The Dark Knight The Dark Knight General Discussion Thread

[Filmfreak]

That was definitely an experience of a film. One of the best and rarest I've ever had in the movies. Even just seeing the trailer again brings me chills.

 

[Rick190293]

Yeah lol, the unused bits and pieces in the Dominos trailer are gold, but its actual editing is pretty amateurish.



This is the best TDK trailer IMO, not even close. The first real look at Ledger's Joker, and the thing that nearly instantly shut down all the doubters. Crazy how it dropped only weeks before he passed. I remember just watching this thing endlessly, probably daily from December 07 all the way up to the release. It just set the stage perfectly for an epic Batman/Joker showdown.

I actually think Ledger's delivery of "HIT ME" in this trailer is even scarier and more intense than the one used in the film.

The build up to this trailer was insane. A bootleg version leaked on youtube and it was fire, then the HD thing came out and blew everyone's mind.
But my favorite is still the Wizard World trailer, the very first footage that was shown in 07. Love the crescendo of the music.

 

[BatLobster]

The build up to this trailer was insane. A bootleg version leaked on youtube and it was fire, then the HD thing came out and blew everyone's mind.
But my favorite is still the Wizard World trailer, the very first footage that was shown in 07. Love the crescendo of the music.

I'm trying to remember...did this actually leak in 07? I remember reading a description of it, but I feel like it never actually surfaced till much later.

 

[Rick190293]

I'm trying to remember...did this actually leak in 07? I remember reading a description of it, but I feel like it never actually surfaced till much later.

If I' remember correctly it only got released a month or two before the movie... but the description was around, and it was mind blowing (still is!).

 

[Brother Jack]

The Wizard World trailer never leaked. I'm not sure it was released in any capacity until after the film came out. It's funny because out of all the trailers that one probably best captures the overall tone and narrative of the actual movie, including the first almost shot of Two-Face, yet very few people got to see it.

 

[LoganPool]

This movie had one of the best viral marketing campaigns of all time. And to this day, this movie has my favorite theater going experience. Got tickets for the midnight showing (I miss midnight showings!!) and since seating was on a "first come, first served" basis, my friends and I got to the theater around 8pm, and got in line around 8:30. For the next 3 and a half hours, we sat in the hallway, playing Euchre with the folks around us in line, shooting the s*** and just having a good time. To follow that up with a simply phenomenal movie, made a for movie night I'll never forget, and will most likely never be topped.

 

[Iceman]

This movie had one of the best viral marketing campaigns of all time. And to this day, this movie has my favorite theater going experience. Got tickets for the midnight showing (I miss midnight showings!!) and since seating was on a "first come, first served" basis, my friends and I got to the theater around 8pm, and got in line around 8:30. For the next 3 and a half hours, we sat in the hallway, playing Euchre with the folks around us in line, shooting the s*** and just having a good time. To follow that up with a simply phenomenal movie, made a for movie night I'll never forget, and will most likely never be topped.

Ha, sounds great.

Has any other film topped the viral marketing campaign of TDK?

 

[Kane52630]

The only other viral marketing campaigns that comes close to this was the one for Cloverfield and Blair Witch Project.

 

[LoganPool]

Ha, sounds great.

Has any other film topped the viral marketing campaign of TDK?

Cloverfield comes very close.

 

[Iceman]

The only other viral marketing campaigns that comes close to this was the one for Cloverfield and Blair Witch Project.

Oh yes. Shame this technique isn't utilised more often. Can really get people invested and make the time before a film that much more fun.

 

[BatLobster]

And to this day, this movie has my favorite theater going experience. Got tickets for the midnight showing (I miss midnight showings!!) and since seating was on a "first come, first served" basis, my friends and I got to the theater around 8pm, and got in line around 8:30. For the next 3 and a half hours, we sat in the hallway, playing Euchre with the folks around us in line, shooting the s*** and just having a good time. To follow that up with a simply phenomenal movie, made a for movie night I'll never forget, and will most likely never be topped.

