The Dark Knight The Dark Knight Fan Review Thread

[Ancracks]

You know, I made my opinion earlier on this thread, I thought the movie was overrated and had its share of problems, but at the same time had memorable performances by Ledger and Eckhart.

But what bugs me is how there are people on both sides who seem to rant on how "Why oh why, do you _____ ______ about the movie?!!" IT'S THEIR OPINION, DROP IT!!! Unless it's some bull***** ******ed troll running around trying to bolster his own demented ego, don't start something that you know is not going to accomplish anything other than a lot of unwanted anger and frustration.

The Dark Knight is a movie, nothing more, nothing less, and people should be able to judge it and make an opinion and not having to feel like they are inferior or stupid because they have the "wrong" opinion on a movie. There are movies that all of us have an opinion on that differs with others and, short of an improved director's or extended cut, are not going to change, so just drop it and move on.

'Takes a deep breath' Ahhh, I feel better now...

 

[Schlosser85]

My TDK review:


http://www.angelfire.com/blog/jester_1/tdk.html

 

[Tel Aviv]

Literally my only nitpick is a single line of dialogue ("You'll be in a padded cell forever"... I think?) which, in Bale's Batman voice, is excruciating. I understand, Batman's exhausted but... he just sounds drunk. That said, an exceptional film full of exceptional performances. And Bale's voice is, for the most part, great.

 

[RonStoppablefan]

I loved the movie. I have seen all the Batman films and this just tops them all, seriously it does. The Joker in this film is how I always saw the guy, creepy, funny and every thing. Good job on the actor of course. Another thing, Bruce got to do a lot of good things in this film too such as take a crash from a car to protect some one. That's always how I saw Bruce in these films, taking some thing for some one dispite not being in the bat suite. Its awesome. All the actors did such a superb job and I am now pumped for a third one.

 

[Ita-KalEl]

I'll try to make it brief -

Just saw Dark Knight today, the theater was nearly packed, which is rare for a Monday. The film is nothing less than a masterpiece. The late Heath Ledger was undeniably creepy as the hateful, heartless, lip-licking, cackling Joker (and trust me, he does a great job of making you hate the Joker), while Aaron Eckhart delivers a powerful performance as the doomed DA Harvey Dent/2-Face. Christian Bale is of course still good as the Batman with the always welcomed Gary Oldman, Michael Caine & Morgan Freeman reprising their roles as Gordon, Alfred & Fox. Maggie Gyllenhaal lends nice support in the Rachel Dawes role originated by Katie Holmes (who is sadly better known now as Mrs. Tom Cruise #3).

Can't wait for the next one... and it had better have Catwoman/Selina Kyle in it.

If only they could make a Superman film half as good as Dark Knight...

Now... can we PLEASE have some DC heroes who are not Batman and/or Superman in a big summer blockbuster?

I'm with you, expecially about the other DC heroes. Nevertheless, despite all the hate around SR, IMO TDK proves that WB did a good job with Batman and Superman. If only at WB they were brave enough to greenlit a SR sequel..IMO Singer would do a good job.

P.S. IMO TDK is the best sh movie ever made.

 

[ArmsHeldOut]

This is a great DK spoof and must see!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2yv8aT0UFc

 

[The Chairman]

Just got back from the theatre about fifteen minutes ago. I'm still gathering my thoughts together, but I will start off by saying it's by far the best film of the year.

With that out of the way, I can right down to the meat of things. The film did not feel like a comic book film at all. It was a brilliantly written, gritty crime drama in the same league as Dirty Harry, The French Connection and Heat. The comic book aspect was totally secondary. Bale and Ledger could've been a hard bitten veteran cop and Ledger an ordinary psychopath, and the dynamic would still be the same.

Which leads me to Ledger's performance. Holy ****. It was truly one of the most brilliant performances I've ever seen. Ledger completely became the part, and every time he came onscreen, my body began to heat up from the intensity he generated from his performance. By the end of the film, I thought I would explode. Heath left us with The Performance Of The Century, and I will march my ass down to L.A. if he doesn't win and make the Oscar judges pay.

Which leads to me the rest of the cast, all of whom turned in top notch performances. Bale has officially taken the mantle of Best Batman. He is far more comfrotable in the role now, and like Ledger gets totally lost in the role. Brilliant performance.

Gary Oldman gets far more screen this time around, and we get to see Gordon like he's meant to be seen. After five films in which we see him as essentially a sideman, we finally get a fully fleshed out, well developed cop on the edge, dealing with the ever increasing pressures of his job, trying to remain eternally noble in the face of corruption. Oldman portrays this beautifully.

Aaron Eckhart, as the ill fated Harvey Dent, is outstanding. Along with Ledger, he steals the film, as his portrayal of the ultimate symbol of hope to the ultimate victim of tragedy is done flawlessly. We truly see what makes Harvey the man he becomes, and the new origin story is much better than getting burned in a courtoom, truly adding a new dimension to his downfall.

Maggie Gyllenhaal is a far better Rachel Dawes than Katie Holmes. She is more alert and natural with the part, and her chemistry with Bale and Eckhart sizzles. She protrays Rachel with a zesty confidence missing from Holmes' portrayal.

