The Dark Knight

[GogglesPizanno]

I just got back and before I crash in the vain attempt to get up for work in the morning, let me leave my 2 cents (as someone who avoided all spoilers and discussions as much as possible)... They nailed it. My one complaint is that they packed a lot of movie in and it could due with a little trimming... But all in all I was totally blown away. I respect them for keeping it really grounded so it feels like you're watching a big epic crime film like Heat, only it happens to have comic book characters in it. There were some takes on characters that I can see annoying some people, but in the context of the the themes and tone of the film i thought it worked great.

And yes, Heath Ledger's performance was amazing...

Now I must sleep....

[Gremlin]

Words are inadequate.  This film was...phenomenal seems too light a term.  I was blown away.  Go see it eight times!

[JeyNyce]

Words are inadequate.  This film was...phenomenal seems too light a term.  I was blown away.  Go see it eight times!

Exactly, I saw it and words can not tell you how great this movie is........  Log off, turn off the computer and go see this movie.....right now!........GO!

[stumpy]

It was good. I must say that they really had a star-studded cast. Aside from all the names we were expecting, even roles that could have been done by people no one had heard of were cast with people I at least recognized.

[spoiler]My only real complaint is the same one I had with the first movie: The romantic subplot is a waste of screen time. I really like Maggie Gyllenhaal, but there never should have been a Rachel Dawes character in the first movie and the role was marginal in this one as well. On top of dragging down the pacing of an already long movie, it's kind of sad that the writers fall back on the predictable template that there must be a love interest in every movie. And, a Bruce Wayne-Rachel Dawes-Harvey Dent love triangle? Yawn. If they have to work that hard to cram the love story into the plot, they should take that as a sign that it's dead weight.[/spoiler]

Anyway, I enjoyed it. And, it was almost worth the price of admission just to see the Watchmen trailer, which I hadn't had time to look at online yet.

[GogglesPizanno]

even roles that could have been done by people no one had heard of were cast with people I at least recognized.

William Fichtner!!

[spoiler]

And, a Bruce Wayne-Rachel Dawes-Harvey Dent love triangle? Yawn. If they have to work that hard to cram the love story into the plot, they should take that as a sign that it's dead weight.

I didn't see that really as a dead weight romatic subplot being crammed in, I saw it as an opportunity to use an existing dead weight plot point set up in the first film as the driving force for the emotional breaking point of Dent and Wayne. I would rather they use that existing one and destroy it for future films rather than have to concoct some other plot point to get both characters to that point, and having to deal with the romance in future films. I mean killing the loved one is a tried and true method....

[/spoiler]

[stumpy]

[spoiler]

And, a Bruce Wayne-Rachel Dawes-Harvey Dent love triangle? Yawn. If they have to work that hard to cram the love story into the plot, they should take that as a sign that it's dead weight.

I didn't see that really as a dead weight romatic subplot being crammed in, I saw it as an opportunity to use an existing dead weight plot point set up in the first film as the driving force for the emotional breaking point of Dent and Wayne. I would rather they use that existing one and destroy it for future films rather than have to concoct some other plot point to get both characters to that point, and having to deal with the romance in future films. I mean killing the loved one is a tried and true method....

Well, I am glad that she's dead. :lol: Well, even that isn't quite true, because I didn't dislike the character, but it was dead weight.

You make a good point that they at least used it to motivate part of the plot. Part of my problem is that the Bruce-Rachel romance in the first movie was so contrived and unconvincing that I didn't believe (or care about) their dynamic in this one. It would have been better if they had used the a-loved-one-dies device as the lynch pin to Harvey's breakdown and left Bruce out of it. Unfortunately, they couldn't do that with the Rachel character because we already know her from the first movie. Really, they should have had Maggie Gyllenhaal play a new character that Dent falls in love with and just forgotten about the whole Rachel blunder from the first movie.
[/spoiler]

[danhagen]

The best Batman movie.
Ever.
A chilling, thrilling film in which the Joker is no joke, fully as brilliant as Spider-Man 2 and Iron Man.
Sigh. It's a great era in which to be a super hero fan.

