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The Dark Knight

Five bats

7 votes

Four and a half bats

5 votes

Four bats

2 votes

Three and a half bats

4 votes

Three bats

2 votes

Two and a half bats

0 votes

Two bats

1 votes

One and a half bats

0 votes

One bat

0 votes

Half a bat

0 votes

Valadius Jul 19 2008 07:44 PM

Unbelievable film. Heath Ledger's Joker blows Jack Nicholson out of the water. He's insane, a complete psychopath, with no goofiness whatsoever. The film takes many twists and turns. It's simply fantastic, and takes superhero filmmaking to a completely new level.

themetfairy Jul 19 2008 07:55 PM

Agreed - Ledger was truly magnificent. This isn't my film genre of choice, but I thought it was very well done.

Nymr83 Jul 20 2008 12:59 PM

i heard it broke SpiderMan 3's opening night box office record. i'm going to see it later today, hope it lives up to the hype.

Valadius Jul 20 2008 02:42 PM

Even my notoriously snobby film-student little brother loved the film.

Frayed Knot Jul 20 2008 04:56 PM

Between the great reviews, over-the-top hype, and the death at a young age (even if caused by stupidity) the race for the Supporting Actor Oscar is already over. If you can bet on these things somewhere it's probably worth a c-note at least, even if the payout won't be too much.

SteveJRogers Jul 20 2008 06:29 PM

Was planning on seeing it on the big IMAX screen, but it seems to be sold out this weekend! Ah well, hopefully there will be open spots during the week.

Nymr83 Jul 20 2008 08:40 PM

it was great, i gave it a 5 in the poll. !!!SPOILER ALERTS!!! all the major parts (batman, joker, gordon, dent) were very well acted. the only slight problem i had was the woman who replaced katie holmes as rachel dawes, she just didnt seem that into the role. the plot was great, the staten island ferry being in the movie gave everyone a good laugh (i saw it here on staten island after all), and the 2nd villain (two-face towards the end) didnt hurt the film at all the way it did in spiderman 3 where venom felt forced.

OlerudOwned Jul 20 2008 11:07 PM

I don't think I've ever seen anything else with Heath Ledger in it, and I certainly didn't feel anything stronger than normal curious apathy when he died. So I went to this film without much as far as preconceived notions go, and I still have to say that his performance was one of the most outstanding things I've ever witnessed. He wasn't playing someone's character, he built one himself with all the tics and unpredictability you could ever expect from the real thing. No doubt, he would've stolen this show even had he not died.

AG/DC Jul 21 2008 05:49 AM

One of the most outstanding things you've ever witnessed?

OlerudOwned Jul 21 2008 09:00 PM

AG/DC wrote: One of the most outstanding things you've ever witnessed? Filmwise. Ok, I won't make breathless posts after not getting any sleep.

soupcan Jul 21 2008 09:07 PM

Nymr83 wrote: !!!SPOILER ALERTS!!! I knew who Harvey Dent was the second I heard his name. And my mom said reading comic books was stupid. HA!

Nymr83 Jul 21 2008 09:11 PM

well i knew who Dent was too, but some might consider it a spoiler to hear that he become two-face in this movie, they could have introduced Dent without that happening.

AG/DC Jul 22 2008 09:12 AM

Batman star Christian Bale was arrested Tuesday over allegations of assaulting his mother and sister, police and British media said.

Vic Sage Jul 23 2008 09:17 AM Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Jul 23 2008 02:53 PM

