The Dark Knight (July 18, 2008) Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Michael Caine, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Morgan Freeman.
(I promise not to give away any major spoilers as I update this blog)
Let me know about your interest in the film below! (This blog is public so feel free to comment!) - J@rrett
This blog is dedicated to the memory of Heath Ledger, a promising & unbelievable talent who passed away too soon. He will not be forgotten.
For Matilda, his daughter who he is survived by, who deserves to know how gifted her father was
The Dark Knight is the upcoming sequel to the film, Batman Begins, which was a much-needed reboot of the Batman film franchise. As was with the 2005 film, this film has no connections to previous Batman films, except for it's predecessor. I can honestly say that I am more hyped about this movie than I ever have been for any film, well maybe not as much for Corky Romano when that came out, instant classic by the way.
Neat-O-Fact: This is the first Batman film without the word "Batman" in the title.
Christian Bale returns to don the Batman suit which has gotten some upgrades by the way. Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Morgan Freeman also return. Replacing the brainwashed statue Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes is Maggie Gyllenhaal who is a great and underrated actress. Aaron Eckhart takes on the role of Harvey Dent, who soon becomes the villain Two-Face (there have been contradicting rumors about whether Two-Face will make an appearance in the film, but I think those rumors were put to rest when a brief clip of him was present at Wonder-Con.)
First promotional photo released
The most hype surrounding this film is the casting of Academy Award nominated actor Heath Ledger as the Joker. Heath takes on the role for which Jack Nicholson nearly defined, although Heath has stated that this will be a much different take on the Joker. (something of A Clockwork Orange feel)
Neat-O-Fact: The film's "code-name" for filming to decrease attention is Rory's First Kiss.
The Dark Knight is using websites as a marketing tool and releasing websites that sometimes lead to little scavenger hunts that in the end release images and trailers from the film. The first website showed a political advertisement for Harvey Dent.
Later on, a vandalized (courtesy of the Joker) version of the ad came up, which read "I Believe In Harvey Dent Too."
On this page, after a few moments a bunch of pixels of another image come thru the ad, displaying some creepy looking face.
Finally after the good people in charge of the site decided to stop teasing us, they released the first image of the Joker from The Dark Knight.
After I saw this, it turned up my TDK hype-meter by 20 points. It's funny though too, because this image reminded me of something else but I couldn't remember, but after looking thru a forum someone reminded me, The Dead Presidents one sheet. (a fake picture created from someone was also released a while back that a lot of people thought was real, including me for about 10 seconds.)
Neat-O-Fact: Michael Caine has publicly stated that Heath Ledger has topped Jack Nicholson's performance as the Joker. (So much it caused him to forget his lines in a scene with him)
A major scene being filmed was in Chicago that had to do with the Joker robbing a bank. The director shot the scene with an IMAX camera and supposedly introduces us to the Joker. Here are some photos from that shoot.
Neat-O-Fact: Heath Ledger was given The Killing Joke to prepare for his role. (download it here or email me)
Batman has a new suit (For reasons unknown Batman has to change his suit at some point in the film) in this film, as well a new ride, or bike I should say. Supposedly the "Batpod/Batcycle" pops out of the Tumbler. Check out his new suit and bike.
His new suit allows him to turn his head, which is a first if you've seen any of the other Batman films. The head was modeled after a motorcycle helmet.
One word: Badass
The first trailer for the film was released at the end of July along with another publicity photo of the Joker. A scavenger hunt was handed down on the website WhySoSerious.com telling fans present at Comic-Con '07 to follow the clues given to unveil a soon to be released photo and trailer. The trailer can be seen here and even contains dialogue from the Joker along with his iconic laugh.
Here is the photo that was soon released.
I'm the lovin' the purple get-up
Neat-O-Fact: History/Evolution of The Joker, Take I
Some ungrateful jerk/awesome guy leaked promotional photos of the film, and in a lot of places have been asked to be taken down. So if someone asks, you never saw these here.
Neat-O-Fact: The Scarecrow from Batman Begins may make an appearance…
Note: In September 2007, a technician working in the film was killed when his car crashed. (I hope they dedicate the film to him cause that's very unfortunate)
The last marketing campaign to date had to do with WhySoSerious.com showing a deteriorating pumpkin (with the Batman logo carved for the mouth) that very slowly started to rot on only it's left side. This is obviously a nod to the 13 issue comic The Long Halloween which is one of the main inspirations for the film. The Long Halloween showed Harvey Dent's transformation into Two-Face, which is the explanation for the rotten half.