[Figure Fan]

Ok, saw this today.

Heath Ledger was something extraordinary as The Joker. I don't think there's anything else that can be said about him that hasn't already been said.

[spoiler]I have some mixed emotions about the last portion of the movie, though. I mean, Rachel's death left me cold, and not really believing it to be honest. If Gordon was able to fake his death, I thought for sure she managed to survive somehow. Did Bruce even mourn her death? I know Dent did. Which brings me to Two-Face. I thought his burns would have been more intentional, rather than a freak accident after escaping captivity. I liked how they managed to get his name in there without it being corny, but I felt that his transition was a little forced. Once they got him to that point, he was great, but I wasn't quite there yet in his emotional journey. He needed more time, or another movie. Plus he died too? Geez..[/spoiler]

I left the theater depressed, but not because the movie wasn't good, but because it didn't heal many, if any, of the wounds it inflicted upon me.

I would give it a solid B+/A-. Still, I'm allowing it to sink in and I may need to see it one more time to grasp the entire thing.

[BentonGrey]

Well........I was actually disappointed, profoundly so because of how excited I had been about it.  The film itself, plot-wise and acting-wise was solid, but there were several things that left me cold.  I will write more later, but the primary failings of the movie were more technical.

[Figure Fan]

Well........I was actually disappointed, profoundly so because of how excited I had been about it.  The film itself, plot-wise and acting-wise was solid, but there were several things that left me cold.  I will write more later, but the primary failings of the movie were more technical.

I think I feel the way you feel, Benton.

[docdelorean88]

Well........I was actually disappointed, profoundly so because of how excited I had been about it.  The film itself, plot-wise and acting-wise was solid, but there were several things that left me cold.  I will write more later, but the primary failings of the movie were more technical.

I think I feel the way you feel, Benton.

Utterly Opposite oppinion(in my case)! I will simply say phenomenal(for lack of better words), and leave be fore i get into a debate ^_^

[style]

Best movie of the year. In a word, 'unpredictable'!

[Shogunn2517]

Honestly, as much as I liked the first movie, I didn't come into this one with high expectations at all.  Can't explain why.  Maybe after a fantastic Iron Man and with it a Hulk movie that gave me a good set-up and expectation for Marvel's line.  Maybe that's why I wasn't that jazzed about it.

I think it might have helped.  Either way, I thought the movie was fantastic.  I think Rotten Tomatoes had it right.  Not only is it becoming fashionable to be a comic-geek these days with large appearent appeal to these films, but it held up superbly as a thrilling crime drama on the scale of a Heat, Usual Suspects or The Departed(yes, I honestly believe this).  This movie achieved what the Long Halloween did with comics.  It wasn't just a POW!, BANG!, CRASH! comic-book, but more of a thrilling mystery/crime novel.

[spoiler]I do like the fact that it seems the creators spared no expense with the co-star appearences(Fincher, Cillian Murphy, Tommy "Zeus" "Deebo" Lister, Michael Jai White, Anthony Michael Hall).  I like how it gave characters motivations by killing Rachael(she needed to go honestly), the Joker doing what the Joker does and driving the worse in people.  The Joker was a twisted bastard, really effective, sinister, disturbing and was pretty funny("You wanna hear the story about how I got these scars?").  He wasn't goofy.  He wasn't a prankster.  He was more in the image you'd think someone would be like if something like this happened.  And for those talking about Two-Face dying at the end... I don't know about that.  I thought I remember hearing Eckard talk about the character being introduced and not simply being killed off.  Stylistically, it'd make more sense for Nolan to have killed off the Joker than Two-Face.  I was actually looking for the Joker to die and Two-Face to go on to the third film.  But why would he toss the Joker off a ledge and save him but then he knocks Harvey Dent, someone he trust, off a ledge... then he falls off that same ledge(after being shot) and we're expected to believe he's dead?  Especially after going through like nearly five hours of reasons why he'll do all in his power not to kill people?  But he kills Harvey Dent?  Harvey did say "It's better to die a hero than to live as a villain."  Batman wanted to make a point of making Gotham have a good image of Harvey Dent, not a killer.  So blaming Batman for murder, saying Dent is dead all make sense that they would do that to protect the image of Harvey Dent.  But man I like the way they did him.  Two-Face was near perfect.  They had his scaring right and realistic.

