What Do The Critics Say?

"Bale delivers another solid, brooding performance as Wayne/Batman, and Maggie Gyllenhaal subs in for Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes, the childhood crush of Bruce Wayne, now romantically involved with Dent. There is undeniably a bit of a pall cast over the proceedings by Ledger's death, but it doesn't last long, so starkly defined is his portrayal. There's no cackling buffoonery here, just a grimness to match the material." Brent Simon SCREEN DAILY "There’s a little bit of everything in this thrilling and often violent superhero fantasy – romance, humour, drama, stunts and loads of tension. The stunts are massive with exploding buildings, somersaulting cars, torpedoing helicopters and a huge truck which Batman lassos. It’s overlong, but for the genre, The Dark Knight is about as good as it gets, elevated by Ledger’s memorable final curtain call." Louise Keller URBANCINEFILE "This movie is grim and jammed together. The narrative isn't shaped coherently to bring out contrasts and build toward a satisfying climax. The Dark Knight is constant climax; it's always in a frenzy, and it goes on forever." David Denby NEW YORKER "The Dark Knight is both entertainment and art, slipped into a dark, gritty package. It marks a completely new direction for that which we’ve come to know as the superhero genre, here’s hoping others have the sense to follow it. Whether or not they do it’s unlikely anyone, including Nolan himself, will ever top what’s been accomplished here. It works on every level and no matter what I’ve said about it in this review, believe me when I tell you that I’m underselling it." Joshua Tyler CINEMABLEND "Gary Oldman, Eckhart and Maggie Gylenhaal (the latter as the woman who once loved Bruce Wayne but now is seeing Dent) all deliver wonderful, credible and heartfelt performances. The stunts are spectacular and the pace relentless, but when the cinematography (otherwise excellent) gets bogged down in undecipherable, chaotic action, and the plot has left the building, boredom sets in for sections of the film that make 152 minutes seem rather long." Andrew L Urban URBANCINEFILE

"It is being touted as a masterpiece and one of the rare sequels that not only surpasses the original but one of the great movies of its kind of all time. It isn't. But it's still quite good. Very good in fact. A tweak in the editing room and the culling of fifteen or so minutes and The Dark Knight could very well be the benchmark for how to transcend the medium. The film is quite special but where some films can weather extraneous or padded scenes, The Dark Knight has some distracting bloat to it which keeps it out of masterpiece territory." Nick Nunziata CHUD "Needs every drop of Christian Bale’s charm. His Batman rasps his lines in a voice that’s deeper and hammier than ever, and when Bruce Wayne has to pretend to be a mindlessly hedonistic playboy, his smirk carries a trace of Dubya entitlement. The other great pleasure is watching Pretentious English Thespian Gary Oldman play the soon-to-be Commissioner Gordon as the most ordinary of ordinary American Joes. Rarely has flatness been so witty." David Edelstein NEW YORK MAGAZINE "This is a rich, complex, visually thrilling piece of pop entertainment, as strong as any superhero epic we’ve ever seen." Richard Roeper EBERT & ROEPER "Martin Scorsese's The Departed. Michael Mann's Heat. Brian de Palma's The Untouchables. And now, Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight can join the list of one of the most absorbing and intense crime dramas in modern movie milestones. There are a few moments of humor, but they're of the black and sardonic kind. If you're looking for a fun, colorful comic-book movie to take the kiddies to, The Dark Knight probably isn't it." Staci Layne Wilson HORRORCOM "Striking out from his Batman origin story, Nolan cuts through to a deeper dimension. Go ahead, bitch about the movie being too long at two and a half hours for short attention spans (it is), too somber for the Hulk crowd (it is), too smart for its own good (it isn't). The haunting and visionary Dark Knight soars on the wings of untamed imagination. It's full of surprises you don't see coming. And just try to get it out of your dreams." Peter Travers ROLLING STONE