On the site the pumpkin started to get worse after every couple nights, but it first appeared as a nice lil' pumpkin with Batman's logo carved into the mouth…
But then it started to get a little rotten for being out too long…
Then the candle started to go out a little and it got worse…
Then it got really nasty…
When Halloween came a new scavenger hunt was released telling fans to go to specific areas in there cities and look for clues. These clues were letters that were to spell out a message from the Joker, which soon spelled out "The only sensible way to live in this world is without rules."
Under this message showed a new picture of the Joker with creepy audio from the Joker saying "…and tonight you're gonna break your one rule."
The Dark Knight has currently been filming in Hong Kong, (God I would love to do that, travel and make a film, why not?) Here are some photos from a press conference held there.
So in mid-November filming officially wrapped, and they are now heading into post-production (editiing, etc.) The site WhySoSerious.com also updated asking fans to submit photos of themselves and family/friends dressed as clowns, in doing so they would receive a gift from The Joker. Fans submited photos from all around the country (world in fact) in front of landmarks and at parties.
Here are some examples of those photos submitted
So the gift the Joker ends up giving to the fans who submitted photos are emails of the Gotham Times, a fictional newspaper of Gotham City showing the various things happening in the city. The newspaper has several articles ranging from Bruce Wayne's partying ways, to Harvey Dent's attempt to rid the city of corrupt cops and mobsters. On the front page there is a tear on the left that rips open if you click it, reading "Hahahahahaha", obviously from the Joker. Clicking on this takes you to the Haha Times, a vandalized version of the Gotham Times, with most of the stories being mocked by the Joker. Here is the Gotham Times being compared to their vandalized counterparts. (There were other sites released as well, RememberingGina.org, GothamNationalBank.com, WeAreTheAnswer.org, GothamPolice.com, GothamCityRail.com,WhySoSerious.com/PersonalityProfile
Empire Magazine is slowly revealing a new image of the Joker that will probably be released as soon as December hits, the image looks to be the Joker sitting in a jail cell with his goofy socks and inmates standing in the back. This image will supposedly be a magazine cover, so check out whats being shown now.
The magazine cover was leaked a day before the full image was to be revealed, those damn leakers, what are you gonna do?
Here is the same image w/out the words
Neat-O-Fact: A 200 ft. fireball filmed at a power station in London prompted residents to call police fearing a terrorist attack.
So all this info on the Joker, and not much about Harvey Dent/Two-Face huh? Well Harvey Dent in this film teams up with Batman and Lt. James Gordon in rounding up all the criminals of Gotham, and plays the role of good guy for the most part. He's (Two-Face) obviously going to be introduced towards the end of the film, probably setting him up for the 3rd. Theres not much being revealed about him yet. So far a clip at Wonder-Con showed Dent sitting (I think at a bar) with one side of himself darkened and another character saying "Dent! I thought you were dead!" to which Dent replies, "Half". Another fact about Two-Face in this film is that while Aaron Eckhart will be wearing make-up, a majority of his disfigured side will be computer-generated. So thats kinda cool, but whats not cool is Eric Roberts who plays the mob boss Sal Maroni in the film (the one who scars Dent) gave away such a huge spoiler about Two-Face in a magazine interview that I think he's a straight-up dumbass. And I had the nerve to read it. But moving on, lets take a quick look at the history of Harvey Dent/Two-Face starting with his introduction in 1942 to Tommy Lee Jones' portrayal in Batman Forever.
Here's a new image of the Joker from Wizard Magazine.
Neat-O-Fact: History/Evolution of the Batsuit
Note the nipples, better yet...don't. pretend they never happened.
Note: If you plan on seeing I Am Legend on Dec. 14th in IMAX Theaters, you'll get to see the first 7 minutes of The Dark Knight, showing the Joker rise from small time crook to big time gangster in Gotham. Lucky you.
It's been revealed that a new teaser trailer will also debut on Dec. 14 with I Am Legend in theaters, so mark your calendars and get your popcorn ready, for the trailer not the movie! j/k I Am Legend looks pretty cool, and it stars one of my idols, Mr. Smith himself so check it out. Also check out some of these new promo shots of Batman & The Joker.
