 
The Dark Knight a.k.a. “The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience,” “Batman Begins 2,” “Batman - O Cavaleiro das Trevas,” “El Caballero oscuro,” “Il Cavaliere oscuro,” “Yön ritari”MPAA Rating:
 for intense sequences of violence and some menace.Reviewed by: Jonathan Rodriguez Offensive
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience:
Teens, Adults
Genre:
Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Sequel
Length:
2 hr. 32 min.
Year of Release:
2008
USA Release:
July 18, 2008 (wide - 4,300 theaters)
 
Relevant Issues
Ugliness
I’m ugly. Why was God so unfair to me this way? Answer Reviews of other Batman movies
Prequel: “Batman Begins” (2005) “Batman and Robin” (1997)
“Welcome to a world without rules.” Whether you are an avid fan of the Batman franchise, a casual summer moviegoer, or someone curious about the performance of a young actor gone far too soon, rest assured, you will not leave the theater disappointed. You will, however, likely leave the theater mesmerized by a film, and a performance, that will be talked about for a very long time to come. With director Christopher Nolan once again at the helm, 'The Dark Knight' picks up pretty much where 'Batman Begins' left off. However, with the story of Bruce Wayne's transformation into the Caped Crusader taken care of in the first film, Nolan throws us right into the action this time and doesn't let up for the film's two-and-a-half hour running time. As the film opens, the criminals of Gotham City are facing an enemy as intimidating as Batman in District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), who makes strong efforts to rid the city of the filth it has become accustomed to. Batman has slowed down his crime fighting efforts, due in large part to copy'bats' who attempt to imitate his style. The public is in an uproar, believing these phony heroes are actually causing more harm than good. Batman, they deduce, must be the responsible party and therefore demand him captured and 'demasked' to put an end to the vigilante brand of crime fighting. But one person in particular is extra keen on the idea of Batman revealing his true identity, and has made it his goal to see that it happens. We are introduced to this man, The Joker (Heath Ledger), nearly right away, as he orchestrates a multi-faceted bank heist with a chilling nonchalance. It means very little to him to take the lives of his victims, or his henchmen for that matter, and he leaves a long trail of bodies in his wake. As the crime bosses of Gotham feel the heat coming from three different sources - Batman, Harvey Dent, and Lt. Gordon (Gary Oldman) - they are forced to seek the help of The Joker, who is more than willing to take on Gotham's finest single-handedly. What makes The Joker a far more dangerous villain than any Gotham has ever seen is the way he appears to fly by the seat of his purple pants, but has strung together an ingenious, diabolical master plan that will test the resolve, and dedication, of everyone who hopes to stop him. The Joker isn't out to gain anything in particular, which makes him all the more terrifying. As Batman's trusty butler Alfred (Michael Caine) warns, 'Some men just want to see the world burn.' The content of 'The Dark Knight' is far darker than the already bleak 'Batman Begins', and Christian parents should use caution in whether or not to allow children or younger, impressionable teenagers to see the film. The violence is heavy handed, and far more ruthless than in the original. Frankly, The Joker makes The Scarecrow from 'Batman Begins' look like a Saturday morning amateur. The Joker maims and kills without remorse, and one of the very first scenes features a 'disappearing pencil' trick that is stunning in its quick brutality. The mood is dreary, which we expect from Batman movies, but Harvey Dent explains to us 'It's always darkest before the dawn.' Well, the rising sun is still a long way off for Gotham, and caution is urged for parents wondering whether to expose their children to that darkness. There is very little profanity in the film, much less than the first film, and practically no sexual content (some women are seen lounging in their bathing suits on Bruce's boat, but the camera is on them for a minuscule amount of time), but the violence more than makes up for what other content is left out. The film hits on all sorts of different spiritual topics, and I could probably write a dissertation on them all. I won't get in to everything here, for the simple fact that doing so will reveal specific plot twists and developments that I don't intend to spoil. Suffice it to say, themes of sacrifice, redemption, fear, selfishness, revenge, and the basic sinfulness of man all present themselves in the film, along with a various host of other. Characters are forced to choose who lives and dies, while others are forced to decide whether to continue fighting evil when it seems like nothing will work, or simply giving in and joining the forces of evil. Each character has their own world cave in around them, and each must persevere, or be sucked into the maelstrom. The performances in the film are basically great all around. Christian Bale matures a little this time around as Batman, and his Batman is devastatingly human, with real feelings and reactions we might not be used to seeing from our 'superheroes'. The supporting cast of Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, and Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes (originally played in 'Batman Begins' by Katie Holmes) is uniformly good. Eckhart was an interesting choice as Harvey Dent, and while he is fine in the role, I am not quite sure he was the best choice. As the film winds down, his character experiences changes, both physically and psychologically (in his case they go hand in hand) and becomes something completely unlike Eckhart's nice guy persona. Had he been given more time to develop his characters (which, granted, was not his fault), my misgivings about his casting would likely have been nonexistent. But 'The Dark Knight' doesn't belong to Bale's Batman or any of the other afore-mentioned characters. This is The Joker's movie, and boy does he run with it. Of course, the hype surrounding the film has centered on the performance of Heath Ledger, who died earlier this year from an accidental prescription drug overdose. I suppose many will be morbidly drawn in to seeing the film simply to view the role that supposedly drove Ledger into depression, but people should go just to see a performance that they won't be able to shake from their minds for quite a while. The word that kept popping in to my head to describe Ledger's performance as I watched the film was 'mesmerizing', and that doesn't even come close to doing it justice. It is unfair to compare Ledger's Joker with Jack Nicholson's in the original Batman, because they required two totally different approaches. Nicholson's was tailor-made for the campy style director Tim Burton was going for, and had Nicholson taken the approach Ledger did in this one, it simply would not have worked. And vice versa. But that's where the genius of 'The Dark Knight' director Christopher Nolan (who co-wrote the screenplay with brother Jonathan Nolan) is evident. He gave Ledger free reign to dig deep in to his character, and bring out the true essence of The Joker. Let's face it, a man who basically wears a clown suit and goes around ruthlessly killing people is at the very least deranged, and at most purely demonic, but not at all campy. Ledger toes the line between sadistic mastermind and homicidal lunatic with a skill that gives you genuine chills. I haven't seen a performance like this since Anthony Hopkins made Hannibal Lecter a household name so many years ago. Ledger uses everything at his disposal, from that creepy accent to lip-smacking facial tics, to create a character that would have lived on well after Ledger, even if he had lived a long, full life. As I watched 'The Dark Knight', which is a summer movie like we have never seen before, or may ever see again, I could not shake the feeling of sadness I got watching Heath Ledger. His death, like so many others, came far too soon, and left a void not only in Hollywood, but in a family who loved him dearly as a son and a brother.It can be difficult to see these stars as real people, but tragedy always finds a way to bring that truth painfully home. One of the many things I love about this Web site is that on the main page every day it gives Christians a few names to pray for every single day, that God would touch the lives of celebrities in a way only He can. We often pray for our church, state, and national leaders, and rightfully so, but so frequently we neglect to pray for those we invite in to our homes every time we rent one of their movies, or who we visit each time we head out to the theaters. These people influence so many others, young and old alike, and we forget to pray that God will work in their lives and use their talents for His glory. But, as Heath Ledger sadly proved, Hollywood stars desperately need hope, the hope that can only come from a relationship with Christ. I urge all Christians to pray for Hollywood, for each and every performer they see, and to never stop. We may not be able to personally intervene when a celebrity is plunging headfirst into a downward spiral that may claim their life, but we certainly know the One who can Violence: Heavy / Profanity: Minor / Sex/Nudity: None See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.   Comments below:
Negative
Negative - Personally, I found this film offensive to my moral spirit. I am a huge Batman fan, and I loved “Batman Begins.” This film was very dark, and it caused me to think about things in a dark, very morbid sense. That may not be everyone, but the Bible tells us to be mindful about what we put into our heads and our hearts. I personally would not recommend this film. It detracted me from the Spirit of God, and that's just not OK, seriously. If you value your communion with God and being in His presence do not go and see this movie. Negative - I have never posted here, nor do I spend time counting curse words during a movie, but I feel compelled to post here for others, like me, who refer to this site for information. I felt this movie was extremely offensive, disturbing and violent. Even though the blood/guts were not always shown, the level of violence definitely was deserving of an R-rating and parents should think twice before taking their children!! Most of the violence is due to the Joker; a character portrayed as a psychopath who kills without regard or reason to a gratuitous degree. Including (WARNING: some slight plot spoiling!) impaling a pencil through a person's head, surgically implanting a bomb in a man (who is later blown up killing multiple other people), a hanging, other instances of bombings, lighting fire to a stack of money a tied up man is on, slicing open people's faces and, of course, the plethora of gun-related deaths. Negative - Saw “The Dark Knight” on the opening weekend. Although the film gets high quality rating points, I did not like it. Too long and too serious. I liked the earlier Batman films as whole because they were entertaining and somewhat lighthearted. Not the last two with Christian Bale as Batman. Negative - This is a very well made film and the acting is excellent. It will keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end; however, you do need to make a decision with yourself as to if you really want to be exposed to this