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*ETERNAL FANTASY*
07-16-2008, 01:40 PM
Came out today in Australia and saw it this morning!

It was so epic...(total understatement!)

Heath was amazing as the Joker, that and the film overall was just soo outstanding! T'was long (2hrs and 30mins) but man it didnt get boring one bit!

watch out for the pencil trick ;)

Spoilers (even minor ones) must be marked or I will destroy you and everyone you love. ~Shlup

spike
07-16-2008, 02:04 PM
i really really want to see this one, it comes in august here (belgium)
it's over a month waiting :(
batman begins rocked, the trailers for dark knight rocked as well

Kirobaito
07-16-2008, 03:34 PM
I have my ticket for it tomorrow night at midnight.

The Shoeless Hobo
07-16-2008, 04:23 PM
Saw it about 12 hours ago. Insanely good. "Watch me make this pencil disappear!"

Dolentrean
07-17-2008, 03:37 AM
I have my ticket for it tomorrow night at midnight.

sir helix
07-17-2008, 03:48 AM
im going to see it friday, normaly id wait for the dvd but.......its gonna have a twilight tease

Shlup
07-17-2008, 04:15 AM
I can't see the midnight show because my husband's having a really busy time at work and can't possibly go to a show that late. I'm notably displeased, but it's in our marriage contract that I cannot go without him. I'm sure we'll see it Friday or Saturday.

After we saw Batman Begins he proposed to me. :}

Avarice-ness
07-17-2008, 04:38 AM
I can't see the midnight show because my husband's having a really busy time at work and can't possibly go to a show that late. I'm notably displeased, but it's in our marriage contract that I cannot go without him. I'm sure we'll see it Friday or Saturday.

After we saw Batman Begins he proposed to me. :}

That's adorable. xD

I plan to see it Friday I think.

*ETERNAL FANTASY*
07-17-2008, 04:53 PM
LOL apologise Shlup i was still buzzin that day and so will you *points to all* lol!

ValkyrieWing
07-17-2008, 05:52 PM
I really REALLY want to see it....Heath Ledger was one of my favorite actors....but thats not the only reason.

The sad thing is that I STILL havent gotten to see Batman Begins..something always innterrupts. >_<

XxSephirothxX
07-17-2008, 06:03 PM
11 hours and counting.

Quindiana Jones
07-17-2008, 08:52 PM
I've seen it, and it sucked. By God, Heath Ledgers part was appalling. Talk about a crappy ass swan song.

I'm kidding. I haven't seen it yet. I really, really want to though. :(

Shiny
07-18-2008, 12:44 AM
I cannot go to see it during the weekend due to busy schedule, but I WILL be seeing this on Monday. Bale + Ledger who's reminiscent of Nicholson = yes.

Raebus
07-18-2008, 01:01 AM
I cannot go to see it during the weekend due to busy schedule, but I WILL be seeing this on Monday. Bale + Ledger who's far better than Nicholson = yes.

Much better. Nicholson's joker was more funny but Ledgers joker is genuinely scary.

I Took the Red Pill
07-18-2008, 01:20 AM
A little under 4 hours til the midnight deal. I have never been more pumped for a movie in my life.

Edit: Just saw it. Heath Ledger was fucking mindblowing. Watching a performance like that makes it that much worse to know he's dead. Oscar worthy. The movie itself was outstanding as well.

:heart:

Raistlin
07-18-2008, 08:10 AM
I cannot go to see it during the weekend due to busy schedule, but I WILL be seeing this on Monday. Bale + Ledger who's far better than Nicholson = yes.

Much better. Nicholson's joker was more funny but Ledgers joker is genuinely scary.

Ok, Heath Ledger's Joker is far better, but that does not mean Ledger is better than Nicholson. Come on, now; Nicholson is very good at scary (have you seen the original The Shining?).

I just got back from it, and it is indeed great.

Kirobaito
07-18-2008, 09:32 AM
As seemingly impossible as it was for that movie to live up to its hype, it somehow did. Absolutely perfect.

There are a bazillion different directions to go now. I honestly didn't expect Two-Face to die in this one, and in fact thought he'd be trashed at the end of the movie to take up his role as vigilante in the third film. Nolan certainly won't stand for any gimmick villains, plus I think introducing the Riddler would be too similar to the Joker. The Penguin, perhaps (with Philip Seymour Hoffman as the only suitable actor), but I suppose we'll see. I think Nolan said Penguin would be tricky. Anarky, perhaps?

Ouch!
07-18-2008, 10:17 AM
That. Was. Smurfing. Brilliant.

Bahamut2000X
07-18-2008, 04:31 PM
That. Was. Smurfing. Brilliant.

Indeed.

I saw it and I loved every minute of it. Ledger was definitely a wonderful Joker, doing the part perfectly and honestly was the best version of the Joker to date from every media combined.

They really hit it right for just how twisted the Joker was, complete sociopath with a hint of utter genius, who leaves you guessing every second what he's got going next, or just how he's going to do it.

Big Spoilers Below
I was a bit sad they killed Two Face so early in the series, I get why they did and agree when they did it, but it still would have been Nice for a little more Two Face action seeing as he was one of the better villains of the series. Regardless his time as Two Face was well spent and he nailed that character down well I think.

I liked how they threw Scarecrow in there at the start. It gave the movie a kind of classic Batman feel as he fights the lesser villains while they do some minor crime and catches them. I was a bit confused early on with the Batman clones and them saying them (and I think they might have been also referring to Scarecrow as well which is what got me) were just trying to help him.

I'm depressed now though because the Joker lives on, but Heath Ledger is dead, and I don't want them to try and recast him, I don't think they could even find someone half as good as Ledger. I'm somewhat curious what the direction of the next movie will be.

Oh and I loved the Pencil Trick, I think someone should download the movie and turn that into an animated gif. XD

All in all I'd say the best movie I've ever seen, and I'll definitely be seeing it again once or twice more in theaters.

Avarice-ness
07-18-2008, 06:16 PM
I'm going to go see it tonight! I'll be back with my thoughts after that! :D

Meow
07-18-2008, 06:59 PM
I liked when the semi went all flippy

I Took the Red Pill
07-18-2008, 07:15 PM
My only complaints with it were these:


Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her Rachel didn't at all remind me of Katie Holmes' Rachel, and they didn't do a very good job of making her look similar. I hate recasts in general though, so wuteva.
I'd read a few reviewers specifically comparing this movie to Hamlet because Bruce undergoes such inner-turmoil about his role in the city with the Joker's killings. There really was hardly any Bruce Wayne in this movie though. This was The Joker's and Batman's movie. I would've liked to see more Bruce.

Ouch!
07-18-2008, 07:25 PM
My only complaints with it were these:


Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her Rachel didn't at all remind me of Katie Holmes' Rachel, and they didn't do a very good job of making her look similar. I hate recasts in general though, so wuteva.
I'd read a few reviewers specifically comparing this movie to Hamlet because Bruce undergoes such inner-turmoil about his role in the city with the Joker's killings. There really was hardly any Bruce Wayne in this movie though. This was The Joker's and Batman's movie. I would've liked to see more Bruce.

While recasts are rarely good thins, Maggie Gyllenhall was a terrible choice to replace Katie Holmes. At risk of sounding like a pig, my biggest problem with Maggie Gyllenhall is that she's nowhere near as attractive. She did a fine job playing Rachel (let's be honest, there's not an awful lot to that character beyond being the love interest), but she didn't fit the role at all, and I think a big part of it is that she looks about twenty years older than she actually is.
This point didn't actually bother me overly much. I've never been particularly interested in Bruce Wayne's character. Sure, he's the billionaire playboy, but he was never a particularly interesting billionaire playboy. If I wanted to go see an interesting superhero alter ego, I usually turn to Peter Parker, although Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark earlier this summer was fairly fantastic. I think focusing on Batman and the Joker was appropriate for The Dark Knight, but that's just because I think Bruce Wayne's character has always been a bit stale.