Freeman and Caine aren't as prominent as in the first one, but the two veteran add a touch of old school class that is welcome. Caine's scenes with Bale are especially touching, and Freeman's dry wit and wise demeanor are as always a treat.

Everything else about the film - the plot, scenery, editing, writing - all coalesce beautifully, and the result is not just the year's best film, but the defining work of the comic book genre. 10 / 10 without question.

And best of all, I'm doing it all again tomorrow (this time my mom's coming along).

 

[StylishHokie21]

I'll be seeing it for the second time on Thursday. My mom is coming along as well.

 

[Superman-Prime]

okay, I think that there is some thing wrong with me. I fell asleep during the first one and was hoping that this new would be way better, so i see this movie and well I fell asleep again. I couldn't watch this movie all the way through. I got really bored. .5/10

Can you rewatch again when you're ready? Maybe you can give a chance, perhaps?

 

[squeekness]

If only they could make a Superman film half as good as Dark Knight...

Now... can we PLEASE have some DC heroes who are not Batman and/or Superman in a big summer blockbuster?

My viewing came with The Watchman promo and that looked quite promising. It didn't give a date, only 2009. I assume it will be a summer film.....?

 

[inflames]

My viewing came with The Watchman promo and that looked quite promising. It didn't give a date, only 2009. I assume it will be a summer film.....?

I think watchmen comes out march 6th of 09 I watched the trailer and thought it looked awesome so I have started reading the graphic novel and it is awesome.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Watchmen is March.

 

[WithoutRules]

Two days since I've seen it and I literally can't stop certain things from replaying over again in my head. Give this thing as many Oscars as you see fit, it deserves all the praise levelled towards it.

 

[squeekness]

I think watchmen comes out march 6th of 09 I watched the trailer and thought it looked awesome so I have started reading the graphic novel and it is awesome.

I was thinking I might check out the trades on that also but I will probably wait until after the movie. I don't want to go in there expecting one thing and getting another like the disaster Wanted was.

 

[The Battousai]

I was thinking I might check out the trades on that also but I will probably wait until after the movie. I don't want to go in there expecting one thing and getting another like the disaster Wanted was.

Huge difference - Wanted turned into a Matrix-action wannabe while Watchmen looks to be a very faithful adaptation worth watching. Plus, there are a great deal of sources telling us (including Snyder) that they're not bastardizing the source material.

 

[DSET]

What a copout. The fact is, there could have been a far more impressive use of the character. Easily. Even given the same amount of screentime.



It's another motive, sure, but obviously not his primary one. And criminals shouldn't be afraid Batman is going to kill them. They should be afraid of something else entirely.

It doesn't hinder the movie. It's just completely out of character for Batman in almost any incarnation I've ever seen, and I really think that worse, it effectively neuteres Two-Face's meaning in the mythology, because suddenly it's all whitewashed.

People, stop explaining to me why Batman does what he does at the end of THE DARK KNIGHT. I get it. It's not a difficult concept. I get it, I just feel that while it honors Harvey Dent, it doesn't honor the mythology.



I've already called it the best Batman film and best superhero film.

true say
i agree with your points

 

[Figs]

Huge difference - Wanted turned into a Matrix-action wannabe while Watchmen looks to be a very faithful adaptation worth watching. Plus, there are a great deal of sources telling us (including Snyder) that they're not bastardizing the source material.

The Battousai, since the trailer was shown on the Imax does that mean that Watchmen will be on Imax screens for it's release or was it just for extra exposure?

If so...I smell another midnight showing around the corner.t:

 

[The Battousai]

The Battousai, since the trailer was shown on the Imax does that mean that Watchmen will be on Imax screens for it's release or was it just for extra exposure?

If so...I smell another midnight showing around the corner.t:

Probably both.

 

[Chris Wallace]

I loved Heath's dark, twisted, amoral, sadistic-and-loving-it Joker. I loved Eckhardt's grim, bitter, HUMORLESS (Look into it, Tommy Lee) Two-Face. The story was great. The twists turns were everything I'd hoped for. I actually liked Ledger more than Nicholson. Seeing Batman out of his depth & having to figure out what to do, having to cross lines he didn't like, & not being able to just smack Joker around like a bully-this was the Batman movie I was hoping for. From Scarecrow's cameo to Batman's public disgrace, I can't find enough good things to say about it.

 

[jackisjoking]

edit

 

[Theweepeople]

Has anyone heard about this movie having deleted scenes? I was hoping we would get an extened version of the movie on DVD because the ending is still too abrupt for my tastes.

 

[Jkr]

Gotta be one of the best movies. And even got number one spot on imdb in a matter of a few days. I only have a few things that are in question, or should be.

First I didn't get the whole "no name, no other alias" bit since at the end of Batman Begins the joker evidence card says "J. Kerr". So...any thoughts on that? I think that would be considered an alias, even if the police just used it to tag the evidence. Not an important part of the movie, but I've got nothing else "out of place" on the movie. I was waiting in the movie for it, though once the movie came on I lost all brain/nerve function. Aferwards I was thinking "wait "no name, no other alias?". And I'm still wondering, wtf happened there? No big flaw, just wondering the purpose.

