The Dark Knight is perhaps the most powerful exploration of guilt the modern American blockbuster has given us. Before he flips his coin for the boy, Batman, who was wearing body armor, tackles Two-Face off the building to his death. "[156] BBC critic Mark Kermode, in a positive review, said that Ledger is "very, very good" but that Oldman's turn is "the best performance in the film, by a mile"; Kermode felt Oldman was deserving of an Oscar nomination. Top reviews from other countries Terry Avalos Tavera. A few shots of the skullcap were kept in the film. He threatens to blow them both up by midnight, but will let one ferry live if its passengers (who have been supplied the detonator to the other boat's explosives) blow up the other. [91] For the film's prologue involving the Joker, the crew shot in Chicago from April 18, 2007 to April 24, 2007. Was this review helpful to you? Colin McFarlane reprises his role as Gillian B. Loeb, the Police Commissioner of Gotham. [62], After much research, Nolan's brother and co-writer, Jonathan Nolan, suggested the Joker's first two appearances, published in the first issue of Batman (1940), as the crucial influences. [68] The use of IMAX cameras provided many new challenges for the filmmakers: the cameras were much larger and heavier than standard cameras, and produced noise which made recording dialogue difficult. [88][95] The Marina City towers also appear in the background throughout the movie. [125] The sequence was released on the Blu-ray Disc edition of Batman Begins on July 8, 2008. Just watched Joker in 2019, I just has to come back and give dark knight a 10. The presidencies of Kennedy and Johnson, the events of Vietnam, Watergate and other historical events unfold through the perspective of an Alabama man with an IQ of 75, whose only desire is to be reunited with his childhood sweetheart. [111] The Batpod was highly unstable for riding, and Goy was the only stuntman who could manage to balance the bike, even commenting that he had to "nearly un-learn how to ride a motorcycle" to manage riding the Batpod. The Dark Knight Slots. Many recognizable locations were used in the film, like the Sears Tower, Navy Pier, 330 North Wabash, the James R. Thompson Center, Trump International Hotel and Tower (which was still incomplete at the time of the film's release[94]), LaSalle Street, The Berghoff, Randolph Street Station, and Hotel 71. – The Misconceptions of Me, Best in Film: The Greatest Movies of Our Time, List of accolades received by The Dark Knight, Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actor, Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, "Academy Awards Database – ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE, 2008", "Dark Knight: Christian Bale: Batman/Bruce Wayne", "A Director Confronts Darkness and Death", "IESB Exclusive: Heath Ledger Talks the Joker! The film's supporting cast includes Nydia Rodriguez Terracina as Judge Janet Surrillo, and Tom "Tiny" Lister Jr. as a prison inmate on one of the bomb-rigged ferries. [136], Pandemic Studios was developing a tie-in video game adaptation, Batman: The Dark Knight. Joshua Harto plays Coleman Reese, an M&A law accountant at Wayne Enterprises who deduces Bruce's persona of Batman from Fox and plans to reveal it to Gotham. "[258] Composer Blake Neely's music for the TV show Arrow likewise drew upon Hans Zimmer's score for The Dark Knight. It was additionally nominated for six others, these being Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Mixing, Best Visual Effects, Best Makeup, and Best Film Editing. The Joker threatens a string of murders unless Batman reveals his identity, and starts by killing Police Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb and Judge Surillo, who is presiding over the mob trial. "[176] Film critic James Berardinelli included The Dark Knight in his all-time top 100 films. There's a lot of easter eggs that foreshadow Harvey Dent's fate in The Dark Knight. "[191], U.S. President Barack Obama used the film to help explain how he understood the role and growth of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). Batman arrives at the site but realizes that the Joker sent him to Dent's location instead. Despite his tarnished reputation after the events of The Dark Knight (2008), in which he took the rap for Dent's crimes, Batman feels compelled to intervene to assist the city and its Police force, which is struggling to cope with Bane's plans to destroy the city. Batman persuades Gordon to hold him responsible for the killing spree and preserve Dent's heroic image. "[190] Benjamin Kerstein, writing in Azure, says that both Klavan and Landesman "have a point", because "The Dark Knight is a perfect mirror of the society which is watching it: a society so divided on the issues of terror and how to fight it that, for the first time in decades, an American mainstream no longer exists. Great story great acting, thrilling twist. [16][27] Nolan noted, "We gave a Francis Bacon spin to [his face]. The Joker also targets Mayor Anthony Garcia, but Gordon sacrifices himself to stop the assassination. The clues combined to reveal a new photograph of the Joker and an audio clip of him from the film saying "And tonight, you're gonna break your one rule." Oscars Snub Dark Knight for Top Awards", "How Much Has Changed Since Oscar Expanded Best Picture Nominations? [126] Also on July 8, 2008, the studio released Batman: Gotham Knight, a direct-to-DVD animated film, set between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight and featuring six original stories, directed by Bruce Timm, co-creator and producer of Batman: The Animated Series, and starring veteran Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy. [66] Jerry Robinson, one of the Joker's co-creators, was consulted on the character's portrayal. [127], After the death of Heath Ledger on January 22, 2008, Warner Bros. adjusted its promotional focus on the Joker,[128] revising some of its websites dedicated to promoting the film and posting a memorial tribute to Ledger on the film's official website[129] and overlaying a black memorial ribbon on the photo collage in WhySoSerious.com. [100], Filming took place in Hong Kong from November 6 to 11, 2007, at various locations in Central, including Hong Kong's tallest building at the time, the International Finance Centre, for the scene where Batman captures Lau. An old Brach's factory was used as Gotham Hospital. He bursts in just as he did in the comics. There's a lot of talk in the movie… In addition to the standard DVD releases, some stores released their own exclusive editions of the film. Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, Chapter 2. The Question and Answer section for The Dark Knight is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.. The Joker was mentioned in Greg Cox's Novelization of the The Dark Knight Rises. [88] While filming in Chicago, the film was given the false title Rory's First Kiss to lower the visibility of production, but the local media eventually uncovered the ruse. [259] Furthermore, in a tenth anniversary retrospective for Rotten Tomatoes, Erik Amaya credited Ledger's performance with providing a novel interpretation of the Joker for the general public, one that proved to be a template for later cinematic portrayals. [179] In 2016, Playboy ranked the film No.5 on its list of "15 Sequels That Are Way Better Than The Originals". "Gotham is in chaos. [211], The Dark Knight opened on Friday, July 18, 2008. The Dark Knight was nominated for eight Academy Awards for the 81st Ceremony,[196] breaking the previous record of seven held by Dick Tracy[197] for the most nominations received by a film based on a comic book, comic strip, or graphic novel. It made $199.7 million on its worldwide opening weekend, which ranks 34th on the all-time chart. The rider lies belly down on the tank, which can move up and down to dodge any incoming gunfire that Batman may encounter. [70] While indicating The Dark Knight would continue the themes of Batman Begins, including justice vs. revenge and Bruce Wayne's issues with his father,[71] Nolan emphasized the sequel would also portray Wayne more as a detective, an aspect of his character not fully developed in Batman Begins. [55] Matt Skiba, co-lead vocalist and guitarist of the bands Alkaline Trio and Blink-182, made a small appearance in the film. The terrible logic of human error is another theme as well. It replaces the Super Monkey's darts with dark blades that deal +2 damage to MOAB-class Bloons and can deal extra knockback versus Leads and Ceramics. [24] Christopher had Jonathan watch Fritz Lang's 1933 crime film The Testament of Dr. Mabuse prior to writing the Joker,[63][64] with the Joker resembling Mabuse's characteristics. A love triangle develops between Bruce Wayne, Dent, and Rachel Dawes. [237] It topped the weekend box office outside North America three consecutive times and four in total. It's a very thrilling element in the film, and a very important element, but we wanted to deal with the rise of the Joker, not the origin of the Joker. [110] The gauntlets have retractable razors which can be fired. Hes perfect next to the Batman and I love that he is holding a card with a red smile. Two-Face shoots Batman, and threatens to kill Gordon's son, claiming that Gordon's negligence is responsible for Rachel's death. Coleman Reese, an accountant at Wayne Enterprises, deduces that Bruce is Batman and tries to go public with the information. In addition, Ledger's win marked the first win in any of the major Oscar categories (producing, directing, acting, or writing) for a superhero-based film. Here are 10 easter eggs you may have missed in The Dark Knight. Upon viewing the movie “The Dark Knight’, audience can hardly distinguish ethical dilemmas raised as their intention in watching the movie was purely entertainment. By the end, the whole moral foundation of the Batman legend is threatened. [213] The midnight opening included $640,000 from IMAX screenings. Additional IMAX shots throughout the film that are presented in 1.78:1 on the Blu-ray release are not, however, included in the DVD's special features. Reviewed in Canada … The Dark Knight Questions and Answers. [186] Empire then named it the 3rd-best film of the 21st century. [185] In 2020, Time Out ranked the film 72nd on their "101 best action movies ever made" list. Bruce Wayne is impressed with Dent's idealism and offers to support his career; he believes that, with Dent as Gotham's protector, he can give up being Batman and lead a normal life with Rachel Dawes—even though she and Dent are dating. So you wind up dealing with the political figures, the media figures. Zimmer compared its style to that of Kraftwerk, a band from his native Germany, as well as bands like the Damned. Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency. Before the SWAT arrive to take the Joker into custody, he gloats that Gotham's citizens will lose hope once Dent's rampage becomes public knowledge. William Fichtner played the Gotham National Bank manager, and Cillian Murphy returns in a cameo as Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow, who is apprehended early on in the film by Batman. Batman finds the Joker by exploiting the sonar capabilities of all phones in the city, with the reluctant help of Lucius Fox. And thanks to Heath Ledger for the exceptional performs. The "Dark Knight" nickname was first applied to Batman in Batman #1 (1940), in a story written by Bill Finger. The Dark Knight is a 2008 action/superhero movie directed by Christopher Nolan, starring Heath Ledger and Christian Bale. [154] Manohla Dargis of The New York Times wrote, "Pitched at the divide between art and industry, poetry and entertainment, it goes darker and deeper than any Hollywood movie of its comic-book kind. "[155] Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Every great hero needs a great villain. In the United Kingdom, the film had combined sales of 513,000 units on its first day of release, of which 107,730 (21%) were Blu-ray Discs, the highest number of first-day Blu-ray Discs sold. Several sequences, including one car chase, were shot on the lower level of Wacker Drive.