~*~Celes~*~
07-18-2008, 08:07 PM
I want to see it now that everyone's saying how great it is :( That, and I've always liked Batman :heart:

Slothy
07-18-2008, 08:23 PM
My only complaints with it were these:


Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her Rachel didn't at all remind me of Katie Holmes' Rachel, and they didn't do a very good job of making her look similar. I hate recasts in general though, so wuteva.
I'd read a few reviewers specifically comparing this movie to Hamlet because Bruce undergoes such inner-turmoil about his role in the city with the Joker's killings. There really was hardly any Bruce Wayne in this movie though. This was The Joker's and Batman's movie. I would've liked to see more Bruce.


Like they said in the first movie Bruce Wayne is the act. Batman is much closer to the real Bruce Wayne than the public image he puts on, though that said, he's really only truly himself with the people who know who he is. As such I didn't mind that he spent a lot of time in the suit. I felt they portrayed all aspects of Bruce well yet again.

Anyway, saw it last night and it is one of the best movies I've ever seen. Heath definitely deserves an Oscar. I think his performance even topped Mark Hamill's portrayal of the Joker. He was just so sadistic, and simply reveled in it the whole time. He was everything I imagine the Joker should be. Bale and Eckhart were amazing as well, not to mention Cain and Freeman, but The Joker was going to be the make or break performance for me, especially considering the last film portrayal was Nichelson's god awful take on him.

Fonzie
07-18-2008, 09:28 PM
Saw it last night, and it blew my mind.

My heart was racing the entire movie. :D

I Took the Red Pill
07-18-2008, 09:31 PM
Like they said in the first movie Bruce Wayne is the act. Batman is much closer to the real Bruce Wayne than the public image he puts on, though that said, he's really only truly himself with the people who know who he is. As such I didn't mind that he spent a lot of time in the suit. I felt they portrayed all aspects of Bruce well yet again.You're missing my point. I understand the philosophy of Bruce Wayne being a facade for his identity as the Batman. Why does the fact that it's simply a cover-up lend to the idea that his superhero side should be explored almost exclusively and his life as Bruce should be nearly cast aside? I liked all the scenes in Batman Begins that showed him struggling to lead a double-life, and when I heard that his portrayal of Bruce Wayne was "Hamlet-like" in The Dark Knight, I expected them to explore his inner turmoil more. I'm not heartbroken that they didn't, it was just a minor complaint of mine.

Slothy
07-18-2008, 10:13 PM
You're missing my point. I understand the philosophy of Bruce Wayne being a facade for his identity as the Batman. Why does the fact that it's simply a cover-up lend to the idea that his superhero side should be explored almost exclusively and his life as Bruce should be nearly cast aside? I liked all the scenes in Batman Begins that showed him struggling to lead a double-life, and when I heard that his portrayal of Bruce Wayne was "Hamlet-like" in The Dark Knight, I expected them to explore his inner turmoil more. I'm not heartbroken that they didn't, it was just a minor complaint of mine.

Except I feel they managed to portray a lot more of his personal feelings without him ever having to say a word or get out of costume. Scenes like him interrogating the Joker or racing towards him on the street showed a lot of his struggle to maintain control and not succumb to his desire to kill the Joker while the woman he loved was in danger. Most of his scenes with Alfred showed his feelings about his burden of responsibility with regards to creating the situation with the Joker. You may think there wasn't much there, but I felt they covered Bruce's feelings as much as they could without constantly re-treading the same ground multiple times throughout the movie. What characterization was there was moving and didn't spend the whole movie dancing around the same subjects until they got old. I suppose that's all personal taste though.

Meow
07-18-2008, 10:40 PM
Maggie Gyllenhaal. Her Rachel didn't at all remind me of Katie Holmes' Rachel, and they didn't do a very good job of making her look similar. I hate recasts in general though, so wuteva.


katie holmes is such a noob actress though, whereas maggie was rock-em-sock-em-robots pretty much start to finish

Marshall Banana
07-18-2008, 11:43 PM
Christian Bale is so cool. Batman is so cool. I want to see The Dark Knight again. =O

Rengori
07-19-2008, 02:47 AM
That was an amazing movie. I was pissed off at the beginning because the theater had technical difficulties just for our showing, so we had to wait in the theater for about an hour for the movie to actually start. But we got free passes to another movie, though I doubt it will be anywhere near as awesome as this movie was. It's a damn shame Heath Ledger can't reprise his role as the Joker, he did a fantastic job in the role.

Boney King
07-19-2008, 04:07 AM
PHENOMENAL ALL THE WAY BRAH

One of my new favourite movies. Suffice it to say that I loved Ledger in it.

Also, not to derail the topic, but they showed the trailer for the new Watchmen movie, looks friggin' legit.

Peegee
07-19-2008, 04:42 AM
The Joker is such an interesting character that this movie could only fail if said character was done poorly. That said, because of the superb job done, I was at the edge of my seat the entire time.

From a pacing perspective, I was a little confused how the Joker just let himself get captured so quickly when the semi flipped. However everything works out in the end

Avarice-ness
07-19-2008, 04:53 AM
Also, not to derail the topic, but they showed the trailer for the new Watchmen movie, looks friggin' legit.

agree'd!

As for me, yeah it was a totally great movie!

As for my "Heath Ledger killed himself because he went crazy because he THOUGHT he was the joker" theory, I'm still for that theory!
The fact he did the lip licking thing repeatedly (a thing commonly seen in autistic, schizophrenia, and psychosis) and to the believable extent of a crazy person made me all "ohhh." I've only seen one person ever be able to have seemingly "right" lick lipping and it was by a lady with psychosis on the bus. xD When he was doing things like hanging his body out of the car like a dog would, he did it so well that it seemed nearly natural to him, I couldn't even imagine myself being able to force myself to do that.

He played crazy to a great extent, to great I must say.


As for other things, stupid people in the theater kept being all omg gordon is dead or OHHH HE'S TWO FACE!! and I'm like Dude, wtf Gordon is in like.. ALL THE BATMAN MOVIES IN THE FUTURE and Clearly you didn't know he was two face from the name HARVY DENT

And then my mom was arguing with me telling me that Two face was dead at the end which is impossible because he's in freaking Batman Forever and is played by Tommy Lee Jones. She's not understanding that while batman movies are batman movies, the movies still follow the basic laws of life, if you kill something, it tends to stay dead, therefore it would be impossible for Two face to have died because he appears years later in the future.

Now Wikipedia doesn't agree with this, so I'd like your peoples opinions:

Wiki says he "fell to his death" but unless all batman movies take place in another universe, he couldn't have fallen to his DEATH because he exists in the future. How do I know it's the future? Because 1.) Batman's nice and knowing in Batman Forever 2.) Gordon has been comissioner for a while and not only that but is old and grey, clearly the Gordon we see in Dark Knight is old but younger than the Gordon in Batman Forever.

So do YOU believe that Two Face is dead? If so, does that mean you believe that all batman movies take place in another dimension of some sort?

Please, explain this to me, because my logic is causing me to not understand.

Peegee
07-19-2008, 04:57 AM
My head hurts ava =(

Kenshin IV
07-19-2008, 05:13 AM
As for my "Heath Ledger killed himself because he went crazy because he THOUGHT he was the joker" theory, I'm still for that theory!

And you'd be stupidly wrong. He died because he took too many prescription medications at once. The only reason that idiotic story about "the Joker killing him" even came out was because he said himself in an interview he had trouble getting to sleep after the movie do to the high intensity of the role, and the original report was he died by overdosing on sleeping pills. That was later found out to be completely false. The media jumped the gun due to a lack of information... Shocking, I know.

And Nolan's movies (Begins and Knight) have jack to do with any of the previous films.

Kirobaito
07-19-2008, 05:15 AM
Also, not to derail the topic, but they showed the trailer for the new Watchmen movie, looks friggin' legit.

agree'd!

As for me, yeah it was a totally great movie!

As for my "Heath Ledger killed himself because he went crazy because he THOUGHT he was the joker" theory, I'm still for that theory!
The fact he did the lip licking thing repeatedly (a thing commonly seen in autistic, schizophrenia, and psychosis) and to the believable extent of a crazy person made me all "ohhh." I've only seen one person ever be able to have seemingly "right" lick lipping and it was by a lady with psychosis on the bus. xD When he was doing things like hanging his body out of the car like a dog would, he did it so well that it seemed nearly natural to him, I couldn't even imagine myself being able to force myself to do that.

