Mr Parker
Okay I wanted to post this article that was printed in the kansas city star back in march but the Batman section back then was so dead I thought I would wait till around this time when the movie got closer to its release date to post it since I figured by then there would be more activitiy in the Batman section and thankfully there is.I see more and more people who arent regulars posting in the Batman section now with the release date closer which is good, so I figure now is as good a time as any to post this especially since there will be even more activity here in a month from now you got to figure.This article is from the showtime section from the kansas city star from the date of saturday march 15th and here is what the article goes on to say-the headline is-THE EDGE OF "KNIGHT" subtitle-Christopher Nolans follow up to Batman Begins increases crusaders darkness.It then goes on to say-
The late Heath Ledger's portrayel as The Joker was so intense that it left him completely drained,according to the films cinematographer.Chicago,a dreary office plaza at Wabash street and the river,late afternoon.A mist blows in from Lake Michigan.
A few stories overhead,a stunt double in a familiar black-caped costume swings from a hoist,slamming into a window in the tower that we shall imagine is Gothem City Hall.A noose is around his neck,a knife plunged into his heart.
The meaning is clear:Batman-or at least his doppelganger-is dead.
Christopher Nolan,the director of "The Dark Knight"-the follow up to his 2005 "Batman Begins"-is unperturbed by the rain,but a tiny detail irks him.
"Hey Buster!" he shouts to the stuntman,craning his neck skyward and raising his voice for the first time all day."could you turn yourself a little more to the left?"
In so many ways this isnt what you'd expect of a $180 million hollywood comic-book movie sequal with a zillion moving parts,a cast of thousands and sets from here to Hong Kong.Anyone else would shoot indoors,use digital effects or wait for clear skies.
Nolan rolls with the weather's punches,believing that the messiness of reality cant be faked.Another filmmaker would leave a shot like this in the hands of a second unit director,but Nolan doesnt use one.If its on the screen,he directed it.
That kind of maestro is just what Warner Bros. wanted five years ago when it hired Nolan to restore a jewel of a property that had become a laughingstock with Joel Schumachers 1997 reviled "Batman and Robin."
"If the people who make the film arent taking it seriously," Nolan said,summarizing fans view of the 1997 movie,"why should we?"
Now the question is whether Nolans vision of Batman can not only maintain its hold on the imaginations of comic fans,but also expand its reach to a wider,summer moviegoeing audience,even as the death of Heath Ledger,who played the Joker in "The Dark Knight," has added unanticipated morbidity to the films deliberate darkness.
"Batman Begins" catapulted Nolan into the top tier of mainstream filmmakers.Critics mostly loved it,though some seemed to resent him for leaving the indie world behind.
His Caped Crusader,Christian Bale,recalls how "people would kind of laugh" when they heard that he and Nolan were taking Batman seriously.
But when they finally saw the film,the same people would say,"what a surprise."
"I believe that even the most popcorn like movie can be done incredibly well,and can have something that you really have to work at," Bale said.
"The Dark Knight." which will be released July 18,is jammed with characters,plot and action,It picks up where "Batman Begins" left off,with Gary Oldman's police lieutenant,Jim Gordon,warning that Batman's extreme meausures could invite a like response from the criminal element.
and sure enough,a deadly new villain,the Joker,emerges to wreck havoc.
In a political context this would politely be called an "unintended consequence." "Gothem as Baghdad,anyone?"
Nolan doesnt deny the overtones.
"As we looked through the comics,there was this fascinating idea that Batman's presence in Gothem actually attracts criminals to Gothem,attracts lunacy," he said."When you're dealing with questionable notions like people taking the law into their own hands,you have to really ask, 'where does that lead?' Thats what makes the character so dark,because he expresses a vengeful desire."
In Bale's view,"The Dark Knight" is an even lonelier outing for his character.
"This esculation has now meant that he feels more of a duty to continue," he said."And now you have not just a young man in pain attempting to find some kind of an answer,you have somebody who actually has power,who is burdened by that power,and is having to recognize the difference between attaining that power and holding on to it."
Rebooting the Batman franchise may be behind him,but Nolan still has to improve upon it.Sequals are always trickier.And now he must also navigate the aftermath of the jan 22 death of Ledger.
It happened well into editing,and only after the studio had introduced Ledgers Joker through posters and trailers.But it automatically raised the stakes: would the acclaimed actors final role be a comicbook grotesque?
Worse,though Ledger had finished work on "The Dark Knight" in october and was already halfway through another film,news that the prescription drugs that killed him included sleep aids-along with narcotics-prompted Internet chatter about whether his intense performance as the Joker had been a factor in his demise.
Ledger called it "the most fun I've ever had,or probably ever will have,playing a character.
But his fatigue was obvious,said co star Michael Caine.