Neat-O-Fact: History/Evolution Of The Joker, Take II
Note: In other news, Christian Bale has just signed on to play John Connor in the new Terminator movie, Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins. He'll always be Bruce Wayne and Patrick Bateman to me, but thats a nice new name to put on his resume.
The first one-sheet for the film was released on Dec. 4. Why so serious man?
Here's a new image of Mr. Wayne from French magazine CineLive
Neat-O-Fact: History/Evolution of the Batmobile
Yes I know it's a toy...it's to prove a point, but I didn't need to tell you that now did I?
A new int'l one-sheet was released, one hell of a view I'll tell you that.
Warner Bros. released/updated the official plot sypnosis for the film:
Christian Bale once again embodies the man behind the mask in The Dark Knight. The film reunites Bale with director Christopher Nolan and takes Batman across the world in his quest to fight a growing criminal threat. With the help of Lieutenant Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman has been making headway against local crime ...
... until a rising criminal mastermind known as The Joker (Heath Ledger) unleashes a fresh reign of chaos across Gotham City. To stop this devious new menace -- Batman's most personal and vicious enemy yet -- he will have to use every high-tech weapon in his arsenal and confront everything he believes.
Here are some other cool one-sheets you might find floating around (& another image I found too)
After a long day of waiting and punching the F5 button at my computer like the hermit I am, the 2nd trailer for the film was released via a website showing an ad for a "trailer" that will soon be available.
The only hint as to when the trailer was to be released were the numbers on the page. After some investigating and chatting with other bat-nuts like me, we all figured the numbers 8 & 28 would be the time it would be released. Sure enough 8:28 p.m., the page was updated and the trailer was available for download. Before I had to settle for the bootleg version floating around on YouTube, which looked like crap to begin with but had to do. If you saw I Am Legend and got there for the previews, then you definitely catched it. First off, the trailer was unreal and blew me away (literally, I stumbled back). Just about everything about the trailer had me wanting more, from Christian Bale's intense and intimidating portrayal of Batman (Where is he!!!), to Heath Ledger's psychotic and bad-ass interpretation of the Joker (C'mon, Hit Me!). A couple images from the trailer right off the bat seemed iconic already in their own right. Like Heath sticking his body out the cop car window while being driven, Batman holding his cowl while sitting in a couch-chair with a troubled look, and the Joker sitting in a jail cell. I hope all the people who are (or were) doubting Heath Ledger as the Joker have put their picket signs away, 'cause (from the trailer) he's taken the role and made it his own, just so we know and don't forget who the real Joker is. Here are some screencaps I took and the trailer that can be viewed here, here, and well, HERE, haha.
If you'd like a copy of the Joker Prologue shown before IMAX screenings of "I Am Legend", click here, no you should it's great stuff.(& sorry about the guy in theater who says "Yesss" in the beginning, no more talking in theaters please)
"I'm bettin' the Joker told you to kill me soon as we loaded the cash."
"No, no, no... I kill the bus driver"
Neat-O-Fact: To prepare for his role, Heath Ledger lived alone in a hotel room for a month, formulating the character's posture, voice, and psychology. He also started a diary, where he wrote the Joker's thoughts and feelings to guide himself during his performance.
Here's a great article I read that shows the many reactions to Heath Ledger's Joker from the new trailer. It seems Ledger has got everyone wanting more, including me.
'Dark Knight' Trailer's Joker Shots Have Guillermo Del Toro, Others Smiling..
'I thought the Joker was still serving hard time,' Adam West says playfully of character now being played by Heath Ledger.
By Shawn Adler, with additional reporting by Brian Jacks and Josh Horowitz
The makeup. The walk. The cockeyed posture and bubbling psychosis: For legions of Batman fans across the globe, Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker in "The Dark Knight" is no laughing matter. So why are so many people smiling?
"I love it," "Hellboy" director Guillermo del Toro gushed to MTV News. "Every time I see more of Heath Ledger's Joker, I like it more. That's a good sign because if something is going the wrong way, the more you see about it, the less you ingratiate yourself with it."
Del Toro isn't alone. Just days after the first extended "Dark Knight" trailer leaked online, fans and critics alike are singing the praises of Ledger's portrayal, which many are already calling a pitch-perfect dramatization of Batman's greatest nemesis, the Clown Prince of Crime.