He played crazy to a great extent, to great I must say.


As for other things, stupid people in the theater kept being all omg gordon is dead or OHHH HE'S TWO FACE!! and I'm like Dude, wtf Gordon is in like.. ALL THE BATMAN MOVIES IN THE FUTURE and Clearly you didn't know he was two face from the name HARVY DENT

And then my mom was arguing with me telling me that Two face was dead at the end which is impossible because he's in freaking Batman Forever and is played by Tommy Lee Jones. She's not understanding that while batman movies are batman movies, the movies still follow the basic laws of life, if you kill something, it tends to stay dead, therefore it would be impossible for Two face to have died because he appears years later in the future.

Now Wikipedia doesn't agree with this, so I'd like your peoples opinions:

Wiki says he "fell to his death" but unless all batman movies take place in another universe, he couldn't have fallen to his DEATH because he exists in the future. How do I know it's the future? Because 1.) Batman's nice and knowing in Batman Forever 2.) Gordon has been comissioner for a while and not only that but is old and grey, clearly the Gordon we see in Dark Knight is old but younger than the Gordon in Batman Forever.

So do YOU believe that Two Face is dead? If so, does that mean you believe that all batman movies take place in another dimension of some sort?

Please, explain this to me, because my logic is causing me to not understand.
It's really very simple. These two Batman movies (Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) have absolutely nothing to do with the ones made by Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher (Batman, Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman and Robin). Two-Face DID die, but that has nothing to do with whether Tommy Lee Jones was in Batman Forever, because the two plots don't affect each other at all. Chris Nolan's Batman films are new incarnations of Batman, independent of the older movies.

Avarice-ness
07-19-2008, 05:18 AM
Also, not to derail the topic, but they showed the trailer for the new Watchmen movie, looks friggin' legit.

agree'd!

As for me, yeah it was a totally great movie!

As for my "Heath Ledger killed himself because he went crazy because he THOUGHT he was the joker" theory, I'm still for that theory!
The fact he did the lip licking thing repeatedly (a thing commonly seen in autistic, schizophrenia, and psychosis) and to the believable extent of a crazy person made me all "ohhh." I've only seen one person ever be able to have seemingly "right" lick lipping and it was by a lady with psychosis on the bus. xD When he was doing things like hanging his body out of the car like a dog would, he did it so well that it seemed nearly natural to him, I couldn't even imagine myself being able to force myself to do that.

He played crazy to a great extent, to great I must say.


As for other things, stupid people in the theater kept being all omg gordon is dead or OHHH HE'S TWO FACE!! and I'm like Dude, wtf Gordon is in like.. ALL THE BATMAN MOVIES IN THE FUTURE and Clearly you didn't know he was two face from the name HARVY DENT

And then my mom was arguing with me telling me that Two face was dead at the end which is impossible because he's in freaking Batman Forever and is played by Tommy Lee Jones. She's not understanding that while batman movies are batman movies, the movies still follow the basic laws of life, if you kill something, it tends to stay dead, therefore it would be impossible for Two face to have died because he appears years later in the future.

Now Wikipedia doesn't agree with this, so I'd like your peoples opinions:

Wiki says he "fell to his death" but unless all batman movies take place in another universe, he couldn't have fallen to his DEATH because he exists in the future. How do I know it's the future? Because 1.) Batman's nice and knowing in Batman Forever 2.) Gordon has been comissioner for a while and not only that but is old and grey, clearly the Gordon we see in Dark Knight is old but younger than the Gordon in Batman Forever.

So do YOU believe that Two Face is dead? If so, does that mean you believe that all batman movies take place in another dimension of some sort?

Please, explain this to me, because my logic is causing me to not understand.
It's really very simple. These two Batman movies (Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) have absolutely nothing to do with the ones made by Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher (Batman, Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman and Robin). Two-Face DID die, but that has nothing to do with whether Tommy Lee Jones was in Batman Forever, because the two plots don't affect each other at all. Chris Nolan's Batman films are new incarnations of Batman, independent of the older movies.

Okay that makes a lot more sense to me.

Raistlin
07-19-2008, 06:39 AM
... why would previous Batman movies have anything to do with this series? Those have Robin in it, who is an absolutely horrible character for this new interpretation of Batman and should never, ever appear.

Freya
07-19-2008, 06:41 AM
OMG that movie was amazing. It made my 18th birthday the best ever. I loved heaths take on the joker role and am sad to see him dead, you can't replace someone who played the role so well like that.

I'm loved the joker and his whole social experiment with the boats. Really it makes me think. Tis why I love death note. Humans are silly and the way the character joker shows how fickle they can be is in a way, genius!

Avarice-ness
07-19-2008, 06:51 AM
... why would previous Batman movies have anything to do with this series? Those have Robin in it, who is an absolutely horrible character for this new interpretation of Batman and should never, ever appear.

I didn't know that the movies had gone off into a different series. I never bothered seeing Batman Begins.

And, hey now, we only had to deal with robin for 2 of the four batman movies from 89-97! Atleast we didn't have to deal with robin and batgirl for -all- those movies.

Dolentrean
07-19-2008, 06:57 AM
I wore my Marvel shirt to go see it!

The movie was very good, not the best I have ever seen, but very good.

The Shoeless Hobo
07-19-2008, 07:05 AM
Nolan stated that his films are completely different to any other batman movies. Begins and Dark Night are obviously related though. Also, he wanted to keep the movies realistic, as in no super powers etc.

And for the record Maggie is hawt!

Yamaneko
07-19-2008, 06:27 PM
This was the best superhero movie because there were no gay superpowers in it. Every other superhero movie either has to do with the character coping with his/her newfound powers or society doing the same. Here we get a much more meaningful look at the relationships between three individuals (Batman, Dent and Gordon); how they each view one another as part of that society and how ultimately trust is misplaced in the hands of one of them.

In the next movie the Joker will be explained away; a life sentence at Arkham or some such. Two-face is probably not dead. Gordon and Batman agreed to keep him away so that his image as Harvey Dent could live on in the public consciousness.

Really as long as they don't introduce Robin or Catwoman, and they don't have some of the lamer villains like Mr. Freeze, the next movie should be fine.

Bahamut2000X
07-19-2008, 09:03 PM
In the next movie the Joker will be explained away; a life sentence at Arkham or some such.


Not like that's every stopped him long before. :p



Two-face is probably not dead.[/spoilers]


I'm somewhat in agreement here. For starters he fell much like Batman did, and Batman walked away fine. I find it odd Two Face dies from the same fall. I really hope he's not dead though just because Two Face is one of the only villains they proved could work in this realistic setting. And if he's dead all that leaves is Joker (with no more Heath :() and Scarecrow, who face it, while is good in this new rendition, he's not much for being a main villain. Although I do have hopes that Nolan can pull of Penguin or some other of the better villains. I still don't think the next movie can in anyway top Dark Knight though, Ledger and the introduction of Joker was just too epic and well done to get one upped, even from the same makers.

Bunny
07-19-2008, 10:04 PM
Saw it at last night's midnight showing and enjoyed it throughly. Ledger's performance as Joker was deserving of all the praise it has been getting. It is disappointing that they can no longer have a Joker in the Batman films, because I do not see Ledger's performance being topped, at least not a long time.

As far as Two-Face being dead, I highly doubt it. Joker and Two-Face are the core Batman villains and without them, the Bat is nothing. Minor villains can be introduced but you cannot make a movie out of them unless they somehow included Ra's al Ghul and the league of shadows again. I took the final funeral scene as more of a "death of Harvey Dent" rather than death of the character all together. Two-Face lives as far as I'm concerned. He is too great of a villain to die from a fall such as that.

Kirobaito
07-20-2008, 01:13 AM
After thinking a bit more I've come up with some things that would work for a third film.

I no longer think Two-Face is dead. Honestly, it's possible that they originally had a funeral scene for him but cut that out once Ledger died, realizing that they couldn't lose Batman's two primary villains in one film.