Cinematographer Wally Pfister said Ledger seemed "like he was bursting blood vessels in his head." he was so intense.
"It was like a seance,where the medium takes on another person and then is so completely drained."
Nolan,for his part,said he felt a "massive sense of responsibility" to do right by Ledgers "terrifying,amazing" performance.
"Its stunning,its iconic," he said."Its just going to blow people away."
The late Heath Ledger's portrayel as The Joker was so intense that it left him completely drained,according to the films cinematographer.Chicago,a dreary office plaza at Wabash street and the river,late afternoon.A mist blows in from Lake Michigan.
A few stories overhead,a stunt double in a familiar black-caped costume swings from a hoist,slamming into a window in the tower that we shall imagine is Gothem City Hall.A noose is around his neck,a knife plunged into his heart.
The meaning is clear:Batman-or at least his doppelganger-is dead.
Christopher Nolan,the director of "The Dark Knight"-the follow up to his 2005 "Batman Begins"-is unperturbed by the rain,but a tiny detail irks him.
"Hey Buster!" he shouts to the stuntman,craning his neck skyward and raising his voice for the first time all day."could you turn yourself a little more to the left?"
In so many ways this isnt what you'd expect of a $180 million hollywood comic-book movie sequal with a zillion moving parts,a cast of thousands and sets from here to Hong Kong.Anyone else would shoot indoors,use digital effects or wait for clear skies.
Nolan rolls with the weather's punches,believing that the messiness of reality cant be faked.Another filmmaker would leave a shot like this in the hands of a second unit director,but Nolan doesnt use one.If its on the screen,he directed it.
That kind of maestro is just what Warner Bros. wanted five years ago when it hired Nolan to restore a jewel of a property that had become a laughingstock with Joel Schumachers 1997 reviled "Batman and Robin."
"If the people who make the film arent taking it seriously," Nolan said,summarizing fans view of the 1997 movie,"why should we?"
Now the question is whether Nolans vision of Batman can not only maintain its hold on the imaginations of comic fans,but also expand its reach to a wider,summer moviegoeing audience,even as the death of Heath Ledger,who played the Joker in "The Dark Knight," has added unanticipated morbidity to the films deliberate darkness.
"Batman Begins" catapulted Nolan into the top tier of mainstream filmmakers.Critics mostly loved it,though some seemed to resent him for leaving the indie world behind.
His Caped Crusader,Christian Bale,recalls how "people would kind of laugh" when they heard that he and Nolan were taking Batman seriously.
But when they finally saw the film,the same people would say,"what a surprise."
"I believe that even the most popcorn like movie can be done incredibly well,and can have something that you really have to work at," Bale said.
"The Dark Knight." which will be released July 18,is jammed with characters,plot and action,It picks up where "Batman Begins" left off,with Gary Oldman's police lieutenant,Jim Gordon,warning that Batman's extreme meausures could invite a like response from the criminal element.
and sure enough,a deadly new villain,the Joker,emerges to wreck havoc.
In a political context this would politely be called an "unintended consequence." "Gothem as Baghdad,anyone?"
Nolan doesnt deny the overtones.
"As we looked through the comics,there was this fascinating idea that Batman's presence in Gothem actually attracts criminals to Gothem,attracts lunacy," he said."When you're dealing with questionable notions like people taking the law into their own hands,you have to really ask, 'where does that lead?' Thats what makes the character so dark,because he expresses a vengeful desire."
In Bale's view,"The Dark Knight" is an even lonelier outing for his character.
"This esculation has now meant that he feels more of a duty to continue," he said."And now you have not just a young man in pain attempting to find some kind of an answer,you have somebody who actually has power,who is burdened by that power,and is having to recognize the difference between attaining that power and holding on to it."
Rebooting the Batman franchise may be behind him,but Nolan still has to improve upon it.Sequals are always trickier.And now he must also navigate the aftermath of the jan 22 death of Ledger.
It happened well into editing,and only after the studio had introduced Ledgers Joker through posters and trailers.But it automatically raised the stakes: would the acclaimed actors final role be a comicbook grotesque?
Worse,though Ledger had finished work on "The Dark Knight" in october and was already halfway through another film,news that the prescription drugs that killed him included sleep aids-along with narcotics-prompted Internet chatter about whether his intense performance as the Joker had been a factor in his demise.
Ledger called it "the most fun I've ever had,or probably ever will have,playing a character.
But his fatigue was obvious,said co star Michael Caine.
Cinematographer Wally Pfister said Ledger seemed "like he was bursting blood vessels in his head." he was so intense.
"It was like a seance,where the medium takes on another person and then is so completely drained."
Nolan,for his part,said he felt a "massive sense of responsibility" to do right by Ledgers "terrifying,amazing" performance.
"Its stunning,its iconic," he said."Its just going to blow people away."