Batman, The Dark Knight Analysis Through a Feminist Lense
Christopher Nolan has directed some of the best movies in the past decade. Interstellar, The Dark Knight, and Inception, are just a few examples of his success as a director. However, while watching his films through a feminist lense, I found that the female characters were not well sketched and did not have any depth. In this film, Rachel Dawse, the driving female part, has more impact by dying than actually doing something herself to change the plot and perpetuates the helpless “female role”. Her part as the love interest for both Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent is what defines her character and gives her purpose. Her demise is what fuels Harvey and batman's anger and pushes them to seek revenge so she only serves as motive. I believe that the message Christopher Nolan is trying to convey is that a woman, or rather one’s love for a woman, often results in more pain and sadness than in happiness.
While women have more of an impact in this movie, they still seem to suffer from women in refrigerator syndrome. This means that women need to be kidnapped, killed, or
…show more content…
In order to pass the test, there needs to be two women in the film who talk to each other about something other than a man. It seems that movies would pass this simple test easily but many famous movies actually fail. The reason is because many believe that when two women talk about something other than a man, it drives the story and makes the male character less important. Now let’s examine the Dark Knight, technically it passes the Bechdel test because in one of the scenes Detective Ramirez calls Jim Gordon’ wife and they have a brief conversation about the Gordon family’s safety. However, I believe that this movie still fails the Bechdel test because one of the women is held at gunpoint and is told what to say by yet another male so in a way she was being controlled by a male
Throughout “The Dark Knight” by Christopher Nolan crime and deviance is seen throughout the film. Crime and deviance in The Dark Knight has two faces as society accepts crime for those whose are helping them and at the same time punishes those who are punished. Society in Gotham accepts crime when the Batman commits it to help for the betterment of society; however, crime is not accepted when it is committed by mob bosses, gangs, criminal cops, and most importantly through the joker. The forms of deviancy/crime which are seen throughout the film is the Labeling Approach, Human Rights Approach, and Human Diversity Approach.
In the world of film, there is usually a stereotypical role for each gender. For example, the man is usually portrayed as the hero and the woman is in some sort of distress and needs to be saved. Women in movies are generally shown as weak and needing a man to survive. For example, in the Disney movie “Cinderella”, Cinderella lives a horrible and unhappy life until she meets Prince Charming. When Prince Charming rescues Cinderella, they fall in love, she becomes happy, and they live happily ever after. There are a few movies out there, though, which show the opposite. Both “She Done Him Wrong” and “Scarlet Street” are films that portray the main female characters, Lady Lou and Kitty March, as strong and independent women, both acting how
Again, the representation of a man being helpless and powerless are traits commonly assigned to female characters. Whereas the representation of women being smart and helpful are commonly assigned to male characters. Hitchcock purposely gives the “male” characteristics to women characters and “female” characteristics to male characters in order to challenge the stereotypical gender roles.
In 2005 Christopher Nolan spearheaded the commercial re-boot of the Batman franchise with the movie Batman Begins, the movie achieved wide critical acclaim, and, subsequently generated, talk of a sequel. In the summer of 2008, after a vast amount of advertising and viral marketing, the highly anticipated sequel was finally released. The film 'The Dark Knight' grossed almost $67,165,092 in its first day and went on to break countless box office records. Later the next year the film won 2 Oscars and was nominated for a further 6, one award won was the 'Best Supporting Actor' award which the late Heath Ledger posthumously received, for his portrayal of the 'Joker'. Due to Ledger's untimely death the film gained even more
The main conflicts in the world of The Dark Knight Returns revolve around escalating crime in Gotham city and forces of the authority attempting to control it. The authority should be a moral force and represent justice. The figures that represent the authority should be selfless and work only to promote the integrity of law and order. Authority proves to be contradictory in Miller’s novel as the authoritative figures express qualities of vigilantism and overall moral ambiguity.
Who doesn’t love a good superhero? The perfect figure, the spandex suit, the flowing cape, flawless looks, and the powers we can only dream of having. Superheroes have been around for ages now, leaving an everlasting imprint on our hearts. It is no secret that males dominate the superhero industry; both the heroes themselves and those who create them. Superman, Batman, Ironman, and Spiderman have become the top heroes of all time; there is nothing wrong with them holding the spotlight, but female heroes are underrepresented. There are notable female heroes, but they tend to be drawn with a busty figure that few women are naturally blessed with, and show little emotional rational in fights. Take Black Widow (Marvel) for example, anyone would love for her figure and kick-ass moves. Wonder Woman is our hero of the hour, she has made her way onto the big screen; casting her into the spotlight more than ever. She screams fights for love, promotes peace, is a beacon of hope, and screams feminism. What’s not to love? The new movie released on June 2, 2017, has called more attention to the American-spirited, Amazonian woman than ever before. The movie is the first fully female directed movie, Patty Jenkins brings a great female to the big screen. Although the movie is great and supports feminism, is the movie the depiction of Wonder Woman that should be idealized?
