Decided to watch Dark Knight last night... And likewise I'm going to tell you all about it! It's definitely a movie that I have seen before. I actually really like the movie as a whole but watching it this time with a more critical eye made me ALMOST reconsider. The only complaints that I had about this originally were: 1) Christian Bale's Batman voice... it's so irritating. And 2) I didn't think it was Maggie Gyllenhaal's strongest performance, after watching so many times, and I usually love her (love Nanny McPhee).
But here's the new critique: When I was watching this time there were a couple angles that particularly stuck out to me. One was a rooftop shot when Mr. Lao (Chinese accountant theif person) is getting into the helicopter and the shot is circling the top of the building. For some reason this time I just found this particular shot to be slightly dizzying. Another shot I found having this same effect was when the Joker crashes Bruce Wayne's party for Harvey Dent and the Joker is confronting Rachel (Gyllenhaal) and they are circling the encounter. The shot does have the right effect where it becomes the intimate experience between the Joker harassing Rachel and the party guests are surrounding them. I think maybe they just circled a little fast and it sort of became to spinny. In the scene when Lt. Gordon dies protecting the mayor, I really like the shots that are taken. I don't believe that they are hand held but the angles definitely well portray the chaos that is taking place. Most all of the shots deliver the feeling of the scene and I think there is plenty of variety throughout to have created a good film like this one.
It's sometimes worth returning to a film you have seen, particularly a good one, and re-examine it in terms of its technical and aesthetic merits. I didn't particularly enjoy this film. Aside from Heath Ledger's performance, it didn't distinguish itself in my opinion nearly as much as the first in this incarnation of the Batman series. Still, it does have some elements that are worth looking at. Certainly, there are plenty of spectacular Hollywood elements to dazzle.
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