It's a difficult role for any actor to pull off, say fans, a delicate balancing act that straddles the line between crazy and crazy-scary. That Ledger appears to pull it off so effortlessly is nothing less than a testament to director Chris Nolan's vision, "Batman: The Animated Series" producer and writer Paul Dini insisted.
"Heath Ledger's Joker seems perfectly suited to the dark Gotham City created by Christopher Nolan," Dini asserted. "He seems more street than any other version of the Joker, with his clownish visage recalling hastily applied graffiti paint rather than chemically dyed skin."
Dini is legendary among Batman aficionados for his work on the Emmy Award-winning "Batman: The Animated Series." The show's more famous canonical influences include an adopted redesign of Mr. Freeze (as well as a new back story for the super-villain) and the introduction of the Joker's demented sidekick, Harley Quinn — but it was his work with the Joker himself that often earned Dini the loudest praise. His version of the character (voiced by Mark Hamill) could turn on a dime, from twisted psychopath to demented prankster — always ready with a laugh or a gag for his enemies.
Dini sees very little of that schizophrenia in Ledger's performance, a quality that he believes makes the character that much more terrifying.
"His attitude is mordant and sardonic as opposed to manic," Dini reflected. "No goofy gags or puns for him. This Joker doesn't split sides ... he splits skulls."
As much of an influence Dini's noirish vision may have had on the darker themes of Nolan's Batman universe, no artist, perhaps, has made as big an impact on "Begins" and "Dark Knight" as Jeph Loeb, the legendary comics author of "Batman: The Long Halloween," a 13-issue limited series that examined the origins of Harvey "Two-Face" Dent and the rise of Batman's familiar rogues gallery after the fall of crime boss Carmine Falcone. By his own admission, Nolan credited the series as a powerful inspiration for his take on Batman.
The respect and admiration is mutual, Loeb said.
"I saw the trailer and loved it," he enthused. "I'm as big a fan of Nolan's and [writer David] Goyer as they are of me! They talked extensively about the influence of my work on both films — so what's there not to like?!"
In particular, Loeb singled out Ledger's Joker as particularly terrifying, contrasting it with previous incarnations of the character that might have been too "clowny."
"I was never a big Nicholson fan," Loeb said of Jack's work as the Joker in Tim Burton's "Batman." "[Ledger] however feels just about right. I eagerly anticipate more!"
"If any franchise can benefit from being grittier and darker, it's Batman," Del Toro added. "With this I find him really scary. I find him really, really edgy and scary."
With a scarier, grittier Joker on the loose in Gotham, what exactly is a crime-fighter to do?
Find out how the heck he got out in the first place, joked Adam West, best known to a whole generation of fans as TV's Batman.
"The Joker? Heath Ledger?" the icon playfully questioned. "I thought the Joker was still serving hard time in Gotham State Prison."
POW! BAM! Ledger's Joker arrives in all his glory July 18.
Note: It seems that on IMDB.com, Harley Quinn is listed on the cast list for The Dark Knight, however director Christopher Nolan has denied that she will be appearing in the film. Either way, the actress cast in the part would make one hot accomplice. Zing!
Neat-O-Fact: Six Flags Great America will open The Dark Knight Coaster this year, a ride costing 7.5 million which will simulate the feeling of being stalked by the Joker. Say goodbye to your nights of sleep.
Tragedy
I had just waken up and saw on my phone I had a voicemail. I could already enivison my mother's words of comfort/terror creeping into my ear to enlighten me on a new job or task (ehh). I had walked over to my computer, sat down, turned on the monitor & internet to see what was going on in the world. Then my phone fell in my lap. The article read, "BREAKING NEWS: HEATH LEDGER FOUND DEAD." What? Are you serious? That can't be true. This had to be some kind of typo as I stared in complete disbelief at the headline. I could start feeling my heart beating in my chest and began to grow extremely uncomfortable in my chair. Heath Ledger found dead? No no he couldn't be, why would he be? He's too young and his career is only getting brighter. This guy has every film buff anticipating this year's The Dark Knight. No the one who was going to blow me away with his performance of the Joker this summer was NOT DEAD. I didn't want to accept a headline like that. It didn't make sense. But it had happened. Heath had died.
01/22/08
Words can't describe how I felt when it sank in that Heath had died. But why? Why is this actor who I've never met, and never am going to meet put me in such a state of shock and sadness. I think I figured it out though. I've seen alot of many different films and understood something about the actor Heath Ledger. He was special, a rare talent who would be absorbed into a character on the set. This was the kind of actor others could watch and be inspired from to use their roles and dedication to gain huge amounts of respect. Not many actors can take on a role like Ennis del Mar in Brokeback Mountain. And yes, I saw Brokeback Mountain, and yes on my own free will. And no, Crash was not a better film than Brokeback Mountain at the Academy Awards. The fact it still lost Best Picture to Crash still disappoints me. Brokeback Mountain was a great film, the acting and story are remarkable. This film showed how brave and courageous of an actor Heath (and Jake Gyllenhaal) was. This only strengthened my respect for him and I continued enjoy watching him in his other films. We all of course were introduced to him with the 1999 film 10 Things I Hate About You, which was a great teen comedy that I really enjoyed. He definitely stood out in that film overall, but I don't think anyone imagined that he would grow into such a respected actor.
Heath is survived by his 2 year old daughter, Matilda, who will grow up never knowing her father. The only way she could is through his films which can draw an almost near-perfect painting of true talent and respect. It saddens me that she'll never truly know him, he seemed like one of the most down-to-earth individuals on the planet. You could notice this in his interviews, and photos of him stolling along on the street with his daughter over his shoulders and with his then wife Michelle.People like Heath you know you would like right off the bat, even if you know you'll probably never meet them in person, which is a somewhat strange idea but very true in most cases, and definitely true in this one.
Heath was a very different, yet incredibly unique actor. Any film with him in it, you are constantly drawn to his side of the screen. That is a trait not a great amount of actors possess. I truly admired Heath for his strong perfomances and presence in film. I'm still amazed with how shaken I was with his death, but it goes to show you how strong of a connection he had with anyone who watched him. You were a great individual Heath, and you will be greatly missed. You will not be forgotten, and with your powerful and moving work I'm sure you will never be.
Here are some photos of Heath's short but memorable and unforgettable career, along with photos of him with his family.
Gone but not forgotten.
Heath Andrew Ledger: 1979-2008
Warner Bros.' official web sites for The Dark Knight updated displaying tributes to Heath Ledger, and director Christopher Nolan wrote a moving article about shooting with Heath titled "Charisma As Natural As Gravity". The article was released by Newsweek and describes how great Heath was to shoot with during the The Dark Knight.(One of the sites also displayed one of the previously released Joker pictures with a black ribbon placed next to him, I'm sure most actors during the promoting and marketing will be wearing these.)
How about black ribbons for when we all see The Dark Knight? I will.
& here is the article from Christopher Nolan
Charisma as Natural as Gravity
by Christopher Nolan
One night, as I'm standing on LaSalle Street in Chicago, trying to line up a shot for "The Dark Knight," a production assistant skateboards into my line of sight. Silently, I curse the moment that Heath first skated onto our set in full character makeup. I'd fretted about the reaction of Batman fans to a skateboarding Joker, but the actual result was a proliferation of skateboards among the younger crew members. If you'd asked those kids why they had chosen to bring their boards to work, they would have answered honestly that they didn't know. That's real charisma—as invisible and natural as gravity. That's what Heath had.
Heath was bursting with creativity. It was in his every gesture. He once told me that he liked to wait between jobs until he was creatively hungry. Until he needed it again. He brought that attitude to our set every day. There aren't many actors who can make you feel ashamed of how often you complain about doing the best job in the world. Heath was one of them.
One time he and another actor were shooting a complex scene. We had two days to shoot it, and at the end of the first day, they'd really found something and Heath was worried that he might not have it if we stopped. He wanted to carry on and finish. It's tough to ask the crew to work late when we all know there's plenty of time to finish the next day. But everyone seemed to understand that Heath had something special and that we had to capture it before it disappeared. Months later, I learned that as Heath left the set that night, he quietly thanked each crew member for working late. Quietly. Not trying to make a point, just grateful for the chance to create that they'd given him.
Those nights on the streets of Chicago were filled with stunts. These can be boring times for an actor, but Heath was fascinated, eagerly accepting our invitation to ride in the camera car as we chased vehicles through movie traffic—not just for the thrill ride, but to be a part of it. Of everything. He'd brought his laptop along in the car, and we had a high-speed screening of two of his works-in-progress: short films he'd made that were exciting and haunting. Their exuberance made me feel jaded and leaden. I've never felt as old as I did watching Heath explore his talents. That night I made him an offer—knowing he wouldn't take me up on it—that he should feel free to come by the set when he had a night off so he could see what we were up to.