The Inside Story With "Batman Begins", writer/director Christopher Nolan opened a new chapter in the Batman film franchise by taking the legendary character back to his origins, re-imagining why and how the billionaire industrialist Bruce Wayne became the enigmatic crime fighter known to the world as Batman. In "The Dark Knight" Nolan returns to the Batman saga with the character now, in the director’s words, "fully formed. I thought we left the world of Batman at an interesting place in the first film, and the end suggested an intriguing direction in which the story could continue." Nolan ("The Prestige" & "Memento") developed the story with David S Goyer ("Blade II" & "Blade Trinity"), with whom he had collaborated on the screenplay for "Batman Begins". Nolan and his brother, Jonathan, then partnered on the screenplay for "The Dark Knight". In "The Dark Knight", Nolan says he focused more on how Batman’s very existence has changed Gotham City: and not, at least initially, for the better. "At the end of "Batman Begins", we hinted at the threat of escalation, that in going after the city’s crime cartels and attacking their interests, Batman could provoke an even greater response from the criminal community and now that has come to pass. There are some very negative consequences of his crusade brewing in Gotham City." Producer Charles Roven ("Get Smart" & "The Bank Job") offers that the issue extends beyond Gotham’s resident criminals. "On the one hand, Batman has begun to rid Gotham of the crime and corruption that has plagued the city, but, ironically, the vacuum he created draws in an even more powerful criminal element, who see it as their chance to take over the city." Producer Emma Thomas ("The Prestige" & "Memento") notes that in "Batman Begins" the production team "largely concentrated on the origins of the character: how Batman evolved out of Bruce Wayne’s own early trauma, his fears, his anger and, finally, his resolve to fight crime and corruption. In "The Dark Knight", Batman has become well-known to the police and citizens of Gotham City, but while some consider him a hero, others wonder if he is doing more harm than good. And the arrival of a new kind of criminal raises the stakes on that debate." Thomas also offered: "while Bruce Wayne wears a mask to hide his identity as Batman, it is actually Batman who defines Bruce’s true identity, and the public persona of Bruce Wayne is the 'mask' he wears to co-exist in this world." 2008 Robert Altman Award winner Christian Bale ("I'm Not There") believes "Bruce thought it would be a finite thing, that Batman would serve as an inspiration to Gotham City and that he would eventually be able to leave this character he conceived behind. But he is coming to understand, more and more, that this is not something he can easily walk away from now, or possibly ever. There are new enemies to protect the city from." The most dangerous of these enemies is Batman’s most infamous nemesis: a maniacal, remorseless fiend known as The Joker. "In keeping with the tone we established in "Batman Begins", we determined he is a pretty serious guy, despite being called The Joker," Nolan explained. "So we began with the notion of The Joker as the most extreme form of anarchist—a force of chaos, a purposeless criminal who is not out for anything and, so, can’t be understood. He is not only a massively destructive force, but he also takes great delight in his murderous nature, which is a pretty terrifying spectacle." "The Joker is somebody without any rules whatsoever," Bale states. "How do you fight somebody who is bent on destruction, even if it means self-destruction? That’s a formidable foe." The Joker’s total lack of morality is one of his most potent weapons in his war with Batman because, "Batman has a very strict moral code for what he will and won’t do, and The Joker can use that to his advantage. Batman still has this huge reserve of anger and pain and knows he could easily go too far, so he must not cross that line. He has to be sure that in chasing a monster, he doesn’t become a monster himself. Chris Nolan has raised interesting ethical questions in this movie about the complications of having power versus aspiring to power." While The Joker wreaks chaos and fear, the crusading District Attorney Harvey Dent is the new face of law and order in Gotham City. "Harvey is a man of the people. He’s an all-American hero in a very different way from Batman," says Nolan. "So now you have the triumvirate of Batman, Harvey Dent and Lieutenant Gordon: the justice system, the police and a vigilante, forming an alliance to bring down crime. Using Batman gives them an edge over the criminals, but it is still the police who will arrest them, and then they will be tried through the justice system. But what comes up is the question of whether you can bend the rules without breaking them. And that becomes the underlying theme of the story." The filmmakers have made several changes to the world of Batman. Bruce Wayne's familial home, Wayne Manor, which burned to the ground at the end of "Batman Begins", has been replaced with a modern penthouse overlooking the city. Batman also has a newly designed Batsuit, which gives him more range of motion and a greater field of vision. "I can turn my head," says Bale. And the agile and powerful Bat-Pod makes its much-anticipated debut as "The Dark Knight" weaves through