Angels of the Knight

Around the time that Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight’ was still making headlines as the latest Hollywood blockbuster, much was said in regards to the film’s landmark performance by the late Heath Ledger as the nefarious agent of chaos, the Joker. But while most of the media attention was focused on the actor’s death and the possible link to the psychological effects of playing such a brainsick character, Nolan’s fresh take on the old battle of good vs. evil was seemingly lost on much of the audience.

Father Robert Barron, a Catholic priest and popular internet evangelist through his website, WordOnFire.org, chose to view the movie and post a video review. In this video, which can be found here (http://wordonfire.org/WOF-TV/Commentaries-New/Father-Barron-on--The-Dark-Knight--(Spoilers).aspx) , Fr. Barron explains that the reason Batman fails time and again to beat the Joker at his own game is that the Joker can be viewed as a symbol of the evil of violence itself. In a nutshell, he means this: There is ultimately no effective means of combating violence with more violence, because violence by its very nature feeds upon itself.

(SPOILERS start here!)

Enter the interrogation room, the scene in which the Joker is not intimidated as he is thrashed by the caped crusader, but is instead visibly stimulated. He laughs and mocks him, saying “You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength.” Continuing his review, Fr. Barron concludes that, instead of polar opposites, Batman and the Joker are actually mirror images of each other: Both are theatrical, both are intelligent, both have agendas, and both are unquestionably violent- which is why, according to Fr. Barron, Batman cannot ultimately solve the problem of violence except by becoming a victim of it himself, as evidenced in the film’s conclusion.

Fr. Barron’s reflections are invariably insightful, but I believe there is a potential for symbolism here that he may have overlooked. Consider that as Batman and the Joker do battle on the upper levels of a tall Gotham skyscraper, the climax arrives as the “Clown Prince of Crime” threatens not only to cause the deaths of the passengers on board two ferries in the river below, but gives the passengers an ultimatum intended to shake the foundations of their morality: “Each of you has a remote... Blow up the other boat.” To the Joker’s dismay, the passengers make their choice and toss the detonators overboard. After a struggle, the Joker tumbles over the ledge, only to be saved from being splattered on the pavement below by Batman.

This scene- and the rest of the film as well- can serve to remind us, among other things, of the war between good and evil in general, but more particularly the battle between the Archangel Michael and God’s fallen angel, Lucifer. In his review, Fr. Barron concludes that you cannot perceive the two characters as polar opposites, but as mirror images of each other. But what if you consider the struggle between these characters as a kind of spiritual metaphor? We are told that when Lucifer rebelled against God and waged war on the natural order, it was Michael’s duty to cast the rebel out. Michael did not destroy his enemy, but cast him into Hell, similar to the way Batman sends the Joker to solitary confinement in a padded cell. But more important is the fact that in the battle between the better and worse angels, it is we mortals who are the true prize for the victor.

As it is said, Lucifer craves nothing more than for us to “Blow up the other boat,” as it were- to see us attack one another and wage war on our brothers and sisters. Michael, on the other hand, is the supreme enemy of the fallen angels, thus a protector of mankind. Just as Batman and the Joker are opposites in the world of Christopher Nolan’s Gotham City, so too are heavenly and fallen angels engaged in a never-ending contest for our salvation.

For better or for worse, the detonators are in our hands.

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle;

be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.

May God rebuke him, we humbly pray:

and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,

by the power of God,

thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits

who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls.

Amen