But I still don't see why the Penguin wouldn't work for a third film, as a secondary villain. He's no more than another gangster in the comics, not deformed like in Batman Returns. The difference is that, in the later comics, Batman tolerates the Penguin's minor crimes because his club provides information for Batman for more sinister plots. If you were to juxtaposition the Penguin against a bigger foe, like Two-Face or the Riddler, you would bring up questions about Batman that are at least serious and non-gimmicky. If the Penguin's freedom offers Batman an opportunity to stop a more sinister evil, is that compromising on your ideals? Are some evils more tolerable than others?

I dunno, just theorizing, I suppose.

Shlup
07-20-2008, 02:57 AM
I... I just... *pees*

Bahamut2000X
07-20-2008, 03:04 AM
I... I just... *pees*

Ya it's just that good.

Germ Hamee
07-20-2008, 03:34 AM
smurfing amazing. I was expecting a lot, and it surpassed even that. There was sooo much more movie there than I was expecting. Am I the only numbnuts that had no idea Two-Face was in this movie? I squealed.

Rengori
07-20-2008, 03:37 AM
I watched it again today, there's a <img src="http://forums.eyesonff.com/images/smilies/rpg_009.gif" alt="skull" /><img src="http://forums.eyesonff.com/images/smilies/rpg_009.gif" alt="skull" /><img src="http://forums.eyesonff.com/images/smilies/rpg_009.gif" alt="skull" /><img src="http://forums.eyesonff.com/images/smilies/rpg_009.gif" alt="skull" />load of dialouge that makes more sense the second time.

Avarice-ness
07-20-2008, 03:48 AM
smurfing amazing. I was expecting a lot, and it surpassed even that. There was sooo much more movie there than I was expecting. Am I the only numbnuts that had no idea Two-Face was in this movie? I squealed.

Nah, there were a million people who were all "O=" but like..

I didn't know if Two Face himself was in this movie (I assumed that It was possible for Harvy to get in the accident RIGHT BEFORE the end, to leave an opening for Two Face to take more of a main main part in the next movie.) but when it got to the part where Rachel and him were surrounded by gas/oil barrels and only one was going to "live" I knew.
The only thing that annoyed me, is that I thought Two Face's ENTIRE side of the body was suppose to be burned, and it turns out it was -really- only his face, even though his ENTIRE side was drenched in gas, when I say this, it's because when he's talking to Gordon's family it seems that his hand on the burnt side is perfectly normal. Unless it was a glove that looked exactly like what his hand should look like..it doesn't make sense.
Did anyone else notice that or am I just being a stickler on details. :D

Shlup
07-20-2008, 04:29 AM
Avarice... your n00bness is breaking my balls.

It's just his face and then his suit got burned a bit. His hands were tied behind his back.

Avarice-ness
07-20-2008, 04:49 AM
Avarice... your n00bness is breaking my balls.

It's just his face and then his suit got burned a bit. His hands were tied behind his back.

Ohh I see. I guess I just can't imagine gas being poured on one whole side of the body (which is what it LOOKED like when the gas kept spilling), and the fire only staying on the face/neck area.

Raistlin
07-20-2008, 04:52 AM
Huh? The gas was falling down the side of the barrel, and Harvey pushed his face against it. That's it.

If the gasoline on the floor spread out a lot, his pant legs might have gotten wet. Otherwise, it's tough for it to cover him too much considering he was tied up with his hands behind his back.

Shlup
07-20-2008, 04:54 AM
It didn't. Like I said, his suit was burnt too. Batman put it out before it burned his body, as in accordance with the laws of proper villain creation.

You're like my poor husband. Last night all us nerds were standing around gushing and my husband had no idea what was going on. We were talking about how they wouldn't properly show Gordon's daughter and he was musing on how little they must've paid the actress to be met with a bunch of blank stares. xD

If I remember correctly, Raist, Harvey also fell on his side on the floor, which probably got the entire side of his body pretty wet, but his hands were still behind his back.

Avarice-ness
07-20-2008, 04:55 AM
Huh? The gas was falling down the side of the barrel, and Harvey pushed his face against it. That's it.

If the gasoline on the floor spread out a lot, his pant legs might have gotten wet. Otherwise, it's tough for it to cover him too much considering he was tied up with his hands behind his back.

I remember him like sputtering to breathe at some point because the flow from the gas was epic (or maybe just because he was trying to stop it with his face). I'm prolly wrong though, but the sputtering + flowing gas made me assume it went further than his face.

But I seriously think I'm looking to much into it. :razz:

Shlup
07-20-2008, 05:01 AM
He was "sputtering" because he was trying to drink it so that he would die and Rachel would be the one to live. It wasn't flowing much at all, which is why his suicide attempt failed.

Avarice-ness
07-20-2008, 05:03 AM
He was "sputtering" because he was trying to drink it so that he would die and Rachel would be the one to live. It wasn't flowing much at all, which is why his suicide attempt failed.

Damn, I need to watch the movie again. That makes a lot more sense now.

Shlup
07-20-2008, 05:06 AM
Yeah, I feel like I need to see it again. It was so fast-paced it's easy to miss a lot.

Rengori
07-20-2008, 05:07 AM
Yeah, I feel like I need to see it again. It was so fast-paced it's easy to miss a lot.

As I said before, there's a lot of stuff in the movie that makes more sense the second time around.

Shlup
07-20-2008, 05:12 AM
Yeah, even as I was watching it I was thinking I was going to have to see it again.

Rengori
07-20-2008, 05:14 AM
Oh, was I the only one who halfway though the movie was wondering what the hell happened with the Scarecrow? Cause like he was there for one scene and then BAM. Gone. I mean, it probably would've deteriorated the film if he had made any appearances later on but I was still wondering what happened to him.

Shlup
07-20-2008, 05:43 AM
Well, he got arrested, so I assume he was behind bars. I'm glad they established he's still around though.

Bahamut2000X
07-20-2008, 03:52 PM
Well, he got arrested, so I assume he was behind bars. I'm glad they established he's still around though.

Indeed. He was caught so he went to jail/Arkham. It did feel like a traditional Batman though, with a minor villain popping up and Batman stepping in, beating him and his cronies up, then sending them off to jail. I much like Nolan's way of "Let's not kill EVERY villain in the series within 3 movies"

Skyblade
07-20-2008, 04:21 PM
Well, he got arrested, so I assume he was behind bars. I'm glad they established he's still around though.

Indeed. He was caught so he went to jail/Arkham. It did feel like a traditional Batman though, with a minor villain popping up and Batman stepping in, beating him and his cronies up, then sending them off to jail. I much like Nolan's way of "Let's not kill EVERY villain in the series within 3 movies"

Especially since, y'know, Batman was too stupid to kill any of his enemies. Even after they've slaughtered half the city and escaped from Arkham so much the place installed a revolving door. It just wouldn't be Batman if he killed his enemies.

Bahamut2000X
07-20-2008, 05:32 PM
Especially since, y'know, Batman was too stupid to kill any of his enemies. Even after they've slaughtered half the city and escaped from Arkham so much the place installed a revolving door. It just wouldn't be Batman if he killed his enemies.

*Face Palm* You must have missed the entire conflict with Ra's al Ghul in the first movie didn't you? Or the entire point of Batman as a superhero. Batman doesn't murder his enemies, because Batman isn't a criminal and won't resort to going to the same level as his enemies. That hardly makes him stupid.

Del Murder
07-20-2008, 10:55 PM
I liked it a lot better than Batman Begins. A great movie. I expected to be a little sad at seeing Heath Ledger but I forgot all about that because Heath Ledger was no where to be seen. There was only the Joker. Best performance in a comic movie I've ever seen.

daggertrepe
07-20-2008, 11:04 PM
Heath Ledger deserves an Oscar for that mind blowing performance, dead or not.

Roto13
07-21-2008, 12:43 AM
New best super hero movie ever, imo. I can't believe it actually topped Batman Begins!

And I also didn't know Two Fave (or even Harvey Dent) was in this movie. xP I didn't actually watch any of the trailers because I didn't think I'd have the opportunity to see it because the nearest theater is really far away. :P But I made the trip just because it's Batman and it was totally worth it.