The performances in DARK KNIGHT are terrific; Ledger captures the dangerous insanity of The Joker like know one else ever. Bale is, again, terrific, and the small supporting roles are all played by amazing supporting cast. The stunts and action sequences are excellent, and while the visuals are good, they're not great or particularly memorable. There isn't a signature image (like the ones in BATMAN RETURNS on edit: i mean BATMAN BEGINS), where he stands in the cave amidst swirling bats) I also didn't like Gotham played as a realistic city (Chicago, apparently); I'm not saying you need to play it like a surrealistic gothic landscape like the Burton films, but a little stylization would have made a bat-man flying around a little less incongruous. In a comic book, they stylization is inherent in the medium; on the screen, it takes a little more effort. The themes are really well established and developed... the Joker as a force of chaos, intent on proving only that everybody has his capacity for evil, if push comes to shove. He is the yin to Batman's yang, seeing in the dark knight a kindred spirit he needs to make his own existance meaningful... and vice versa. And Batman as a force of order, working on a higher moral plain, outside the law to protect the innocent and seek justice in an unjust world. The developments in the last 10 minutes (from Joker's speech to Batman's plan regarding 2-face) gave me goosebumps, and push the Batman mythology into deeper territory. But on the whole, i prefer BATMAN BEGINS. The narrative of DARK KNIGHT is all over the place, trying to cover too much territory, with long dull patches. It's a movie better in its moments and concepts then in its storytelling. BR, on the other hand, is a smoother narrative; telling an origin gives it the engine necessary to keep things moving forward. Don't get me wrong... I really like the new movie. I just think the reaction to it is a little disproportion it. It's very good but it's not the best comic book or superhero movie ever; it's not even the best Batman movie ever. I just think the Heath Ledger story is like catnip to the media, and they've decided to deify the young dead movie star and use this movie as the vehicle for his ascendency.

AG/DC Jul 23 2008 09:43 AM

I haven't seen it (kind of intentionally staying away for now), but I don't see how the reaction can be anything but disproportionate. It's kind of out of control.

Centerfield Jul 23 2008 12:34 PM

BATMAN RETURNS also had Michelle Pfeiffer in the leather catsuit. Hard to top that.

Vic Sage Jul 23 2008 02:52 PM

doh. i meant BATMAN BEGINS.

Frayed Knot Jul 23 2008 05:10 PM

I get all these 'Batman' deals mixed up too, something that is either due to the unimaginative titles they give these things or the fact that I never read a comic book in my life and saw only the original movie (the Keaton/Jack one, not the campy TV job). So maybe one of you caped crusader gurus could give the rest of us a quickie guide to this whole mess. - Like do all these follow some sort of timeline/plotline or are the Keaton ones totally seperate deals from the Bale ones which are seperate from whoever else might have played him? - should one see 'Begins' prior to this current one or does each one pretty much stand alone? - and if one were going to try and catch up with earlier flicks, which ones ... like suck and shouldn't be bothered with?

SteveJRogers Jul 23 2008 05:45 PM

Frayed Knot wrote: - Like do all these follow some sort of timeline/plotline or are the Keaton ones totally seperate deals from the Bale ones which are seperate from whoever else might have played him? The Burton/Schumaker films are completely unrelated, this is a new Batman Film-verse. I haven't seen it yet, but I'll assume that you'd need to see Begins only to get the gist of where this Batman is coming from, and his relationship with a couple of the returning characters.

Nymr83 Jul 23 2008 08:05 PM

you should without a doubt see Batman Begins before this one. The two of them are unrelated to any previous Batman movies, just as Casino Royale was a sort of "restart" for the James Bond movies

soupcan Jul 23 2008 08:51 PM

Nymr83 wrote: you should without a doubt see Batman Begins before this one. The two of them are unrelated to any previous Batman movies, just as Casino Royale was a sort of "restart" for the James Bond movies Speaking of which - I saw a preview for the new 007 movie a few weeks back. 'Quantam of Solace' whatever the fuck that means. You know there won't be any female character named Pussy Galore or Octopussy or Holly Goodhead or Plenty O'Toole or... December 2008 I think it said.

Vic Sage Jul 24 2008 03:26 PM The Batman CineVerse: Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 05 2008 12:19 PM

