The Dark Knight (2008)

Director:

Christopher Nolan

Writers (WGA):

Jonathan Nolan (screenplay) and
Christopher Nolan (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

18 July 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Why So Serious?

Plot:

Batman, Gordon and Harvey Dent are forced to deal with the chaos unleashed by an anarchist mastermind known only as the Joker, as it drives each of them to their limits.

Plot Keywords:

Body In Bag | Love Triangle | Thrown From Building | Person On Fire | Robbery

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Christian Bale	...	Bruce Wayne / Batman
Heath Ledger	...	The Joker
Aaron Eckhart	...	Dist. Atty. Harvey Dent / Two-Face
Michael Caine	...	Alfred
Maggie Gyllenhaal	...	Rachel Dawes
Gary Oldman	...	Gordon
Morgan Freeman	...	Lucius Fox
Monique Curnen	...	Det. Ramirez (as Monique Gabriela Curnen)
Ron Dean	...	Detective Wuertz
Cillian Murphy	...	Scarecrow
Chin Han	...	Lau
Nestor Carbonell	...	Mayor Anthony Garcia
Eric Roberts	...	Salvatore Maroni
Ritchie Coster	...	The Chechen
Anthony Michael Hall	...	Mike Engel

Also Known As:

Batman Begins 2 (USA) (working title)
Batman: The Dark Knight (USA) (informal title)
Rory's First Kiss (USA) (fake working title)
The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience (USA) (IMAX version)
Untitled Batman Begins Sequel (USA) (working title)
Winter Green (USA) (fake working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and some menace.

Runtime:

152 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | Sonics-DDP (IMAX version) | DTS

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Netherlands:16 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #44427) | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | South Korea:15 | Australia:M | Hong Kong:IIB | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Finland:K-13 | Iceland:12 | Canada:14A (British Columbia/Ontario) | UK:12A | New Zealand:M | Denmark:15 | Brazil:12 | Italy:T | Canada:PG (Alberta/Manitoba) | Peru:14 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Norway:15 | South Africa:13V (13V) | Portugal:M/12 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Malaysia:U | India:UA | France:U | Mexico:B | Ireland:15A | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Atwood Cafe - 1 W Washington St, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

While filming on the streets of Chicago in April 2007, the filming was carried out under the fake movie title "Rory's First Kiss". Fliers regarding the filming carried this fake title, complete with a fake "RFK" logo for the movie and an address for the film's production offices.

Goofs:

When Batman is interrogating The Joker, we can see The Joker's suspenders on his left shoulder. The scene cuts to Batman, then in the next shot of the Joker from the same angle the suspender is back under his vest and can no longer be seen.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Grumpy: [before a bank heist] Three of a kind, let's do this.
Chuckles: That's it, three guys?
Grumpy: And two guys on the roof. Everybody gets a share. Five shares is plenty.
Chuckles: Six shares, don't forget the guy who planned the job.
Grumpy: He thinks he can sit out and still take a slice? I know why they call him the "Joker."

Movie Connections:

References "The Love Boat" (1977)

Surpasses "Begins" in every aspect!!!

Christopher Nolan's second bundle of joy "The Dark Knight" EXCEEDED all of my expectations!!! With the success of 2005's reboot of the Batman franchise, they took what was already established and expanded it, amped it up, and gave a deeper, darker and brooding story that is more gripping and the suspense is likely to catch you of guard several times throughout. Christian Bale delves more deeper into Batman, sworn to fight evil and injustice, though also quite reluctant and uncertain if his crusade can ever end and cleanse his inner turmoil from his fractured soul due to the murder of his beloved parents. But with the help of his trusted butler/ally Alfred (played superbly by Michael Cane) grounds him, gives him moral support, and keeps him in check. But the real star of the show is Heath Ledger as Batman's most deadly enemy, The Joker. I can HONESTLY tell you that: as good as Jack Nicholson was in Batman'89 he is CHILD'S PLAY compared to this Joker. He is sadistic, psychotic, and downright SCARIER and PSYCHOLOGICALLY disturbing than the previous incarnation of The Clown Prince of Crime and Ledger gives it his all to do him justice. Along with the original cast comes some fresh faces such as Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal and more. I must say though I liked Katie Holmes, Gyllenhaal gives a much better performance and is a far cry from the "damsel-in-distress" stereotype (though there's a little of it, THANKFULLY) that's common in films. Bale and Gyllenhall have MUCH better chemistry this time around more so than Holmes. Even better, the fight sequences are vastly improved and feature more brutal and bone crushing combat than "Begins" in addition to new technology at Batman's disposal. Also worth mentioning is screenwriter Jonathan Nolan, who gives the film an added frosting to an already delicious cake. Simply put, The Dark Knight is totally more bad ass than "Begins." The action is great, and the plot is more deeper and engrossing. I applaud Christopher Nolan, Christian Bale, and especially Heath Ledger (who sadly passed away earlier this year) and all those aboard for believing in Mr. Nolan's talents for this second installment. Although some may feel a bit of melancholy over Ledger's death, but as a final note I will say this sincerely from my heart: Remember Heath Ledger and honor him in your minds and hearts not only for his performances, but as a human being and father to his daughter Matilda Ledger. May we issue him best wishes for his family and friends and his daughter for years to come. Remember . . . Honor him not only for this role and past roles, but as an incredible individual and talented actor. Rest in peace. Heath Ledger: 4/4/1979-1/22/2008.