Jess
07-21-2008, 12:54 AM
I think I'm going to have to wait to see this until it comes out on DVD. :(

My friends and I have a "Cinema Tuesday" which we started very recently (because the ticket prices at the one we go to are half price on a Tuesday!) but, this week it has been moved to Wednesday (when it's first shown here!) and I work on Wednesday nights. :(

nooooooooooo.

Bahamut2000X
07-21-2008, 02:55 AM
Best performance in a comic movie I've ever seen.

Only in a comic book movie? Hell I think it was the best performance I've seen period. I've never seen anyone get so into character, let alone one as complex and twisted as The Joker.

Shlup
07-21-2008, 03:37 AM
To be able to play such a complex character so flawlessly, yeah... that performance was pretty epic.

It was like, every time the Joker came on screen the busy theater would just freeze. There would just be stillness mixed with uncomfortable, although genuine, laughter.

I almost feel stupid admitting it, but there was a scene (I don't remember which) were the Joker freaked me out so much I teared up. He was just terrifying. There's finally a Joker that just embodies chaos.

DMKA
07-21-2008, 04:04 AM
You know, there are only a handful of films I've seen in my life that I'd consider flawless, and damn, this is one of them.

I just got back from seeing it, because every showing from opening day up until 7:00pm tonight was sold out at my local theater, and the showing I went to ended up selling out as well (I kid you not). I'm not even a Batman fan and I was totally engrossed from beginning to end, completely forgetting the problems of everyday life. And Ledger gave one of the finest performances in recent memory.

I can see why it's breaking all the records it has so far.

Del Murder
07-21-2008, 05:00 AM
Best performance in a comic movie I've ever seen.

Only in a comic book movie? Hell I think it was the best performance I've seen period. I've never seen anyone get so into character, let alone one as complex and twisted as The Joker.
I agree, but I wanted to say it was the 'best ever' at something. There's been plenty of other better performances.

Rengori
07-21-2008, 05:11 AM
I almost feel stupid admitting it, but there was a scene (I don't remember which) were the Joker freaked me out so much I teared up. He was just terrifying. There's finally a Joker that just embodies chaos.

Yeah, that was the main reason I loved Ledger's performance. The Joker before was just a cartoon character, nothing serious, I used to think Batman was kinda lame because The Joker was his archnemesis. Ledger just completely crushed any preconceived notions of a cartoony Joker and made him into a serious, frightening, twisted character.

Miriel
07-21-2008, 07:52 AM
I thought the movie was great, it had me literally on the edge of my seat.

Heath Ledger was tremendous. Absolutely captivating. He was almost too good? There were moments here and there when I was sucked out of the movie because I was just watching the Joker and was suddenly struck with the knowledge that this was masterful acting being played out on the screen. I watched the flick of his tongue and the change in his gait and wondered how many hours in front of the mirror it took for Ledger to get to a place where he wholly embodied the character. He was so so good that I was thinking these things while watching the film, when I should have been concentrating on the story and the characters themselves.

In any case, I thought he was brilliant. The Joker brought so many shocking, horrifying, and creepily funny moments throughout the film. Pretty much blew my mind. The movie was long and I felt it. Maybe could have been tightened up a tiny bit, although I wouldn't want to give up a single second of Joker's time on the screen.

I also thought Eckhart did a great job as Harvey Dent, and in fact, Dent was a more interesting character to me than Batman was in this movie.

My only real gripe was Batman's voice. What the hell was up with that? Good thing it wasn't used that often.

Mucho thumbs up from me. :up:

Edit: I want to add that I pretty much squealed with glee when Cillian Murphy showed up as the Scarecrow for a little cameo. I love that guy, with his strangely handsome creepiness.

bipper
07-21-2008, 08:12 AM
I seen this movie last night and was blown away. I mean, wow. Just wow. This has been bumped up as my favorite movie, bumping a movie from completely different genre away. The philosophies of the new joker were much better wrapped in tremendous symbolism that was not foreign from the character at all. The character embodied the all that the Joker was, is, and will prolly ever be thanks to the untimely death.

The hospital scene where the joker drops his simple "Hello" to two face is amazing.

When the Joker states I am like a dog chasing cars.. I just never know what to do when I catch them was simple spot on and perfect. The delivery, the context, the syntax, and the projection was sparatic and just perfect, along with everything else he did.

Ledger MADE that movie. The rest of the cast was amazing too. But I just feel Ledger's performance took a great movie, and made it legendary. I have know idea when the oscars or whatever are, but his role better walk away with everything. Best of the best. I mean... wow. Ledger had always been and awesome actor, and able to play a character - but this... was simply amazing.

Like Miriel, I was a bit annoyed with batman's voice. I understand he has to guise it, but does he actually HAVE to swallow a quarter to get it to sound like that.

I am one to never watch a movie twice, save for rare occasions, and NEVER in the theater twice, but I am totally making an exception and have two dates set aside this weekend for it. That will be a total of three watches from a guy who usually doesn't get into movies.

Shlup
07-21-2008, 08:32 AM
Miriel brought up my one gripe, which I had forgotten about in my awe: Batman's voice hurt my throat to listen to. xD

Roto13
07-21-2008, 05:10 PM
Oh, oh, I have a gripe! The ending.

Batman was pretty quick to nail himself to the cross, there. "The people can never know what Dent did before he died!" "What about all of those dead people then?" "We'll say I did it!" "What the hell? Why? You know there are like a million other people in Gotham City we can blame, and like a million other ways to cover up a cri-" "NO I'M DOING IT BYE!" *runs away* What was the point?

I get that it works with the whole "Live long enough to become the villain" theme they had going there, but come on. :P

Shlup
07-21-2008, 05:24 PM
I thought it was fine. :p

XxSephirothxX
07-21-2008, 05:28 PM
My only real gripe was Batman's voice. What the hell was up with that? Good thing it wasn't used that often.
He did the same thing in Batman Begins, too. He just talked more in this one.

Bahamut2000X
07-21-2008, 05:28 PM
Well Roto they were surrounded by quite a few cops then who didn't know whether to charge in or wait. I'm sure hearing a gun shot didn't help matters either. I don't think they really had much of a chance to plan seeing as those cops would have moved the second they heard a gun and no word from the Commissioner.

As for blaming someone else, that's definitely not Batman's style. At best they could have blamed Joker, but he had an airtight alibi. He was hanging from the top of a sky scraper and trying to kill a few hundred people while Two Face was out killing people. And well with time constraints and no one else, I would be amazed if they could have done a better plan in less time then what they had.


I want to add that I pretty much squealed with glee when Cillian Murphy showed up as the Scarecrow for a little cameo. I love that guy, with his strangely handsome creepiness.

Yes! :D

Miriel
07-21-2008, 07:10 PM
My only real gripe was Batman's voice. What the hell was up with that? Good thing it wasn't used that often.
He did the same thing in Batman Begins, too. He just talked more in this one.

Ok, that's what people kept telling me and I didn't believe it because TRUST ME, that's the kind of thing I would remember. So I went on youtube and looked up Batman Begin clips and found the entire movie uploaded. Batman's voice in Batman Begins is like 1000x more normal sounding than his weird scooby doo thing he had going on in The Dark Knight. In fact I kinda LIKE the Batman voice in Batman Begins whereas his Dark Knight voice made me cringe. And shudder. And go "wtf?"

Raistlin
07-21-2008, 07:23 PM
I didn't notice a huge difference in the Batman voices between the movies, though his voice in both has occasionally bugged me.

Boney King
07-21-2008, 07:26 PM
Yeah the ultra-gruffness of Batman's voice isn't as noticeable in Batman Begins. I didn't really mind it at all though and I don't understand where the hate comes from. :-\ Someone explain.

Bunny
07-21-2008, 07:37 PM
I watched the flick of his tongue and the change in his gait and wondered how many hours in front of the mirror it took for Ledger to get to a place where he wholly embodied the character.

Apparently, Ledger spent a month locked in an apartment building by himself to prepare for the role. He also wrote journals as he thought Joker would write them and did pretty much everything else entirely in character. I thought that was pretty interesting and amazing on a commitment level.


My only real gripe was Batman's voice. What the hell was up with that? Good thing it wasn't used that often.

