Poster

The second film in Christopher Nolan's Batman film trilogy released in 2008.

< read all 51 reviews

Lived up to the hype...

  • Jul 24, 2008
  • by
Rating:
+4

I'd heard good things prior to the viewing so my expectations were admittedly high, but I have to say...this movie lived up to the hype.

Story: Typical of superhero tales...villain threatens/harms the innocent...hero comes to the rescue...and the battle of good vs. evil ensues. Although there really wasn't anything that hadn't been done before, the plot was well-executed and the action moved the story along at a nice pace. This movie ran for almost three hours but definitely didn't feel that long. One aspect in particular...I thought Christopher Nolan did a particularly good job of pulling off the underlying themes of the film - those of faith and trust...the different forces that drive each of us to do the things we do and shape the people we are...the choices we make when we're put to the test...and the need we all have for something to believe in.

Performances: Or should I say Performance. Heath Ledger as the Joker...probably not many people's first choice for the role. But after seeing the film, he may very well have been the best, if not only choice. Whoever made that decision...Genius. He so fully inhabited the psychopath persona that even when something was meant to be comical, the humor is tempered by that eerie prickle on the back of the neck that precedes total chaos and mayhem. The performance hit all the right notes...subtle when needed and over-the-top when called for. Almost made you forget this isn't the Joker's story.

Overall assessment...Better than Batman Begins and pretty much blows any other previous Batman endeavors out of the water. Much like how Hollywood seems to want to pretend the AngLee version of the Incredible Hulk never happened...this is how I prefer to think of the earlier Batman films. That those five cartoonish farces (seriously, were there really that many?) were just a bad dream and that Batman Begins and the Dark Knight encompass the entirety of his representation on celluloid. So far.

What did you think of this review?

Helpful
30
Thought-Provoking
1
Fun to Read
2
Well-Organized
3
Post a Comment
April 02, 2009
This movie really blew me away. Heath really made the Joker more of a nut job like he was in the cartoon and less like a jester. I totally agree with you!! 
Really worth the $30 for the Blu-Ray.
 
March 02, 2009
It's hard for me to be objective about The Dark Knight because I worked in the Chicago office building that is the twin of the one whose lobby was used as Bruce Wayne's apartment. :-) One aspect that surprised me was that The Dark Knight was as "dark" as it was and yet was such a huge hit. Of course, it was the season for darkness -- "Sweeney Todd" and "No Country for Old Men" -- but I still found the Bat's boffo box office to be quite surprising.
 
February 11, 2009
Well, as bad as the one with George Clooney was (and it really was bad), at east it had Clooney.
 
December 10, 2008
Great review.. and phenomenal movie!
 
1
More The Dark Knight reviews
review by . November 29, 2010
This is one of the best comic book movies ever made. I like the 1989 Batman film better and I always will, but I can't really compare the two because this is great in its own way and will go down as its own creation, and defnitely as a great one.      This is a comic book movie for everyone, and marketing to children had little to nothing to do with anything. This is a movie strictly for adults, and even people who don't like comic book movies can find something they …
review by . March 27, 2011
I love it when a filmmaker takes a well-known character and gives him a reinventing makeover. Director Martin Campbell found success twice giving James Bond the badly-needed breath of new life, first in Goldeneye and again in 2005's outstanding Casino Royale. It was also in 2005 that Christopher Nolan, best known for his cult indie film Memento, accomplished this same feat with Batman. Batman needed it. I admit I've always been fascinated with the Caped Crusader. But the movies tore him from his …
review by . September 12, 2008
Finally, after what seems like an eternity of buzz, waiting, hype, and tragedy, what could easily be the biggest movie of 2008 is upon us: Christopher Nolan's second installment in his re-imagining of DC Comics' Batman, The Dark Knight. Does this mammoth two-and-a-half-hour superhero magnum opus live up to expectations? The simple answer is yes. With The Dark Knight Nolan has crafted what may be the greatest superhero film to date. In a summer where Marvel blew the doors wide open with the …
review by . August 29, 2009
The Dark Knight
By now, The Dark Knight is known to be the best of the best when it comes to super hero movies as well as Heath Ledger's final Oscar winning performance.  What some people fail to realize about Christopher Nolan's masterpiece is that it is also the best crime drama of the decade.  Forget that Batman is in this movie for a second.  Without him you have a movie that focuses on the Mob, dirty cops, inner city politics and a mad man watching all of this unravel as he adds his own breed …
review by . January 31, 2010
Possibly the best movie of 2008
Wow, what a summer. Its only halfway over and already I've been treated to two incredible super hero films, The Incredible Hulk [Theatrical Release] and the masterpiece Iron Man (Special Collector's Edition) [Blu-ray] which, to me, is one of the top three super hero films of all time along side the likes of Spider-Man 2 (Widescreen Special Edition) and Batman Begins (Widescreen Edition). From deeper then expected films like Wall-E [Theatrical Release] to the resurrection of the Indiana Jones franchise …
Quick Tip by . June 19, 2010
despite the darkness of the dark knight, i like the remakes...
Quick Tip by . June 15, 2010
Action packed and fun!
Quick Tip by . June 07, 2010
Not my typical type of movie, but I LOVED IT. Heath Ledger made this movie what it was.
Quick Tip by . June 04, 2010
One of the best movies of all times, if you havn't seen go forth and do so!!
review by . April 24, 2009
We've all been there. Sitting in the theater regretting spending $9 on a movie based on a childhood superhero. Thankfully, The Dark Knight is not one of those superhero movies.    Christopher Nolan, the man behind movies like Memento and Batman Begins, took Batman and Gotham city to a place that most superhero movies dare to go. Reality. Nolan made The Dark Knight gritty, realistic, and... well dark. This wasn't just a popcorn movie, this wasn't just a superhero movie, this was …
About the reviewer
Sarinya ()
I was once asked to make a list of random facts about me so... here's an excerpt of some things I'd like to share and other things I'd like to discover more about here at Lunch:    + … more
Consider the Source

Use Trust Points to see how much you can rely on this review.

You
shinjiblue
Your ratings:
rate more to improve this
About this movie

Wiki

The Dark Knight is a 2008 American superhero film co-written and directed by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is a sequel to Batman Begins. Christian Bale reprises the lead role. Batman's primary conflicts in the film include his fight against his arch-nemesis the Joker and his strained friendship with district attorney Harvey Dent. For his conception of the film, Nolan was inspired by the Joker's first two appearances in the comics and Batman: The Long Halloween. The Dark Knight was filmed primarily in Chicago, as well as in several other locations in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Hong Kong. The director used an IMAX camera to film six major action sequences, including the Joker's first appearance in the film. The Batsuit was redesigned, with a cowl allowing Bale to move his head.

The film was released on July 18, 2008 in North America, and on July 21, 2008 in the United Kingdom. During its opening weekend, the movie brought in over $155 million, breaking nearly every box office record.
view wiki

Details

Director: Christopher Nolan
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Release Date: July 18, 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
DVD Release Date: December 9, 2008
Runtime: 152 minutes
Studio: Syncopy Films, Legendary Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Studios
© 2013 Lunch.com, LLC All Rights Reserved
Lunch.com - Relevant reviews by real people.
Love of Comics & Graphic Novels! is part of the Lunch.com Network - Get this on your site
()
This is you!
Ranked #
Last login
Member since
reviews
comments
ratings
questions
compliments
lists