level of depravity that this movie so startlingly brings forth. It is extremely disturbing to see how evil the Joker really is. The thing is, there are people in this world today who are really this evil and will stop at nothing to bring about destruction and mayhem. This movie brings the reality of this vividly to the screen. This is no fantasy - yeah sure it is based on a comic book character, but it makes these people no less real. Having been exposed to real violence in my life, it is extremely disturbing to have it brought to life in front of me on the big screen. There are things that I would rather not think about. Please do not take anyone under 13 to this film. Personally, I would recommend an age limit of 15. Negative - The Dark Knight is disturbing. Not for the reasons most might think. Certainly it is dark. Certainly it is violent. Certainly it is not for children. Certainly it is a technically stunning film. Yet after seeing it opening night, I was disturbed for a reason which I never expected. I was disturbed because the film was relentlessly and almost unceasingly cruel. Negative - I personally will not allow even my 11 year old to see this move. It was the most violant sick film that I have seen in a while. I wanted an action movie not a horror movie. Joker did nothing but kill! He had no method to his madness and death was throughout the movie. Negative - I only get to the theater a few times per year. I loved Batman Begins and was eager to view The Dark Knight on one of these few trips. I really wanted to enjoy this film, but in retrospect, I wish I had gone to see WALL-E a second time instead. The Dark Knight is exactly what its title says—dark. Not to mention brooding and disturbing. It is far more violent than Batman Begins and lacks the bits of humorous dialog found in that film. In fact, I feel The Dark Knight could justifiably have been given an R rating for violence alone. The senseless killing starts right in the first few minutes and continues remorselessly throughout the film, and in much more graphic style than Batman Begins. Unlike the foolish grandparents who sat a few rows behind us in the theater, do NOT let your children/grandchildren see this movie. It is a PG-13 film richly deserving of the rating. Negative - I watched 10 min of the movie and was so shocked off the violence that i left. The music in the movies was also way too loud, wich made it even more dramatic! would not recommend this movie. Negative - I, too, wanted to love this movie as I enjoyed Batman Begins, like the action movie genre and enjoy Christian Bale as an actor. So, I went to the theater with great expectations. Sadly, I have to echo the other negative comments on the film regarding its gruesomeness and unrelenting violence. I kept waiting for some redeeming quality to creep in but it never appeared. I left the theater nauseated. The movie should have been rated R and I shudder to think how many kids from mid-teens on down have viewed this disturbing movie. Heath Ledger does turn in an incredible performance but what a tragedy that the role put him in the throes of darkness which very well could have contributed to his early death. Let's hope the third movie will redeem the series with the qualities that we desire to see when we attend this type of movie...good overcoming evil. As Christians, nothing is more satisfying than to see a movie that mirrors this victory which will ultimately occur at Christ's return. Conversely, nothing is more discouraging than to see evil reign until that day comes. Negative - Batman was not the central character here, and the focus was not the ficticious, superhero young men are used to seeing and being inspired or amused by. This movie's central character was the psycho (only to real) character of the Joker. Went with my son and he had the same reaction, very disappointed, sick movie...out of the Batman genre' altogether. Neutral
Neutral - I was compelled to comment out of fear that all the praise of this film might convince some Christians to take their your children. KEEP THEM AWAY. I am in no way saying that this is not an entertaining movie, but it is an entertaining HORROR movie, not an action/adventure. Make no doubt about it. Although no blood seems apparent this is EXTREMELY violence and cruel movie with a body count likely in the hundreds. In one scene a pencil is apparently shoved up a man's eye socket and into his brain (not shown clearly on screen), a man's mouth is sliced open with a knife (also shown just off screen), and countless other examples. Two face is also extremely gruesome. In many ways the nihilistic rants of the Joker dilute the intended message of the film. The film is top quality but inferior to Batman Begins in many ways. There are similar streams running through both the nonstop violence and cruelty should make this film o
ff limits to young children. Neutral - I'm terribly distraught about The Dark Knight. I'm emotionally torn about being so ambivalent about this movie. I wanted and want so badly to love this movie because I've been a fan of the Bat since I was 4. But I just can't pull myself together. The first act is sluggish and intensely technical. The middle act is a huge step up - very fast paced... very edge-of-your-seat-this-is-that-entertaining. The final act is a huge step backwards, and by the time it rolls around, you're more than ready for the credits to roll. Neutral - An appropriately titled jaunt for the new Batman film directed by fast becoming film legend Christopher Nolan and starring his old buddy Christian Bale as the caped crusader. Positive
