Sometimes it interesting to look at something you have strong feelings about with the greater perspective granted only through time. Amidst the positive hype of a given situation, sometimes even the most objective observer can get swept away with the tide, especially when the thing is an unmitigated success practically unheard of 9 times out of 10. Think: if you asked all those pre-teen girls that doubled, and even tripled down on Titanic tickets 11 years ago, would they still be in a shrieking lather about Leonardo Di Caprio’s self-sacrificing, sensitively artistic street urchin? Probably not, and chances are that they’ll be embarrassed by the memory.

But what of the second highest grossing film of all time? Will a decade of repeat viewing leave all those that hailed the genius of The Dark Knight out in the cold? Well, I’m not a fortune teller, so how am I supposed to know. But six months after the release of the film utterly shattered any and all box office record sacrificed to it, The Dark Knight still stands on its own as a near-miraculous piece of pop art. Standing so close now to year’s end, I can easily say that it’s one of 2008’s best films and the recent posthumous Golden Globe nomination for Heath Ledger for his portrayal of the Joker is really, enormously deserved. After all, three million discs sold on the first day of the DVD release can’t be wrong, right?

In watching the film again, what remains striking is the ensemble aspect of it. In thinking about the comic book, one can make the argument that modern Batman stories are, for the most part, ensemble episodes. Batman has numerous sidekicks – Robin, Nightwing, Oracle, Batgirl – not to mention allies in the Justice League and the members of the infamous Rogue’s Gallery who appear so often, they’re practically cast members. Truly, despite all the talk about the realism in The Dark Knight and how everything is grounded without typical funny book flights of fancy, the movie strikes me as very much in keeping with the best aspects of the Batman comics.

But back to the ensemble character drama, which is inspired if only because everyone here serves a purpose. So often in the Batman films of the 90s there were characters that were, well, supposed to be there, but they didn’t actually do very much. In Nolan’s Bat-films, Alfred (Michael Caine) isn’t just bringing Batman’s breakfast; he’s an integral part of the Caped Crusader’s behind the scenes logistics; planning operations and doing research, and naturally, his traditional role as Batman’s medic. We also see Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) actually marshalling his force in the field and leading investigations and consulting with Batman or city officials. You see Pat Hingle in the Burton/Schumacher films and you start to figure that Gordon’s just there as an arm to flip on the Bat-signal.

And who here thought that Gordon was toast after the Joker’s attack on Commissioner Loeb’s funeral? I know I did. Never did it cross my mind that he hadn’t even been promoted to Commissioner yet, or that the scene in trailer where he talks to Gotham’s mayor (Nestor Carbonell) after capturing the Joker hadn’t been used yet. That, to me, encapsulates the wonder of Nolan’s work, is that he made it so that you think that in his universe, even Commissioner Gordon can die. Never mind the fact that he’s been in Batman comics as long as Batman, they both first appeared in Detective Comics #27. Relationships are always key in these stories and Batman and Gordon’s has always been very strong in the comics. Although occasionally strained, they are true friends and partners, and it was finally nice to see that aspect preserved on the big screen.

Of course Ledger is, and remains, the focal point of The Dark Knight. Now I’ve been in a lot of conversations as to what exactly his death has on the weight of the film’s success generally, or the praise for his portrayal of the Joker specifically. From my point of view, Ledger’s passing just puts his work into sharper focus. The mob roundtable scene where he says he wants half their money for killing the Batman and one of the bosses off screen remarks, “You're crazy.” Then there’s a sudden turn where the Joker goes from kind of playful to deadly serious. He looks across the table, and almost whisperingly says, “I'm not. No, I'm not.” Before going back and addressing the main group. There’s just something about that little exchange that I love. And though it’s overplayed, the notion of dualism and opposition with Batman is worked into the story really well and is an integral part of the characterization.

There’s no rumoured three-hour cut of the film as some people postulated, and Christopher Nolan says no such cut exists because his intention was to make every scene in the film should have two or three meanings. Mission: Accomplished, Mr. Nolan. There are really only a few scenes in this movie where you can feel the drag, one on the big ones being the sequence on the two ferries the Joker tries to convince to blow each other up. As your watching the film the second or third time it almost feels too much because as dark as the movie is at times, you know that not even Nolan is dark enough to go “there” and instead you just want to get to the final fight between Batman and the Joker.

Ultimately though, The Dark Knight continues to stand as a quality film, that despite having too much pressure put upon it (beating Titanic’s all time box office), it remains an integral and important piece of pop art. It also holds up surprisingly well on the small screen considering that often times, films like these loose a bit of their grandness when condensed for our living rooms. Perhaps it’s just me, but The Dark Knight remains as enthralling as ever. I don’t envy the person, be it Nolan or someone else, that has to labour on the next adventure of Batman.