Thoughts from the Usher Podium: The Dark Knight Trilogy Analysis Part 1

No doubt the Dark Knight Trilogy will go into the annuls of movie history as one of the definitive movie franchises ever created; certainly one of the best in the first part of the 21st century. With its dark, naturalistic tones, its complex characters and its timeless source material, generations to come will revel in it's glory much like they did with Star Wars. Its the rare beast that appeases huge populous audiences and those who imposed themselves as the guardians of good cultural taste i.e. critics, film historians, academics and the like.

But what makes the trilogy so timeless and important doesn't only depend on it's ability to entertain. There is something much more universal that resonates underneath. A point of view that needs to be given pause and contemplation beyond simply saying it was a good set of flicks. There is a well constructed framework that in some cases is purposely put there by the creators and in some cases subconsciously placed there because it operates within the confines of a collective worldview. This three part analysis aims to put the Dark Knight Trilogy into a historical context to reveal its ultimate political ends and its Judeo-Christian roots. I posit that the Dark Knight Trilogy, has a politically authoritarian bent and is religiously conservative.

A disclaimer: just because I believe these opinions, themes and subtexts exist doesn't mean I endorse them. I only think its neat to contemplate and fascinating to find. If you read these articles and ultimately think the Dark Knight Trilogy endorses your worldview or conflicts with it, keep in mind they're still just movies.

Batman Begins starts with our hero, a young Bruce Wayne falling down a well on his family's estate. There he faces an imprinted fear of bats immediately followed by his father Thomas Wayne imparting the only known lesson he'll give before his untimely death. "Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up." Now some may find direct correlation to that message and the conservative mantra of "picking yourself up by your bootstraps" but Thomas Wayne's character is a little more nuanced than that. On the way to the family's fated final curtain, they take the Gotham mass transit system where Thomas is revealed to be more attuned to Andrew Carnegie's "Gospel of Wealth" than the allure of a laisse faire economic philosophy. During Bruce's time with the League of Shadows Ducard explains Thomas was one of the "do-gooders" who insured the League's plan to use "economics" as a means of destroying Gotham didn't work.

When the Waynes are dispatched and Bruce disappears he's inducted into the League of Shadows and adopts a second more totalitarian father figure, the inscrutable Ducard. While training, he overcomes his fears and ultimately learns the necessary skills to become the Batman. Then comes the pivotal point when Bruce rejects Ducard's ultimate ends i.e. destroying Gotham for the greater good. Bruce refuses to believe Gotham is beyond saving and when back with Alfred (a more motherly figure in that his love is unconditional) He concocts the idea for the Batman. Yet notice while Bruce rejects the ends of the League of Shadows he does not deny the usefulness of their means. While the League of Shadows aims for dubious ends their philosophy is succinct. They serve as a check to the powerful, preaching a philosophy similar to Gore Vidal only with an authoritarian streak reminiscent of German Fascism. They believe history is cyclical and the only way to ensure humanity marches towards progress is to mix the pot. Now who serves to be a check on them is a concern that ultimately has their philosophy buckle under scrutiny but mixing the pot to the point of revolution or renaissance is not altogether a bad thing. They're just more goose-steppers than they are Occupy Wall Street.

Noam Chomsky wants you to kill and eat babies!!!

Batman is mean't to be a symbol revered by the city whist being a symbol of fear and order for Gotham's criminal class. Fear is the ultimate force that informs Bruce's world and thus he still holds to the identity of the League. When Bruce adopts the Batman as a persona some claim he channels Nietche's ubermensch; a man above and beyond man; but I would reject such didactic simplicity. Bruce is not creating a moral philosophy based on This-worldliness. He rejects his father's philanthropy for a more solipsistic approach to crime solving. An approach that rejects nuance and attempts to stop crime at its supposed source. During Bruce's first outing as Batman he corners Carmine Falcone, the only crime lord in Gotham we as the audience have met and the only crime lord Bruce seems to know. The fact that Falcone's men killed Joe Chill, the man who killed Bruce's parents before he could is not mentioned but hangs in the theater like a meal best served cold.