Positive - I am more offended by the negative reviews of this film than I am the film itself. They all read as though they were victimized by some depraved diabolical filmmaker. None of them seem to get that Batman Begins was a good solid foundation on which they could build this much bigger, more elaborately scoped film. We are taken deeper into Gotham city and deeper into the lives of our already established characters. Understand that Chris Nolan wanted to keep Batman in a more realistic tone. You want fluffy batman with Mr. Freeze and batgirl be my guest. This film is not it. Yes, the Joker was a character without rules. Thus, any killing went off without a 2nd thought. His performance was stellar and was quite the adversary. The intense battle of wits was exactly that. A battle of wits of which the outcome is critical. I loved the film for its sweeping shots of the city. The scenes of batman in hand to hand combat were not choppy and impossible to follow like that last one. The color scheme was spectacular and the character work was incredible. This movie does embody the enmy attempting to divide and conquer. Positive - This was a well crafted, well written well thought out piece of work. Masterfully done. It reminded me of Heat with its character focus and intense atmosphere. The blue color scheme of the movie made the backdrop incredible! The sweeping shots of the city and well choreographed, well concieved action sequences were stunning. (somewhat spoiler) there is an action sequence in a buliding under construction that from its start was a sequence that played out intensley. I loved every minute of it. The craftsmanship was top notch! Positive - Wow is the first word that comes to mind when I think of the dark night. I would not take anyone 12 and under to this movie because it can be very scary at some parts. Heath Ledger's performance as the joker was amazing and he should get an oscar for it. The movie was the darkest batman that I have ever seen and by far the best. The movie making quality was great and I enjoyed all of the actor's in the film. And I also love how they put the Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy) at first. Overall, I would recommend this movie to anyone. Positive - I went with a friend of mine to see 'The Dark Knight.' This was a great movie in every way. First of all, it was action-packed. For two-and-a-half hours, I sat there completely spellbound by the stuntwork and the special effects, particularly the visual ones. I would be surprised if the effects are not considered by the academy at Oscar time. Also, the acting was superb. Christian Bale is the best Batman since Michael Keaton. Yes, he's even better than Val Kilmer. But, perhaps the most memorable performance was the late, great Heath Ledger as The Joker. He is even creepier than Jack Nicholson in 1989's 'Batman.' And that's really saying something. The director, Christopher Nolan, who also directed the awesome 'The Prestige,' knows what it takes to get great performances out of his actors. Positive - “The Dark Knight” was an excellent film in every way I can think of. It was far different from any Batman movie I've seen, and left me in a bit of shock for quite a few minutes after it concluded. Like “Batman Begins,” the acting is superb, as is the action. It's a different animal altogether, however, and it really delves into the 'escalation' that Gordon warns about at the end of the first film. In this one, the criminals are all but forced to hire the Joker to kill Batman after he offers his services. His plan? Turn the people against him. Joker begins murdering city officials and wreaking havoc upon Gotham, saying he will only stop when Batman turns himself in. Positive - In an age of pornographic gore from movie series like 'Hostel' and 'Saw', it's hard to believe that a restrained, barely-bloody superhero movie can creep anyone out. Behold, THE DARK KNIGHT, the brain child of director Christopher Nolan, starring Christian Bale as the billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne and his night-crawling alter-ego, the Batman. Bale might be in the title role, but it is Heath Ledger as the grungy, maniacal Joker that steals the show. Positive - This film was entertaining despite the dark theme. For all those people who posted negitivly, do you sleep with the lights on or something. Is it too dark for a bunch of grown adults like you to handle. I think that we can all agree that there will never be a real life batman/joker show down and though it may be pretty convincing the violence is fake. Most of the negative posters are fundamentalists and think that we are directly affected by what we see. When I was in high school, we learned from our religion teachers that seeing movies with explicit content is ok as long as we are aware of the real life consequences. And im sure that its not the devils big plan to get all to watch violent movies... Positive - This movie was amazing! It was of course dark and somewhat brutal but I believe it is totally true. Our society is getting to that breaking point where everything will just blow up into chaos. I believe that this movie's points were true and real. Not a sugar coated 'everything is perfect' movie but a true picture of each side of humans. Batman was the good guy struggling with heavy decisions, winning some battles and losing others. His choice at the end of the movie was based on not letting evil take over, something all of us Christians face. Do we give in to the devil like Harvy Dent? Or do we decide to sacrifice ourselves to not let Satan win like Batman? The Joker, like the Devil, doesn't have mercy. Anything he can whisper in someone's ear (like Joker did to Dent) will help him in spreading the chaos and darkness and evil after he is gone. The Joker wants to '...see the world burn...' just like Satan. I loved the film and didn't find a thing wrong with it. It was very dark but so is the world we live in and a lot of