The Dark Knight [Batman] [2 Disk Special Edition] [Blu-ray] [2008]

The Dark Knight is exactly what hollywood has been missing until a film of this magnitude was released, with the amount of half arsed, money making, greedy film companies taking your hard earned money for over hyped rubbish, you don't see many films that really were written and made with such passion as this film is, and it delivers for the people. Everyone involved had worked there arse off to make a masterpiece like this film and the final outcome prooves that beyond a doubpt. Most of the writers, producers, and filmers biggest example is steven speilberg abuse there name with the trash they have delivered to us in recent years. Christopher Nolan is a brilliant story teller and producer of films and makes sure he delivers the most brilliant story, picture and sound he can possibly deliver to people. As we will see him do this year when The Dark Knight Rises is released and will conclude a brilliant Batman trilogy. Heath Ledger won an academy award for his role as "Joker" in The Dark Knight ledger is amazing, brilliant, scary, and to be honest an academy award is not enough recognition for a performance of that caliber, so many actors/actresses spew out the same characteristics in every single film they appear in and get to call themselves actors movie after movie and get paid ridiculous amounts of money to do so. The Dark Knight is the most awesome, action packed, twisted adventure, you can ever hope to see, and the most well written and acted film i have seen hollywood release, in a long time. A short overview of the film: Batman (Bruce Wayne) raises the stakes in his war on crime. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent, Batman sets out to distroy the remaining criminal organizations that corrupt the police, lawyers, and which also plague and terrorise the city's streets. The partnership proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a reign of chaos unleashed by a rising criminal mastermind known to the terrified citizens of Gotham as "The Joker". This film is hands down the way batman and was always ment to be envisioned and portrayed, and is defently one of the top 10 films to see before you die. If you have not seen this film then do yourself a favour and buy it on Blu-Ray watch it and be amazed at how trully brilliant this film is. The action scenes where shot in IMAX (the best picture quality available) and all other scenes are shot in 70mm lens (2nd best picture quality available) making this a brilliant film to watch and enjoy in the most crisp high definition experiance on BLU-RAY, mix that with Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound and your in for one hell of a treat.

Yes this is an action film, yes this is a superhero film, but it is also so much more than that. All the acting performances are so powerful that it seems unbelievably real. Heath Ledger's Joker is an astonishing creation, and his tragic death will transform this role into the stuff of legend. The film is just blessed through and through. The only bad thing about "Batman Begins" was the talentless Katie Holmes, and she turned down the role this time! Thank God. And thank Gyllenhaal for being infinitely better and adding to this film's many merits. For me, this was better than last year's Oscar winner, because it deals with similar themes and yet for all its cartoon origins seems realer and more powerful. How do you fight evil without becoming evil? How do you deal with criminals who "just want to watch the world burn" and who can't be bought or bullied? The gambit with the two ships is a simple borrowing from the history of Philosophy but it makes great cinema and adds ferocious fuel to the issues mentioned above. By the end of the film when we finally understand exactly why the film is called "The Dark Knight", Batman and our understanding of him and of crime and of what we might want someone like him to do with criminals have all altered forever. An astonishing achievement in film. It really does blur the boundaries between serious cinema and action films. The last film I saw that I liked more than this was a Lars von Trier film! The new Batman franchise is doomed, from here the only way to go is down.

Hugely entertaining and thought-provoking, 'The Dark Knight' is another triumph from Christopher Nolan! In it, we are introduced to the amoral Joker, an agent of chaos in Gotham's seedy underworld, brilliantly portrayed by Heath Ledger. This Joker is a man given to frequent philosophical musings; a man motivated to commit crime for more than mere financial gain; a man unknown and unknowable; a better class of criminal altogether. He constantly challenges Batman's liberal, humanist values, and his staunch refusal to kill. It could be argued that Batman's unwillingness, or inability to break his moral code is indirectly responsible for far more people dying. However, the Joker has greater success in turning the film's white knight – Harvey Dent - to his cause. Grief stricken and bitterly resentful following the death of the woman he loves and his own hideous disfigurement, Harvey proves to be far more susceptible to the Joker's own ideas of justice. And so, Gotham City's district attorney abandons his faith in due process and the rule of law for an orgy of violent retribution. In the tragic final act, Batman must come to terms with what Harvey Dent has become... There are many great scenes in this film and some truly pulse pounding action; all driven by Hans Zimmer's percussion heavy score. The cast are all excellent; with Micheal Caine, Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman providing solid support once again. As far as I'm concerned, not only is 'The Dark Knight' the best Batman movie ever, it is the best super-hero movie of all time! Need I say more?..