So maybe one of you caped crusader gurus could give the rest of us a quickie guide to this whole mess. Movie Serials: Batman (1943) - Lewis Wilson Batman and Robin (1949) – Robert Lowery -These 2 low-budget 15-episode serials from Columbia are pretty piss poor, even in their own time. TV series / video: "Batman" (1966-68) - live series / Adam West -celebrated and vilified exemplar of the pop art movement; still fun to watch. "The Batman/Superman Hour" (1968-69) - animated series / Olan Soule -unsophisticated animated series from Filmation has its charms "Super Friends" (1973-85) - animated series / Olan Soule (1973-83) and Adam West (1984-85) - bad scripts and bad animation render the success of this series a mystery to me "The New Adventures of Batman" (1977-78) - animated series / Adam West - poor attempt to continue tone and style of original live tv series, with West and Burt Ward “Batman: The Animated Series” (1992-95) - animated series / Kevin Conroy - the best animated version of the character. "The New Batman Adventures" (1997-98)- animated series / Kevin Conroy - the sequel series doesn't have quite the oomph, but still ok. Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998) - animated video / Kevin Conroy - decent d-2-v feature The Batman/Superman Movie: World’s Finest (1998)– animated video / Kevin Conroy - complilation of a terrific story arc of 3 episodesfrom SUPERMAN tv series "Justice League" (2001-06) – animated series / Kevin Conroy - good series, with Batman as strong supporting character The Batman vs Dracula (2005) – animated video / Rino Romano - strange, Italian horror film version of the character Justice League: The New Frontier (2008) – animated video / Jeremy Sisto - terrific, retro story and style for a d-2-v feature Batman: Gotham Knight (2008) – animated video / Kevin Conroy - I have not yet seen this new d-2-v companion piece to DARK KNIGHT Theatrical Features: Batman (1966) - Adam West - if you like the series, you'll like the movie (I did, and I do) Batman (1989) - Michael Keaton - Tim Burton's art direction makes this turgid, over-the-top adaptation worth watching; Keaton is more confused and distracted, then focused, driven, scary and/or heroic. Batman Returns (1992) - Michael Keaton - 3 villains is 2 too many in Burton's still nightmarish followup. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) - animated feature / Kevin Conroy - solid spinoff of tv series got theatrcial release before going to video. Batman Forever (1995) - Val Kilmer - Joel Schumaker makes a mockery of the franchise, but just when you thought it couldn't get worse... Batman & Robin (1997) - George Clooney - ... it gets worse. Batman Begins (2005) - Christian Bale. - Christopher Nolan rescusitates the series, with the best live action adaptation of the character to date. The Dark Knight (2008) - Christian Bale - unfocused and rambling, but still a worthy follow up from Nolan. TOP 10, in order: 1) BATMAN BEGINS (2005) 2) DARK KNIGHT (2008) 3) "Batman: Animated Series" (1992-95)(TV) 4) "Batman/Superman: World's Finest" (1998)(V) 5) "Batman" (1966-68)(TV) 6) BATMAN (1966) 7) BATMAN (1989) 8) "Justice League: New Frontier" (2008)(V) 9) BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM (1993) 10) BATMAN RETURNS (1992)

Nymr83 Jul 24 2008 04:22 PM

you left out one of the cartoons, batman beyond, its not bad.

AG/DC Jul 24 2008 07:17 PM

So, you're saying the Tim Burton films weren't particularly good? Amen.

Valadius Jul 24 2008 07:41 PM

Holy crap, I was SIX when I saw Mask of the Phantasm? I had no idea it came out so long ago. I saw that in theaters. Wow. And I totally grew up on Batman: TAS. A fantastic series, rich in storytelling and character development. Completely reworked the character of Mr. Freeze and introduced the Joker's sidekick, Harley Quinn, both of which found their way into the comics.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 24 2008 08:09 PM

I grew up loving the Batman series first for its color and adventure; and again later when I understood its humor. Brilliant in every way. Saw the first Burton movie, which bored me to death, and never bothered to see another.

soupcan Jul 24 2008 08:30 PM

Yeah the Adam West - Burt Ward TV series was great. All the stars appearing as campy over-the-top villans - Cesar Romero as the Joker, Victor Borge as King Tut (my personal fave), Burgess Meredith (Penguin), Frank Gorshin (Riddler)...on and on. My brother-in-law bought Frank Gorshin's house in Westport, CT. He told me that when they started remodeling they pulled down some wallpaper and the entire wall behind it was green and covered with question marks! Wasn't true, he was pulling my leg but he had me totally freaked out for a good 30 seconds.