I agree and disagree. I was confused about the whole thing, but I thought it was minor enough to be ignored rather easily and it didn't effect the movie that much. I don't really think the movie was about Batman anyway.

Depression Moon
07-21-2008, 09:34 PM
I saw it last night and it was truly a masterpiece. Heath Ledger's last performance as the Joker was outstanding.
My favorite part was when heCame out of the hospital still in that nurse's outfit and then trying when kept on banging on that detonator trying to set off the other bombs and then when it did he ran off like a girl

Freya
07-21-2008, 09:56 PM
I work at the movie theaters so I keep going back over to the doors and watching a bit more of the movie again :D

And I go over there "Oh it's at that part, we still have about an hour left"

I think two-face is dead. When they both fell you have to think about the suit batman has on that gave him a bit more protection. And for other villains The riddler was more of Robins villain rather than batmans. And seeing as Nolan has said robin is out there in a crib still the riddler is a bit far off.

I personally don't think the penguin will be a great villain to add. We'll just have to see I guess :O

Rengori
07-21-2008, 10:58 PM
My favorite part was when he Came out of the hospital still in that nurse's outfit and then trying when kept on banging on that detonator trying to set off the other bombs and then when it did he ran off like a girl

Haha, that part was great.

Roto13
07-22-2008, 01:21 AM
Yes. That was hilarious. <3

Shlup
07-22-2008, 08:12 AM
Robin can't be in a crib. They showed Barbara and she was probably like eight, so Robin's gotta be about the same age. Still way too young to be coming up soon though.

CloudDragon
07-22-2008, 09:30 AM
This movie was fantastic. As everyone has already pointed out, Heath Ledger reinvented the role of The Joker entirely. In leaving out his past and origins, I believe him to be an absolute villain who is truly psycho. I really love the scene where Bruce and Alfred try to decipher what the Joker's motives are with this brilliant quote:

Alfred: And in their desperation they turned to a man they didn't fully understand. Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.

Incredible acting, a brilliant script, and very well directed. Immediately leaving the movie I thought that this movie and villain can't be beaten. I can't see them doing any better.

P.S. - Warwick Davis as the next Penguin.

Shlup
07-22-2008, 09:34 AM
Nah, Warwick Davis would be too gimmicky.

Miriel
07-22-2008, 11:20 AM
Media By Numbers' OFFICIAL DARK KNIGHT RECORDS SO FAR (in order of occurrence):

1 - LARGEST NUMBER OF OPENING THEATRES WITH 4,366 (MORE THAN THE 4,362 DEBUT THEATRES OF PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END IN 2007).

2 - BIGGEST MIDNIGHT PREVIEW GROSS WITH $18.489 MILLION IN 3,040 THEATRES (BEATS STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH AND ITS $16.9 MILLION IN 2,915 THEATRES IN 2005).

3 - BIGGEST IMAX MIDNIGHT PREVIEWS SET AN NEW RECORD WITH $640,000 (INCLUDED IN THE $18.489 MILLION PREVIEW NUMBER).

4 - BIGGEST SINGLE-DAY GROSS IN BOX-OFFICE HISTORY WITH $67.850 MILLION (BESTS THE $59,841,919 SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007).

5 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND GROSS IN BOX OFFICE HISTORY WITH $158.3 MILLION (BESTS THE $151,116 MILLION SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007).

6 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND GROSS FOR AN IMAX RELEASE IN BOX OFFICE HISTORY WITH $6,214,061 MILLION IN 94 THEATRES WITH $66,107 PER THEATRE. (BESTS THE $4.7 MILLION SET BY SPIDER-MAN 3 IN 2007.) IMAX SHOWING AT FULL CAPACITY $1.9 MILLION ON SATURDAY ALONE.

7 - BIGGEST OPENING WEEKEND OF 2008 WITH $158.3 MILLION (BEATS INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL'S $101.137 MILLION FROM MAY 23-25, 2008)

8 - BIGGEST JULY OPENING EVER (BEATS PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN'S CHEST'S $135,634,554 ON JULY 7, 2006).

Really, this is just an excuse for me to post this gif:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v181/Halfricaun/owned1.gif

Suck it, Spidey!

CloudDragon
07-22-2008, 11:22 AM
You would be to gimmicky.

Nolan would never go in that direction we all know *sigh*

Did you make that one yourself? Because it's genius.

Freya
07-22-2008, 11:59 AM
Nolan said it. He said that robin was out there in a crib somewhere. Don't hate the messenger D:

Shlup
07-22-2008, 12:12 PM
I know he said it, but he said it wrong, dammit!

Also, Miriel's GIF = lulz.

JKTrix
07-22-2008, 12:31 PM
I saw it last night.

I'm going to see it again.

Roto13
07-22-2008, 03:08 PM
How can they say that the movie business is in trouble when these records are broken like every six months? :P

Shlup
07-22-2008, 03:42 PM
Anyone who says that is in the business of making romantic comedies. I'm sure of it.

PEOPLE ARE GETTING WISE TO YOU, JENNIFER ANISTON!

Big D
07-24-2008, 06:26 AM
Just got back from it, a fine film in every respect. Exceeded expectations, and went in unexpected directions, as a great movie should.

Fine direction, acting, and effects.

As my flatmate pointed out, the movie's very much about the rise and fall of Two-Face, with the Joker as more of a driving force who's propelling that particular plot. It's just that Mr Ledger's unfortunate death gave them an excellent angle to use in their publicity, distasteful though such a practice may be, since he turned in such a brilliant and unique performance.

I'm glad to have avoided all spoilers for this film. I never knew Two-Face would rise to actual villainhood in this film, rather I was expecting him to be set up as the next film's nemesis. I also would never have expected Rachel to die. It definitely made the Joker's life-or-death games more real and hard-hitting to Wayne, and of course it was critical to Dent's transformation. However, and this may seem strange, I found Aaron Eckhart's performances one of the weaker parts of the film. Not that I think acted poorly, not by any means - but despite the queasily realistic burn effects, his voice, sight, and body language didn't change much in response. He was more like a guy with prosthetics, than a guy with horrific burns. Still, this didn't exactly detract from the film in any significant way.

I guess there's no avoiding mention of Heath Ledger as the Joker, though, and that was definitely as strong a performance as people have been saying. Extremely convincing detail on the mannerisms and voice, the sadism and masochism. Particularly creepy was how he made the clown-smile makeup itself seem to 'come to life', as though it was actually a part of his face.
I've got to disagree with the people who are saying he can never be replaced in the role, though. I'm convinced the mask could be taken up by a replacement - there are other actors out there who could perform just as brilliantly in that role. Thanks to the amount of makeup and prosthetics, the differences in face structure could be hidden easily enough, especially if he's just given longer hair or something. The crucial factor, though, will be getting someone who can play the Joker - not someone who'll just try to mimic Heath Ledger as the Joker. Copying another actor's style won't work; they'll have to bring the character to life through their own inspiration, but without deviating from the standard that's been set. If they can achieve that, then we can see hope to see 'the same' Joker in future.

:DUnless, of course, George Lucas gets involved somehow - in which case we can expected to see a CG Heath Ledger. God forbid.

Speaking of Lucas... did anyone else feel that Maggie Gyllenhaal looked exactly like a young Carrie Fisher in this movie? In looks and voice, she was nearly a precise match. If George Lucas loses his final marbles and decides to re-make Star Wars entirely, I reckon we can expect Gyllenhaal to be there.

Shlup
07-24-2008, 06:36 AM
A lot of your spoiler isn't a spoiler. xD

I disagree that Ledger's death was used for any sort of publicity. The Joker was being pimped since the moment Batman Begins was released because Joker is simply a fan favorite. When I saw his card in the end of the first film, I squee'd out loud in the theater. I didn't see the level of pimping him change at all after his death.

And I agree that they can find another Joker, it's just painful to think about because Ledger did such an epic job. He embodied the Joker in a way that fans couldn't even dream of. It'll be hard to swallow someone else (that's what she said) until that person is actually seen in action.