Christians don't like talking about it. It is one thing to say 'The world is dark' and leave it at that. It's another to actually talk about reality...of course without giving in and just accepting and being ok with it all. Positive - I agree with those who advise parents to keep young children from this film. Howver, that does not make it morally offensive as I define it, unless one considers the insipid Bibleman to be a morally high-ranking superhero. To avoid offending parents, this nonsense has the hero fighting the evils of gossip and cheating on one's schoolwork when kids have to face bullies at best and molesters at worst in the world in which they actualy live. The point is that the evil opposed in this film is virtually demonic, and its confrontation by human beings exacts from them a terrible price, and some who do are brought down by it. In a real world in which children are abducted and abused and killed by real maniacs, to have fictional heroes oppose silly world-conquest schemes is just absurd. May I recommend to anyone with the courage to do so, that they read a novel titled Batman: The Ultimate Evil, in which he opposes a child prostitution ring operating out of Thailand. That book, and this movie, are Batman at his best. Positive - I saw this movie with my wife and 16 year old daughter, and was quite worried about how course it might be from what I'd read. I needn't have worried, though clearly not for young children it also was not a slasher flick—any real grusomeness was off screen (though hinted at enough that all three of us averted our eyes when we feared such would not be the case). On the other hand, it is not a mindless 'have fun' summer super hero movie like 'The Increadible Hulk' or 'Ironman'—as much as I enjoyed them as well. 'The Dark Knight' gives the viewer a lot to think about: are we who think ourselves 'good' capable of real evil if pushed hard enough? Are those whom we judge not worthy capable of embarrasing us 'good people' with their ability to do what is right and do so with better moral clarity? Are we willing to do what is right even at the risk that the world thinks we are in the wrong? These are issues that speak to our daily lives as Christians and are not often the point of summer blockbusters. In short, Christians see this movie—don't take young children, do take your willingness to examine yourself. Positive - The Dark Knight is nothing short of brilliant. Positive - I honestly think most people do not give this movie a fair review. For one thing it has no sex, vulgarity, swaring, taking god's name in vain, and it does not promote New age religion or evoution as do most movies now a days. There are a lot of good things to take out of it and it is a real deep thinker. As far as movie quality goes it was simply amazing and Heath ledger was nothing short of perfect. This movie is rated 14a in Canada and PG-13 in the States, its rated for violence and frightening scenes. This means that there is obviously going to be some disturbing images and content in it and viewers who are gennerally bothered by these things should not go see it in the first place. I personally thought that it was hardly violent at all for a crime movie, and yes this was one of the genres mentioned along with about a dozen others, although. Eventhough it did show people getting killed it didn't show any gore or atleast hardly any. As far as what the joker did it was expected in my opinion. If you read the comics or saw the cartoons of batman then you would know that the joker was a sick and twisted serial killer. Why is it then when he is presented like that in the movie people are apparently offended. Perhaps because watching a silly cartoon or reading a comic is simply not any where close to being as dramatic as it is in a realistic life-like movie with amazing acting. I personally thought that what the joker did was very clever and showmanship like. For instance when he had the fire truck on fire. CAUTION SPOILER HERE!!!!!!! or when the clowns ended up being the hostages and the supposed hostages were really the criminals. One good thing that I got out of it was in the end of the movie. This is when Batman took on the guilt of two face (Harvey Dent) so that the people could have hope that there is still some good left in the world, this reminded me a lot about Christ dying on the cross for our sins so we could have hope in our salvation from sins. Although I would not recommend this movie to little kids seeing how 2 face and the joker might give them nightmares for a week, I would recommend it to everyone else cause this movie is simply superb Positive - While 'Batman Begins' restart the origin of Bruce Wayne into the iconic Cape Crusader, 'The Dark Knight' reignite the comic book hero into real dimensional character with real and terrifying story telling. Here, Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), had inspired copycat do-gooders and the crime rate had decreased immensely with the help of Gotham's DA, Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), but then, a new demented criminal called the Joker (Heath Ledger) appeared on the scene with a scheme that will destroy all that our hero had long been fighting to rid off. Once the action set in motion, no one is safe. From the newly minted Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) and his families to Rachel Dawes' (Maggie Gyllenhaal) relationships with Wayne and Dent, and yes, even Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) came under an enormous epiphany about the use of great power for one man's responsibilities. Positive - I watched this film TWICE over one weekend. Ledger's acting was magnificent, but the entire cast was great: from Christian Bale to Morgan Freeman. This is definitely the summer's best