The Dark Knight (2008)

When the menace known as the Joker wreaks havoc and chaos on the people of Gotham, Batman must accept one of the greatest psychological and physical tests of his ability to fight injustice.

Director:

Christopher Nolan

Writers:

Jonathan Nolan (screenplay), Christopher Nolan (screenplay)

Stars:

Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart

Top Rated Movies #4 | Won 2 Oscars. Another 157 wins & 163 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Christian Bale	...	Bruce Wayne
Heath Ledger	...	Joker
Aaron Eckhart	...	Harvey Dent
Michael Caine	...	Alfred
Maggie Gyllenhaal	...	Rachel
Gary Oldman	...	Gordon
Morgan Freeman	...	Lucius Fox
Monique Gabriela Curnen	...	Ramirez
Ron Dean	...	Wuertz
Cillian Murphy	...	Scarecrow
Chin Han	...	Lau
Nestor Carbonell	...	Mayor
Eric Roberts	...	Maroni
Ritchie Coster	...	Chechen
Anthony Michael Hall	...	Mike Engel

Storyline

Set within a year after the events of Batman Begins (2005), Batman, Lieutenant James Gordon, and new District Attorney Harvey Dent successfully begin to round up the criminals that plague Gotham City, until a mysterious and sadistic criminal mastermind known only as "The Joker" appears in Gotham, creating a new wave of chaos. Batman's struggle against The Joker becomes deeply personal, forcing him to "confront everything he believes" and improve his technology to stop him. A love triangle develops between Bruce Wayne, Dent, and Rachel Dawes.

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Plot Keywords:

dc comics | joker | psychopath | clown | criminal mastermind | 

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Taglines:

Welcome to a world without rules.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and some menace

Did You Know?

Trivia

After Gamble interrupts Joker's initial speech, he switches gears with a new one to get the rest of the mob on his side, showing he in fact IS the kind of a guy with a plan.

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Goofs

When Ramirez talks to Gordon on the roof, she holds her coffee with both hands, then just one hand, then both of them again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Grumpy: [with Chuckles, picks up Bozo on the street] Three of a kind, let's do this!
Chuckles: That's it? Three guys?
Grumpy: Two guys on the roof. Every guy gets a share. Five shares is plenty.
Chuckles: *Six* shares. Don't forget the guy who planned the job.
Grumpy: He thinks he can sit it out and still take a slice?
Dopey: [up on the roof] I know why they call him "The Joker".
Happy: [breaking open the alarm box with Dopey] So why do they call him "the Joker"?
Dopey: I hear he wears makeup.
Happy: Makeup?
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Christian Bale is credited with playing "Bruce Wayne" but not "Batman" in the closing credits.

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Alternate Versions

The Blu-ray version of the movie has several of the big action scenes and high altitude photography scenes in ordinary 16:9 (1.78:1) widescreen ratio while the rest of the movie preserves the "scope" format (2.39:1). This is because these scenes were filmed in IMAX, whose format is 1.43:1, thus attempting to recreate the effect witnessed in IMAX theaters, as well as preserving as much of these shots as possible.

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Connections

Referenced in Films Under Constant Critique: Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997) (2019)

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Soundtracks

Balmoral
Performed by The Pipes and Drums of the Chicago Police Department

User Reviews

The Dark Knight

Confidently directed, dark, brooding, and packed with impressive action sequences and a complex story, The Dark Knight includes a career-defining turn from Heath Ledger as well as other Oscar worthy performances, TDK remains not only the best Batman movie, but comic book movie ever created.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

18 July 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Batman Begins 2

Filming Locations:

Times Square, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Box Office

Budget:

$185,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$158,411,483, 20 July 2008

Gross USA:

$534,858,444

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,005,973,645

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Legendary Entertainment, Syncopy

Technical Specs

Runtime:

152 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS IMAX 6-Track

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1