For sure. For the IMAX midnight showing, we had to line up at 1 in the afternoon to have a prayer of getting decent seats. So it was pretty much a full day of waiting in line, chatting it up with other fans, scoping out the cosplayers, etc. They let us into the theater at 10, so then it was another 2 hours of being in your seats, staring at a blank giant screen, just simmering with unbearable anticipation waiting for midnight.

It was just such an unforgettable experience. When the lights finally came down, everything melted away and that whole audience was one supercharged unit. My thoughts never drifted once from what was unfolding on screen, I was just fully lost in that IMAX screen. It's really the closest thing I have to kind of imagine to what it would've been like seeing Star Wars or Superman on the big screen in 77 or 78. Shoutout to that Watchmen teaser too, which definitely left a big impact and set the stage for an epic night.

 

[Kane52630]

Me and my friends thought we could get lucky and just walk in and get a ticket, but almost every showtime was sold out in advance. We pretty much had to travel to a different city just to see it. We also had to call the theater guy as we were driving there to ask if they have any seats left.

Once we got there, the 10 pm showtime was sold out, but they put up a sign that they added a couple new showtimes for 11:30 and 12am so we had to wait for it. I don't think I got back home until like 2 am.

Also we were lucky that we saw it in their biggest screen that wasn't IMAX.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

I'm trying to remember...did this actually leak in 07? I remember reading a description of it, but I feel like it never actually surfaced till much later.

It did not, no actually.

The only leaks that happened with regards to the film was a series of still shots in mid-2007 (showing Batman/Joker fighting at the fundraiser, the interrogation scene, Joker/Rachel), the first actual trailer leaking via cell phone footage (employees of a theater saw a film a week or two early, and the trailer was attached) and in Spring of 2008, shots of Joker in the nurse outfit and Two-Face stills leaked.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

The trailer shot from behind of The Joker slowly walking hunched, on the street, carrying the gun and unsheathing the knife, should've 100% been left in the film.

It's one of the things that instantly springs to mind when I think of Joker.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

Yeah lol, the unused bits and pieces in the Dominos trailer are gold, but its actual editing is pretty amateurish.



This is the best TDK trailer IMO, not even close. The first real look at Ledger's Joker, and the thing that nearly instantly shut down all the doubters. Crazy how it dropped only weeks before he passed. I remember just watching this thing endlessly, probably daily from December 07 all the way up to the release. It just set the stage perfectly for an epic Batman/Joker showdown.

I actually think Ledger's delivery of "HIT ME" in this trailer is even scarier and more intense than the one used in the film.

Was anyone else around in mid-November of 2007, when this trailer leaked on the Dark Knight IMDB message boards? It was a madhouse.

The film trailer was supposed to debut in mid-December, and the film it was attached to was screened for some theater staff a month early. One staff member recorded the Dark Knight trailer and started sharing it with fans who PM'd them.

Keep in mind, this was a 2007 cell phone video recording.

But I'll never forget watching this crappy quality trailer in November 2007. I was so excited by what I saw, my 14 or 15 year old self was doing karate-kicking and punching the air in glee.

I still have the grainy trailer on my hard drive. Watch it from time to time. I almost prefer it.

Memories.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

Anyone else have this shirt?

I bought this in mid-2007 at Hot Topic. Unless you were a Batman fan in the know, most didn't know what this was and I don't think this shirt sold too well, as a result. By the time the film was getting significant hype, this wasn't really on the shelves as new merch had replaced it.

I wore it quite a bit and it's now 15 years old - yet it hasn't faded, cracked, or shown wear.

Man, even t-shirts were better quality not too long ago! Can't imagine most shirts I buy now lasting that long.

 

[BatLobster]

Was anyone else around in mid-November of 2007, when this trailer leaked on the Dark Knight IMDB message boards? It was a madhouse.

The film trailer was supposed to debut in mid-December, and the film it was attached to was screened for some theater staff a month early. One staff member recorded the Dark Knight trailer and started sharing it with fans who PM'd them.

