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Good value96% agree
Entertaining96% agree
Engaging characters93% agree
227 reviews
The Dark Knight
Excellent character displays by chistian bale and the late heath ledger. This is a must for the new and upcoming trilogy.
Original Review:
The Dark Knight( is a good movie).
It has all the ingredients to be a great movie, but it isn't one. I may grudgingly put it on my best-ten-of-the year list (a paltry group at this point), but it could have been so much more. It came so close.
One knows the action in The Dark Knight will be cranked up, especially since director/writer Christopher Nolan's action sequences came under criticism in Batman Begins (2005).
One also knows that, because The Dark Knight has a striking cast, the acting will be memorable. Both wily veterans Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine in the same movie as Batman's helpers is enough to give the movie a lot of substantial class.
Christian Bale, who trained in martial arts, is back as Bruce Wayne/Batman. His choice to speak in a Clint Eastwood low growl as Batman is odd but OK. He makes a polished Bruce Wayne and a buffed Batman.
The romantic interest Assistant District Attorney Rachel Dawes takes a step up in The Dark Knight. In Batman Begins, Dawes was played by cute Katie Holmes. In The Dark Knight she has more emotional substance as played by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal's emotionality is crucial in The Dark Knight.
Aaron Eckhart is the vulnerable white knight District Attorney Harvey Dent. One of the best performances in The Dark Knight is by Gary Oldman as Police Lt. Jim Gordon. Oldman, who often gobbles scenery, gives a low-key performance that is very effective amidst the bombast.
Adding further quality performances are Eric Roberts, Gillian Murphy and Anthony Michael Hall.
Since the rest of the cast is eminently able, it comes down to Heath Ledger as The Joker. If he gives an acceptable performance, The Dark Knight should prevail.
In 1989 in Tim Burton's Batman, Jack Nicholson seemed to play the ultimate card as The Joker. He was a masterly cartoon figure. Nicholson's performance seemed to retire the character forever.
What a challenge for Heath Ledger -- to get in the ring with iconic Jack. But Ledger knew something we didn't. He had found the heart of The Joker, which made him a human character, not just a cartoon. It was a damaged, black heart, but it was a human heart.
Ledger died in January in New York City, his death officially judged to be the result of an accidental prescription overdose. The recent talk about a possible Oscar nomination for Ledger as Best Supporting Actor may have seemed just based on sympathy, but it's not. Ledger is the leading candidate, because of the phenomenal performance he delivers.
Ledger's performance of The Joker as a snarky anarchist, a smoldering madman, is one of a kind. It will become a classic. It's a primer for great acting, especially Ledger's physical movements. He sidles and slides, ambles and erupts, muttering his psychotic dogma.
Fundamentally The Joker is a potent anarchist. The Dark Knight features a post 9/11 Batman. The Caped Crusader -- the Compassionate Conservative -- is pulled toward the dark side by the terrorist Joker. Goodness is losing its moral bearings. Power to do good becomes power to do anything.
Since The Dark Knight is a smorgasbord of delicious acting, why is The Dark Knight too often less satisfying than it should be? With powerful psychological underpinnings and a dazzling cast, why does The Dark Knight fizzle?Read full review...
Weird problem
i dont know if any else has had problem with this, but i have two slit loading dvd players, one is my ps3 the other is a sony blu ray, and neither can grab this disc....it works excellent but for some reason it has a problem taking this disc.
Anyways just wanted to give you heads up, maybe whatever region the disc is manufactured in is cutting them a bit thin. All other discs work, but i gotta shove this one in manually, and ejecting it has been kinda scary, it has made both players do a "click click click click" before getting it out half way.
anyways works great in traditional loads.Read full review...