And, bah, don't mention George Lucas in this thread. It's like kriptonite.

ljkkjlcm9
07-24-2008, 06:59 AM
OK a few things:
Two-Face is dead. Uhm, I'm quite sure Batman did not fall, he was holding on to the ledge. So people that are saying it makes no sense that he survived the same fall. I'd be severely disappointed if they brought him back, because it would defeat the entire ending of the movie, with Batman taking the blame for everything.

now here is a question my friends and I wondered about, and were commenting on during the movie... but never got answered.
The boats... when we first saw the detonators, we assumed they blew up the opposite boat. But then we thought they probably blew up the boat they were on, because the Joker is twisted like that. You go to save yourself, but end up killing yourself instead. And if they blew up the other boat, then they'd live. If it blew up their own boat, they could both kill themselves. We figured that's the more likely scenario, but we never actually found out.

THE JACKEL

Big D
07-24-2008, 07:05 AM
OK a few things:
Two-Face is dead. Uhm, I'm quite sure Batman did not fall, he was holding on to the ledge. So people that are saying it makes no sense that he survived the same fall. I'd be severely disappointed if they brought him back, because it would defeat the entire ending of the movie, with Batman taking the blame for everything.Bruce definitely fell, but he survived due to being a muscle-bound badass, wearing everything-proof body armour and trained by ninjas. He still got hurt, but he's good at not getting hurt by stuff that'd munt a normal person beyond repair. And Dent was just out of hospital, physically and mentally damaged by what he'd been through...
now here is a question my friends and I wondered about, and were commenting on during the movie... but never got answered.
The boats... when we first saw the detonators, we assumed they blew up the opposite boat. But then we thought they probably blew up the boat they were on, because the Joker is twisted like that. You go to save yourself, but end up killing yourself instead. And if they blew up the other boat, then they'd live. If it blew up their own boat, they could both kill themselves. We figured that's the more likely scenario, but we never actually found out.Quite possible, but then there's no way to know really.
A lot of your spoiler isn't a spoiler. xDSure, but I figured I'd just tag the whole thing - except the George Lucas part - to avoid any risks.
I disagree that Ledger's death was used for any sort of publicity.I agree with you for the most part, but the trailers for the film - and the coverage by news media and other third-parties - have been all about Ledger/Joker, with barely a mention of Dent/Two-Face being in the movie.


:edit: I was going to mention it in my original post, but damn - Michael Caine was, as always, awesome in this movie. Great acting and great dialogue. If I was rich and powerful, I'd want a butler like him.

Rengori
07-24-2008, 07:06 AM
Yeah I was wondering that thing about the BOATS too, but I guess we'll never know. It would've been more twisted that way but the point was the people on the boat didn't want to do it like the Joker thought they would.

Oh, and the trailers clearly mentioned Harvey Dent being in the movie.

Miriel
07-24-2008, 08:01 AM
It's not a question of can they replace Ledger. Of course they can. It's not like there's some sort of death clause that says that they can't. It's a question of will they replace Ledger and the answer is no.

Now as for how successful a replacement would be... well let me just say that if Heath Ledger hadn't died, I do not doubt for a second that he would have gone on to be considered one of the world's most acclaimed actors.

This isn't the first time Heath Ledger has proven himself to be more than an decent actor. I was blown away by his performance in Brokeback Mountain. Seriously one of the most captivating performances I've ever seen on screen. Ever. And this isn't newly discovered praise that I'm heaping just cause he's dead. If you search back a few years, you'll be sure to find posts from me praising him to the heavens for his acting prowess. I don't think people should underestimate just how rare and gifted an actor Ledger was and really what a stunning loss he was to the film industry.

I can't think of another actor of his generation who can go toe to toe with Ledger. Sure there are plenty of really great actors out there: Leonardo DiCaprio, James McAvoy, Adrien Brody, Ryan Gosling, Ewan McGregor, Casey Affleck, Gael Garcia Bernal, etc. Even before his performance as the Joker, Ledger showed signs of genius that went beyond what his peers were doing. So who exactly can match what Ledger did, let alone raise the bar higher? I'm interested in hearing some suggestions, cause I can't think of any, although maybe an unknown might be able to do the job.

I just went back and searched for some of my thoughts on Ledger back in 2005 and I found that a lot of my praise for his performance in Brokeback Mountain can be applied to his performance in the Dark Knight. And it's so strange considering how vastly different the two roles are.


I can't get over how amazing Heath Ledger was in this film. He was staggering, nothing short of staggering. I can name very few actors who could bring such intensity and passion to such a quiet and subtle role. He rivals Marlon Brando at his best, with this role.


Also, yes Heath Ledger's performance was THAT good. I couldn't take my eyes off him.



Ledger delved so deep into his character, that I find it almost unbelievable that he could have found his way back out again. And even then, I can't imagine that he was not a changed person for having embodied this character so fully and completely throughout those long weeks of production.

Basically, I think Ledger was a genius. Pure and simple. Someone, someday may top Ledger's Joker but for right now I can't see it being done. And I don't think they'll even try.

Big D
07-24-2008, 08:18 AM
I agree entirely about Ledger's acting skill; I saw Brokeback Mountain for the first time not long before his death.

Because of the timing of his passing, I agree it'll be an emotionally difficult decision to cast someone else as the 'next' Joker, but I still think it could happen. There'd be questions of sensitivity and exploitation, but if they could recast Dumbledore in the Harry Potter films following the death of the legendary Richard Harris, then they can do the same for the Joker.

Miriel
07-24-2008, 08:38 AM
But they had to recast Dumbledore. It's not like they could just write him out of the movies. Plus, I hate to say it, but I thought Richard Harris did a rather lackluster job as Dumbledore and if I were the director, I would have recast him regardless. :greenie:

I just think that Nolan and the entire cast and crew would be very reluctant to bring someone in to fill Ledger's shoes. I just feel like Ledger's death was too tragic, too recent and his performance too good that they would try and replace him when it's not exactly necessary.

Now it's a different story with The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which was the last project that Ledger was working on. He only got halfway through production before he died, and so Jude Law, Johnny Depp, and Colin Farrel have all agreed to to pick up where Ledger left the role so that the film could be completed and as a way to pay tribute to the actor.

The next batman movie doesn't have to have a Joker in it. I'm sure they planned on it, but there are other villains to work with and the Joker's part in Dark Knight was complete and whole and it's not like there has to be a continuation of his story in the next film.

Big D
07-24-2008, 09:13 AM
:) I see what you mean there, but I still reckon they could 'resurrect' the character without breaching the bounds of good taste. He's Batman's nemesis, after all, and the film made it clear he was captured and incarcerated. I can imagine the studio making a point of him escaping the asylum and re-emerging as 'a new man', perhaps with a whole new aspect to his personality or appearance... that way, they'd avoid the problem of having someone play 'the same Joker' as Ledger while ensuring that it's still the same character.
He's just such a quintessential part of the Batman mythos, past and present. To 'kill' a major character completely after the accidental death of the man responsible for a particularly fine performance... it just seems like a waste of the material and potential of the character, especially since other fictional characters have survived the loss of their performers.

Dreddz
07-24-2008, 06:03 PM
I just came back from seeing it and surprise surprise, I loved it. Heath Ledger was great but I wouldn't say better than Jack Nicholson because they played such different characters. Heaths Joker was more of a psychopath than a clown. His character did wore a little thin near the end but I think it was due to the film being too long. The first few scenes with him in them were easily the best parts of the movie.

I also liked the guy who played Harvey Dent. But that's was leads me to the end of the film He shouldn't have died in my opinion, I would of looked forward to him being in the third Batman. He should have killed Joker in the hospital and the film should have ended. It would have cut a lot of the film out and made the third Batman more anticipated

The last thing that I disliked which holds true to Begins as well is the lack of Danny Elfman's score. The music was still good but Elfman's Batman theme is the Batman theme in my opinion. Nothing is a true Batman flick without it.

Kenshin IV
07-24-2008, 06:11 PM
Elfman's fantasy, hero-like theme isn't suited for the gritty, realistic world Nolan created. It's a better score by leaps and bounds from a pure musical sense, but the Zimmer/Howard score is far more in line with the tone of the Nolan films. And it is a good score on it's own, just not on the caliber of Elfman.