Frayed Knot Jul 24 2008 08:48 PM

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I grew up loving the Batman series first for its color and adventure; and again later when I understood its humor. Brilliant in every way. Saw the first Burton movie, which bored me to death, and never bothered to see another. That's pretty much where I'm at too. I was never all ga-ga over the idea of a feature-length Batman to begin with. First of all because (a bit ironically) I was never a comic book guy, but also because this whole idea of suckering baby-boomers into the theater by churning out films of their childhood TV faves just seemed like an easy path to big bucks whether the flicks were any good or not. The original Burton film had a good look to it and Jack as the Joker was fun to watch, but other than that ... eh. After that I never bothered with any of the sequels which sounds like it was a good decision. Maybe I'll give 'Begins' a shot on video and, if intrigued, the new movie as well.

AG/DC Jul 24 2008 09:11 PM

Don't sell yourself short. It was a great decision. I saw Batman Forever on a plane. I got the idea that they must've meant the title literally. Made the flight longer.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 26 2008 12:47 PM

I just saw it; very entertaining! (I liked it much better than Batman Begins, which struck me as a little dry.) When Heath Ledger said, "You complete me" I thought it was a Brokeback reference and I got a kick out of it. It wasn't until later that I realized it was a Jerry Maguire reference. Oh well. Brokeback was something like, "I can't quit you."

Vic Sage Jul 28 2008 08:51 AM

Nymr83 wrote: you left out one of the cartoons, batman beyond, its not bad. Batman Beyond is not "Bruce Wayne / Batman", ergo not Batman.

Nymr83 Jul 28 2008 11:04 AM

well bruce wayne is in it and it is a continuation of the batman story, i'm sure he puts on the costume in a couple of episoded if that makes you happy.

soupcan Aug 04 2008 10:13 AM

Saw it. Gave it 3.5 bats. It was good, entertaining but long, and as Vic said - all over the place. As we left my 11 year-old said 'That made Iron Man look like 'Blue's Clues'

Vic Sage Aug 04 2008 01:19 PM

Nymr83 wrote: well bruce wayne is in it and it is a continuation of the batman story, i'm sure he puts on the costume in a couple of episoded if that makes you happy. It doesn't. BATMAN BEYOND is a lame attempt to try and Manga-nize the Batman, and it is neither visually, thematically or narratively in the BATMAN mythos. It is a futuristic spinoff with a diffferent character (a kid) wearing a different costume, with different powers, fighting different villains for different reasons. That they prop up poor old Bruce as sort of a grumpy old Yoda for the Manga Bat-kid just adds insult to injury. It has no place in the Batman filmography.

TransMonk Aug 30 2008 09:27 PM

Finally saw this tonight. I gave it 4 bats...and I've never been a big Batman fan. Every other Batman movie has bored me, including Batman Begins. But this movie was highly entertaining and Ledger's performance was brilliant.

dgwphotography Oct 01 2008 11:18 AM

What Vic said. I gave it 3 bats - it was too long and dragged out... I enjoyed Batman Begins more.

metirish Dec 20 2008 09:15 PM

We finally saw this tonight , after an hour I said to my wife that it was dragging but overall I enjoyed it. I think it was at least forty minutes to an hour too long.

SteveJRogers Dec 21 2008 12:48 PM Re: The Batman CineVerse:

The Batman vs Dracula (2005) – animated video / Rino Romano - strange, Italian horror film version of the character That is a movie spinoff of the second most recent attempt at an ongoing Batman animated series, titled The Batman. Which ran from, IIRC 2004 through this past year. No relation to the B:TAS/Batman Beyond/JL (as well as Superman) series which were all produced by Bruce Timm, that was a complete reboot by a new production team. Ditto the new attempt at an animated Batman, called Batman: The Brave & The Bold, taking it's name, and format, from a long running DC comic book series entitled "The Brave And The Bold" in which Batman would often team up with another hero. This started airing this past Fall.

Farmer Ted Mar 12 2009 03:27 PM

Finally saw this thing last night. Ledger was good. Oscar worthy? Eh. Didn't blow me away. He was certainly good, but the character wore on me a bit toward the end. Bale came across as ball-less and weak.

Frayed Knot Jul 19 2009 09:17 PM

"rambling and unfocused" = understatement