Second I've been seeing people ask about the "interrogation scene". The part when the lights flick on and Joker squints. Here's my explanation of it. Heath didn't flinch cause he knew what was going to happen, he's not that bad an actor, and his head didn't actually hit the table IRL. Joker didn't flinch because of the sudden light. And he didn't "sense" batman behind him. He knew he was behind him. If you remember, the interrogation room has a giant one way mirror off to the side, next to Joker. Before he squints, he looks side to side and after he looks to the side with the mirror, he squints. I take it as he saw batman behind him and that caused him to squint like he knew something was coming but didn't know what. I think Nolan did that just to do it or to make it seem more realistic. (someone kept asking somewhere, just forgot where)

Third the "you complete me" line, if I remember right, was a line from Joker in one of the comics. I have it in my head just can't figure out which one. I wanna say Killing Joke, but since no one else has mentioned it, I'm not sure it's that one.

Other than those curiousities and opinions....I've watched the movie about 4-5 times a day since it came out. Seriously. Best movie so far. Harvey and Joker in the same shot, you'll never be able to beat that. The virals, the seemingly endless 24 hours left to wait for the movie...all worth it. It exceeded my expectations.

 

[wootbaby]

It's melodramatic and it's somewhat powerful that someone would do that for a friend

wow. you thought Harvey and Bruce were friends? Harvey HATES Bruce Wayne. In fact he tell Rachel "anyone but Bruce" in the penthouse scene and basically tell her to "get serious" when she says Bruce is the one person they can trust. As for Batman, Harvey blames him for not saving Rachel and shoots him in the gut. Pretty rough friendship.

Batman, in his dealings with people, expects them to take responsibility for their actions. He always has. He may believe they are redeemable, and look for the good in everyone, but he's not one to sugarcoat the way things are. He is not someone who goes "Harvey, I will totally bail you out because you turned to evil and betrayed the law".

Batman thinks everyone is redeemable? Is this Batman? The guy from the comics? Going back to 1939 Batman has been a creature of retribution... punish the guilty... wicked ends for the wicked... Batman doesn't think everyone is redeemable OR LOOK FOR THE GOOD IN EVERYONE lmao. You seriously need to relook at Batman mythos. Batman is about punishing the evil and protecting the weak... there's nothing in there about redemption. Again I think you're projecting your own values on what you think a "hero should be" what you're stating has very little relevance to Batman as he's actually portrayed. As for being responsible, it's kind of hard to make the DEAD accountable? What's he going to do violate the dead body to make it pay? It has NOTHING to do with bailing out Harvey. It's about keeping the city from tearing itself apart and USING Harvey. "Taking responsibility for your actions" "look for the good in everyone" are you talking about something your mom would say to you after you wreck the car or are you talking about Batman? A good beating and a toss in jail is "responsibility" enough for Batman, dude.

The whole point, what makes Harvey Dent's "fall" so powerful is that this man who was one of Gotham's champions becomes one of Gotham's greatest enemies. Not that he is redeemed through lies. It's not in character, it's not faithful to the mythology, and it doesn't honor the mythology and Dent's place in it, either.

dont understand what you're saying here

Gotham isn't going to suddenly become a horrible place with Dent gone. 500 of it's top criminals are locked up with easy charges to be brought against them.

When Batman returns to Gotham he tells Alfred people need a "dramatic example" to shake them from their apathy. That he will become a symbol. Again you miss the ENTIRE point of this movie and the first one. Batman's goal isn't to go out and personally beat down every bad guy and put them in jail. His goal from the beginning is to get the city to rise up and deal with the problem themselves. Batman himself knows he CANNOT fix the problem. What he is looking for is a symbol for the city. It has ZERO to do with 500 top criminals, it's what those criminals represent. He uses Dent to fulfill his original purpose... to inspire people to do right. I'm sure you also dont get this but this is exactly also why people say "Nolan can end the series with this movie." Basically Batman was looking for a symbol to inspire throughout both movies... now he has one... you can end the franchise here with Dent as the spark and the people rise up.

I'm not interested in looking at how Gotham would react in realation to how they view Batman (Not all of Gotham will react the same, which makes this plot point harder to swallow). I'm interested in wondering why the hell Batman is so eager to accept the blame for other people's evil acts.

because he doesn't care what people think?

He wouldn't. No version of Batman that I've ever seen would.

you have now. so you invalidated your own argument

This angle didn't need to exist for Batman to be on the run. And frankly, it would have been far more powerful if Dent's image wasn't "saved" through lies and deceit. That's going to come back to bite them in the ass at some point.

incorrect. this is better for the city. WATCH THE MOVIE AGAIN DUDE

 

[Spider-Bite]

By far the best comic book movie of all time. My only complaint is Batman's voice. At times it was intidimating and scary, but at certain moments it was aquard.

 

[JP]

I really hope I get time during the week to see it again. I saw it Saturday and am dying to see it again.