Where does most of TDK's critisism come from?

[Squaremaster316]

4 1/2 years later, The Dark Knight still stands tall as the greatest comic book film ever associated with the genre. An emotionally gripping drama, a flawless character study of a brilliant psychopath; a smartly constructed crime epic; a crisply shot, high octane, adrenaline-pumping action film; a thrilling adventure piece; a deep, spiritual, richly complex study of the nuanced intricacies of morality and what one must do to achieve what one perceives as the greater good. Combined with bits of witty, subtle and dark humor that never overstay their welcome.

All constructed within a film that is so Shakespearean, it even follows his classic 5 act tragedy structure. Truly a film that stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the absolute best works of Kurosawa, Kubrick and Hitchcock and the Bard himself.

[A Necessary Evil]

Holy Thread Bump, Batman!

[weezerspider]

I hate the 'its not a batman movie' crap. Yes, the first time you see the film, Joker steals the show, but after you've seen the film once, you should be able to watch the film and realize, Oh wow, this whole film revolves around Batman and Bruce/Batman has way more screen time than the Joker...also he's in his Batman persona for the last 40 minutes of the movie. The film is about Bruce learning what it means to be a hero, learning about the innocent bloodshed and learning that he has to continue to fight because thats what heroes do...I guess I just don't get it. I love Batman and have loved him way before I ever knew who Chris Nolan was, but The Dark Knight is a Batman story and a goddamn good one at that.

[Eggyman]

Question: Where does most of TDK's criticism come from?

Answer: People defending TDKR.

[OutRiddled]

People who hate Batman. People who hate Heath Ledger.
Purists.
Burton fans.
Kids.
Eyecandy seekers.
unsophisticatists.
Hollywood elitists.
People who think realism is boring.
People who think it’s conservative. (Controversial)
People who think all superhero movies should follow the same format.
It makes people feel special.
Other.

OMG. The Nolan fanboyism is strong in this thread.

[Rocketman]

I think if you took The Dark Knight Trilogy as a whole, and made it a comic book series, or a series of three graphic novels to make a comic trilogy, you'd have the greatest incarnation of Batman in comics. Or at least The Dark Knight alone would be perhaps the greatest Batman story published.

The Batman Begins comic adaptation obviously doesn't count - I'm talking a full graphic novel.

To me, that's what separates Nolan's trilogy more than other comic book films. I'd actually say this version is neck-and-neck with B:TAS as THE defining version of the character. That's a bold statement, but I feel Nolan/Bale just simply nailed it.

[BatLobsterRises]

Originally Posted by Rocketman

I think if you took The Dark Knight Trilogy as a whole, and made it a comic book series, or a series of three graphic novels to make a comic trilogy, you'd have the greatest incarnation of Batman in comics. Or at least The Dark Knight alone would be perhaps the greatest Batman story published.

The Batman Begins comic adaptation obviously doesn't count - I'm talking a full graphic novel.

To me, that's what separates Nolan's trilogy more than other comic book films. I'd actually say this version is neck-and-neck with B:TAS as THE defining version of the character. That's a bold statement, but I feel Nolan/Bale just simply nailed it.

I agree with this. To me The Dark Knight Trilogy is the greatest, most complete Batman tale ever told. BTAS is like something parallel to the comics itself, it's too vast to be considered "one" story, but it exists as a wholly definitive Bat-universe.

But in terms of story, TDK trilogy nails it. You could adapt the story of these three movies to any medium and I'd love it. A graphic novel like you said, a video game- heck, make an animated version of the trilogy in the Timm-verse. You really can't go wrong, it's just three really strong Batman stories that showcase a wide range of emotions, characters and genres, but in the end form a coherent whole.

[Rocketman]

Originally Posted by BatLobsterRises

I agree with this. To me The Dark Knight Trilogy is the greatest, most complete Batman tale ever told. BTAS is like something parallel to the comics itself, it's too vast to be considered "one" story, but it exists as a wholly definitive Bat-universe.

But in terms of story, TDK trilogy nails it. You could adapt the story of these three movies to any medium and I'd love it. A graphic novel like you said, a video game- heck, make an animated version of the trilogy in the Timm-verse. You really can't go wrong, it's just three really strong Batman stories that showcase a wide range of emotions, characters and genres, but in the end form a coherent whole.

And I think (and pardon me for being controversial here) the thing that made these three movies really work was that it seemed like Nolan/Nolan/Goyer's goal was to write three good stories first. Not good Batman stories, just good stories. And the icing on the cake was that they were Batman movies. I know this isn't a popular opinion, especially when we get into talk about TDK being an extended Law & Order episode with Batman/Joker randomly sandwiched in, or how it was trying to be a realistic crime drama that just happens to have a guy dressed like a bat in it.

It's just the opposite for me. I think these characters provide a massive, limitless canvas for epic, powerful storytelling, and Nolan initially stripped away and ignored the characters and said, "Okay, epic, powerful storytelling. Let's focus on that first, and then go back to the characters who make that possible."

In other words, it's the complete opposite of, say, Schumacher, who's approach is, "Let's just put together a 'Batman' movie real quick, and it'll have Batman, and Robin, and throw in Mr. Freeze, and, and, and Poison Ivy, and it'll be a 'Batman' movie." Yes, it's a 'Batman' movie... but that's all it is.

It's almost as if Nolan made the perfect Batman movies by purposely trying to NOT make Batman movies. I notice this every time I watch Batman Begins. All of a sudden, about an hour into the movie, there's Batman. I get so caught up in the damn story and how emotionally compelling it is, I forget that this guy is actually going to be Batman later on in the film. I feel like, "Whoa, wait a minute, this is a damn good film AND I get Batman in it?!"

This is the mark of true genius to me. And you won't see this in any other comic book movies, ever. Man of Steel looks like it has the potential of doing this, but I am cautiously optimistic until opening night.

And just to be clear, I'm not trying to discount or speak poorly of every other comic book movie out there. I think what Nolan did for Batman could definitely be done to Spider-Man, Daredevil, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and so on. These are all fantastic characters who deserve the same treatment. I'm speaking purely of Nolan's talent. But I'm also aware of the fact that Batman is kind of a unique, singular character in the whole superhero roster.

Ah hell, I don't know what I'm saying.

[batfreakforever]

I don't care were the critisisms come from. I love this film, this trilogy. **** the people who hate this film, this trilogy. Nobody will sway me otherwise.