 It is safe to
say that Batman stories, whether they are in the form of comic books,
Saturday-morning cartoons, or feature films, are a visual entertainment.
In fact, it is the need for visualization that is at the root of many
problems a novel adaptation of any action film may have, and in the
case of The Dark Knight, adapted into a novel by Dennis O’Neil,
its only problems originate within this notion. The Dark Knight,
as most readers already know, picks up Batman’s story where Batman
Begins left it. To lead into the story, the novel opens with one
of the end scenes of Batman Begins, Batman’s fight on the train
with Rā's al Ghūl. This gives a great area for comparison between
how the filmmakers show viewers a scene and how our imaginations can
visualize the same scene being read in the words of O’Neil. I have
to say, I had my own doubts, but when it comes down to it O’Neil did
a great job of capturing the action of this scene as well as possible.
In other areas of the
novel it becomes harder to say this, perhaps mostly because any Batman
fan wants to see what is happening. The first several chapters
of the novel are introductions to the various characters and individual
storylines involved in the overall plot. This jumping back and forth
between so many different characters can get a little overwhelming and
even confusing; fortunately, keeping up with the stories and characters
does get easier once the many introductions are completed. No matter
how confusing the switches between storylines may be, they do keep you
reading, and while you may be a bit mixed up when you get there, you
will find out where each story goes and how they come together.
As with most action
films and books, the “meat” of the story is not until the end, and
honestly, by this point I am bored with the book and I just want to
see the movie. The fast-paced action of the fight scenes are obviously
hard to capture into a printed page, and I really feel for O’Neil’s
efforts concerning this, it is easy to see he is really trying to pull
it off. There is one fight sequence wherein action can only be seen
during the flashes of a strobe light. Given the inherent visual elements
of this scene, O’Neil does a wonderful job of capturing it in print.
Though there are some fight scenes that could have used more in-depth
description, I doubt many writers could have done as well while keeping
the reader in the mindset for the fast-paced action.
While the action
of The Dark Knight can be pictured right from the start, it may
be too much for the written word. Considering that is often what is
expected of novel adaptations of action movies, O’Neil did a pretty
good job. The Dark Knight is not an agonizing read, just ill-fated.
If you cannot get to the theater to see the movie, this is a decent
alternative, but it will make you desperate to see it on the big screen.
If you have the option to see the movie, it is a no-brainer!
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