movie thus far. Positive - This was truly an amazing film. The acting and cinematography, as well as special effects are stunning. This is what Batman is supposed to be. Finally there is a film that discards the absurd campiness and ridiculous humor of the other entries in the series. It even manages to surpass Batman Begins which surprised me. I went on opening night at midnight and was so glad I did. Heath Ledger captures the essence of the Joker like no one else before him. To any who say the Joker was too dark, have you read the comics? The Joker of the comics is just as dark if not darker than the one portrayed in this movie. But he steals every scene he appears in. And yes the movie is dark, but shows that no matter what happens Batman has morals he will never break and that sometimes we get the heroes we deserve, but not ones we deserve. By all means see it in theaters before it is gone. Positive - It's been a week since I saw The Dark Knight, and I can't think of a movie that's stayed with me so powerfully in quite a long time. Positive - I'm having a difficult time understanding how TDK has been deemed 'offensive.' It depicts ill intentions, the fall of good men, violent acts, evil in general. But it also depicts those who are willing to stand up against such evil. Positive - I've been keeping track of the comments here and even posted mine on this movie. I feel the need to speak again. I respect everyone's opinion's, but in all honesty, I don't think a lot of people here are fair to this movie. Yes, it is violent, yes, it is bleak, yes, it is dark, but I do believe everyone is missing the big picture. I won't go into a long speech, but this movie shows us life when everything comes crashing down around us and the choices we face when, not if, that happens. All of us have in one form or another our Jokers to face. When, like The Joker, our enemy comes to work his ways, we can either stand firm against it as Batman did or tragically fall as Harvey Dent did, in the end falling to his own ruin. Positive - The most telling scene is the Joker's merciless stripping away of Batman's societal-based values. Joker knows both himself and Batman far better than Batman knows either of them. This brings a chilling moment of catharsis for the viewer to participate in and grow because of this chilling yet necessary self-discovery. Positive - I thought this movie was AMAZING!!!!!The best batman I have ever seen. I have already seen it 2 times and one was the 12:00am showing. I can not wait to go see it again. The acting was great and I would not change anyone in it. Heath Leger did a great job as the joker. At times I actually found it very funny and also dark. I would not bring anyone under the age of 12 years old to this. It would scare there pants off or scare them for life. I would recomend this movie to anyone !! Positive - Well, I believe that as Christians, we ought to judge films, plays, books, etc in the following way: Does the film portray evil as good or good as evil? If so, We should not see the film. In my opinion, The Dark Knight portrayed evil as evil and good as good; therefore, it is acceptable for Christians to see the movie. Numerous viewers have ruthlessly bashed the film for portraying violence. But the character of The Joker would not be believable without it. He would not have been able to control the crime lords of Gotham City without posing some kind of threat. Without this threat, The Joker is just some fruity guy in a purple suit with scars and weird makeup. The Joker displays total human moral depravity. Positive - I think that there is a profoundly moral aspect to this film that has escaped many commenters. Before I start, I would like to clarify - yes, it is a very violent film. No, the fact that much of the violence (for example, a man's face being sliced by a knife, or a heavy being stabbed in the eye by a pencil) occurs offscreen does not excuse it. Yes, it is one of the most violent films of this certificate I have ever seen, and I would not take an under-15 to see it. Positive - Some reviewers who left negative comments said they couldn't recommend this film to Christians because it was dark and made them think serious thoughts. I believe, as a Christian, that it is our responsibility to tackle the negative ideas as well as the positive. The Christian church in America labors under the delusion that anything that makes you sad is a sin, which is utterly incorrect. 'The Dark Knight' is as dark, and darker, than its title implies, and it challenges our notions of good fighting evil. Positive - Those who think the film is ungodly clearly don't see its possibiltiy as a Christ parable. Comments from young people
Neutral - Ok to start I'll explain why my moral rating is so high. The film DEFINITELY has its share of violence (this is the only reason I think the movie is not suitable for kids and anyone who can't handle it) but The Passion of Christ has as much violence/min as this and it should definitely have an excellent moral rating. The violence in this movie contributes to the plot in every scene as a necessary example of the rampant crime. I'll speak more on this later. Positive - This movie is not as 'dark' as some people have portrayed it to be in my opinion of course. Yes the Joker is not the best of characters but he is cast well ( Heath Ledger did an awsome job) and actually can teach us all something important. The movie made me think about the world and what is considered good now days. There are things that are not suitable for younger viewers but it is rated PG-13 so that should tip you off in the first place. There were two or three cuss words and no other objectional things besides violence. But I thought it was a great movie and definitely worth going to. I enjoyed it and it