The Dark Knight TDK Editor Speaks

[Retroman]

Not sure if this has been posted but here's an insightful interview with BB and TDK's editor Lee Smith.

http://www.editorsguild.com/v2/magazine/archives/exclusive/exclusive_071708.htm
http://www.editorsguild.com/v2/magazine/archives/exclusive/exclusive_072408.htm

 

[gwynplaine]

Great interview, thanks for posting it.

 

[david icke]

Cheers for the link. It was interesting reading that there are 'over the top' takes of Aaron Eckhart's Two Face, and the editor went for the more subtle takes, would love to see some of those other takes. I'm sure they went for the right ones, but there may have been some good scary ott ones there we'll never see. Must admit I skipped a lot of the tech stuff from the interviews, it's time for bed here in Scotland.

 

[Caped Crusader]

Good read.. thanks

 

[Anita18]

Very cool stuff. I'll give it a good reading over later - right now, I'm working on editing my cousin's medical school apps.

 

[Toxin72]

It said in the interview that about 60% of eckharts performance was as two-face. Were there some two face scenes cut or was he actually in the movie more as two-face? If so it certainly didn't seem like it.

 

[The Chris]

Cool read. He should get an editing nod for this.

 

[Anita18]

It said in the interview that about 60% of eckharts performance was as two-face. Were there some two face scenes cut or was he actually in the movie more as two-face? If so it certainly didn't seem like it.

According to the script, no. Maybe they just mean in terms of footage they shot. They probably had him do subtle Two-Face then crazed Two-Face and chose which performances to use during editing. Harvey Dent was one consistent performance, so there would be less takes of that.

 

[Lemenbolle]

What was the most challenging sequence for you?

Lee Smith: For me, it was the doctor/patient hostage sequence near the end of the movie. It was a big set piece with a lot of footage, shot inside a sound stage. The sequences were quite complicated and it took Chris and me quite a long time to get to a point where we thought everyone could follow what was going on. Having that scene on IMAX also added another level of complexity. We spent a lot of time breaking that scene down into its components. There was going to be more intercutting with the character of Gordon going to save his family, but in the end, we decided to keep it mainly between Batman and The Joker. We did many incarnations of that scene; there were a lot of balls up in the air. When it didn’t work, it really didn’t work, and when it finally did, everyone said, ‘Well, that sure looked easy! Those moments were great fun to play with.

What does he mean by saying 'we decided to keep it mainly between Batman and the Joker'? The Joker was not present in the Two-Face hostage scene.

 

[Pennyworth]

What does he mean by saying 'we decided to keep it mainly between Batman and the Joker'? The Joker was not present in the Two-Face hostage scene.

He is referring to the scene where Batman saves the hostages dressed as clowns from the thugs dressed as doctors. Then goes on to confront the Joker as he is waiting for the ferries to explode.

 

[Jonathan Crane]

The two versions are almost identical, except that there is one shot that is different in both versions; I won’t tell you which one; you’ll to figure that out for yourselves!

That's interesting

 

[Anita18]

That's interesting

Another easter egg? I'm still trying to figure out which shot utilized the IMAX camera hand-held, since Wally was so proud of those 10 seconds that he could hold it up.

 

[Byron Long]

That entire sequence when Batman saves the hostages was one of the worst edited sequences I've ever seen on film. Apart from that the rest was good.
​

 

[Carnotaur3]

What does he mean by saying 'we decided to keep it mainly between Batman and the Joker'? The Joker was not present in the Two-Face hostage scene.

He's saying that there was more intercutting between Gordon going after his family and Batman and Joker's brawl on the construction sight, but in the end, they kept the Two Face scene and Joker Brawl seperate instead of playing beside each other.

 

[Cancer4TheCure]

I'm glad they kept it seperate - it would have been strange otherwise. That would mean Batman made it to Gordon and Two-Face in record time.

 

[insaneMoViEgoer]

Another easter egg?

The only shot I can think of is the shot of Alfred burning the letter at the end.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Great read. I've always been fascinated with editing. It's an art of its own. And this article just shows how complex it really is. But really fun if you know what you're doing.

 

[Anita18]

The only shot I can think of is the shot of Alfred burning the letter at the end.

How so?

I agree that it'd have to be an IMAX shot, since they wouldn't put different versions in a part that would have the 35-mm aspect ratio in both.

 

["V"]

Brilliant stuff, Retro.

The fact that the DVD/Bluray will be scant on 'filmic' extras makes me appreciate this stuff even more.

 

[insaneMoViEgoer]

How so?

I agree that it'd have to be an IMAX shot, since they wouldn't put different versions in a part that would have the 35-mm aspect ratio in both.

In the 35mm version it starts on Alfred's face and pans down to to the letter.

In IMAX it doesnt pan and shows everything in the frame.

 

[Anita18]

In the 35mm version it starts on Alfred's face and pans down to to the letter.

In IMAX it doesnt pan and shows everything in the frame.

Well that's just a matter of moving the crop lines. Doesn't mean it's actually a different shot.

 

[GDM]

I really hope its a joker shot from the street showdown.

 

[ND Irish]

Another easter egg? I'm still trying to figure out which shot utilized the IMAX camera hand-held, since Wally was so proud of those 10 seconds that he could hold it up.

Thats what she said.t:

 

[Anita18]

The only shot I can think of is the shot of Alfred burning the letter at the end.

In the 35mm version it starts on Alfred's face and pans down to to the letter.

In IMAX it doesnt pan and shows everything in the frame.

I finally figured out that you were right, although it isn't the cropping that makes it different. In the widescreen version, the letter is singed black with a dying flame before the camera cuts away. In the IMAX, the corner of the letter bursts suddenly with a bigger flame before the camera cuts away.

I wonder how many letters the prop dept had to make for burning.

Another easter egg? I'm still trying to figure out which shot utilized the IMAX camera hand-held, since Wally was so proud of those 10 seconds that he could hold it up.

I've also figured out that it might be the shot in the Pruitt building where the SWAT is coming off of that elevator. The Pruitt building set piece is the only sequence where one could conceivably use the IMAX camera handheld anyway, instead of using a Steadicam or Lev-head.

I've been having too much fun with this behind-the-scenes stuff.