Gotham City traffic in a pulse-pounding chase sequence filmed on the streets of Chicago. Batman’s pursuit of justice also takes him on an odyssey halfway across the world to Hong Kong, marking the first time The Caped Crusader has left the confines of Gotham City on screen. "Chris had a wonderful overall vision of what he wanted to achieve with this film, and he was able to accomplish that and more," says Roven, who produced Terry Gilliam's film "The Brothers Grimm". "He’s one of those rare directors who, when he tells you what he’s trying to do, no matter how ambitious, you can rely on the fact that he will do it, usually even better than you imagined." "The Dark Knight" reunites several members of the ensemble cast from "Batman Begins". Christian Bale, who played Walter Wade Jr in "Shaft" returns in the title role of Batman. "Bruce is certainly sacrificing, both mentally and physically, as a consequence of this character of Batman whom he has unleashed and now is unable to rein in anymore," says the man who wowed audiences with outstanding performances as Lt Dieter Dengler in "Rescue Dawn" (2006) and, Trevor Reznik in 2004's critically acclaimed, El Maquinista ("The Machinist"). "Working with Christian is a joy and just a lot of fun. He is a very engaging presence to have on the set," says Nolan. "He also has an intensity about him; he is incredibly focused on tapping into the psychological reality of whatever character he’s playing. He applies the same disciplined approach to finding the truth of that character and sticks to it." "Christian brought everything to his performance that you could want for the character: the stature, the emotional resonance, the complexity," Roven stated. "It was amazing to be on the set watching him." The late Heath Ledger was cast in the role of The Joker, the malevolent clown who is arguably the most recognizable of Batman’s arch-nemeses. In casting the part, Nolan says that the defining quality he was looking for "was fearlessness. I needed a phenomenal actor, but he also had to be someone unafraid of taking on such an iconic role. Heath created something entirely original. It’s stunning, it’s captivating; it’s going to blow people away. Heath seemed to instinctively understand how to make this character different from anything that had ever been done before." And truer words were never spoken for Ledger's performance is stunning and transfixing. "He’s a fascinating character, and Heath did an extraordinary job with it," Bale notes. "I don’t think the movie would have worked as well if we hadn’t had an actor of the caliber of Heath Ledger, who was able to really up the ante, much as The Joker does in Gotham." 1998 Independent Spirit Award winning actor Aaron Eckhart ("In The Company Of Men") was cast as newly elected District Attorney, Harvey Dent. "Harvey has charged himself with tackling organized crime and cleaning up the streets. He is the shining new hope of Gotham City, the 'White Knight', as he is called. He starts out full of optimism and enthusiasm," Eckhart notes. "Where he ends up is somewhere completely different." The love of Bruce Wayne's life is Rachel Dawes played by Maggie Gyllenhaal, who coincidently received the 2002 Gotham Award for her breakthrough performance in "Secretary" alongside three time EMMY award winner (2004, '05 & '07) James Spader. "My wanting to be a part of this film had almost everything to do with Chris Nolan and the rest of the cast," Gyllenhaal said. "From the beginning, Chris was so engaging and so interested in my ideas about the role. He was clear that he wanted Rachel to be smart and capable and not the damsel in distress, although she is in distress sometimes. We were really good for each other because that's very much what I wanted, and we pushed each other in different ways to make Rachel who she is." Gary Oldman, who directed, wrote and produced the 1997 film "Nil By Mouth" (which picked up both the Alexander Korda and the BAFTA Best Film Awards) reprises his role as Lieutenant Jim Gordon, the head of the Gotham City Police Major Crime Unit (MCU). "Gary is such a remarkable actor," says producer Charles Roven ("Twelve Monkeys"). Nolan says he was "thrilled to be able to bring Gary back as Gordon, but in a story that challenges the character more and lets Gary show more of what he’s so great at." "The police have never encountered anything like The Joker," says Oldman. "He’s not interested in money or even power, in the usual sense of the word. The Joker is all about chaos; he does what he does for the fun of it. How do you police someone like that?" Academy Award winning actor Morgan Freeman ("Million Dollar Baby") returns as the brilliant Lucius Fox, CEO of Wayne Enterprises. "I see Lucius as practical-minded in doing what has to be done in order to facilitate this man’s mission," Freeman says. Also returning is 1987 and 2000 Oscar winner Michael Caine ("Hannah and Her Sisters" & "The Cider House Rules") as Bruce Wayne's butler and closest confidant, Alfred Pennyworth. "Working with great veterans like Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, I benefit massively from their experience," Nolan said. "They have a calm presence on the set that everybody responds to, and they just inspire everyone around them to be on their best game. It was a privilege to work with them in the first film and an honor to have them back." Synopsis