When you think of psychology what is the the first name that comes to mind? My guess is that you thought of Sigmund Freud. Even though none of his theories of dreams or sexuality have any empirical evidence, he is still one of the most influential figures in all of philosophy. One of Freud’s ideas that does have substance is the idea that our minds are dynamic and contain both conscious and unconscious memories, thoughts, and desires. Freud labeled these phenomena the id, ego, and superego. While the nuances of this theory are complex and somewhat monotonous, they are brought to life in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. The chaotic and childish joker (id), the pure and valiant Harvey Dent (superego), and the one responsible for finding a balance between the two, Batman (ego).
Batman: The Dark Knight directed by Christopher Nolan is non-stop action thriller that continually did the unexpected. The film is based off of the original Batman comic book but additionally changes the perception of the everyday world as good to naturally bad. Throughout the movie, Batman stands for honesty and goodness while the Joker is a symbolism of chaos and evil. Both sides are forced to make quick-witted decisions in order to stop the opposing vigilante from doing his desired work. The citizens of Gotham are put in the heart of this circumstance and feel obligated to go against their values to stop the chaos. Numerous people habitually pursue their dreams and values but often become blinded from their
The Dark Knight, directed by Christopher Nolan, is an action-packed movie set in the fictional city of Gotham. It is a real-life film based on the marvelous comic book hero, Batman. Throughout the movie, there are many philosophical themes portrayed. After closely analyzing the film, I found that some of the most distinct ideas would be that of Hobbes’ theory of human nature. More specifically, Hobbes’ idea that without the security that society offers, humans will become fearful and chaotic. Humans are prone to look towards an authority figure that can provide them protection, and when that figure is taken away, they go into anarchy.
When comics were first coming out, they were not all that popular but in todays’ world, they have become very popular and well known. Several of these comics have been turned into films, which is one of the many reasons why the popularity has been rising over the years. One of the most well known comics is Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. This comic was composed and released in 1986 by Frank Miller. With the usage of Frank Miller’s powerful, intense lines and the artwork done by Klaus Janson’s and Lynn Varley’s it has elevated this comic up to the very top of mainstream comics. In Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, the skillful illustrations on the pages successfully create the thought that there are underlying meanings, which makes the atmosphere a very intense one throughout the comic. The work of art that is presented on the pages in this comic are embedded in such a way that the pages become the continuum for the meaning. One of the main themes that are imbedded on the pages through the artwork in this book is the ideological struggle between Bruce Wayne and Batman.
The moral ambiguity created through the conflict between Batman and Bruce Wayne makes him a much more conflicted character, diverging from the righteous image of the
"The Dark Knight" is grimly magisterial. It's a summer blockbuster that contemplates near-total civic disaster: Crowds surge, tractor-trailers flip, and buildings explode, but the pop violence feels heavy, mournful. Light barely escapes the film's gravitational pull.
According to the Bechdel Test, which asks if there are two or more women in the film, if those two women speak to each other, and if they talk about something other than a man, “Pan” fails. “Pan” features only one main woman character, Tiger Lily, and other women in the film are supporting characters, including Peter’s mother Mary, the matrons of Peter’s orphanage, the white, blonde Air Force strategists, and the mermaids of Mermaid Lagoon.
The specialist skills of the Health Visitor are crucially important in safeguarding children (HM Government, 2010). In the past decade there has been significant change in nursing and healthcare that has led to a much wider remit for those involved in working with children and subsequently child protection (Hall and Elliman, 2006; Department of Health, 2004); indeed Health Visitors are responding to a national drive to further enhance their contribution to public health (Department of Health, 2009).
Filmmakers use traditional gender stereotypes to produce characters audiences can easily identify with by portraying conventional images of a person with identifiable characteristics. In previous years, the dominant representation of a women in film has been the passive, subjugated protagonist. However, through the development of female empowerment and added feminist representations of film, the female heroine transformed to become strong and independent women in her own right, as an individual character.