All in all the best Batman by Nolan, although I consider the first one (B begins) more consistent from start to end, while this one has a great first half but then it does not keep the promises it's made before: you expect the joker to be a real evil guy, and he ends up like a silly character, you expect the apocalypse to come and it does not, you feel the joker is right and humanity is basically evil, then everything ends up in disney style. But while you've been watching it, you can't deny it is a fascinating entertainment, with great and ambitious moments. Maybe too ambitious, but still worth to watch. Blu ray is spectacular and you can tell right from the opening scene, shot in Imax camera, and transferred in HD. I first saw it in the theatre and was really impressed, and the good thing is that, watching it again on tv, I was impressed again.

It is such a pity that Heath Ledger got his Oscar posthumously. It has to be one of the most transfixing performances of that decade. When I first saw it, the Joker genuinely scared the hell out of me.It is one of the most successful performances of a psychopath by someone who is decidedly not so. Out of all the films from 2000 through 2010, Heath's was indeed most deserved. Of course, anything that the Nolan Brothers touch seems to turn to cinematic gold. Everything in this film is what is needed for great drama - great plot, wonderful character development, and three cinematic acts with a great conclusion and an apt ending. I was disappointed somewhat with the last film in the trilogy, but this one on it's own follows the cardinal rule of middle pieces of trilogies - make them engaging, entertaining, dark, unsettling, and somewhat unresolved. The best Batman movie ever made, IMHO. We'll see what Ben Affleck does with Superman vs Batman. Last time Fox did that with Aliens Vs Predators they should have hung themselves for poor taste and sheer avarice. Turning two of that generations most compelling franchises into mere bloodbaths was disgusting, and without cinematic merit. Anyway, buy this movie - it's the best.

great thanks

On a purely superficial level, this film is a visual treat. Witnessing Gotham City in High-Definition is a sight to behold. This film differs from many others as it utilises the latest technology with an engaging storyline. All too often we are subjected to blockbusters with all style and no substance. Christopher Nolan has chosen to reference Frank Miller's dark, gothic vision of Batman. Miller's Batman clearly has issues with schizophrenia and Bale manages to subtly implement this into his performance. The main attraction, of course, is Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker. Ledger's death shortly after the completition of the film cast a dark shadow over the arrival of the film. Due to this, the film is shrouded in mystic and the unknown. The Joker has a punk aesthetic, both in appearence and philosphy. He cannot be bought, beaten or bargained with. Apparently, Ledger based his pefomance on Sid Vicious, who epitomised what punk was. At one time, punk wasn't just a fashion trend, it was a way of life. In The Dark Knight, the Joker believes that people are capable of much more and that we choose to suppress our animalistic capacities. If you have not seen this film then I strongly urge you do to so. It is very rare for a big-budget, hugely popular film to be multi-layered and open to interpretation

I admit, I came to the new batman films with a somewhat preconceived notion that they would be typical comic book films, glossy and boring, but nevertheless an agreeable way to spend two hours or so. However, I was very wrong, whilst in opinion, it is not quite te masterpiece that some claim, it is nevertheless a brilliant film, the plot is genuinely compelling and the setting genuinely dark. Christopher Nolan has finally got the full potential out of the Batman world not only that but there is some stellar acting on show, not just with Heath Ledger but from Micheal Caine and from Morgan Freeman as well. Now onto the Blu-ray conversion, which has been the subject of some controversy in the reviews below. My view is that so long as you watch it without purposefully looking for the aspect ratio changes, you won't notice them too much and they won't annoy you. What you will notice is that the film envelops you in the world of Gotham City. Overall personally I like the fact that they filmed some of it in IMAX it adds to the film, rather than taking away, in my opinion. I also loved the film, it is fun and not totally serious, but it's still great nevertheless.