While not as hyped is good
Along comes a movie now and then that is hyped up and over marketed, while the finished product itself is not quite as good as all of that. This movie, while a good movie and able to keep your interest despite the 2 1/2 hour runtime, is a little bit of hype. But, then again what batman movie ever wasn't. The part of the Joker is played very well by Heath Leadger and Christian Bale adds a dark side to Bruce Wayne as his alter ego Batman. This movie has a lot of action scenes and stunts that will have you as on the edge of your seat as much as the intense performances of both Leadger and Bale. Be warned though while the movie does not quite follow the DC Comics or the other Batman movies of the late 80's and 90's this is not one you would want to see with the young ones as them PG13 rating would indicate. I would definitely say this movie, while not the "Greatest superhero movie ever", is definitely better than the first and is much better than I expected.Read full review...
i saw the movie b4 it was cool.bit violent though
I personaly i like the movie, but the only part that i didnt like was that it was too violent.im preaty God didnt like that part niether. if you read psalms11:5 the psalmist sais,"Jehovah himself examines the rigteouse one as well as the wicked one, And anyone loving violence His soul certanly hates". sos if we dont want Jehovah God to hate us we shouldnt see, play or do anything violent.But thats not the only tex that shows us that God hate violence!In proverbs6:16-19 he sais,"There are six things that Jehovah does hate; yes, seven are things detestable to his soul: lofty eyes, a false tongue, and hands that are shedding innocent blood, a heart fabricating hurtful schems, feet that are in a hurry to run to badness, a false witness that launches forth lies, and anyone sending forth contentions among brothers." so as we can see anyone that loves violence and or shedds inocent blood.how much violence and killing is inthat movie that God hates? im not say this for you or anyone else dosnt watch it, this is just the way i think God should be respected on the way he sees things.Is the way i think and the way God thinks.Read full review...
The Dark Knight
This movie should have been titled The Dark side of Joker. I expected it to be more centered on Bruce Wayne/Batman not a character study of Joker. Since Heath Ledger's portrayal of Joker showed he was one of the greatest contemporary actors it is no wonder the director zoomed in on Joker. Now put Heath in the same frame with Gary Oldman (my favorite actor, see him play Mason Verger in Hanibal) and cinematic history is made. And bravo to the person who picked Aaron Eckhart to be Harvey Dent/Two Face. Amazing special effects of Two Face's bad half meeting Eckhart's majestic acting makes the movie sizzle, all I can say is encore! With the screen presence of Gary Oldman, Heath Ledger and Aaron Eckhart, Christain Bale melts into the shadows. Batman has his fleeting moments of glory, while Bruce Wayne comes across as oily. Katie Holmes should have reprized her role Rachel Dawes, for only she could hold her own among these giants of the screen. A must see movie so you will know what people mean when they ask
"Why so serious?"Read full review...
Over rated, Over hyped, & BORING!!!!
This has to be as bad of a Batman movie since Val Kilmar or George Clooney played Batman okay. The movie is over hyped and too long 1st of all.
The guy who plays Batman now is more comfortable in the role. They hardly even show Joker in the whole film.
Don't get me wrong Heath Ledger was a great actor but if he didn't die this movie would have gotten the worse reviews. I don't see how he was so scary or psycho in anyway to push him over the edge. You expect something twisted & sick but nothing. I took it out of my DVD player and I don't even drink but choice to have a few that night & even drunk or drinking it was boring.
Now that is a terrible movie. I didn't see Brandon Lee getting even mention for an award an him in the crow was more believable the Ledger doing Joker.
He died at the end of that film and till this day " The Crow " is classic.
As a Batman fan it sucks save your money don't buy it , rent at the most like me, & my both of their souls R.I.P
I only gave it a below average because of the graphics other then that it would have been Poor.
That's my opinion " onemixer "Read full review...
The Dark Knight 2008
The dark knight is an action packed installment to the lengendary Batman movies. I did find the movie to contain some pretty heavy violence but its definitly a 5 out of 5 in my opinion. I have seen all the batman movies and found this one to be a much darker more versatile movie than the rest. The batsuit takes a pretty nice turn with a very sleek armour as opposed to the more notorious latax styled batsuits that started with micheal keaton in the 89 batman. The action is amazing, Ledger's performance is unlike any other and definitly hangs high if not higher on the wall of greatest jokers along with Romero's from the 66 series and Nicholson in the 89 Batman. Superb movie may want to take some fast forwards if you have the youngins watchin but I hands down give the Dark Knight A 5 Batarang out of 5 Rating!! EXCELLANT FILM!!Read full review...
