse or
conscience.
Characterization of the Joker in Neo Noir
Page 5
The Joker is a mastermind
and is very strategic on
who he kills and how he
constructs his mayhem. It
is understandable that Cox
would believe this
character is cliché because
he gets caught and goes to
jail, however while in jail
the Joker is still able to
cause chaos by kidnapping
and planting bombs in
different areas causing a
psychological twist to the
audience which is not very
cliché.
Page 6
Page 7
They may have got him in jail, but the
Joker has another plan to cause
mayhem in Gotham City.
Batman determined to save Harvey Dent
and Rachael Dawes’ lives.
Page 8
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