My biggest complaint with the movie was the fact that it was long as hell.  It was 2 and a half hours and seemed like three and a half hours.  They put a lot in the movie.  Though they did, I was still captivated.  But I'll look at that all over again too.  This was a good movie.[/spoiler]

[Viking]

I saw the movie and generally enjoyed it.  A more detailed review follows:

[spoiler]
I loved that they made the brief use of the Scarecrow at the start of the film, snagging the same actor as before.  It was a very nice touch, and a nice departure from the Burton/Schumacher era of killing off each villain at the end of the movie.

Lovely tension between Jim Gordon, Harvey Dent, and Batman.  They all want to do good, and yet the rampant corruption means that they've had to make tough choices that keep them from working together in perfect unity.

Aaron Eckhardt as Two-Face was absolutely brilliant.  Just as he was brilliant as Harvey Dent.  Two-Face was a character of rage, barely constrained by the coin.  This is exactly what I hoped to find in the character.

On a technical matter regarding the sound, I had issues with the scene in which Lucius Fox was providing radioed explanations to Batman during the sonar-vision scene near the end.  The white noise of the sonar made it too hard to hear to Morgan Freeman was saying.  Could have been cleaner.

Christian Bale continues to impress me as he walks the subtle lines between portraying Bruce Wayne the playboy, Bruce Wayne letting some actual emotion crack out from the facade (and not knowing how to cope with it, which is really nuanced), and the fearsome Batman.

Heath Ledger's Joker... remains the most controversial aspect for me.  The only criticism that I feel I can legitimately direct towards the actor, as opposed to the director or writer, is that I did not particularly care for the Joker's tongue-flicking.  Any personal discomfort that I may have with the character of the Joker in this film isprobably more a function of the writing and directing.  For the character that Heath Ledger was told to play, he gave an incredible, manic, adrenaline-filled performance.  I can respect that.  I can greatly respect that.

To the extent that I have any lingering dissatisfactions with the Joker, they are likely due to my having viewed the Animated Series version (as voiced by Mark Hammill) as the premiere standard.  (And I'll admit that I'm a little annoyed that professional movie reviewers discuss how Heath Ledger distinguished himself from the previous Jokers as played by Nicholson or Romero, but the Animated Series version doesn't even register on the radar.)

The Dark Knight's portrayal of the Joker is an entirely valid storytelling view to take on this character.  It's just not my favorite.  That honor continues to remain with the Animated Series version, where the Joker was psychotic, murderous, unpredictably scary, while at the same time being stylish and funny.

At any rate - I could probably go on, and on... and on... about my musings on the Joker.  But I'll leave that for another time.

I will give Heath Ledger kudos for doing a wicked-scary Joker laugh.
[/spoiler]

[BatWing]

oh em ji that was an phenomenal movie ever.


:spoiler:[spoiler]You know you reminded me of my father, I HATED HIM!!!! the nurse scene was so funny, i admit some parts in the movie that made me jumped, like the deadbody bumped into the window.[/spoiler]

[Ares_God_of_War]

I have avoided this thread like the plague till I finally saw this movie. All I can say is Best. Batman. Movie. Ever. and God bless Heath Ledger you will be missed

[BatWing]

[spoiler]Grumpy: I'm bettin' The Joker told you to kill me soon as we loaded the cash.
The Joker: No, no. I kill the bus driver.
Grumpy: Bus driver? What bus driver?
[a school bus drives through the wall and kills Grumpy][/spoiler]

[stumpy]

Another quote I liked
[spoiler]"Some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn." - Alfred Pennyworth, The Dark Knight[/spoiler]

[JeyNyce]

Some of you guys felt hurt about the movie......, think of it this way:  This was "The Empire Strike Back" of of the Batman series, which is another reason why I loved it even more.  Even when the hero wins, he still lose.

