I don't trust nobody that dresses like a damn bat.

Tiger_Tanaka

@William Mize: Why just have only one villian? Let's cut out the Batman role, and let Joker and Two-Face battle it out. Now that would be one good fuckin' movie, I tell ya.

Old No.7

Why so cynical?

jordo_83

I can wait.

Passwordforgetter

@Sweet Panda Love: Yeah, I'm with you. Heath Ledger was great, Christian Bale was just Patrick Bateman in a batsuit and it was sooooo fucking long . Seriously, we all went out and got drunk afterwards it was so fucking depressing. The best film of all time? Give me. A fucking break. It's BATMAN people, BATTTTTMAN.

Calraigh

What's the visual equivalent of *hands over ears singing "la-la-la-la-la-la I can't hear you"*? I didn't see DK over the weekend (oh relax, I'll probably see it this afternoon). Am I just going to have to avoid Defamer altogether today?

Desk_hack

I just saw Batman this weekend. Batman Begins on DVD, that is. I guess I have some catching up to do!

kookla

Fanboys have seen everything? I doubt most of them could pick Ingrid Bergman out of a lineup.

OldTowneTavern

@Old No.7: I think they were channeling Rudy Giuliani: [morningchuhi.files.wordpress.com]

Also, whoever is mixing Christian Bale's "Batman voice" in post needs to tone down the fucking bass. He opened his mouth and the earth rumbled. Listening to his first few lines made my vocal chords tired. I'd love to see a dubbed version of the movie with Christian Siriano's voice instead of Bales.

NoWireHangers

I'll bet Katie Holmes is sad that her "scheduling conflicts" prevented her from being in this film.

NotReadyForPrimeTime

@Sweet Panda Love: I am with you on this one, Sweet Panda Love. I saw it Sunday afternoon and, although I can't say I was bored (but it needed at least 15-20 minutes trimmed), I right now cannot summons up more than a few images and no particular lines of dialogue. And I don't know what to think of Mr. Ledger's performance. I really don't.

And this being the first time to see Christian Bale on the big screen (I missed 'American Psycho' because that material bothered the hell out of me), I found him pretty meh. I wasn't paying any attention when this film started production: was he a short list choice or was he the only actor who really wanted it at the time? I would love to know.

gwendolyn

The good: The Batcycle, Heath Ledger in a nurses' outfit, and yes, Eric Roberts.
The bad: They broke the cardinal rule of Too Many Villains. The Joker or Two Face. Pick ONE. Not both, but ONE.
The ugly: The end of Maggie Gyllenhall. Ain't right.
The stupid: Better than "The Godfather"? Oh, really? Call me when you stop living with your parents, eating Cheetos by the bag and wearing ill-fitting black t-shirts and we can discuss.

William Mize

Only one question - does any male mayor, of any major metropolitan city, really wear that much eyeliner?

Oh, and thanks for getting all preachy at the end; and throwing in those subtle NSA wiretap allegories as well.

Old No.7

Eric Roberts was fab too. Seriously.

jerebo

But let me amend - I thought Ledger's performance was fantastic.

Sweet Panda Love

I saw it. I don't get the enthusiasm. I thought it was aimless and too long and had confusing fights. (I mean, that sonar scene? I felt like an epileptic.) Reason 8207890 why nerds can't be trusted to tell us what's cool.

Sweet Panda Love

@jordo_83: Bingo. Thank you.

We're quibbling about eyeliner and baritone voices (and yes, they were flaws), but goddammit, it was just a well-made film. End of story.

enriquez the water bottle

The Shawshank Redemption? The internet makes people stupid.

Dr. Spaceman, Esq.

The only "Godfather" comparison I've read was how some critics, fanboys and fanboy critics (i.e. Ain't It Cool) called the DK the "Godfather II" of comic book movies.

Anyhow, I loved the movie and Ledger blissfully made me forget all about Jack just being himself in Batman (but donned in clown drag). There were a few enormous plotholes and the final act could've been shorter, but a second viewing helped plug in some missing details.

I watched "Batman and Robin" for the first time last night, and all I could think was, "Whatta piece of SHITE."

Cam/ron

When a movie is as deservedly well-received as this one has been, a backlash is inevitable. The Dark Knight was not just easily the best comic film ever made, but one of the finest crime films ever made as well. It deserves every accolade it receives.