Keep in mind, this was a 2007 cell phone video recording.

But I'll never forget watching this crappy quality trailer in November 2007. I was so excited by what I saw, my 14 or 15 year old self was doing karate-kicking and punching the air in glee.

I still have the grainy trailer on my hard drive. Watch it from time to time. I almost prefer it.

Memories.

Woah....no, never knew that. Man if only I'd known at the time!

I made a last minute call to meet a friend for opening night of I am Legend in December. We were literally just going to buy tickets to see the trailer, then try to get a refund. I drove during a snowstorm with icy roads for this, which was honestly a pretty dumb idea. So we get there...and there was an error with the projection-- only the tail end of the trailer played and with no picture. All we heard was the audio of "Let's put a smile on that face" and the score hitting with no picture on screen. Was pretty bummed lol. Though hearing that snippet still gave me chills. Were at least able to get our refunds, and by the time I got home, the December leaked version was all over.

This is just for the context of how real the thirst was.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

Woah....no, never knew that. Man if only I'd known at the time!

Wow, this just shows how different the internet was even back then!

The IMDB boards were the place to be for film scoops, leaks and such. So much stuff leaked on there from amazing users and fans who all helped each other out.

Maybe I'll upload the bootleg trailer to YouTube soon so all can see it's low quality glory.

 

[BatLobster]

Wow, this just shows how different the internet was even back then!

The IMDB boards were the place to be for film scoops, leaks and such. So much stuff leaked on there from amazing users and fans who all helped each other out.

Maybe I'll upload the bootleg trailer to YouTube soon so all can see it's low quality glory.

I risked my life, not knowing the thing I sought was already out there, under my nose!

Truly, a different time.

 

[Kane52630]

I still remember reading that fake plot leak on IMDB of Joker having a showdown with Batman in his batcave.

 

[BatLobster]

Yeah, I tended to stay away from IMDB cause I always figured there were a lot of fakes and such and it also seemed pretty hostile. Lurking these here boards (and the old BOF boards) were my mainline into following this stuff at the time. But guessed I missed out on some gems!

 

[Gothamsknight]

Anyone else have this shirt?

I bought this in mid-2007 at Hot Topic. Unless you were a Batman fan in the know, most didn't know what this was and I don't think this shirt sold too well, as a result. By the time the film was getting significant hype, this wasn't really on the shelves as new merch had replaced it.

I wore it quite a bit and it's now 15 years old - yet it hasn't faded, cracked, or shown wear.

Man, even t-shirts were better quality not too long ago! Can't imagine most shirts I buy now lasting that long.

I loved the simplicity of this image when it first dropped. It was both surprising, scary and it kind of left me speechless because it wasn't what I was expecting. Now it's iconic and easily my favorite Joker look ever.

As for the shirt, my friend had it. He also spelled out "RIp Heath" with tape that he put in the back for when we went to the midnight showing. Luckily, we were able to be just the 3rd people in line, and it ended up being a sold out show. I'll never forget the standing ovation the film got. I was blown away!

 

[Gothamsknight]

Thinking back on all the wonderful scenes in the film and I remember the first time I saw it how during the truck chase I went from being in the edge of my seat to laughing at how Ledger was seeming enjoying the chaos while driving the truck. It was almost like an uncomfortable laughter, and then after the truck is flipped by Batman (my audience went crazy), ledger gets up and his entire tone shifted to anger while aimlessly shooting at traffic so Batman can run him down. "Hit me!!" Just sent chills down my spine. The only tension relief came when it was revealed Gordon was still alive. Another round of applause for that too haha.

 

[Gothamsknight]

Christopher Nolan Originally Did Not Plan to Make The Dark Knight

 

[BatLobster]

Christopher Nolan Originally Did Not Plan to Make The Dark Knight

It's funny to think of the alternate universe where Nolan made Begins, walked away and handed it off to another director to continue.

We were potentially spared Zack Snyder's "Dark Knight". *shudder*