The Dark Knight (2008 Bluray DVD)
The Dark Knight arrives with tremendous hype (best superhero movie ever? posthumous Oscar for Heath Ledger?), and incredibly, it lives up to all of it. But calling it the best superhero movie ever seems like faint praise, since part of what makes the movie great--in addition to pitch-perfect casting, outstanding writing, and a compelling vision--is that it bypasses the normal fantasy element of the superhero genre and makes it all terrifyingly real. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is Gotham City's new district attorney, charged with cleaning up the crime rings that have paralyzed the city. He enters an uneasy alliance with the young police lieutenant, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), and Batman (Christian Bale), the caped vigilante who seems to trust only Gordon--and whom only Gordon seems to trust. They make progress until a psychotic and deadly new player enters the game: the Joker (Heath Ledger), who offers the crime bosses a solution--kill the Batman. Further complicating matters is that Dent is now dating Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal, after Katie Holmes turned down the chance to reprise her role), the longtime love of Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne.
In his last completed role before his tragic death, Ledger is fantastic as the Joker, a volcanic, truly frightening force of evil. And he sets the tone of the movie: the world is a dark, dangerous place where there are no easy choices. Eckhart and Oldman also shine, but as good as Bale is, his character turns out rather bland in comparison (not uncommon for heroes facing more colorful villains). Director-cowriter Christopher Nolan (Memento) follows his critically acclaimed Batman Begins with an even better sequel that sets itself apart from notable superhero movies like Spider-Man 2 and Iron Man because of its sheer emotional impact and striking sense of realism--there are no suspension-of-disbelief superpowers here. At 152 minutes, it's a shade too long, and it's much too intense for kids. But for most movie fans--and not just superhero fans--The Dark Knight is a film for the ages.Read full review...
Dark Knight, dark movie
I liked this movie, as it had good action. It was as dark as they said in reviews. Not something I would necessarily want my under 7 year old grandson to see til he gets older. Not that it is too scary, but too dark.
Much more of an adult movie. Ledger did good as the Joker, but he is a much darker and much more "evil" Joker than Nicholson's. And Batman is a darker character in this movie that any past Batman's, including Bale's.
I enjoyed the movie very much though.
I decided to buy this movie because I like superhero movies and really enjoyed the last Christian Bale Batman and heard this movie was pretty good also (though the handful or so people that told me, also commented on the darkness of this movie).
For adults and teenagers, well worth seeing movieRead full review...
The Dark Knight
To say that Christopher Nolan's THE DARK KNIGHT is the best comic book adaptation does the film a bit of a disservice. It may be a Batman film, but this isn't a kid-friendly action movie full of the bams and pows of the original series. This is a pitch-black thriller with enough drama and tragedy to please even William Shakespeare, but it will certainly keep both comics fans and uninitiated audiences equally happy. THE DARK KNIGHT starts in the wake of BATMAN BEGINS: with the appearance of Batman (Christian Bale), Gotham City's criminal underworld is unnerved. They're also plagued by the new D.A., Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), who, in his quest for justice, remains above the city's corruption. Enter a new villain, the Joker (Heath Ledger), who wants to unite the criminals for a common purpose: to kill Batman. THE DARK KNIGHT is one of the most hyped movies to date, and a lesser film would be crushed under the weight of all that expectation. Some of the publicity stems from the early death of Ledger, who turns in an excellent performance. He provides moments of humor, but this Joker is terrifying, sharing more with classic villains such as Hannibal Lechter than with his comic book predecessors. Eckhart is equally good as Dent, and Maggie Gyllenhaal deserves praise for taking over the role of Rachel Dawes from Katie Holmes. Though there's more emphasis on plot and character development than in most comic book adaptations, that doesn't mean Nolan has skimped on any of the action sequences. Each set piece is done perfectly, leaving the audience breathless. THE DARK KNIGHT is filmmaking at its best; its subject matter may be dark and depressing, but it's tough not to feel exhilarated by its artistry when the credits begin to roll.Read full review...