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The Dark Knight SPOILER THREAD

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The film's not big and dumb like many blockbusters but it's nowhere near as emotionally sophisticated as some of you are making out.
 
I think the movie easily makes you emotionally invest in Dent. The most emotional scene for me was when Dent awakes in a hospital bed, finds the coin he gave Rachel, then flips over the coin to see the burnt side. He starts screaming in pain, but all you hear is a soft steam pot siren.

I damn near choked. ='(
 
Prime crotch said:
Oh come the fuck on, was this year that shallow in movies? On the other hand I haven't cared about Oscar nominations since The Aviator got robbed.

Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are the three that I know of that could be Oscar contenders (though I know nothing of the first one). Leaves room for The Dark Knight and something else.

So to answer your question, I guess so.
 
killertofu said:
Holy fuck, that was amazing.


Kinda off topic, but for my last paper in my literature class, the Professor asked us to compare Lord of the Flies' themes of civility versus savagery to another work (film, song, etc). I'm kinda thinking of comparing it to The Dark Knight. You guys think it could work?

Holy crap that was well done.

"You have nothing ... nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength."

- best line in the entire movie
 
Solo said:
I saw the movie multiple times in theatres, and nerded out over it in this thread many times during July/August. But now that I think about it, Ive barely thought about the film since. Perhaps the film doesnt have staying power, at least with me personally.

No.
 
AniHawk said:
Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are the three that I know of that could be Oscar contenders (though I know nothing of the first one). Leaves room for The Dark Knight and something else.

So to answer your question, I guess so.

So that covers the British pick, the indie pick and the director who was snubbed last year...the last two would be The Dark Knight and Wall-E hopefully. And I hear that Slumdog Millionaire got slammed with an 'R' in the States? That's pretty insane compared with The Dark Knight.
 
Nine versions of TDK are going on sale at Best Buy including two that come with a mask and figurine (exclusives) according to SHH. There's also a link there to six clips from the bonus features.
 
joshuagor44 said:
Nine versions of TDK are going on sale at Best Buy including two that come with a mask and figurine (exclusives) according to SHH. There's also a link there to six clips from the bonus features.
Damnnn.

I was at Wal-Mart yesterday, and they are selling The Dark Knight with a replica Two-Face coin.
 
Guzim said:
Damnnn.

I was at Wal-Mart yesterday, and they are selling The Dark Knight with a replica Two-Face coin.

Christ almighty, how many versions of this movie am I going to have to buy?

I already want the DVD Steelbook, the Blueray Steelbook (for when I finally get a BlueRay player) and now I want that one for the coin....


Bah!
 
SpeedingUptoStop said:
So true. So true.

i keep trying to wrap my my mind around how this is connected to Batman Begins. I love BB, really, honest to god, one of my top 3 all time favorites. But TDK...it's just on another level. A level I didn't know existed. It's really hard to imagine they're in the same universe. Watching them back to back just will feel so odd. BB is such a personal story, told from a direct POV. The Dark Knight is simply...larger than life. Larger than life. Everything about it. They just feel so different, yet they're in the same universe. The 3rd film is gonna have to tie them together in some way. I'd love to hear more about Bruce's father, he was a cool dude.

I'm about to ramble, so, in summation: I saw bot h these films opening weekends in theaters and came away thinking two distinct things. Batman Begins is everything I wanted in a film. The Dark Knight is everything I never knew I wanted in a film. Simply put.


the third movie has to be the totality of the tragedy that is batman.

he lost his love. he lost his parents. he lost his only hope to give up batman. he lost the city...they dont trust him or like him. he lost the cops.

he is hated, alone, and yet can not do anything to change it.

i really hope nolan focuses on that mostly in the third movie because if i did have one complaint about the dark knight, and i mentioned this before, is that it failed to capture the sadness of bruce wayne. rachel seemed more annoyed with him throughout the whole movie rather than being torn between two men. and nolan missed a great opportunity to show how hard bruce takes the loss of rachel. its just a 2 min scene with him on his couch. i thought for sure they would show him kinda losing it and having flashbacks to his parents dying.

in the end when dent says "why am i the only one who lost everything?" and batman says "your not"....that line does not hit as hard as it should have because you never see bruce go crazy for a moment when rachel passes away.
 
Prime crotch said:
Oh come the fuck on, was this year that shallow in movies? On the other hand I haven't cared about Oscar nominations since The Aviator got robbed.