[ow_tiobe_sb]

I believe the Best Line Award goes to Morgan Freeman's Lucius Fox, who gave Mr. Reese the best corrective perspective he's ever likely to receive verbally:

[spoiler]Fox: "Now, let me understand this. You think that our billionaire owner secretly dresses up in a bat suit, goes around pummelling crooks at night with his bare hands, and you want to blackmail him? Good luck."[/spoiler]

:thumbup:

I'm not afraid to admit that I was blown away by this film, which exceeded all my jaded expectations of film franchises.

[spoiler]My only criticism, to which my wife first gave voice, was that part of me wishes that the film had included more face-to-face (or, more accurately, mask-to-mask) time between The Joker and Batman.  Of course, since the polis and its citizenry were the major vehicles of the Joker-Dent-Batman discourse throughout the film, I felt the film might have justified their limited, direct interactions by their public medium, the city of Gotham.  Otherwise, I can say that I am tempted (tempted) to line up for another viewing in the near future.[/spoiler]

Stellar work! :)

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Fop o' th' Morning

[Figure Fan]

I'm going to be seeing it again, that's for sure. I missed a lot, I bet.

[Blkcasanova247]

Saw it twice today..once in digital...and once in Imax! Man o man! :blink: I was completely stunned....in a very good way. How the hell are they gonna top this? Who's your villain in the third film? :blink:

[Podmark]

That may have been the greatest movie I've ever seen. Just simply fantastic.

[TheMarvell]

easily the best movie I've seen this year, and I can't think of anything else coming out that even remotely interests me, so I'm going to say that this is the best film of 2008. Iron Man and Hulk were also awesome, but this was just fantastic. While Iron Man and Hulk were really fun summer films, I don't think you could say they had any kind of philosophical depth that Dark Knight had. I will definitely see this again in the theater and eagerly wait for the dvd.

[spoiler]
The only criticism I had with the movie was the use of Christian Bale's "dark and brooding" voice for Batman. It's a minor complaint I had with the first one as well, but I felt it was more overused in this one. I understand he needs to alter his voice, but there were times where it sounded like he had a cold or needed to clear his throat. It was also sometimes hard to take seriously, much like the "where are the drugs goin?" scene from the first one.

There were also a couple minor technical complaints. There were some scenes where I found it difficult to see what exactly was going on. And also, as already mentioned, the sound during some of the radar scenes were difficult to make out.

I can't say anymore that hasn't already been said about Heath Ledger as the Joker. He stole the show, easily. It's such a shame he isn't around anymore. Two-Face was also awesome, but I wish he didn't "die" at the end. In terms of the story progression it makes sense, and Batman let him fall because he had to save Gordon's son. It's going to be hard to swallow if they bring him back in the next film.

and speaking of that, I'm finding it very hard to believe they'll ever top this one. What villain would they use next? Riddler? Penguin? Catwoman? HARLEY QUINN?! :P I really don't see how Penguin could fit into Nolan's vision of Gotham, but you never know.[/spoiler]

freaking awesome movie. 10/10

[Silver Shocker]

The only criticism I had with the movie was the use of Christian Bale's "dark and brooding" voice for Batman. It's a minor complaint I had with the first one as well, but I felt it was more overused in this one. I understand he needs to alter his voice, but there were times where it sounded like he had a cold or needed to clear his throat. It was also sometimes hard to take seriously, much like the "where are the drugs goin?" scene from the first one.

