You know what they say: once you go IMAX, you never go back
The Dark Knight was, hands down, my favourite film of last year. I saw it three times theatrically, and have probably watched it at least five times on DVD. The film, whilst not without it's flaws, is sensational, and even those who don't rank it as highly as I do would be hard pressed to say that it wasn't the most significant film of last year. And one of my biggest regrets was that I never got to see it in IMAX, especially given that my local IMAX theatre, located in the Melbourne Museum, is the third largest screen in the entire world (Sydney has the largest, damn them!) Well, after more than a year, TDK returned to IMAX Melbourne for one weekend, and I finally got the chance to experience it for myself. And, unsurprisingly, it was awesome.
The size! The massive scale of that opening aerial shot of the rooftops of Gotham City, as the camera slowly zooms into the window. The crisp picture quality that lets you see the pores on Heath Ledger's face as he takes of his mask and reveals The Joker to us for the very first time. The reverberating blast of sound as Gotham General Hospital crumbles in a massive fireball. And that jaw dropping moment when Batman throws himself off the skyscrapper in Hong Kong. This movie looks incredible in IMAX, and everyone should go see it in the format if they get the chance.
While I'm on TDK, I've gotta share some thoughts on the film itself. Sadly I don't have time to write a full review, but here are just a few things that I felt I needed to say (SPOILERS AHEAD).
First, the music. I know everyone talks about how the movie was snubbed by not getting a nomination for Best Picture (and for the record, I completely agree), but I feel the far bigger travesty was that it didn't get a nomination for Best Score. Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard did incredible work with this soundtrack, which creates a real palpable sense of tension throughout the entire film. I've watched the movie nearly ten times over, but every time I get to the moment where the schmuk on the boat is considering turning the detonator, the screaming of the violins has me on the edge of my seat, wondering if this time he'll do it. The other terrific moment in the score comes when Two Face is holding a gun to the head of Gordon's son. The piece is called "Watch The World Burn" - I don't have the musical vocabulary to describe it, so I'll just stick the soundbite below. Be sure to listen to the last minute, which perfectly reflects the madness and horror of Dent's final moments
I also really want to talk Two Face. One critiscism I often hear of the movie is that it was mistake to end with the "lesser" villain, but I could not disagree more. While it's true that Two Face is nowhere near as memorable a character as The Joker (and you have to feel a little bit sorry for Aaron Eckhart, who performs admirably, but has no chance of keeping up with Ledger), I feel the journey his character takes is far more compelling. The Joker never changes, and although he's fascinating to watch on screen, he never inspires any real emotion in me. Dent, on the other hand, is a good man whose downfall (while perhaps a little rushed in the script) is truly tragic. The Joker provides us with a terrific and action packed final showdown, but for the movie to have any emotion conclusion, we had to end with Dent. The most memorable line of this film for me was not The Joker's creepifying "why so serious?", but Dent's agonising howl "it's about what's fair!" Kudos to Eckhart for the performance, and to Nolan for picking a real human character over a larger than life cartoon (albiet a brilliant one) to end his film.
Well, that's all from me. If you have any thoughts about IMAX or The Dark Knight, comment below (you know you want to.)
The Dark Knight was, hands down, my favourite film of last year. I saw it three times theatrically, and have probably watched it at least five times on DVD. The film, whilst not without it's flaws, is sensational, and even those who don't rank it as highly as I do would be hard pressed to say that it wasn't the most significant film of last year. And one of my biggest regrets was that I never got to see it in IMAX, especially given that my local IMAX theatre, located in the Melbourne Museum, is the third largest screen in the entire world (Sydney has the largest, damn them!) Well, after more than a year, TDK returned to IMAX Melbourne for one weekend, and I finally got the chance to experience it for myself. And, unsurprisingly, it was awesome.
The size! The massive scale of that opening aerial shot of the rooftops of Gotham City, as the camera slowly zooms into the window. The crisp picture quality that lets you see the pores on Heath Ledger's face as he takes of his mask and reveals The Joker to us for the very first time. The reverberating blast of sound as Gotham General Hospital crumbles in a massive fireball. And that jaw dropping moment when Batman throws himself off the skyscrapper in Hong Kong. This movie looks incredible in IMAX, and everyone should go see it in the format if they get the chance.
While I'm on TDK, I've gotta share some thoughts on the film itself. Sadly I don't have time to write a full review, but here are just a few things that I felt I needed to say (SPOILERS AHEAD).First, the music. I know everyone talks about how the movie was snubbed by not getting a nomination for Best Picture (and for the record, I completely agree), but I feel the far bigger travesty was that it didn't get a nomination for Best Score. Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard did incredible work with this soundtrack, which creates a real palpable sense of tension throughout the entire film. I've watched the movie nearly ten times over, but every time I get to the moment where the schmuk on the boat is considering turning the detonator, the screaming of the violins has me on the edge of my seat, wondering if this time he'll do it. The other terrific moment in the score comes when Two Face is holding a gun to the head of Gordon's son. The piece is called "Watch The World Burn" - I don't have the musical vocabulary to describe it, so I'll just stick the soundbite below. Be sure to listen to the last minute, which perfectly reflects the madness and horror of Dent's final moments
I also really want to talk Two Face. One critiscism I often hear of the movie is that it was mistake to end with the "lesser" villain, but I could not disagree more. While it's true that Two Face is nowhere near as memorable a character as The Joker (and you have to feel a little bit sorry for Aaron Eckhart, who performs admirably, but has no chance of keeping up with Ledger), I feel the journey his character takes is far more compelling. The Joker never changes, and although he's fascinating to watch on screen, he never inspires any real emotion in me. Dent, on the other hand, is a good man whose downfall (while perhaps a little rushed in the script) is truly tragic. The Joker provides us with a terrific and action packed final showdown, but for the movie to have any emotion conclusion, we had to end with Dent. The most memorable line of this film for me was not The Joker's creepifying "why so serious?", but Dent's agonising howl "it's about what's fair!" Kudos to Eckhart for the performance, and to Nolan for picking a real human character over a larger than life cartoon (albiet a brilliant one) to end his film.
Well, that's all from me. If you have any thoughts about IMAX or The Dark Knight, comment below (you know you want to.)
