I thought it was pretty good, but Bale's 'Batman voice' bugged the crap out of me.

Really? I'd like to see what superhero movie it felt like to you, to me it felt nothing like a superhero movie.

It felt like HEAT mixed with Seven to me, except Batman and the Joker were in it.

There was no feel good moment, the hero saves the day all is well bullshit, there was only death and Batman failing and the only way he could win was to take the fall for the crimes he was trying to stop.

Is that what happened in spiderman or fantastic four or superbore returns?

God and yeah, the only thing I dont like about Bales Batman is his voice, sometimes i'ts good but most of the time it sounds like he's constipated. Though he is the most believable (and in turn) my favorite batman.

saw it for the 2nd time... Heath is so good.... the opening sequence and the prison sequence are just brilliant... Bale's voice is funny sometimes... i dont think he needed to do it around rachel and gordon, etc... eh, its not a perfect film... but it is so epic and entertaining. hardly felt like 150 minutes the 2nd time around

I was kind of hoping I might win a T-shirt from the Letterman staffers for my try at "Top Ten Batman Pet Peeves." My submission:

Over-the-counter lozenges make a lot of promises, but none seem to really do the trick.

Anyway, I realize that the guttural voice thing is supposed to make everything that much more plausible, that Bruce Wayne is guarding his identity, but it's still a bit grating.

A friend of mine has been doing original youtube comedy clips of late and I suggested he do one about Batman (so that he would get more views) called "The Dark Knight of the Soul."

Here's a draft: (you gotta imagine it with Batman speaking with the ridiculously deep voice)
open to scene of you sleeping from end of lisa nova collab video???

change of camera angle to slight crane shot from above

phone rings several times

change of camera angle back to standard view of you on bed

finally pick up phone and mutter a tired "hello?" with a hint of a question in your voice as if to emote "who the fuck could/would be calling me this late?"

Batman: Are you the videologist?

Damion: (shaking off tiredness, sitting up in the bed a little (or completely))
Yeah

Batman (remains silent)

Damion: That's one of my many "hats."

Batman: I'm familiar. I wear a mask.

Damion: If you think about it (finally exhibiting that you're fully waking up) we all wear masks and dress in costumes.

Batman: I take it to the next level.

Damion: Yeah, I understand you're a complex guy.

Batman: I'm Batman.

Damion: Whatcha want, Batman?

Batman: Someone's been rattling my cage.

Damion: That a metaphor?

Batman: (declining to answer the question) I know that you're the one I need to talk to. I need some information.

Damion: Well, you're calling me in the middle of the night and waking me up, what's so important?

Batman: I'm troubled. The woman I love, I've always loved...since childhood...since before...she's in love with another man...and this other man is a good man, well at least he is now...and she says she can't be with me...because I'm the Batman.

Damion: That's been established. So wearing a cape and fighting crime is both a blessing and a curse, right?

Batman: I can't seem to get her out of my mind. She haunts my thoughts. I can't seem to let go of a lot of things.

Damion: Yeah, that's a problem. Why me, Batman? You calling for advice?

Batman: You're the videologist...you see things as they are. I'm a criminologist...a psychological detective, but I can't examine myself. There are obstacles.

Damion: I know a good ear, nose and throat guy. He could have a look at you.

Batman: You're wasting valuable time. There are lives hanging in the balance. It's not so simple. If I give up being the Batman then the innocent will suffer.

Damion: We wouldn't want that, no.

Batman: But I fear I'm becoming what I hate.

Damion: "Hate" is such a strong word.

Batman: I shouldn't have called you. I get better results in person.

Damion: For someone that intimidates through fear you sure have a lot of insecurities.

Batman: (as you reminded) I'm complex.

Damion: Yeah, listen Batman, I gotta get going and get back to bed. You sure you don't want me to call Dr. Lozengemann and make...

Batman: ...the things I've done...the things I've seen...

Damion: (growing annoyed, emphatically stressing the words)...and make an appointment for you.

Hey Batman, ever wonder why Jewish mothers make good parole officers? They never let anyone finish a sentence.

Batman: (makes guttural noises)

Damion: I've found it's important to develop a sense of humor. Goodnight Batman, I'm hanging up now.

(hangs up phone)

hahaha.

atari, your posts are too well-thought-out sometimes.

thats how that guy looks all the time (I assume), I watch lost and he's in that show sometimes and looks the same.