I remember after last year's Oscar show there were some complaints that the only movies being nominated were ones that 90% of the country hadn't even heard of, much less seen. Now, some of that [well, most of it] is because movies that 90% of the country have seen are terrible, but the point still stands.

This year we have a movie that probably 90% of the country has actually seen and that got high praise from virtually every reviewer. So they could nominate the popular favorite without having to drag in stuff like Transformers or whatever.
 
Masked Man said:
Totally agreed. As it has been mentioned, though, I would be more than happy if he were to receive, say, Best Supporting Actor. As long as he is recognized for have done such an ineffably wonderful job, then I will be satisfied.

I'd say Heath was recognized by the millions upon millions of people that went to this movie multiple times, and the countless glowing reviews he received.

A bunch of old shitheads in 'the Academy' recognizing it isn't the ultimate validation, IMO.
 
GhaleonEB said:
Yup. And the raw emotion of the film. At it's heart, Dark Knight is really a tragedy. The movie tore me up, and it hasn't left my mind since the last viewing. Dent's story really hit me.

Totally agreed! One of the reviews was quoted as calling the movie "Shakespearean," which is probably the best way to describe it--it's tragedy on a wholly believable and heartrending scale. Likewise, it transcends the genre into which it is categorized and stands alone as an incredible piece of cinema.

Film of the Forever.
 
My opinion:

The Dark Knight is one of my favorite films of all time, but the film isn't without it's odd flaws. Bale's "Batman voice" is just distracting and annoying; if I were to see a Batman talk likie that in real life; I'd laugh at him. Another problem I had were the odd edits, like now show Lau get bruned or even hear him scream when the Joekr burns up the money. I'm sure there is a reason for it, but it realy felt like the writers simply forgot he was there. My last complaint is Two-Face. Harvey Dent was such a great, realistic character. When he becomes Two-Face, it just seems so sudden, and he seems much more "comic-booky." Two-Face's character almost doesn't fit in the film at all considering how realistic (to a certain degree) the rest of the film is.

With those nit-picks aside (though, I really think Bale's Batman is laughable; from the suit to the voice), The Dark Knight is one of my favorite movies of all time. I would only choose Mask of Phantasm above it.
 
Oh wow, the BB figures looks pretty nice,but I like the sound of the Two-Face coin from Walmart; it should make decisions in poker much easier (screw poker math)!

And there's a steel case out there? Decisions, decisions. @_@
 
ToyMachine228 said:
Can't wait to have The Dark Knight as part of my Blu-Ray collection! Can't wait!

This probably isn't the thread for it, but your XBL name really throws me. :lol

I am tempted to get the blu ray at best buy or whoever is offering those toys.
 
jett said:
TDK will be second blu-ray purchase.

First was the awesome wowsome Blade Runner set.

I have quickly become a blu ray whore.
Within 3 weeks of owning it,
Batman Begins
Iron Man
TMNT
Casino Royale
Spiderman 3
Nightmare Before Christmas
Wall-E
Tropic Thunder

Soon to add The Dark Knight
Debating if Wanted warrants a blu ray upgrade.
 
KeeSomething said:
My opinion:

The Dark Knight is one of my favorite films of all time, but the film isn't without it's odd flaws. Bale's "Batman voice" is just distracting and annoying; if I were to see a Batman talk likie that in real life; I'd laugh at him. Another problem I had were the odd edits, like now show Lau get bruned or even hear him scream when the Joekr burns up the money. I'm sure there is a reason for it, but it realy felt like the writers simply forgot he was there. My last complaint is Two-Face. Harvey Dent was such a great, realistic character. When he becomes Two-Face, it just seems so sudden, and he seems much more "comic-booky." Two-Face's character almost doesn't fit in the film at all considering how realistic (to a certain degree) the rest of the film is.

With those nit-picks aside (though, I really think Bale's Batman is laughable; from the suit to the voice), The Dark Knight is one of my favorite movies of all time. I would only choose Mask of Phantasm above it.

Considering his fiance was just killed and his face was completely fucked up and city cops turned on him I can see the sudden change. It's called "snapping". It doesn't happen gradually.
 