made me think about the moral issues in life. What is a hero? And why some people are heroes and other arent. Also about who are we to judge other people and their actions. I dont want to give any spoilers so I cant go into depth. But I went to see it with my 24 year old and 12 year old brothers and afterwards my older brother and I talked about it. About how we saw the characters and what we thought were good points and such. And what led to Heath Ledger's death. But overall a great movie but heed to the rating. Neutral - This movie was one of the best made in recent years. Quality is excellent. It is very offensive, not exactly in a violent way (although there was plenty of that) but more in a head-games way. The Joker's speeches of his past are what made me cringe the most, and it was very hard to keep my mind on godly things then. These head games and violence have a good point, however, no matter how offensive they are. They show how people make choices to go bad like the Joker or good like Batman. Choices are a major theme in this movie. It made me wonder what I would do, as a Christian, if I were in that kind of a situation (like when the Joker holds a knife up to his hostages). Overall, I liked the movie okay but I liked Batman Begins better because it had these same choices only shown in a less fearful, menacing way and the quality was just as excellent. Positive - First off, this movie is rated PG-13, and it is dead serious about the rating. The film is very dark with violence, and shows evil winning throughout, at its so called 'game'. The Joker is played fantastically by the late Heath Ledger. He fit the role of this insane character. Through out the film, Batman faces the hardships of failing as a hero as innocent people fall to the Jokers crazy hands. The film does get disturbing at times as the Joker has 'fun' with his victims. Overall the film is good and takes you through some twist and turns. Heath Ledger shows how the Joker should have been portrayed since the beginning giving a new meaning to the word villain. This is a must see and I wouldn't be surprised to see it do well in the box office and win some awards. Positive - Fantastic movie. Was extremely well made, with great acting. There were some very minor swear words, but they were not repeated often, and I don't even remember any taking of the Lord's name in vain. Some of the images might be a little too frightening for young children. Much of the movie was tense, with lots of plot twists. I recommend this movie to anyone who can handle frightening images. Positive - Another movie reviewer said it best: This film is a dark, disturbing, masterpiece. This movie is the best superhero movie I've ever seen, the best crime drama I've ever seen, and one of the best movies I've ever seen. This film is not for very young viewers. The action is intense, the Joker is scary, and Two-Face's make up is scarily realistic. My 12 year old brother managed to watch this, but it is up to you to decide if your younger ones can see it. The film is very psychological and brings up many questions for the viewer. How close is humanity to chaos? What would YOU do in the movie's various situations? As a warning, this movie's mood is very dark, but to me the ending was bitter sweet. This movie is one of the most complex movies I've ever seen and I recommend it. Positive - This film is a pure work of art. The special effects are breathtaking, every single actor gives an amazing performance(Heath Ledger most of all), and kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. The only thing to worry about as far as content is the violence. The entire movie is definitely too intense for young kids. I'd recommend it for at least 14 and up. Personally I loved every second of it and don't think any Batman fan will be disappointed. Go see it! Positive - Going into this movie, I had very high expectations. Besides reading reviews of critics, I had watched the trailers several times, and looked up some of the cast/crew. I was not disappointed at all. THIS IS THE BEST SUPERHERO MOVIE I'VE EVER SEEN!! Positive - This movie was a movie that left you with a heartache. Not just the wonderfully horrifying performance of Heath Ledger, but all the different spiritual topics that it touched so well... Positive - This movie is, by far, the best.. suspense.. film I have seen. I believe my heart was racing the whole time. It might be a little scary for kids, considering it is a movie with a villain wearing clown makeup, and his companion with clown masks. But I would say that the acting is great and I'm sure Heath Ledger would have been glad to see the turnout of this film. Positive - I've been waiting for this movie for about half a year. As the time went, my excitement grew. When I got to see The Dark Knight on its opening day, I found it to meet my expectations. I have to admit that I liked the first one more. There is much more action in this film, but it's also a whole lot darker, and a whole lot more violent. When many people see the darkness in this Batman sequel, they'll complain that it isn't a comic book anymore. This is the same reason why I applaud it. The Caped Crusader in the comic books, and the so-called villains, he faces are even more trivial then those of the cartoonish Spider-Man series. All, or at least most, of the villains in the Spider-Man movies are driven by petty vendettas. The villains in both Batman movies are so evil that the viewer feels a need for them to be eliminated. They get all the more satisfaction when they do. Negative - I personally felt that this movie was very melancholy and dark. I didn't like it at all. This movie was extremely violent. WARNING SPOILERS Though most of the violence was caused by the joker, it really wasn't necessary for them to