When it comes to politics and Christopher Nolan’s Batman masterpiece The Dark Knight, the obvious reference is the George W. Bush administration thanks to the film’s themes of abusing civil liberties to ultimately catch Heath Ledger’s Joker, who’s in essence a terrorist. However, in new interview, Aaron Eckhart praises the Nolan sequel for continuing to draw real world parallels over 12 years after its release.
While promoting his new movie Wander, the Harvey Dent/Two-Face actor reminisced about his time on The Dark Knight, and how its script still blows away him. Not only does he describe it as a “novel” that he had to quickly read while a guy waited outside in his driveway, but Eckhart couldn’t believe how many characters it balanced. He expected to have a very small part in the film because “You can’t have room for that many main players, right?” More importantly, Eckhart is surprised at how much of The Dark Knight is relevant to life under Trump. Via The Hollywood Reporter:
“It was like reading literature. And there’s something about Gotham City too. You have a city that’s oppressed and being run by a criminal gang. People can’t go out during the day, everybody’s scared for their safety, and the people that are paid to protect them are corrupted. They’re part of the gang and nobody can trust anybody. Sound like anything that’s familiar? And then people are looking to a superhero for their liberty and their freedom. Not only is it a great story and a great movie, but this is what cinema and art are all about. It’s a reflection of our times.”
Of course, Eckhart is sure to mention “the performance of Heath,” which took The Dark Knight to whole other level, and it’s been an experience he hasn’t soon forgotten. “I was happy to be a part of it.”
(Via The Hollywood Reporter)