|
The Dark Knight and his Special Two-Disc Alter-Ego on DVD
by Reg Seeton
"The Dark Knight reunites director Christopher Nolan with star Christian Bale, who returns to continue Batman’s war on crime. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman sets out to destroy organized crime in Gotham for good. The triumvirate proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a rising criminal mastermind known as the Joker (Heath Ledger), who thrusts Gotham into anarchy and forces the Dark Knight ever closer to crossing the fine line between hero and vigilante."
 Did anyone really think The Dark Knight wouldn't be sliding down the DVD chimney in time for Christmas? To start, I'm not going to venture too deep into how I feel about the overhype of super hero movies. Thankfully, The Dark Knight is one that actually lived up to the rabid fanboy feeding-frenzy prior to its release. I mean, the trailers for The Dark Knight were amazing. After so many years of being marginalized and mocked by Hollywood, it's only fair that comic book geeks revel in the upswing of comic-to-film adaptations. But The Dark Knight proves that only a select few comic book films are truly worthy of such intense, over-the-top hype. Although every property has its own loyal fan base, the fact is that not all big screen comic book adaptations deserve the same amount of hype. After rebooting the Batman franchise in 2005 with Batman Begins, director Christopher Nolan became one of the few elite filmmakers to shape a new generation of comic book movies. Now that The Dark Knight has come and gone from theaters to find its way to DVD as the second highest grossing movie of all-time, Christopher Nolan is in a class all of his own when it comes to comic book movies.
It's Not Your Father's Batman Movie
As a new generation has stepped into the cinematic spotlight, moviegoers raised on the popularity of backyard street fighting, the gripping brutality of any number of street level reality shows, and the expanding world of UFC and Mixed Martial Arts, the success of The Dark Knight shouldn't be a shock to anyone. I mean, The Dark Knight isn't your grandfather's Batman, or your father's, or even your older brother's Caped Crusader. Still, it somehow managed to bridge the gap between generations with its PG-13 rating. To a large degree, the dark, aggressive tone and gloomy terror of The Dark Knight was the right recipe of comic book mulch to feed to a hungry population of moviegoers now more desensitized by real world darkness than their parents.
From the Panels and Pages to the Big Screen
But most of all, and arguably the first time ever for any comic book movie, Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan, who co-penned the film, The Dark Knight accurately translates the doom and gloom within the pages to the big screen. One thing I've always found funny is how much more violent, gritty, and dark comic book storylines have been over the years as compared to the big screen adaptations. Many comic book geeks have been reading "R" rated comic books for years while Hollywood has been trying to water them down. With The Dark Knight, both met somewhere in the middle.
Heath Ledger and The Joker
 And then there's Heath Ledger, who gave the world the finest portrayal of a comic book villain fans have ever seen. In fact, Ledger's role as The Joker will be remembered as one of the classic on-screen villains of all time. Although Heath Ledger dove headfirst into The Joker to embody the character, arguably to the detriment of himself, it all started with the script and the Nolan brothers. And The Joker was brought to life in a way that tapped into both the comic book pages and classic movie villains of old while re-inventing the character to reveal the mania underneath the evil. And it's a multi-faceted character that forces us to confront certain real world conditions that frighten both the young and old. But for every action, there's an equal and/or opposite reaction that forms the psychological relationship between Christian Bale's Batman and Heath Ledger's freak show named The Joker. It's this type of character complexity and intellect that's been missing from the comic book films of old.
So, I'm going to step to the comic book batter's box, kick the dirt of previous super hero movies from my heels, point to the wall in leftfield and call this one - Given the financial windfall that was The Dark Knight, it's almost an absolute certainty that we'll see a whole new crop of dark, gritty, fantastical, and nightmarish Dark Knight copycats make it to the big screen.
The Two-Disc Special Edition
 For those who want a quick and efficient fix of The Dark Knight in time for the holidays, the 2-Disc Special Edition offers a healthy balance between the film itself and expanded extras. Included are three solid segments that will please any fan of the film, and those who also followed The Dark Knight's evolution online.
The first is the documentary "Gotham Uncovered", which delves into the production from a variety of angles, as Christopher Nolan and crew brought the film to life, with a focus on the development of the Bat-suit, shooting the Imax sequences, stunts, the score, the plotting of The Joker, creating the Bat-Pod, and a lot more in-depth behind-the-scenes information. As well, the doc also gives fans the option of PIP segments that can be accessed during various scenes in the film. Since this also appears on the Blu-Ray version, in many ways this the perfect compliment to the film.
Next is a six-pack of scenes that were shot for the IMAX in the segment "The Dark Knight IMAX Scenes," which show each scene in their original larger than life form. If you didn't see the film on IMAX, this one may be a bit bittersweet and wishing you could run out and see it on the super big screen but the sequences are great. For those who did and didn't track The Dark Knight's progress online, the 2-Disc also includes the six "Gotham Tonight" news webisodes - Prologue, Hong Kong, Armored Car Chase, Lamborghini Crash, Prewitt Building and Final Montage - which are cool throwbacks to hard hitting comic book journalism with a modern spin that also tie into the film in an interesting manner. Also, in many ways the "Gotham Tonight" series fills in for the conventional deleted scenes. Finally, a solid, high quality Dark Knight photo gallery, a series of posters, and various trailers round out the show along with a digital copy of the film.
The Blu-Ray
 As you'd expect, the most significant upgrade is in the visuals and sound from the Two-Disc Special Edition, which features Widescreen 2.40:1 Color (Anamorphic) with English, Spanish, and French Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks. The Blu-Ray takes the experience to a new level with an additional 1:78:1 widescreen version of the film plus an English Dolby True HD 5.1 mix and English Dolby Digital 5.1.
The Blu-Ray also includes two more documentaries on the gadgets of the film and the Batman universe in "Batman Tech" and a comprehensive documentary of Bruce Wayne and the psychology of the character's alter-ego in "Batman Unmasked". For those into the interactivity of Blu-Ray, The Dark Knight also serves up the Live option to record and upload your own commentary into the movie.
To a large degree, it's hard to compare the two since the Blu-Ray is a completely unique experience on its own.
Overall
You know it doesn't matter what I say when it comes to The Dark Knight on DVD, you're going to buy it anyway. Thanks for taking the time to read this, though, I appreciate it.
Well, okay, one final "official" thought before I put TDK to rest. The Two-Disc is great but the Blu-Ray is even better. The choice is yours. Happy holidays.
|