KeeSomething said:
My opinion:

The Dark Knight is one of my favorite films of all time, but the film isn't without it's odd flaws. Bale's "Batman voice" is just distracting and annoying; if I were to see a Batman talk likie that in real life; I'd laugh at him. Another problem I had were the odd edits, like now show Lau get bruned or even hear him scream when the Joekr burns up the money. I'm sure there is a reason for it, but it realy felt like the writers simply forgot he was there. My last complaint is Two-Face. Harvey Dent was such a great, realistic character. When he becomes Two-Face, it just seems so sudden, and he seems much more "comic-booky." Two-Face's character almost doesn't fit in the film at all considering how realistic (to a certain degree) the rest of the film is.

With those nit-picks aside (though, I really think Bale's Batman is laughable; from the suit to the voice), The Dark Knight is one of my favorite movies of all time. I would only choose Mask of Phantasm above it.

I thought Two-Face fit perfectly.
 
Buckethead said:
Don't mean to hijack, but why does that warrant a purchase at all?

I enjoyed the movie.
The action was over the top.
The plot was bizarre.

But it was fun, all I could ask for.
And come on curving bullets! :D
 
effzee said:
the third movie has to be the totality of the tragedy that is batman.

he lost his love. he lost his parents. he lost his only hope to give up batman. he lost the city...they dont trust him or like him. he lost the cops.

he is hated, alone, and yet can not do anything to change it.

i really hope nolan focuses on that mostly in the third movie because if i did have one complaint about the dark knight, and i mentioned this before, is that it failed to capture the sadness of bruce wayne. rachel seemed more annoyed with him throughout the whole movie rather than being torn between two men. and nolan missed a great opportunity to show how hard bruce takes the loss of rachel. its just a 2 min scene with him on his couch. i thought for sure they would show him kinda losing it and having flashbacks to his parents dying.

in the end when dent says "why am i the only one who lost everything?" and batman says "your not"....that line does not hit as hard as it should have because you never see bruce go crazy for a moment when rachel passes away.
Agreed. Bringing it back to Bruce, perhaps redemption, perhaps a final tragedy...the 3rd film definitely needs ot be personal again.


I know a lot of people talk about how Bruce Wayne's emotional side was a missed opportunity. That's okay, I can deal. Personally, I think it's all there, under the surface. Without a distinct call out to Papa Wayne via flashback, you do seem him lose his cool. The interrogation scene, the short breakdown after rachel died, fucking throwing the joker off the roof (seemed totally unnecessary to me, a momentary lapse where he just said "fuck this shit" to himself). There's more Batman than Bruce because it seems more like Bruce is becoming Batman in this film. Not training to be him like in BB, but actually being consumed by the character. Even he probably doesn't realize when it's on (like when he uses the Bat voice around people who know who he is). He's pushing his emotions deep inside towards the end of the film. It's what separates him from Harvey Two Face. Two Face made incredibly emotional decisions disguised by the chance of the coin. Batman has to be a cold blooded dude, just to keep himself sane.

I can see the end of The Dark Knight totally cracking shit open for him again though. He really is hated, by like, just about everyone. And most people who loved him are dead. Shit is cold. I just hope 3 doesn't wallow in it too long.
 
effzee said:
the third movie has to be the totality of the tragedy that is batman.

he lost his love. he lost his parents. he lost his only hope to give up batman. he lost the city...they dont trust him or like him. he lost the cops.

he is hated, alone, and yet can not do anything to change it.

i really hope nolan focuses on that mostly in the third movie because if i did have one complaint about the dark knight, and i mentioned this before, is that it failed to capture the sadness of bruce wayne. rachel seemed more annoyed with him throughout the whole movie rather than being torn between two men. and nolan missed a great opportunity to show how hard bruce takes the loss of rachel. its just a 2 min scene with him on his couch. i thought for sure they would show him kinda losing it and having flashbacks to his parents dying.

in the end when dent says "why am i the only one who lost everything?" and batman says "your not"....that line does not hit as hard as it should have because you never see bruce go crazy for a moment when rachel passes away.

They showed him on a couch crying. I don't get this, a lot of people wanted to see Bruce go ape shit insane mourning her death, like throwing shit out of the window, screaming ect. Not everyone looses it like that when somebody dies. Bruce lived a dangerous life, his actions directly and indirectly affected the people he was connected with. Just by being Batman people he knew were in danger. I don't think her dying was a huge shocker, and I don't think we needed to spend a whole lot of time on Bruce mourning/being a pussy (Yes I get it, she was a life long friend and companion..) but Batman is a bad-ass. He rebounds and comes back time and time again, I don't think he perpetuates on behalf inner emptiness and self remorse, but rather on behalf of all the people who can't mediate or protect themselves and others (like his parents and the like)..
 
