MOUTHSHUT TEAM --> PLEASE PUT THE DARK KNIGHT UNDER HOLLYWOOD MOVIES > CURRENT. THIS IS DEFINATELY NOT A BOLLYWOOD MOVIE
Director – Christopher Nolan
Screenplay – Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan, David Goyer and Bob Kane.
Plot
After eliminating Dr. Crane, people think that Gotham City is safe. Not really. The Crimes are still increasing. There are still corrupt forces in the police department. The media still thinks Batman is a foe. To top it all, a new psychopath Criminal, The Joker(Heath Ledger) has terrorized the city. After looting a bank in broad day lights, he decides to kill a person a day until Batman reveals his true identity.
Bruce Wayne(Christian Bale) along with Lt Jim Gordon(Gary Oldman) and new District Attorney Harvey Dent(Aaron Eckhart) decide to fight him and his heinous ways. As usual there are only 3 people who know the Batman’s real identity. His butler Alfred Pennyworth(Michael Caine), his company engineer, Lucius Fox(Morgan Freeman) and his ex Girlfriend, Rachel Dawe(Maggie Gyllenhaal). The story gets one high level of adrenaline and is perfect edge of the seat thriller.
Critic’s Comments
The most awaited movie of the year certainly doesn’t disappoint. The movie is more dark and intense than the earlier venture by Nolan. The action sequences are too good. The special effects are very realistic. The acting is good. But the movie, as intended, belongs to one person, Heath Ledger. In his last fully fledged role, Ledger proved that he is as good as Jack Nicholson (whose role he got) in Batman (1989). The score is extremely good. The score when there are elements of suspense is just too good. When 2 greats – James Newtown Howard and Hans Zimmer are in charge of Music, expect nothing than the best. The direction gets a thumbs up by everyone. With all the silly super hero movies that have come this year, Hancock, Iron Man, Hellboy – 2 and even The incredible Hulk, its truly The Dark Knight who has overshadowed all the movies that have been released till this year. Make it a point to watch it on the big screen.
Psst –
*1) The movie will always be remembered as the last completed movie of Heath Ledger. Heath Ledger died of drug overdose on 22nd January 2008.
2) When Ledger died, there were lots of speculation of whether the movie will be completed or not. Warner Bros (Studio) declared that Ledger had completed *
all his scenes and post production work before he died.
3) Robin Williams had expressed desire to play The Joker for this movie. He was also considered for the role of The Joker in 1989 hit movie – The Batman.
4) Katie Holmes couldn’t get the role of Rachel Dews she played in the earlier venture because she wouldn’t agree on even a $2 million fees.
5) Adrien Brody also wanted to play The Joker and Matt Damon was considered for the role of Harvey Dent.
6) Nolan casted Ledger for the role because he believed he was fearless.
7) To prepare for the role, Ledger lived in a hotel for a month alone and worked on the psychology, posture and voice for his role. He also got inspiration
by watching the movie – A Clockwork Orange.
8) Nolan cited that the movie Heat(1995) was a major influence on this movie.
9) Nolan shot the entire movie in an IMAX format, a vision he had for over 15 years.
10) Such was the demand to see the new trailer, that people went to see the movie Iron Man(released a couple of months earlier) just to see the 2 and a halfminute trailer and then come out.
11) The movie was so eagerly awaited that thousands of movie buffs waited for hours outside the movie halls where the film was to be played and toaccommodate everyone, the cinema halls decided to screen the movie for the whole day and had special midnight, 3 AM, and 6 AM shows just so that everyonecould get a chance to see it.
12) The movie was made on a budget of $150 million. It grossed a world-record , $66.4 million on the opening day in USA alone and grossed over $152 million for the opening weekend. This made it the biggest summer blockbuster of all times. The earnings from the midnight screenings alone grossed $16.9 million inthe opening weekend.
13) Although many(including me) wont agree, but this movie was declared the 4th greatest movie of all time by voters on IMDB.com(World’s biggest online movie database) on the opening day and ratings went to Number 1 on the weekend. This beat the previous classics like The Godfather(now at number 2), Schindler’slist(now at Number 7) and Pulp Fiction(now at Number 6). The average rating was 9.5 out of 10.
14) The only batman movie without “batman” in the title.
15) Only movie where Legendary Music Composers James Howard and Hanz Zimmer collaborated for the score.
16) The movie was dedicated to Heath Ledger who died early this year and Special Effect technician Comway Wickliffe. Wickliffe died while testing a car for a car stunt for this movie. This didn’t happen in any set nor on shooting.
Quotes
1) “Its simple, Kill The Batman.”
2) “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. We’re tonight’s entertainment.”
3) “Very poor choice of words.”
4) “I don’t want to kill you. What would I do without you ? You complete me.”
5) “This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object.”
6) “Why don’t we cut you up into little pieces and feed you to your pooches? Hmm? And then we’ll see how loyal a hungry dog really is. It’s not about money. It’s about sending a message.”
7) “I use a knife because guns are too quick. Otherwise, you can’t savor all the emotions. You know who people are in their last moments.”
8) “I am doing what you should have done 10 minutes back.”
*Oops-
It’s a batman movie. Goofs, if any, are forgiven.*