Dreddz
07-24-2008, 06:31 PM
I understand what you are saying but nostalgia will always take the best of me. Because Burtons Batman's had the best musical scores out of any film Ive ever seen I do take it quite personal when they removed them from Nolans Batmans.

Oh and if were comparing films I still think Michael Keaton is a better Batman than Christian Bale. Bale does Bruce Wayne great but Batman.....meh. His voice while being Batman is laughable and I really don't know why he does it like that.

BG-57
07-26-2008, 03:37 PM
Finally saw it last night. Ledger's Joker reminds me of Forest Whitaker's amazing performance of Idi Amin in the Last King of Scotland. Both did masterful jobs of portraying psychopaths with a charismatic and charming side. Very creepy and disturbing.

Bolivar
07-26-2008, 11:44 PM
Just saw it today, and it met and exceeded expectations. As far as strengths go, the writing and directing was great, while the acting was nothing less than superb.

I have to agree with Dreddz on a number of points, though. For one, I think alot of people are being a little quick to deify Heath Ledger's the Joker. As a fan of the comics, I have to say that Ledger played a psychopath with a humorous spin, but Jack Nicholson was The Joker. Also, one of the most recognized characteristics is the iconic laugh, and his fell very short of Nicholson in the first Burton movie and Mark Hamill in the animated series. While Ledger needed witty writing and extreme situations to get his point across, Nicholson was able to do it with something as simple as "I'm glad you're dead."

But that's not to say he didn't surpass expectations. Same with Aaron Eckhart, who I think knocked it out the park with Two Face. I just kind of feel that with Eckhart still alive, they killed off the wrong villain. One of the aspects I like best about Nolan's movies are that he doesn't cop out by using the entire criminal lifespan of villains for the sake of individual movies, so I'm surprised to see that he disappointed in this way. It's unfortunate that Ledger died especially because Nolan obviously wrote him to appear in many movies down the road.

Some of my criticisms relate to the graphic novel "The Dark Knight Returns". It is the basis for the entire modern conception of Batman, not to mention the movies. With Superhero movies being so prominent today, not to mention Frank Miller himself, the inevitability of this seeing a cinematic depiction may come sooner than expected. This movie throws it off a little with Two Face's death and already introducing Batman copy cats.

None of this keeps it from being an A+ effort and I'm really looking forward to Nolan and Bale's next interpretation of Batman.

Rengori
07-27-2008, 11:36 AM
Okay so I saw it again, and I don't know if other people have said this yet, but I think I realized why Batman's voice was weirder this time around. I think it's the mask, there's no place to breathe through his nose, if you notice he's gaping his mouth like a fish the whole movie.

Spiffing Cheese
07-31-2008, 01:15 AM
I saw it earlier; utterly fantastic. Heath Ledger blew me away.

Chzn8r
08-01-2008, 04:26 AM
I was going to mention it in my original post, but damn - Michael Caine was, as always, awesome in this movie. Great acting and great dialogue. If I was rich and powerful, I'd want a butler like him.

He's friggin perfect for the role of Alfred. Seriously. I respect that the old Alfred was good for those movies, but I just can't think of another Alfred now. Michael Caine is the man.

Heath
08-01-2008, 11:22 PM
Saw it this evening and really enjoyed it. Much better than I expected it to be; I'd heard a lot of hype about how good it was and rather successfully managed to avoid learning anything about the film at all. Naturally I had no idea about Two-Face being in the film, but it was definitely good. I also expected Dent to be built up into a villain for the next film. I actually thought it was a pretty good performance of Dent. I think that Two-Face could easily had justified being the main villain in another film, though I'm unsure whether or not he could be after the role in this film. I'd certainly like him to reappear later though.

A lot of the discussion has centred around Ledger's portrayal of the Joker. I must admit, when I saw the still photos of the Joker, I didn't particularly like how he was. However having seen the film, I really liked the performance. I must admit, I did think that a lot of the praise for Ledger was coloured by his recent death, but I think his performance was well deserving of the praise. Excellent villain for an excellent film. Definitely one of the best films I've seen lately and probably the best superhero film I've seen at all.

Though I did think that that mob boss looked a lot like Michael Portillo.

Jessweeee♪
08-01-2008, 11:38 PM
WHY WON'T ANYONE SEE THIS MOVIE WITH ME?

:kaoangry:

Del Murder
08-01-2008, 11:44 PM
Go stag.

Bunny
08-01-2008, 11:52 PM
I must admit, I did think that a lot of the praise for Ledger was coloured by his recent death, but I think his performance was well deserving of the praise. Excellent villain for an excellent film.

I went in thinking the same thing. I had seen a lot of other Ledger movies and while his performances were pretty decent, they weren't anything to write home about. His portrayal of The Joker though was simply amazing.

Formalhaut
08-02-2008, 12:54 AM
I really want to see this film but its a 15 and I'm 13.. ARRRR

It looks like a really good film from the trailers. 5 stars from most critics so yeah when it comes out on DvD yeah.

Heath
08-02-2008, 01:02 AM
Bournemouth as in Bournemouth in Dorset?

The film's only a 12A. Bloody surprised it got such a low rating though.

Formalhaut
08-02-2008, 01:10 AM
Yes Bournemouth as Dorset, England.

Really is it???? god Im surprised. Well at least I can go to the cinemas. (When I DO go out...)

Ki Ki
08-03-2008, 09:57 PM
Saw it yesterday.
I didn't liek how batman was talking all deep and stuff. :catsmile:
Ok, I know he's suppose to do that but it made me giggle every time he said something.

I loved Heath's performance but Jack Nicholson played the joker as he's seen in the comics.

I liked the movie, didn't love it though.

I did love that one scene where the Joker's sitting next to Harvey in the hospital in a nurse oufit! Lulz! He's so cute!

Shlup
08-03-2008, 10:43 PM
1) I thought that, when Two Face fell, his eyes were open, that being a large factor in me believing he was really dead. Re-watching it, his only eye that had an eyelid was not open. OoooOOoooOoo...!

2) I thought that Harvey had knocked over the oil drum on purpose to try and drink the oil and kill himself so Rachel could be saved. The angle of the shot confused me. I guess he just fell and was smushed to the ground. I didn't like when they turned the camera when Joker was hanging upside down either. Flipping the angles like that makes me dizzy.

Marshall Banana
08-03-2008, 11:02 PM
I loved Batman's voice and hated the look of Two-Face; Two-Face wasn't very impressive, anyway. Why is Christian Bale so cool? I can't stop thinking about how cool he is in The Dark Knight. =O

Boney King
08-03-2008, 11:55 PM
Discuss fake posters.

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w312/Adrian347/1217747964043.jpg

Shlup
08-04-2008, 12:02 AM
xD

Badge
08-28-2008, 11:12 AM
SIX?!

Roto13
08-28-2008, 03:40 PM
OHMYGAWD IT'S QUESTION MARK

Croyles
08-31-2008, 01:37 AM
I almost feel stupid admitting it, but there was a scene (I don't remember which) were the Joker freaked me out so much I teared up. He was just terrifying. There's finally a Joker that just embodies chaos.

Yeah, that was the main reason I loved Ledger's performance. The Joker before was just a cartoon character, nothing serious, I used to think Batman was kinda lame because The Joker was his archnemesis. Ledger just completely crushed any preconceived notions of a cartoony Joker and made him into a serious, frightening, twisted character.

What you have to remember is that the batman comics had A LOT of different artists. The first batman had a very dark and twisted joker (i think?) and also later when Frank Miller drew some.

As for the movie, only just saw it yesterday but damn!!! Best comic book film ive ever seen! There are so many great comic book films lately though. Sin City, 300, Iron Man, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, spiderman can suck my balls.

Heath was just amazing. So sad to see him go, and not just for this role.

For the record, I never liked Nicholson's The Joker, I thought it was pretty awful, and I think im not alone.
Danny Elfmans tune definitely was better, but wouldnt fit with Nolan's take on Batman.

According to IMDB, Jake Gyllenhaal was also considered for the role as Harvey Dent......
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EEEEWWWWWW! INCEST!

Christmas
05-09-2022, 11:14 AM
It is like the second coming of christ. :bigsmile: