4. The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight (2008) is an exceptional film, for a range of reasons from the quality of the screenplay to the profound performances from the actors. The Dark knight was written by the brothers, Christopher and Jonathan Nolan and directed by Christopher Nolan. The $1bn box office hit stars: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart and Michael Caine as leads. Jack Nicholson had delivered an apparently sterling portrayal of the Joker in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman. In an interview with MTV Nicholson said he felt like he should be the one to reprise his role in the 2008 film and felt jilted when Ledger was given the role. In 2008, Nicholson would have been 71, meaning the casting directors felt he was too old for the action shots required for the film.

One reason for such a successful execution of the Dark Knight is that, according to Michael Caine when he was interviewed by Liveaboutdotcom, Christian Bale was the best Batman of the 6 who have played him. This meant he outperformed Adam West and George Clooney’s portrayal of the superhero. In terms of the story of the villain, the Dark Knight is not an origins story, as the film recognised the infamous nature of the villain. Consequently, the writers felt, appropriately, that the Joker required no introduction, and this led to a more fluid story telling experience.

The Dark Knight is so fantastic because it expertly combines stories from the comics. As an audience we see the psychology of the Joker inspired from Alan Moore’s the Killing Joke (1988). As the film explores the relationship between the Joker, Batman and Commissioner Gordon we see how the narrative has been drawn from Frank Miller’s, Batman: Year 1 (1987). Lastly, Jeph Leob’s the Long Halloween tells the story of Harvey Dent’s fall from grace.

The Dark Knight has been rated a 12A by the BBFC, this is surprising because of the dark themes within the film. The film is aimed at men, who bought 63% of comics in 2017. The film is rife with gadgets and technology primarily associated with men and the lead actors are all male.

In judging the film, I gave it 66 overall, 12/20 for scriptural integration because I enjoy quotable films, and this is packed with quotes that inspect the difference between right and wrong. The film scored mostly 7s because I thought the film did a really good job in the technical aspects of leaving an impact on its audience.

To support my judging criteria I found that the quotes “Some men just want to watch the world burn” and “You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” have become cultural phrases and embedded themselves within society: for example in the form of memes. Furthermore, the attention to detail from the film makers is evident from some of the most prominent scenes. The shots in the Jokers “magic trick” accurately convey the darkness of the film and the shots of actors walking in front of explosions tell us this is a classic superhero film and should be revered.

The genre conventions were considered in the judging of this film and it closely adheres to its genre characteristics. Naturally, we see: the extra ordinary powers, equipment and skill of the protagonist; secret identities, of the antagonist and Batman and the superhero’s Achille’s heel – Batman moral code of not killing. (Even though in the first editions of the comics Batman murdered criminals, but this just serves to show how the characterisation has developed and this is excellently portrayed in the film.)

Judging Criteria

SCRIPTURAL INTEGRATION - 20 points: 12

STORY/SCREENPLAY - 10 points: 7

DIRECTOR - 10 points:7

CINEMATOGRAPHY - 10 points:6

EDITOR - 10 points:6

PRODUCTION DESIGN - 10 points:7

ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE or SCORE EFFECTIVENESS (if not original) - 10 points: 7

SOUND DESIGN - 10 points:7

ACTING - 10 points: 7

TOTAL SCORE 100 POINTS. : 66