Ernst Stavro Blofeld

@Old No.7: agreed. maybe nolan didn't think we got the "white knight/dark knight" references and trusted bale and oldman to basically tell us everyone in excruciating monologues.

and i'm not going to lie, i fell asleep for about two minutes in the third act. like some commenter mentioned, the movie should've ended with harvey in the hopsital bed. that would've set up the third movie perfectly, but alas, nolan had his money on ledger returning.

bess marvin, girl detective

@jerebo: isn't it a crying shame that his sister is a bigger star than he is?

bess marvin, girl detective

Lets discuss the merits of this movie. Is it the greatest movie ever made? No, but let's not go overboard with our hatred for it.

For starters, when discussing the Joker from now on, the phrase "Jack who?" should be used on a regular basis.

Christian Bale not incredibly talented. I dare you to watch this and say that he's only capable of playing one character:

+ Watch video

Finally, for those who think it was too long, I disagree. Just like Lord of the Rings, I enjoyed my trip to Gotham and I'm glad it didn't end 90 minutes after I got there.

Come on people, it was the best comic book movie ever made, and yes it was one of the better films ever made period. The Godfather will retake its position at number one on IMDb in a few weeks, but it won't make Chris Nolan any less talented as a visionary director.

You may now commence with the fanboy jokes.

jordo_83

Way OT, but an appeals court just threw out the $550,000 FCC fascism fine levied against CBS for the Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake Super Bowl 'wardrobe malfunction'.

What do we tell the children? That some people in this country still have some common sense...

gwendolyn

@Old No.7: Or, even better, bring back Tommy Lee Jones and have Two Face versus Two Face!
The battle of the four faces!
Coin Flippin' Steel cage match!

William Mize

@gwendolyn: Yeah, but they threw it out mostly because of a technicality that the FCC didn't give enough public notice that such circumstances are sanctionable. The court didn't overturn the fine because they found it unjust per se. In other words, we are pretty much the same confused and zany country we've always been.

Losin_it

Best-of polls are all worthless, ignorant crap. Ignore'em. Shawshank Redemption better than Godfather 2? Sentimental, logic-challenged, improbable yarn beats out epic literature? That's hilarious.

lrubemp

But where does he get all of those wonderful toys?

Losin_it

@enriquez the water bottle: Agreed. liked DK just fine. Highly enjoyable. Boffo. Eyeliner and baritone are minor and valid jabs.

NoWireHangers

It'll settle around 7 and 12. Give it time.

How the average person votes on IMDb:

Loved it: 10
Liked it: 10
Didn't see it: 7
Disliked it: 1
Hated it: 1

MrHughes

I'm happy that a movie that truly deserves this success is getting it. The Dark Knight is a crime film all the way up there with Heat, it's so damn good.

kylo4

I wasn't that impressed with Ledger's performance as the Joker. Sure there were those who thought he was creepy. But imagine if it were a young Rutger Hauer ala "Blade Runner" or "Hitcher", he'd be 10 times scarier as the Joker.

Cultmember

Anybody remember Michael Keaton? Tim Burton? Anyone?

I have no doubt that TDK probably is good but when the cycle's so fast that Hollywood is defibrillating franchises that were originally made during my short lifetime, *that's* depressing. Coming in 2011: Spiderman Begins, starring Topher Grace and an Olsen twin.

nonce

@nonce: Right. I'm going to completely skip this iteration of the Batman franchise and wait until it's re-re-re-reimagined in 2029. Knox Jolie-Pitt in "Batman Reborn". Since our currency will collapse in value between now and then, it will probably gross about $100,000,000,000,000 in its opening weekend.

And fanboys will have personal laser weapons they can blast you with if you don't agree that Knox is the coolest Batman ever!

Losin_it

Seriously, I still don't get the enthusiasm, hours later. One of the finest crime films ever? I thought it was Private Joker's line from "Full Metal Jacket" - "It's about the duality of man, sir. The Jungian thing." - stretched out to two and a half hours. I didn't care about anyone in the movie as much as I cared about the Batcycle.

Sweet Panda Love

Soooo Katie. How's that guest appearance on Eli Stone coming along?

Kerfuffled

If you didn't like The Dark Knight, you don't fucking get Batman. Period. So kindly shut the fuck up and go dance in the fucking aisle at Mama Mia. That final scene between Batman and Joker (with Joker hanging upside down) was one of the most iconic images put to film in the last decade. I actually preferred this story to some of Frank Miller's. And that's a HUGE compliment. Everyone brought their A game, and in Ledger's case, well, you probably saw for yourself. But the unsung hero was Bale's Batman, which is rather poetic considering the Caped Crusaders arc in this film. Although, after reading some of the bile online, I'm not convinced those two boats wouldn't have blown each other up in reality. Maybe if their were no bloggers on board. ;-)

DickWhitman