I read on imdb that's how he naturally looks but I saw pics where he doesn't look like that. His bottom eyes clearly had some kind of eye makeup on it. Fucked up. I couldn't stop laughing, I was like "damn the mayor's feelin kinda saucy"

HAHA yeah

man, I also couldnt stop laughing (no matter how much of a bat geek I am and was totally enthralled and didnt say anything the whole film until..) when that prisoner on the boat wanted the detenator....

he had these really bad cross/bug eyes and he kept wispering "give it to me"

haha

yeah he reminded me of the dude from the green mile.

really, those last 20 minutes or so were kind of a mess eh...

maybe the suit is too tight and he can't breathe properly.
* trying to cover script holes to no purpose - see Kokaku Kidotai when the bomb goes off in Kusanagi's apartment and Shirow claims she survived coz there's an aquarium on her side when the explosion happens*.

the commissioner says two face killed 5 people at the end.

I can only think of 2... maybe 3.

I actually enjoyed the last 20 minutes. I really enjoyed Gordon's speech at the end, it made The Dark Knight a stand alone film. It gave you an idea of what was to come and what was happening, and didnt BEG for a sequel, which is always good to do...just in case. But it also left enough room for a sequel....

until ledger dropped out of the picture.

:-(

gary oldman is the man.

Probably the most greatest actor ever if one considers the large variety in his roles.

.....As much as I love Robert DeNiro and Christopher Walken and so on and think they are great actors, there are obviously lots of films where they play similiar characters. DeNiro is probably my favorite actor of all time and has played some of my favorite characters of all time (Bickle, Pupkin) but...

only Gary Oldman could be Lee Harvey Oswald, Dracula, Sid Vicious, Mason R. Verger (the crippled dude in Hannibal), Commisioner Gordon, Drexl the pimp, Pontius Pilate, and Ludwig van Beethoven......... and make every character believable... Actually, in at least 2 of the roles I just mentioned, I didn't even realize it was Gary Oldman!

Okay, sorry to disrupt the thread.

LOL but seriously, this was a pretty good film! I'm only three, so I couldn't see it in theaters but I had my brother download it so I didn't have to wait for a dvd release. Heath (RIP) stole the show! He is my favourite Joker, and trust me, I have seen ALL of the Batman films. I would advise anyone who hasn't seen this to go see it right now.

ive seen it three times now. better everytime. heath ledger is daniel day lewis worthy.

hahaha.

i wonder if the mayor will win "Best eyeliner"?

i cant believe anyone could prefer any of the old batmans to batman begins. that movie totally rejuvenated a dead franchise, and shed light on an extremly important comic book to a new generation. having ras al ghul as the villian was brilliant. i always felt him to be the 2nd best batman villain, and the origin story of ras training him was very inspired, as in the comic, ras felt bruce to be his most worthy opponent, and wanted him as a successor. the scarecrow was great too, and the connection they made between him and ras. bale is a perfect bruce wayne. tim burton cast michael keaton, fuck that.

but in the end, it cant compare to the dark knight, which is perfect on so many levels. anyone who prefers nicholson's performance is an idiot, it was plain and boring. his joker was a goofy gangster guy. heath's is terrifying, a zero empathy sadomasochistic psychopathic nihilist anarchist chaos loving clown, who is very funny to boot. harvey dent's story was perfect for the film, turning him into a sympathetic vigilante instead of the psycho he was in the comic, to contrast with the unsympathetic joker. bale, ledger, caine, eckhardt, oldman, and freeman were all at the top of thier game. nolan did an amazing job, the makeup was phenomenal, and the sopundtrack kicked fucking ass. 5 years from now itll be thoyght of as one of the best films ever made, period. it reminds us of why we love goig to the movies.


best batman villains ever:
the joker
ras
two face
bane
the riddler


if they have another they shoul have willem dafoe be the riddler, and some scary strongman as bane

whoa whoa whoa.

Batman begins was alright, but the last half an hour was a mess. I felt the whole film to be underwhelming in almost every way. I mean, it kinda bored me. Showed good potential and kudos to them for showing Bruce Wayne's origin, but it didn't do anything for me then or now.

The Dark Knight is 10000x better.

I hope they do the knightfall story for part 3... with Bane and the Black Mask and Azrael and shit... that'd be crazy.

Also, the dark knight is currently # 1 on imdb.. and will probably be there for a long time. Nuts.

I agree with you Batreleaser. I didn't even remember that I cared about or even liked Batman until I saw Begins. It takes alot for a director (shumacher) to totally turn you against the hero of your youth. Especially to kill a franchise as old and iconic as batman.

It also takes alot to resurect a dead franchise, which Nolan did.

I think people are too hard on Begins, I don't know what people expect from it but I'm very glad people are so thrilled with TDK.

