It didn't live up to the hype.

The joker was funny, twice in the whole film? Other than that he was nothing like the Jokers of the past and was almost like a completly different character. Some of the film didn't make much sense (Rachel Dawes is not beautiful at all, she looks like a combination of Miley Cyrus and Hannibal Lector except the face mask is actually melted into her skin). Parts of the film revolved around Lt. James Gordon far too much. All of the characters were pratically emotionless except a minor character and Harvey Dent, Bruce Wayne is about as emotional as a rock despite what happens in the film.

The acting just seemed terrible by everyone, Heath Ledger was decent but the script was just horrible for the entire movie. There was zero character development aside from Harvy Dent (which was a barely there sort of affair), the Joker wasn't scary at all because we never found out why he was doing any of this. It was nothing like a Batman film and if you replaced Batman and only Batman with a different character you could sell the movie as a completely different story altogether.

 It's just, when I was watching it I actually got bored during the movie. I found my eyes occasionally gazing around the cinema and that I was looking at my watch every 10-20 minutes. I was forced into watching the film again with my friends and I feel asleep.

 Don't get me wrong, the movie was not bad. It just didn't live up to all the expectations which sort of ruined it for me. It's a good film, but not amazing and it doesn't deserve any oscar wins. If you're watching the film soon I reccomend you do so (in cinema is more watchable then on DvD) but if you really want to enjoy it you must see the first movie (Batman Begins) or The Dark Knight will just confuse you, and don't read any of the professional reviews because it could potentionally ruin the feel of the movie for you, also not having any knowedlge of the batman movies, television shows or comic books before Batman Begins is a plus. 

That's awfully harsh criticism for a "good" movie. This movie TOTALLY lives up to its hype.

I loooooooved the living poop out of this movie. I was chuckling with glee when the credits started rolling because I was literally in shock at how thoroughly entertained I was for 2.5 hours.

Acting: Incredible. I'm not sure what sort of competition there will be once 2008 comes to a close, but Ledger's take on the Joker was easily the most impressive display of acting I've seen this year. Yes, Batman and much of his supporting cast seems awfully somber, but give the ordeals they endure I can't blame them. When you see these characters realize that something bad is going to happen you believe it. Even more impressively, when the entire city starts to panic you believe it.

Script: I was honestly just as engrossed in the Dark Knight's storyline as I was for other superb crime dramas like the Departed. Probably even more now that I think about it. Every character in the movie had a reason for being on screen. And given the amount of characters in this movie I am absolute in awe at the writing skills of the Nolan brothers. This movie will stick in your brain for a long long time after you see it.

But I do agree with Rufus on some points. Maggie Gyllenhaal isn't as smoking hot as Katie (Cruise?) but she does have a classy look and is not without her personality charms. Very few people are going to be offset by that switcheroo. I also agree that Batman himself sometimes loses screen time due to what is a rather complicated story. Still, I felt that was a necessary sacrfice in order to tell this epic tale.

And I strongly have to disagree with the notion that Joker wasn't scary and that there was no reason for the things he perpetrated. Trust me, keep the little ones away from this film. And the reason he...oops, this is a spoiler free zone. *le sigh* Anyway, this movie would not make any sense without the Batman character. The motivations of the heroes and villains are tied specifically into that character.

 Bah! Enough rebuttal. Go see this movie. You will love it. The story is frightening and as realistic as any comic book movie has dared to be. The villians are plentiful, relentless, and absolutely brutal. The heroes are beaten senseless physically and mentally. The way they handle these situations is nothing short of spectacle. My one complaint, there was one absolutely amazing action sequence, but the other action scenes seemed ordinairy by today's standards. I don't think there's as many "That was cool!" moments as Wanted or Iron Man, but there are way way more edge of your seat moments.

I pity. Pity pity pity the young fool who downloads this movie and watches it at home instead of the theater. I don't care how big your monitor is or how many watts your sound system has. Do yourself a big  favor, shell out a few bucks, and enjoy something that will almost certainly get multiple oscar nominations.

Lastly, I will agree that this didn't feel like a batman movie. It felt better than that. Would that more superhero films were like this one. It's more than a comic book movie and it's certainly more than just an action movie.

I saw the Dark Knight last night at the Alamo Drafthouse and really enjoyed it.  Ledger did an awesome job playing the Joker... very sinister. 

 I couldn't disagree more with ya Rufus, I loved it and think that it lived up to all of it's hype. I think Maggie Gylenhall, who I've been a fan of since I first saw her in Donnie Darko, is a way better actress than Katie. You never know why the Joker does anything he does, he is the bringer of chaos, that's the way it is in the comics, and thats the way I like it : ) 

And I'm glad its not like any of the last batman movies, "Batman and Robin" often makes me feel like vomiting....

 He had nipples on his suit, anything is better than that...

- Jen 

 I saw the midnight showing of it on Friday, and I loved every second of it. The moment I saw the Joker come on screen, I knew he was going to be awesome, and he was. I wasn't expecting Two-Face to actually be in the movie, but I think they did a good job with him. I think the only problem with this movie is that it is going to be very hard for any sequels to top The Dark Knight.

Stryfe:

 I saw the midnight showing of it on Friday, and I loved every second of it. The moment I saw the Joker come on screen, I knew he was going to be awesome, and he was. I wasn't expecting Two-Face to actually be in the movie, but I think they did a good job with him. I think the only problem with this movie is that it is going to be very hard for any sequels to top The Dark Knight.

Especially with no more Heath Ledger : (

- Jen 

g33k1337o7:

Especially with no more Heath Ledger : (

 When I first heard that Heath Ledger was going to play the Joker, I was like Heath Ledger......really? Now that I've seen the movie though, I don't think there is anyone who could've done a better job. They shouldn't even bother having the Joker in any sequels because no one is going to do better than him. It really is a shame he's gone, because in my opinion, he was an amazing actor. There aren't very many actors(at least in my opinion) that when you see them on screen, you see the character they are portraying, and not the actor. Heath Ledger was one of those actors.

I got to see this movie last night at 10:20 and got home at like 1 in the morning and it was totally worth it. This movie totally owned I want to watch it again and again. Heath Ledger and Christian Bale did an awesome job. It's a shame Ledger died and Bale got arrested.