Now that Australia is a bust, I imagine the nominees being The Dark Knight, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, The Wrestler, & Frost/Nixon. Also, didn't Benjamin Button screen poorly?
 
AlternativeUlster said:
Now that Australia is a bust, I imagine the nominees being The Dark Knight, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, The Wrestler, & Frost/Nixon. Also, didn't Benjamin Button screen poorly?
Benji seems to be turning out to be like an 80% film. Some people don't feel too emotionally arrested by it.

And yea, these Milk reviews lately seem to make it a lock.
 
Extollere said:
They showed him on a couch crying. I don't get this, a lot of people wanted to see Bruce go ape shit insane mourning her death, like throwing shit out of the window, screaming ect. Not everyone looses it like that when somebody dies. Bruce lived a dangerous life, his actions directly and indirectly affected the people he was connected with. Just by being Batman people he knew were in danger. I don't think her dying was a huge shocker, and I don't think we needed to spend a whole lot of time on Bruce mourning/being a pussy (Yes I get it, she was a life long friend and companion..) but Batman is a bad-ass. He rebounds and comes back time and time again, I don't think he perpetuates on behalf inner emptiness and self remorse, but rather on behalf of all the people who can't mediate or protect themselves and others (like his parents and the like)..

to me the movie deals with how both men...dent and wayne deal with the loss of the woman they love.

dent goes completely nuts.

wayne shows some remorse while sitting on his couch but then its almost like back to normal business as usual.

im not saying go nuts and become something batman is not. but as bruce...they can show him emotionally falling apart. it was implied but where dents anger and sadness is both implied and shown...bruce's is only implied and lost in the shadows.
 
effzee said:
to me the movie deals with how both men...dent and wayne deal with the loss of the woman they love.

dent goes completely nuts.

wayne shows some remorse while sitting on his couch but then its almost like back to normal business as usual.

im not saying go nuts and become something batman is not. but as bruce...they can show him emotionally falling apart. it was implied but where dents anger and sadness is both implied and shown...bruce's is only implied and lost in the shadows.

Maybe that's how it should be too. Death needn't be the only motivator for both men (I know there are other elements at work there). Batman is a restless character, with huge resolve. The pace of this movie is a testament itself to Batman's character. Dent has little resolve, but instead he become introverted negatively, and violently reacts towards everyone else as he knows he has little time to live. Batman's motivators and tragedies just compel him to do his job better :P I think that's a big difference between the two characters.

EDIT: Also it's worth noting that Batman's character represents an order in absolute controll, while the Joker's represents a complete disorder (through orderly action). This is a part of why I have no problem with Bruce maintaining control over his remorse. Two Face is the result of the influence of both Batman and the Joker's characters. Harvey is inspired by Batman, and Batman gives him one of his two signature traits, his scarred coin, while his other half is influenced subsequently by the Joker. The Joker also gives him the other part of his ensemble, his gun, and this completes his character. It's ironic because Dent wanted to serve Gotham, and instead he just represented it, the best (Batman), and the worst of it (Joker).
 
Extollere said:
Maybe that's how it should be too. Death needn't be the only motivator for both men (I know there are other elements at work there). Batman is a restless character, with huge resolve. The pace of this movie is a testament itself to Batman's character. Dent has little resolve, but instead he become introverted negatively, and violently reacts towards everyone else as he knows he has little time to live. Batman's motivators and tragedies just compel him to do his job better :P I think that's a big difference between the two characters.

yeah but your comparing dent to batman.

im talking about bruce wayne. you can show bruce wayne upset, sad, angry, and losing conrtol of his emotions.

batman is how he deals with it and yes as batman he does not loose his cool but rather becomes better at what he does.

i guess its a minor complaint but the only complaint i had about the dark knight. i felt overall in the movie batman/bruce were not shown in the same tragic light as others. and i also did not like how rachel from begins and rachen from the dark knight came off as two different personalities, and not because of the change in actress. rachel in begins seemed very strong but also very much in love with bruce. rachel in the dark knight seems really annoyed by bruce in every scene they share.

"WHY IS HE LETTING HARVEY TAKE THE FALL?"
 
effzee said:
yeah but your comparing dent to batman.

im talking about bruce wayne. you can show bruce wayne upset, sad, angry, and losing conrtol of his emotions.

batman is how he deals with it and yes as batman he does not loose his cool but rather becomes better at what he does.


"WHY IS HE LETTING HARVEY TAKE THE FALL?"