When you get into the edit suite after shooting a movie, you feel a responsibility to an actor who has trusted you, and Heath gave us everything. As we started my cut, I would wonder about each take we chose, each trim we made. I would visualize the screening where we'd have to show him the finished film—sitting three or four rows behind him, watching the movements of his head for clues to what he was thinking about what we'd done with all that he'd given us. Now that screening will never be real. I see him every day in my edit suite. I study his face, his voice. And I miss him terribly.
Back on LaSalle Street, I turn to my assistant director and I tell him to clear the skateboarding kid out of my line of sight when I realize—it's Heath, woolly hat pulled low over his eyes, here on his night off to take me up on my offer. I can't help but smile.
Note: For a film Heath wasn't completed with, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, 3 actors (Johnny Depp, Jude Law, & Colin Farrell) will be portraying Heath's character at different points in the film.
Heath's death also sparked debate about whether he had completed his filming/post-production (audio) work for the The Dark Knight, but it was confirmed by WB and Heath himself (in one of his final interviews) that he had completed all post-production work for the film.
So fortunately for us, Heath has left us with one final and unforgettable performance.
Some new photos from The Dark Knight surfaced, probably from a magazine. They give us more looks at Batman & his new suit. Take a look.
Hmm what's going on with his left leg here in this one? Strange.
Note: I finally received a security video still from the mall parking lot and found out who crushed my car, or at least got a making of the vehicle. That son of a bitch.
Neat-O-Fact: History/Evolution of The Joker, Take III
I feel like I haven't shown much love to Maggie Gyllenhaal, as she is replacing Katie "Spaceship" Holmes (don't ask, figure out for yourself) as Rachel Dawes. Now I'm not gonna say I hate Katie Holmes as an actress or as Rachel Dawes, but she didn't fit in the 2005 film. I couldn't buy her being an Assistant D.A. for some reason and she seemed out of place in the whole film. She received a lot of backlash for her performance, but there seemed to be a lot more focus on the lack of chemistry between Bale and Holmes in the film. So it's OK Katie, you were only, hmm 50% of the problem in that case.
Due to "scheduling conflicts", Katie Holmes dropped out of The Dark Knight when production was set to begin. I'm not sure if she dropped out because of actual conflicts with other projects (Mad Money over a Batman film psshh), negative reviews of her acting in Batman Begins, or if the cult leader Tom himself convinced her otherwise. But either way Christopher Nolan made a wise choice in a replacement for her. As the 2nd trailer showed, the new & improved Rachel Dawes comes complete with…that's right boxing gloves, as she can be seen delivering a punch to The Joker during a scene. Can you really picture Katie Holmes doing that? Naw I don't think so, and as The Joker said himself, "A little fight in ya, I like that." I do too.
Wait, what's this doing on here? This isn't from The Dark Knight, oh my bad.
But it's still Maggie at least, ahem.
Ooh I want one (Joker especially), you know you do too. And trust me, I'm sure these things will sellout faster than the time we'll see Lindsay back in rehab.
Neat-O-Fact: Prior to filming the 2005 Batman Begins, Christian Bale starred in The Machinist, a film he lost 63 pounds for. Once filming was finished, he put back on 100 pounds (40 of it being muscle) in a span of 6 months to meet the deadline and begin filming his part for Batman Begins, Talk about dedication.
Something I've been seeing a lot of online and in forums are fake manips of Aaron Eckhart as Two-Face. Some are quite silly while some are really well done. Now I'm really anticipating what Two-Face will look like in the film, and have been in debate in forums with others about whether or not he should sport a half-half suit in this film. Some think it doesn't fit for the mood of Nolan's vision of the Batman universe, while others feel it is almost mandatory for Two-Face to get his special suit from his tailor. Me personally, I think he'll be sporting a very nice suit, with one half faded and slightly darker than his other side. I'm sure Nolan won't disappoint anyway. But here are some interesting fan made artwork and manips of Two-Face. Now I didn't make any of these pictures, so I'm not taking credit for making any of these. A lot of these are pretty cool so enjoy, and all of these are FAN-MADE, or another word: FAKE, but it couldn't be that hard to notice could it?