Later replaced by better actress...then killed off.

Falcone is ultimately deemed unfit for trial over the objection by the DA office which includes Bruce's longtime friend and love interest Rachel Dawes. It is then that we come face to face with our primary villain, Scarecrow aka Dr. Jonathan Crane. His plan is to release an air-born fear-inducing hallucinogen into the Gotham water supply. Crane is mean't to be a foil to Bruce and Batman. Like Bruce, Crane has an alias and uses his intelligence and fear to achieve his goals. Furthermore both of their goals up until this point are nebulous. One's stated goal is to stop crime yet he has way better means of achieving it while the other is revealed to work with the League of Shadows. But what does Crane get out of his dealings with them? Money, is he insane? Is he a full-fledged member of the League and therefore wants to destroy Gotham because it represents everything evil and bad? His motives are never truly addressed.

What is clear is if Scarecrow gets his way Gotham will descend into chaos, but how? The drug can only be inhaled not drunken. We're reintroduced to Ducard now revealed to be Ra's al Ghul and the last piece of the puzzle is dropped. The microwave emitter stolen by Wayne Enterprises earlier in the film will be used to evaporate the water in the mains and release the hallucinogen into the air where it can be inhaled by its victims. Much like Hannibal, al Ghul uses "all roads lead to Rome" as a mode in his conquest. The mass transit system that leads directly to Wayne Tower and conveniently to the entire city's water supply will be used against Gotham. Due to widespread corruption and ineffectiveness of the city the only people aware and/or able to do anything about al Ghul's plan are Sgt. Gordon, Rachel Dawes and Batman.

...and lo, the lord saith, "Get off my plane!"

Now let's talk about Sgt. Gordon for a moment. In order to arrest Falcone and his brood, Batman enlists the help of the only honest cop he knows and Gordon becomes a prophet of sorts preaching the gospel of Batman. A gospel that preaches order through fear. He makes the initial arrest of Falcone and is rewarded with the only vial of antidote for the hallucinogen not meant for mass production. Therefore he raises above the law, able to perform certain functions such as helping Batman in the climactic final battle and the ceremonial lighting of the Bat-signal at the end of the movie. Yet at this point in the trilogy we are in the prenatal stages of Christian dogma. Most characters identify with one "God" over many. Falcone: money, Rachel: justice, Scarecrow: fear etc. Through Batman and his disciple Sgt. Gordon Gotham unites under one banner, one mantra and that is order. Through order there is salvation, through order all good things come. Yet order through fear is not enough as later installments will highlight. Batman is less a Christ-like figure than he is an old testament prophet, forcefully proclaiming "Do this and you will live, for I fear God" Genesis 42:18.

In the climactic battle for the heart and soul of Gotham, Bruce destroys the images of both of his father figures in one cathartic action-piece. He derails his biological father's rapid transit system while "refusing to save" Ducard. Bruce is no longer ascribes to his father's humanistic economic philosophy or Ducard's "serve the greater good" mentality. He instead does the opposite of both. His billionaire playboy persona and his solipsistic Batman persona both belie a selfish streak. Bruce Wayne or rather "Bruce Wayne" doesn't care about poor people and while the comics highlight the Wayne Research Institute, The Thomas Wayne Foundation and the Martha Wayne Foundation as altruistic ventures, none are addressed in the world of The Dark Knight. Meanwhile Batman continues to utilize the tool of fear to keep denizens of Gotham in check. A fear-mongering creature now with the unofficial endorsement of the Gotham PD. No wonder Rachel ultimately rebuffs his advances. It is only in The Dark Knight that order through fear is replaced by order through sacrifice. Whose sacrifice remains to be seen.

Though I'll give you a big freakin' clue