Great movie and Blu-Ray disc. It truly is Blu-Ray Full HD. One of the push-to-release buttons in the case came cracked but it still works fine.

Die berechtigte Frage, ob der im Vergleich zu seinen Vorgängern gewaltige Hype und unglaubliche Kassenerfolg (nebst Brechens diverser Rekorde wie das Knacken der 300 Mio. Dollar Einspielmarke in nur 10 Tagen) allein auf das Vermächtnis des tragisch verstorbenen Heath Ledger zurückzuführen ist, kann nach zweieinhalb Stunden eindeutig mit NEIN beantwortet werden. Ungeachtet der Präsenz des in seiner letzten und tatsächlich beeindruckendsten Rolle als Batmans ewiger Widersacher Joker faszinierenden Australiers, entfaltet das Regiegenie Christopher Nolan - nach PRESTIGE erneut mit Bruder Jonathan für das Drehbuch verantwortlich - ein erzählerisch, visuell und soundtechnisch perfektes Spektakel. Konnte man nach BATMAN BEGINS den Eindruck gewinnen, düsterer und schwermütiger geht es gar nicht mehr, so belehrt THE DARK KNIGHT den Zuschauer mühelos eines Besseren. Nach wie vor wird Bruce Wayne von Selbstzweifeln an der Richtigkeit seines Tuns zerfressen, verstärkt zudem durch die Tatsache, dass die Öffentlichkeit ihn dank schmutziger Presse zunehmend als Vigilant denn als Retter wahrnimmt. Verdammt dazu, nach der Zerstörung Wayne Manors im Penthouse inmitten des Großstadtmolochs Gotham den hedonistischen Playboy zu geben, hält im Grunde genommen nur sein treuer Butler Alfred (wie immer ein Genuss: Michael Caine) und quasi Stimme des Gewissens ihn davon ab, das Cape verbittert an den Nagel zu hängen. Umso willkommener nutzt Wayne die Gelegenheit, den aufstrebenden Harvey Dent, den er als neuen Mann an der Seite seiner Ex-Flamme Rachel (bezaubernd spröde: Maggie Gyllenhaal) kennenlernt, in dessen Wahlkampf zum Staatsanwalt zu unterstützen. Unglücklicherweise erfährt sein Plan, dem Kampf gegen das organisierte Verbrechen ein heroisches Gesicht zu verschaffen, eine durch den Joker beeinflusste Umsetzung, die fernab vom beabsichtigten Bild des "Weißen Ritters" liegen soll. Gleich mit dem ersten Auftritt erweckt Heath Ledger einen der denkwürdigsten und problemlos die Top 5 der abgrundtief bösesten Filmschurken enternden Comic-Charakter zum Leben. Weit entfernt von Jack Nicholsons nichtsdestotrotz grandioser, den Begriff "Overacting" mehr als strapazierender Performance in Tim Burtons BATMAN, ist der als blendend aussehender Teenieliebling zu Starruhm gelangte Ledger unter bewusst nachlässig aufgetragenem Make-up und mit ungepflegt-schlammfarbener Frisur kaum zu erkennen. Darüber hinaus entwickelt er eine Körpersprache, die gepaart mit schleppender - aufgrund der permanent echsenhaft herumschnellenden Zunge - zischelnder Sprechweise eine Bedrohlichkeit kreiert, die anschließende Gewaltausbrüche beinahe erlösend wirken lässt. Wer mit dem Batman-Universum aus den Comics vertraut ist, für den wird das Folgende keine Überraschung sein. Alle anderen sollten diesen Absatz überspringen. Neben dem Joker gelingt Nolan erstmals, Two-Face adäquat auf die Leinwand zu bringen. Vergesst BATMAN FOREVER (sorry, Tommy Lee Jones)! Das Make-up, das den kantigen und hervorragenden Aaron Eckhart als Harvey Dent im letzten Akt halbseitig entstellt, gehört mit zur besten Maske, die man in der jüngeren Filmgeschichte mehr voller Faszination denn mit Abscheu bestaunen durfte. Allein aufgrund Eckharts intensiven Spiels wird das Schicksal des sich vom aufrechten Bezirksstaatsanwalt zum skrupellosen Rächer wandelnden