Life is different in Gotham City since the masked crusader Batman became its guardian angel. While there are still small pockets of resistance, life has a sense of normality about it for the cities good citizens. But all that is about to change. Batman is about to face a very different criminal. A sicko who values fear, anarchy and intimidation without the reward of a big fat paycheck. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon and the committed District Attorney, Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to destroy organized crime in Gotham City for good. The triumvirate initially proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to this rising criminal mastermind known as The Joker, who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces The Dark Knight ever closer to crossing the line between hero and vigilante. Bruce Wayne and Batman will be forced to make decisions that will redefine their public persona.

The Verdict "Having grown up with Batman comics, Batman on the TV, seen "Batman Begins" three times at the cinema, purchased the DVD and even as recenlty as a week ago watched "Batman Begins" on TV, I'd consider myself as big a fan of the caped crusader as anyone else, and so, like other fans the world-over I was beside myself with excitement at the prospect of seeing the sequel, especially with all the hype surrounding the allegedly exceptional performance by the late Heath Ledger. While I was entertained and do agree that Ledger's portrayal of The Joker was indeed something 'to die for' (excuse the unintended pun), the film is not without it's faults. It is as you would expect: dark, exciting, creative and entertaining. But, it isn't picture perfect. Yes the special FX and CGI work is first class as is the stunt work. Let's face it, once having seen the film, who could ever forget those stunning scenes where Batman goes on a mission in Hong Kong. And yes, the music of Academy Award winner Hans Zimmer and thirteen time ASCAP Award winner James Newton Howard (31 awards in total including 12 for "E.R.") fits every conceivable mood of the film. The problem comes in the final third of the film, which could have been trimmed by at least twenty minutes. It's as though they wanted to throw everything they could at the audience, and it is here that "The Dark Knight" labours to the point of truly becoming tedious. It is akin to a marathon runner setting a cracking pace and leading for 35 kilometres, before 'hitting the wall' and then completing the race to finish line at snail's pace. The end result is that Nolan allowed too much time to be spent on things that really didn't matter and which in the end, really do detract from the overall quality of the presentation. In a small way, it also diminishes Ledger's performance. While "The Dark Knight" is well worth a look at, it's not as good as it's cracked up to be. But then, it is a sequel. My hope is that the production team returns to the franchises grass roots and taps into what made "Batman Begins" such fresh, exciting and compelling viewing when it took the cinema world by storm back in 2005. Recommended. SOLID 3 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew

Christian Bale Heath Ledger Aaron Eckhart Michael Caine Maggie Gyllenhaal Gary Oldman Morgan Freeman Monique Curnen Ron Dean Cillian Murphy Chin Han Nestor Carbonell Eric Roberts Ritchie Coster Anthony Hall Keith Szarabajka Colin McFarlane Joshua Harto Melinda McGraw Nathan Gamble Michael Vieau Michael Stoyanov William Smiley Danny Goldring Michael Jai White Matthew O'Neill William Fichtner Lumiji Olawumi Gregory Beam Erik Hellman Beatrice Rosen Vincenzo Nicoli Edison Chen Nydia Terracina

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Bruce Wayne/Batman The Joker Harvey Dent/Two-Face Alfred Pennyworth Rachel Dawes Lt James Gordon Lucius Fox Det Ramirez Detective Wuertz Dr Jonathan Crane/The Scarecrow Lau Mayor Salvatore Maroni The Chechen Mike Engel Detective Stephens Commissioner Gillian B Loeb Reese Barbara Gordon James Gordon Jr Al Rossi Dopey Happy Grumpy Gambol Chuckles Bank Manager Drug Dealer Drug Buyer Junkie Natascha Crime Boss LSI VP Judge Surrillo

Directed by Christopher Nolan Screenplay Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan Story by Christopher Nolan & David S Goyer Characters created by Bob Kane Produced by Christopher Nolan/Charles Roven/Thomas Tull Original Music by James Newton Howard & Hans Zimmer Director of photography Wally Pfister Film Editing by Lee Smith Casting by John Papsidera Production Design by Nathan Crowley Supervising Art Director Simon Lamont Set Decoration by Peter Lando Costume Design by Lindy Hemming Run Time 152 minutes Rated M [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - Warner Bros - All Rights Reserved ©2008 All Rights Reserved - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian, International, Copyright & Trademark Laws.