Bale, oh my wonderful Bale, how you are the most intimidating Batman to me. I mean really. Christian Bale has received so much praise for his portrayal of Batman, and well he deserves every bit of it. I thought there was something very hmm, unique about Christian Bale, after I saw him in American Psycho that is. His character of Patrick Bateman forever sticks with me as an unreal spot-on portrayal of a psychopath. Watch the movie and try not to go "Holy %$!&" when he's holding a nail gun to the back of a woman's head, or chasing a woman naked and drenched in blood while wielding a running chainsaw. Yea, he has the talent and ability to make you check behind yourself in fear.
(He's also known for his expertise on doing accents in his films)
Hopefully you all have seen Batman Begins and I really believe there are some scenes in that film that even when standing alone, sum up the entire new vision of Batman in film. One scene in particular in the 2005 film is him hanging a corrupt cop upside down over a building to get information out of him. This scene has been parodied between my friends and me for a while but all in good taste. In the scene Batman pulls the cop to the top of a building by his foot caught in wire, grabs him by his shirt while he's hanging upside down and yells "Where were the other drugs going!?!?!" with the cop of course stammering and unable to come out with the truth he swears to God he doesn't know, to which Batman replies. "Swear to me!!!" My kind of Batman, that's right.
Yes...
Close, but no cigar... (not a bad start though)
Umm, no...
Hell no...
Our savior has come...
The best Batman? I think so too.
Neat-O-Fact: The makeup for the Joker consisted of 3 pieces of stamped silicone, referred to as "new technology" and a lot quicker to apply than regular prosthetics. As it would take only an hour to apply the makeup to Heath Ledger, with the entire bottom lip being a prosthetic as well.
For The Dark Knight, we will see Batman as more of a detective, as he will be traveling all around the world to investigate the origins of the growing threat in Gotham City. In order to do this he will need to get some extra gadgets and gizmos of course. So I already mentioned the new Batsuit and Batpod, but without really going into too much detail though. So some other facts about his suit (2.) is that it is made from 200 individual pieces of rubber, fiberglass, metallic mesh, and nylon. The forearms (3.) have razors on them that (gasp) can shoot at people, nice. And like I mentioned earlier in the blog, the head (or cowl) is modeled after a motorcycle helmet(1.), which allow him to turn his head left, right, up, and down. There are also some white lenses in the eyes that can come down for whenever Batman uses his Bat-sonar detection, this will of course be used to keep a better eye on Rachel Dawes as she comes out of the shower. (cough)
The Batpod has a huge arsenal of weapons and looks incredible in the trailer. It has 20" front and rear tires, with the engines located in the hubs of the wheels. It's steered by the shoulders instead of hands, and the rider's arms are protected by shields. The bike is armed with things such as grappling hooks, cannons, and machine guns. There were six models created for the film (in cases of crashes) and it was designed by the same person who did the Tumbler from Batman Begins. Think they'd let me hang in a biker bar if I pulled in with this? Hmm maybe.
Oh wrong film, my bad.
Sexy, ain't it?... Huh, the bike or the girl?
You decide.
Neat-O-Fact: Christian Bale wished to do most of his own stuntwork for both films, including standing at the top of the Sears tower (for the 2008 film) in his Batman attire (with a wire attached to his back just in case). Whatever you do, don't look down.
Note: A pic of the Two-Face toy was leaked giving us a hint of what he may be looking like in The Dark Knight. When I first saw it my jaw dropped, it looks crazy, and I mean that in a very, very good way.
Because of my promise of not to reveal any major spoilers, and WB's indecision to release an official pic (as of yet that is) of Two-Face, I decided to block out most of the scarring and let your imagination run wild. And again, Two-Face in this film is going to look AMAZING. I still can't believe how great this film is turning out to be.
And remember, this is only the toy, and it still looks unreal.
(Sorry, but I don't plan on ruining the movie for anyone if they decide to not release an official pic of him)
Something else I am looking forward to (you should be to) that is pretty cool is an animated direct-to-DVD anthology film called Batman: Gotham Knight. Think The Animatrix, but with Batman (uh huh). The stories take place between Batman Begins & The Dark Knight. The film contains 6 separate segments, all with their own different artistic and writing style. Some villains who will be appearing in the segments are Deadshot, Killer Croc, and Scarecrow. For a First Look at the film click here.
In stores July 2008
New Trailer Coming...