show him put a pencil through someones head. He also had put a cell phone bomb into someone's stomach and the movie shows that the person is in a lot of pain, then The Joker blows up him and many other people. The joker burns a woman to death, and almost kills the hero Harvey Dent. Half of Harvey's face ends up being burned. Harvey ends up turning evil and killing many people because the woman The Joker killed he loved. In the end he ends up falling and dying himself. One of the good things about this movie was that many people were on two boats out in the water, both boats had their power turned off.The joker gave both sets of people on the boats the choice to blow up the other boat. On one boat there are regular civilians and on the other boat there are criminals. On the boat with the criminals, one of the criminals tells the man with the bomb to give the bomb to him and he would do what they should have done ten minutes ago. The man gives it to him and th criminal throws it out the window. Neither boat ends up blowing the other up. At the end of the movie, Batman says that he wants the people to believe that Harvey was a hero even though Harvey had killed people and for the blame of Harvey having killed those people to be place on him, Batman. That is not only lying to the people, which the Bible clearly states is wrong, but is is also making Harvey appear to be the hero when he, in truth, killed many people and Batman should be the hero. For some reason, the joker doesn't get caught at the end and the movie should have a much better ending. On my way out of the theater, and on my way home I felt somewhat depressed. The movie made me feel sad because of all the darkness. The movie would have been MUCH better off if the joker hadn't won. I would not recomend this movie. Positive - I personally thought the Dark Knight to be a thought-provoking film, which asked the question of what was truly good or evil, right or wrong. It shined a light on the immoralty and pure evil of the Joker, and also scrutinized the actions of many other main and supporting characters, testing their morals and questioning them. It also allowed for great discussion of social and moral issues. Positive - Where to start? Christopher Nolan's 'Dark Knight' was two and a half hours of non-stop intensity. To begin, I would have to say that compared to Batman Begins, which is one of my all time favorites, this sequel was much darker - disturbing, even. The violence portrayed was not necessarily more graphic, but done for really no purpose at all, except 'to see the city burn,' which was frightening to think about. Positive - I loved this movie. It was extremely entertaining and it kept you on the edge of your seat. The acting was great too, especially Heath Ledger's performance as Joker. He was amazing! I will mention one thing. DO NOT bring any children at least under 12 to this movie. It is way too menacing, scary, violent, and dark. I've seen it twice, and the second time I saw it, a little toddler was sitting in the seat in front of me. I do recommend this movie though if you are looking for a good action film! Positive - I really liked this film, the classic good against evil. It was believable, exciting and totally unpredictable. The action scenes were really fun. I would recommend it to any one 13 or older. The joker is extreme and hard to watch with out shuddering. There are some disturbing pictures like Harvey Dents burned face. Also thought that Maggie Gyllenhaal was terrible compared to Katie Holmes in Batman Begins. I do recommend watching Batman Begins before seeing this movie because it will make it easier to understand. But know that The Dark Night is so much darker than the Batman Begins. Over all the actors did an amazing job and the movie was great. Positive - I'd like to say that, first of all, I loved this superb film. It's amazing film work, and acting. But it's also a horror film. I agree with the PG-13 rating, as it is, because there is little to no cussing, very few sexual references of any kind, and almost all violence is merely alluded to, not actually shown. But The Dark Knight is not for the faint of heart. The Joker is a psychopath, plain and simple, and he proves it, over and over again. Heath Ledger brought The Joker alive, making him that much more real, that much more alive, and that much more horrible. So don't bring your kids. But I do encourage anyone over 13 who is thinking about seeing this film to go, you won't regret it. Positive - WOW Is all I can say! Very Very VERY VERY Good movie! I have never really been into Batman, but this is very good it was worth the $7.00! Positive - I want to start by saying that i think that a lot of people were wrong when they commented. Yes in this movie Joker is completely evil and yes he does some violent and disgusting stuff. i won't get into the details, beacause it was pretty much all covered. Positive - This was the best movie i've ever seen. At first, I thought Ironman was the best superhero movie ever, but i was wrong...... It was pretty violent, but i don't remember any gore at all. The most disturbing scene to me, was when a hanging man in a batman suit flew down and hit a window, which will freak you out the first time you see it. I think a 13 year old could handle it, if he can handle some violence. It's not too bad from a christian worldview, due to it not having any sexual content and only 3 or 4 swear words....... But, it is violent. Comments from non-viewers
Negative - When are Christians going to stop funding Hollywood's obsessions? If you are born again and believe the Bible that says, 1 Peter 1:15But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16for it is written: 'Be holy, because I am holy.' |
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