With that said, there wouldn't be a Dark Knight without Begins, so don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. You have Chris Nolan to thank.

Because the other side of the spectrum is...

there wouldn't have been any shumacher films without Burton...

:-P

atsonicpark- dude I couldn't agree more, Oldman is probably my favorite actor. Just fucking brilliant, you said it all. I saw an interview with him after TDK came out and the guy asked if he would have liked to play the joker when he was younger & he had a big grin on his face and like a kid said..."well, YEAH!"

Imagine how amazing that would have been?

Advice Dog, I could have told you heath would have been the best Joker about a year and 1/2 ago maybe 2 years now, when he first got cast.

Cool!

Just because the Dark Knight is awesome doesn't mean a person should be happy Batman Begins exists. Nolan is a great director, I love Prestige, Memento, and Insomnia. I just find Batman Begins the worst Batman film ever. I'd rather watch Batman and Robin -- it's hilarious and more entertaining, even though that was obviously unintentional. It's technically not a better film, but man.. Batman Begins is just a bloated bore with almost nothing I can honestly reccomend about it. Katey Holmes has never did anything good in her life.

The Dark Knight is everything Batman Begins should have been, though it too is obviously bloated and ridiculous and the entire film feels like one huge climax. I gave the Dark Knight an 8/10, I think I'd give Begins a 5. Which is still average but you know. Something like...

Batman (60's version) - 6/10
Batman (1989) - 8/10
Batman Returns - 7/10
Batman Forever - 6/10
Batman and Robin - 5/10

And yeah the fact that Oldman has never won any major awards in his life... fuck. How ridiculous.

Yeah it's a shame about Oldman.

Katie holmes is a fuck.

I know what you mean about Batman & Robin, that shits funny to watch...I'm not saying everyone should drink the Begins koolaid and put on the nikes but....I definitely don't think it's as bad as you do. I understand it's probably not that batman movie you wanted or expected...but I went into it not expecting anything, I had just seen american psycho and became a fan of bale when it came out, so I wanted to see wtf he was up to with Batman.

I don't know I guess I just saw it at the right time with the right mindset...it wasn't really a Batman film, more of a Bruce Wayne film to show that he wasn't always this badass creature of the night. I don't know, to each his own!

I didn't expect anything.. I don't let expectations get in the way of my enjoyment of a film anyway. I just thought it wasn't very entertaining.

True and fair enough. I wish I could have seen TDK without knowing anything about it or seeing any pictures.

It was the only film that I've spoiled myself with details about...and I still loved it...I could only imagine what it would have been like in most of yr shoes! I fucking knew about the ferry plot like....last summer....

how fucked is that.

haha.

oldman is great. hes the best at making lame movies less lame. like the fifth element. and he was a great sid vicious.

i really cant see how u dislike batman begins, i just thought the whole movie was exciting, fun, and different. it totally changed the comiv book super hero genre from fun mindless cinema, to i dunno, real cinema. i love the shots when people are uner the fear hallucinogen. like when batman is questioning an intoxicated crane. and cmon, batman and robin. that was everythinh batman shouldnt be. light hearted, stupid jokes, chris odonnel, alicia silverstone, yuck....

Yeah of course Batman and Robin is terrible. I just found it entertaining, something I didn't find in Batman Begins.

I dunno, I just thought the film wasn't very interesting. Meh.

And Gary Oldman played Julian Schnabel in Schnabel's feature film debut Basquiat. Add to the slippery slope that Schanbel was a self-admitted anal-retentive chef before turning artist and that he's a perfectionist as a director. Also, while in his early thirties, Gary Oldman was able to charm, seduce and marry a 20-year old Uma Thurman. 'Nuff said.

I stopped caring for your shit posts after I read your first one.

:-)

had surgery last friday, got nothin better to do, movies get me outathe house.

you sit around on the computer and talk shit to people on a message board for a band you dont like, see the irony here?

also 3 things that have been stuck up yr ass!

and I'm talking a disco ball.

I don't know how you do it!

The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan has told reporters in Tokyo that he has no idea why his Batman movie is breaking box-office records. "I would not be able to point to exactly what it is," he said. "If I knew that all my films would have been successful." Final weekend figures confirmed Monday that the movie has broken yet another record -- best second-week performance of any film. The movie earned $75.2 million, which brought its 10-day total to more than $300 million, according to box-office trackers Media by Numbers. (The results somewhat diminished the achievement of Sony's Hancock, starring Will Smith, which crossed the $200-million mark after four weeks.) The film is now taking aim at Titanic's record of $600.8 million in ticket sales -- by far the top money maker of all time.