darkknightblog

[darkknightblog]

Analyzing The Dark Knight and Its Impact on Modern Day Blockbusters

Plot:

-Batman, Lieutenant Jim Gordon, and District Attorney Harvey Dent have an alliance to clean up the city from crime

-there is a mob which the 3 in the alliance try to stop the mob

-criminal and villain (the Joker) commits violent acts to stop the 3 from the mob, targeting high profile people like the police commissioner, where he demands Batman reveal his true identity or more people will die

-Dent claims he is Batman to trick the Joker as when he is being turned in the Joker attacks but is then captured by the real Batman

-this is part of his true plan as Dent and Rachel Dawes who is Batman's lover are being held at 2 separate locations which will explode

-Batman finds Dent but he becomes 2 face and Dawes dies in an explosion as Batman doesn't get to her

-Joker escapes custody

-Batman defeats Joker but Dent now 2 face is a villain as he kidnaps Gordon's family and he threatens Gordon

-Batman defeats Dent and he takes the blame for Dent's actions

Trailer:

Cast and Crew:

Christian Bale – Bruce Wayne / Batman

Heath Ledger – The Joker

Aaron Eckhart – Harvey Dent / Two-Face

Michael Caine – Alfred Pennyworth

Gary Oldman – Lt. James Gordon

Maggie Gyllenhaal – Rachel Dawes

Morgan Freeman – Lucius Fox

Cillian Murphy – Dr. Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow (cameo)

Eric Roberts – Sal Maroni

Nestor Carbonell – Mayor Garcia

Anthony Michael Hall – Mike Engel (Gotham News anchor)

William Fichtner – Bank Manager (opening scene)

Director: Christopher Nolan

Writers: Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan (screenplay), story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer

Producers: Emma Thomas, Charles Roven, and Christopher Nolan

Director of Photography: Wally Pfister

Editor: Lee Smith

Production Designer: Nathan Crowley

Composer: Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard

Costume Designer: Lindy Hemming

Stunt Coordinator: Paul Jennings

Visual Effects Supervisor: Nick Davis

Pre-Production:

-Due to the success of the film Batman Begins (2005), Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer began to outline a sequel

-Christopher Nolan had a clear vision for this film, wanting to create a realistic superhero movie that was darker and more complex than previous films

-The film used IMAX cinematography, which Wally Pfister, the director of photography, learned in January 2007 

-Warner Bros approved a budget of $185 million for the film

Production:

-Filming took place from April 18, 2007 to November 11, 2007

-The film was shot in many different locations, such as Chicago, London, and Hong Kong 

Marketing and Distribution:

-The Dark Knight had a very unique and successful marketing and distribution strategy known as the "Why So Serious" Campaign

-1 year long campaign (Why So Serious Campaign) engaging directly with the fans

-Warner Bros and 42 Entertainment made an Alternate Reality Game

-websites like WhySoSerious.com, IBelieveInHarveyDent.com, and GothamPolice.com offered interactive content where fans could sign up as citizens of Gotham and receive missions

-Fans were asked to decode cryptic websites, solve riddles, and piece together content that overtime revealed more about the film

-Fans also participated in scavenger hunts where Joker henchmen led people to hidden locations, people were given instructions to dress as the Joker, take photos, and do different errands

-At one point, fans were told to pick up a cake called “Robin Banks”, inside the cakes were working burner phones, embedded in fake explosives, people who received them would get phone calls/texts with further instructions/information like Joker recordings and trailers

-At the 2007 Comic-Con in San Diego, fans found Jokerized dollar bills and a plane in the sky with a phone number, which again was a recruitment number for the Joker and led people on a scavenger hunt

-Marketed outside in big cities on billboards

-Marketed through tv ads across major networks

-Over 11 million people participated in the campaign making it a very anticipated film

Technology:

-IMAX cinematography (first major film to use it)

-scenes using IMAX include:

-practical effects and little CGI

Reception:

-The film was widely liked and very highly praised by people

-In its opening weekend, it made $158.4 million which at that time was a record

-It has made over $1 billion and is one of the highest grossing films ever

-It was the first superhero movie to cross the $1 billion mark globally.

-It is considered to be one of the best superhero and best movies overall of all time with ranking as the best superhero movie and best Batman movie according to the following 3 sources:

-Heath Ledger wins Best Supporting Actor for the Joker at the 2009 Oscars

Critical Analysis:

-Rotten Tomatoes: 94% critics score, 94% audience score

-Metacritic: 84/100

-Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 and said "The Dark Knight” is a haunted film that leaps beyond its origins and becomes an engrossing tragedy. It creates characters we come to care about. That’s because of the performances, because of the direction, because of the writing, and because of the superlative technical quality of the entire production."

Modern Impact:

-Superhero movies need realism

-inspired future realistic/grounded superhero films

-showed that superhero and comic book movies could be successful

-IMAX=must

-IMAX influence on future films as many films use IMAX, some notable being Interstellar, Avengers Infinity War, and Avengers Endgame

-made the Academy Awards to expand the Best Picture category from 5 to 10 films in 2009 after not getting a nomination.

-showed how getting fan engagement is very key through their marketing and distribution strategy of the film and how extreme measures films could get to engage the fans and market the film

-importance of good marketing campaign

Works Cited:

"30 Best Superhero Movies of All Time." GQ, 27 June 2023, https://www.gq.com/story/30-best-superhero-movies. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"All the Batman Movies, Ranked." TIME, 2 Mar. 2022, https://time.com/6151792/all-the-batman-movies-ranked/. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"Best Superhero Movies of All Time." GamesRadar+, https://www.gamesradar.com/best-superhero-movies/. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"Exploring the Complexities of Gotham: A Film Analysis of The Dark Knight." StudyMoose, https://studymoose.com/exploring-the-complexities-of-gotham-a-film-analysis-of-the-dark-knight-essay. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

Ebert, Roger. "The Dark Knight Movie Review (2008)." RogerEbert.com, 17 July 2008, https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-dark-knight-2008. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"In-Depth Analysis of The Dark Knight as a Superhero Masterpiece." Critique Lens, https://critiquelens.com/film-critiques/in-depth-analysis-of-the-dark-knight-as-a-superhero-masterpiece/. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"Inside The Dark Knight’s Unmatched Viral Marketing Campaign." ComicBook.com, https://comicbook.com/movies/news/the-dark-knight-viral-marketing-campaign-will-never-be-beaten/. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"Production Design Breakdown – The Dark Knight." No Film School, https://nofilmschool.com/dark-knight-production-design. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

Smith, Jim Vejvoda. "The Dark Knight's 'Why So Serious' Viral Campaign Changed Movie Marketing." IGN, 18 July 2023, https://www.ign.com/articles/the-dark-knight-why-so-serious-viral-movie-marketing-arg. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"The Dark Knight and Its Impact on Cinema." Toxigon, https://toxigon.com/the-dark-knight-its-impact-on-cinema. Accessed 6 May 2025. 

"YouTube – The Dark Knight IMAX Featurette." YouTube, uploaded by Movieclips, https://youtu.be/DT78V9KBIfs?si=mp4cYOA24Oiyo959. Accessed 6 May 2025.