A new trailer for The Dark Knight will be debuting with WB's prehistoric film 10,000 B.C., which opens March 7th. (Edit: See update below)
The trailer will focus primarily on Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent. Due to the passing of Heath Ledger many fans speculated that this was a move by WB to shift the focus off the Joker.
But WB confirmed that their initial marketing plan was to focus on the Joker in the beginning, and then onto Harvey Dent later on. (This makes sense when looking at the trailers for Spider-Man 3, with the first trailers focusing on Sandman with no slight mention of Venom, and then later trailers which featured the black suited villain.
Can we expect to see Two-Face in the upcoming trailer? Hmm, seems like a long shot, but don't rule it out. (I read a description of the trailer and let me tell you, get your popcorn ready)
Update: 3/7/08
Sorry folks, but it seems we won't be receiving the new trailer with 10,000 B.C., as it seems only the first theatrical trailer is attached to the prehistoric film. Warner Bros. has decided to delay the release of their new trailer. That's the part where you say "Ahhhh 
"
But don't be too sad, we still have the new viral to look forward to, and there's alot more to be looking forward to as well. So put a smile on that face, and sign up for the new viral.
Harvey Dent wants you to join the fight for Gotham!
After a near two-month hiatus of any major updates in viral campaigning, Harvey Dent is now asking for your help in cleaning up Gotham City.
IBelieveInHarveyDent.com was updated with a form to submit your email and phone no. (optional), in doing so you will receive an email telling you in a matter of days you will learn how you can help.
Could this be a lead-in to the new trailer? New pics? Two-Face? I guess we'll have to find out. Get out your mop and let's do this together.
Note: Hotmail for some reason is having problems in receivng the emails (or WB is having problems sending them to Hotmail), so if this is the case for you, try using another email you may have such as AOL and Yahoo.
Do you believe in Harvey Dent?
The email you will receive reads:
Citizens of Gotham! The future of our city rests in your hands!
Alone, we are helpless against the thugs and killers menacing our city.
Together, we have the power to take back Gotham.
In just a few days, you'll find out how.
Neat-O-Fact: The Dark Knight will be released in Australia on July 17, 2008, one day before the US release date. Most likely as a tribute to Heath Ledger and his home country of adoring fans. A great move in my opinion.
Take Back Gotham!
We may not have gotten our new trailer (sad face), but we did receive something else...The opportunity to be a part of Harvey Dent's run for District Attorney of course! The site for IBelieveInHarveyDent.com was updated once again, and phone calls were sent out (to those who submitted their phone no.'s) with Harvey Dent giving his instructions for how you can help to clean up Gotham City. You can listen (or download if you wish) the call here.
Harvey Dent wishes for his supporters to come together and show their creativity in their support for Dent's run in office. Some examples and ideas he mentions on his site are things such as
Getting your friends together and spell out Harvey Dent in human letters
See if you can get up a Harvey Dent sign in every single window of your dorm building
Turn your own car into a "Dentmobile"
Write and perform a "Take Back Gotham" song
Arrange a Dent parade down Main Street
Make up a "Dent Dance" routine (Crank Dat Dent Yo)
Make a human pyramid with other Harvey Dent supporters
(and many other possibilities, it's up to you.)
You can pick up your supplies (flyers etc.) at the site, but be sure to do this soon, because you have until March 26th at noon to submit your entries. So go ahead and have some fun in showing your support for Harvey Dent. We need to make sure we have our best candidate for District Attorney in office by the time July rolls around.
Also, take a look at some great new photos that were just released
(You know what this photo reminds me of...a similar scene from The Killing Joke)
(Could this be a direct reference to TKJ? Sure, why not? I already made this other connection between the comic and the film, these same scenarios in Batman screaming for where the Joker is.)
(Keep up the great work Chris, hopefully you'll read the blog someday)
Neat-O-Fact: Christian Bale originally auditioned for Robin in the 1995 film, Batman Forever. But eventually "lost" out to Chris O'Donnell. I'm sure you didn't miss out on much Christian.
(Note: If you've made it to this point, do not pass GO and collect your $200, but do comment though haha)
or emo Tobey will make you pay...
Stay tuned for more updates & I appreciate the comments/kudos, Thanks. 
- J@rrett
Rest In Peace: Heath Ledger 1979-2008
Thanks for your dedication Heath, I look forward to seeing you this summer