Harvey Dent niemanden kalt lassen. Unbeschreiblich und genial, wie Nolan und sein Director of Photography Wally Pfister (MEMENTO, BATMAN BEGINS), mit viel Schatten spielend, die erbarmungswürdige Gestalt in Szene setzen. Bei der Gelegenheit ein paar Worte zur Regie: abgesehen davon, dass Nolan das Versprechen eingelöst hat, im Sequel mehr Action als im Vorgänger zu präsentieren, meint man gar das Werk eines anderen Regisseurs zu sehen. Der teils anstrengende Look der Mann-gegen-Mann-Fights im Vorgänger ist einem deutlich eleganteren Inszenierungsstil gewichen. Überhaupt sind die atemberaubenden Actionsequenzen überraschend einfallsreich und mit dynamischer Wucht gefilmt. Sei es die Episode in Hong Kong, die den vergleichbaren MISSION IMPOSSIBLE Stunt von Tom Cruise in Shanghai zur harmlosen Turnübung degradiert. Oder der bereits im Trailer zu bewundernde Truck-Überschlag nebst der vorangegangenen Verfolgungsjagd. Der sich nach eigenem Bekunden eher als Schauspieler-Regisseur betrachtende Nolan hat eine gehörige und sichtbare Portion Nachhilfe genommen und sich zum genauso versierten Action-Regisseur komplettiert. Dennoch dienen die Materialschlachten nicht allein als Augenfutter fürs eventhungrige Publikum, sondern treiben die erstaunlich tiefgründige Geschichte voll unvorhersehbarer Wendungen plausibel voran. Trotz bereits in unzähligen Varianten auf Zelluloid gebannt schafft das Autorenbrüderpaar überdies das Kunststück, dem spannungsgeladenen Szenario der tickenden Zeitbombe neue Facetten abzugewinnen und besonders in der Fährensequenz für schweißnasse Handflächen und atemlose Stille zu sorgen. Untermalt wird das Geschehen vom Score der außergewöhnlichen Kooperation Hans Zimmer und James Newton Howard. Entgegen der in Actionkrachern überwiegend zum Einsatz kommenden treibenden Rhythmen wirkt hier ein ständig präsenter Klangteppich, der das im Vorgänger etablierte Batman Thema der Situation angepasst variiert. Der Psyche des Jokers entsprechend werden seine Auftritte ein ums andere Mal von Geräuschkollagen und Disharmonien begleitet. Insgesamt liefern Zimmer und Howard mit ihrem Beitrag zu THE DARK KNIGHT eines ihrer besten Werke ab, das auch losgelöst vom Film Bestand haben wird. Ein MUSS für Freunde epischer Filmscores. Bleibt zum Schluss nur die dringende Empfehlung, sich das Highlight des Kinosommers 2008 keinesfalls entgehen zu lassen. Näher an der Perfektion wird man - zumindest im Genre der Comicadaptionen - in absehbarer Zeit wohl nicht mehr unterhalten werden. In dem Sinne bleibt ungeachtet des Filmendes zu hoffen: Batman continues...

Dark Knight [Reino Unido] [Blu-ray] (ASIN: B001CEE1WG) audio en Castellano. Versión Inglesa especial de dos discos, el primero con la película y el segundo lleno de extras en HD (ambos son Blu-ray). Confirmar que el audio de esta versión es CASTELLANO 5.1, no se puede dejar escapar.

Qualité d'image exemplaire. L'absence de menu principal surprend (seul un menu contextuel est présent, disponible à tout moment de la lecture) mais n'a rien de rhédibitoire. L'interface n'est pas parfaite, mais son ergonomie est tout à fait satisfaisante. Dans tous les cas il s'agit d'un excellent blu-ray.

Kurz und knapp einer der besten Filme überhaupt. Ich kann nicht sagen das ich ein Comicfan bin und habe die früheren Batman Filme nicht gemocht. Was hier aber Christopher Nolan abliefert ist ein Meisterwerk auf ganzer Linie. Grandiose Schauspieler, Grandioses Drehbuch und legendärer Soundtrack.