Actually I know where you're coming from with this, but that scene from the first movie is actually one of my favorite parts of the whole film. Just because Batman is so intimidating in it.

"SWEAR TO MEEEEE!"

Anyway, I was superimpressed with the movie. Lots of great stuff in it. Would love to see it again and would definitely get it on DVD.

[BWPS]

Yeah, as I've already said three times this year, this is the best movie ever. But I honestly don't think I can every truthfully say those words again. Everything about it was perfect. I liked how it was the best corrupt cop evil mob crime drama movie while still being the best high tech superhero action movie ever.

[spoiler]Things like Batman jumping through a skyscraper window, beating everyone up and jumping out into a plane and having cell phone sonar for the entire city were so awesome and yet they made it so believable. I loved how the movie was completely devoid of camp a I loved the Joker, I laughed out loud several times, the second time he told the story about his scars differently I laughed so hard and said to myself "THIS GUY IS $%#ING CRAZY!" and parts when he made that pencil disappear and robbed the bank, hilarious. But freaking Aaron Eckhart was the best actor in the whole movie. Throughout the whole movie, I KNEW he was going to become Two-Face, but I STILL believed in him, he was so awesome. And then when he became Two-Face (who looked so awesome I couldn't believe it) and took his revenge and the whole ending blew me away. I'm so glad they didn't decide to do the obvious set-up for 2Face in the next movie.

An "appearance" by a young potential-but-not-necessarily-going-to-be Batgirl, making an obvious attempt not to show her face was pretty interesting.
[/spoiler]

In a way, I don't want any more sequels, it was just too amazing and anything else might seem bad in comparison. Unless they do a huge pendulum swing and the next movie features Simon the Pieman and a giant bottle of milk.

It was a better version of Batman and a better version of The Departed... which proves that Jack Nicholson sucks.

[Figure Fan]

BWPS, I am in the same boat as you. I don't think they can top this movie with any of Batman's remaining villains, nor story-wise.

[GogglesPizanno]

...a better version of The Departed

As much as I love this movie, I can't agree with that.

[AncientSpirit]

Count me as the few  who not only didn't mind the length of the film but thought it was necessary to build the deep characterization that The Dark Knight had.

SPOILERS BELOW ....












In fact, in the beginning of the movie, I was let down because the action while great was pretty predictable arch villian antics with the big bank robbery and clown masks, and knowing from the moment you realized that one clown wasn't saying anything who he was going to be.

But then the film took the time to keep going deeper and deeper into all the players, and the twists and turns made it a fun rollercoaster ride.   I loved that Alfred, while he didn't have a lot of screen time, was the only one who recognized who the Joker really was.    Also, what they did with the integrity of Fox and the sonar system.   Nothing was a throw-away in this film.

Also interesting for me was that the Joker was so portrayed as so unstable that even after the ferry scene was over, I did not trust his instructions and felt that the real joke might be that whoever pushed the button blew themselves up rather than the other.   This lady or the tiger style question had me thinking about the answer long after the situation was resolved.  I also loved the humanity of this scene where passengers were put through the test, and neither lived up to my own expectations, though my wife thought their reactions were predictable.

Interestingly, she didn't like the movie.  Thought it was too violent and too xenophobic.   While she loved Heath Ledger and thought he was magnificent in the Joker role, she prefered the humor of Nicholson's Joker.   She thought that this Batman and story was too dark.   (interesting, that Burton made his Gotham dark but the story light ... and here Gotham looked like any modern city but the story was anything but light.)

As for those who think that there couldn't be a villian to top this, I offer up one possibility:  BANE.

[kkhohoho]

I loved that Alfred, while he didn't have a lot of screen time, was the only one who recognized who the Joker really was.

Correction: He knew what type of person the Joker was.  He didn't actually know who he was. When Alfred is talking to Bruce in the scene that ends with the line "Some men just want to watch the world burn.", he is providing a comparison to someone else he knew, so as to explain to Bruce what type of person the Joker was.