I don't think that Bruce and Batman are entirely two different characters. I think Bruce uses Batman more as a tool for change, another way to get things done. Not as way to hide his wounds. I'm not a comic book historian, but in the books I've seen Bruce more often than not in control. Sad, remorseful, regretful...sure, just not overly tempered, or someone who lets his emotions get the better of him.

I share your sentiments about Rachel's character, I didn't find her that interesting or compelling this time around.
 
mr.beers said:
wut

In your opinion sure.

Sure, in my opinion, but let me back it up.

1) It's a story that many people were already familiar with.
2) Harvey Dent is a prick. An idealistic prick perhaps, but a prick none the less.
3) It's very hammed up; big speeches and dramatic music. It doesn't bring you in like, say, No Country For Old Men. It suffers from some of the same problems as Begins with absolutely everyone having have a big speech and sly little nod to something.

Overall, I would label this movie as the most overrated of all time. A solid 7/10.
 
Solo said:
I saw the movie multiple times in theatres, and nerded out over it in this thread many times during July/August. But now that I think about it, Ive barely thought about the film since. Perhaps the film doesnt have staying power, at least with me personally.
I would find it hard to believe you if you told me TDK seemed less well-crafted, Ledger's virtuoso performance any less powerful, in your fifth viewing than it did in your first. The real test of staying power is whether the film stands up to repeat viewings.
It does.
I don't think about any iconic film weekly, much less daily, for any major period of time, but when I choose to revisit one it comes as no surprise to me that its artistic merit hasn't evaporated in the absence of my prolonged attention. The best films are timeless.

ezekial45 said:
http://www.darkcampaign.com/

An unofficial campaign to help secure it a nomination. They have a pretty decent promo video with it too.
This video is very well put together. It really displays the essence of the film, and strengthens my conviction that I will boycott the Oscars for life if TDK doesn't get due recognition from the Academy. They even slipped Nurse Joker's legendary "Hi." in there. Too good!

Mr. Sam said:
Overall, I would label this movie as the most overrated of all time. A solid 7/10.
Ah, another inductee into GAF's Hall of Bad Taste.
 
Ninja99 said:
The best films are timeless.

While this is true, you've effectively made my point - TDK isnt even a year old yet, and yet it has almost become a memory for me. Whereas (keeping things recent), Children of Men and Assasination of Jesse James both are still as present in my mind as ever.

Anyways, dont get me wrong - I loved TDK, saw it multiple times, and it will probably make the top 5 films of the year for me. So Im not trying to slight or downplay the film by any means. Im just saying that I doubt Ill be talking about it in 5-10 years from now.
 
Talladega Knight said:
Wow. So much wrong.

2ylnxvl.png
 
Solo said:
While this is true, you've effectively made my point - TDK isnt even a year old yet, and yet it has almost become a memory for me. Whereas (keeping things recent), Children of Men and Assasination of Jesse James both are still as present in my mind as ever.
Very true. I like the film a lot (ordered it on blu-ray and everything) But in my mind it's just a very cool film, not a timeless classic. I don't really watch a whole lot of movies anymore these days, but as you mentioned, the Assassination of Jesse James is very much a movie that sticks in the mind and I consider it very much timeless.
 
SpeedingUptoStop said:
Benji seems to be turning out to be like an 80% film. Some people don't feel too emotionally arrested by it.

And yea, these Milk reviews lately seem to make it a lock.

80% is good enough to possibly get a nomination but more than likely I can imagine it getting just an adapted screenplay nomination among some acting prizes. I think it might be too offbeat to be in the 5.

I wasn't too sure about Milk other than Sean Penn's acting (the academy freaking loves this dude) which I did though think it was a lock for him to win it though. Seeing how glowing it is though, yeah Milk is pretty much in there. I really do want some crazy to be the 5th nominee like the equivelent of Babe or the Full Monty. If Let the Right One In got nominated, I would have no problem with that.
 
Talladega Knight said:
Wow. So much wrong.

A 7/10 is a very good score. 7/10 I consider great but lacking, 8/10 movies I consider excellent, 9/10 belong in my top 50 and 10/10 in my top 5. I put The Dark Knight two whole points above what I consider an average movie - i.e. one that doesn't excel but isn't bad.

Oh, and the CGI on Harvey does look cartoony.
 
I have watched that oscar campaign vid about ten times now!

Is the music in that video one big, long track or was it edited together? The music is absolutely superb.
 
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