The Dark Knight

This is the opening

scene.

This is the film

poster.

This is the DVD

cover.

What is The Dark Knight?

The Dark Knight is the second Batman film in the
Dark Knight Trilogy. It is an action film produced
by Legendary Pictures, Syncopy and DC Comics.
Its based on the characters appearing in the DC
Comics Batman which was very popular around
the world. The director was Christopher Nolan
and it was distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures.
The Dark Knight falls into a science fiction,
fantasy and action genre and it has a wide range
of target audience. Typically, it would be
watched by 12-50 year old males but because it
has such a wide range, it can be watched by
almost anyone. It would not be suitable for
anyone under the age of 12 due to the fact it
was given a 12A classification because it has
moderate violence and mature themes.

Extra Details
It follows Tzvetan Todorovs theory of
equilibrium, disequilibrium, new
equilibrium. This is because
everything was going right before the
Jokers attack on the bank and after
he wrecks havoc across the city of
Gotham, the Batman makes it his job
to make it better (which, of course, he
does). It focuses on the Mainstreamer,
Aspirer and Explorer lifestyle types
and the lead actors/actresses are
Morgan Freeman, Christian Bale,
Heath Ledger and Michael Caine.

Cinematography
This is right at the start of the
film and it shows us what film we
are about to watch (which is why
there is a bat imprinted in the
blue fire. It is in a dark filter to
add to the tense and to show
what genre this type of film is.

This is an establishing shot of

where the action is taking place.
It is using a dolly zoom
movement and there is no
noticeable angle on it. It zooms
into the bank which shows us
where the action is taking place
and the non-diegetic music adds
to the suspense of what is
actually going to happen in this
scene.

The movement in this shot are rather

In this shot, the camera zooms into
peculiar because they follow the man
the Joker which brings it from a body
zip-wiring until the camera gets out he
shot to a close-up of his legs and the
window where the camera tilts onto the
masks. The non-diegetic music in this
street below. This means that the
scene builds up loads of tension with
camera goes from a mid-shot to a
a high pitch noise until it drops when
establishing/long shot of the street. The
the car comes and it brings a lowmusic continues in this shot and the only
pitched beat with it. There is no
sound added is the wire making a zip

The music continue in this shot

and it has a high angle. The
mans reloading of the gun
makes up most of the nondiegetic sound in this scene
though and it focuses on him
with a close up shot.

There is no added diegetic sound in

this because the wire is still making
the zip sound however there is a
sudden beat drop when they are
mid-way through zip-wiring. This is
a long shot where the camera
tracks/pans the robbers.

In this shot, we hear our second

clip of diegetic sound which is
the people speaking. There is no
camera movement and the
camera stays at a constant
close-up. The non-diegetic
music quietens slightly. It is at
an eye-level angle as well so it
feels like we are in the car with
them.

In this clip, the camera makes a

pan/follow movement and the
music starts to bring in a low
bass sound which is really
effective as it puts you right on
he edge of your seat. This is a
low angle so we feel inferior to
the characters

Theres a lot more diegetic and

movement in this scene than
previous. The people screaming
brings a sense of fear to the
viewer and the camera
movement is a reverse follow/
pan which makes a long shot of
the characters constant.

This is an eye-level angle clip

which has the music continuing
in it however more diegetic
sound is added (like the gun
sound and speaking). This is a
close up and once again, there is
no movement on it. The shot is
angled this way because we get
to see what the man at the front
doesnt like when he dies, we
see how.

This shot has both a tilt and pan

on to show both what the man is
doing and where he is about to
go. The non-diegetic music
builds up more and more which
adds to the immense tension in
this 5 minute clip. It is another
close-up but because of the
movements, the angles on the
robber change.

This clip is a follow movement to

make the viewer feel like they
are also following this man and
trying o catch up to him.
However, we get a sense that he
is much faster than us because
the camera doesnt follow him at
the same pace. There is no
angle in this shot and the shot
goes from a close-up to a body
shot. The music drops at the
start of this scene and it starts
with a different beat.

This is a low angle and a close-up

shot where the camera doesnt
really move but it has that effect
because the character moves
into the shot so quickly. The
robber attaches a grenade to the
man and it makes a non-diegetic
click to signify that this mans
time is running out.

We make a dolly movement on

the drill in this shot which takes
us from a half-body shot to a
close-up of the hole the drill is
making. The sound basically
stays the same apart from the
fact we can hear the drill which
takes up a large amount of sound
so the sound of the ticking
slightly lowers.

In this shot you hear the overexaggerated door slamming and the
ticking sound continues. This time
you can see another reason why the
ticking sound is on, which is
because the robbers time is also
running out. There is no diegetic
sound and the camera stays in the
same shot type (mid-shot). The
movement of the camera is a follow
and pan. There is no angle on the
camera

The sound of the robber hitting

the man is the most significant
aspect of this shot. The sound is
very loud so it obviously tells us
the robber has hit the man hard.
The camera zooms in on the
subject slowly but quick enough
to take us from a medium close
up to a close up. This has a low
angle which makes us again feel
inferior to the robbers.

The man is speaking in this clip

which is the only diegetic sound
and the non-diegetic sound stays
the same. This is a close-up with
no angle however the camera
makes a pan movement around
the man which gives the viewer a
feeling that the robbers are
surrounding us with guns and
holding us hostage.

This shot is a close-up which has

a slight pan to it. It has an eyelevel angle and all the sound
quietens in this shot which gives
us a feeling that we are also
trying to be quiet or stealthy like
the man in this scene. Despite
this, the man shouting is still
dominant.

This is an over the shoulder shot

which first focuses on the primary
subject (the robber) and then the
secondary (the banker). In this
scene, the ticking ends to show the
robbers time is up and the main
beat comes back into action as soon
as the non-diegetic sound of the
man getting shot is played with the
shattering glass. There is an eyelevel angle in this shot but there is
no movement.

The music builds up tension in

these shots and the sounds of the
shotgun firing also adds to it. We
get the low-angle on the banker
to show that the tables have
turned and that we are now
superior over the robbers and we
have won he fight which is not the
case. This is a mid close up and
we make a reverse follow again
on the gunner.

The camera man makes a zoom-out

on this shot and also a pan to reveal
where the robbers are trying to hide.
The music cuts out just at the end of
this scene to show something bad is
about to happen and the gun shots
have also stopped by the time this
shot had started to add to the
suspense. This is a wide shot
however despite all of the camera
movement, There is no angle on the
robebrs

This shot takes us from a mid

shot to a close up through a
follow/zoom on the robbers
mask. There is a low angle to
once again bring back the feeling
of being inferior to the robbers
and the non-diegetic sound
comes back into action which
tells us the small fight between
the banker and the robbers have
ended.

We make a slow follow on the

robber to take us from a long shot
to a mid shot. We stay at an eyelevel angle and there is only a
small amount of diegetic sound
which happens at the end of this
shot (the money being grabbed).
The music stays the same so there
isnt much change in the sound.

In this scene the music is almost

silent and the man speaking
becomes the dominant sound. This
means the character has
something important to say so it is
almost impossible not to hear the
significance of what he is saying.
This is a close-up and there is no
angle on the shot and no
movement.

In this clip, the music continues to play

however it is overpowered by the
massive sound of the bus crashing into
the bank. This gives the viewer a slight
shock because all of the suspense is
released. This is a wide shot although it
is hard to tell due to all of the clips
added together in the scene and there
is no camera movement. There is a
slight low angle on the bus which is
strange because it makes us feel
inferior to a bus which is. Not normal
to say the least.

There are several pans in this

clip. The diegetic sound
overpowers the non-diegetic
sound in this clip when it is
played like with the gun shot.
This shot stays at a mid-shot and
there is no real angle made on
the robber.

Once Again, the diegetic

overpowers the non-diegetic
sound however there is not a lot
of non-diegetic sound. The music
continues to play and the camera
follows and tilts on the man to
give us a high angle. This, finally,
makes us feel superior which we
do not want to be because our
side of the battle has finally lost.
This scene turns from a long shot
to a body shot.

This a high-angled close-up of the We make a follow movement on the

The camera movement is the main
banker to show that he has lost the Joker in this shot. This movement stays change of cinematography in this shot
battle and now his life. There is no at a constant pace until it stops when
because it makes a pan to pedestal
movement in this shot however
the Joker is getting into the bus where
movement. This allows us to view a midthere is a lot of sound. You can hear the camera makes a slight pedestal
shot of the bus to a very wide shot of the
the Joker speaking to the banker in movement. We can see a medium shot street and a angle change of an eyea traumatising way for the nonof the Joker and a close-up of he bus in level to a high angle. Although it may
diegetic sound and the music
this clip but despite all of the changes of sound like it, in this shot there is not
becomes higher pitch but the
movements and shot types, there are no much diegetic sound because it is all
volume does not change. It feels likechanges in angles. By this time, the non- non-diegetic. We can hear all of the
it does, though, because of the pitchdiegetic sound has dropped and
bricks and debris falling off of the car in
change which creates a spooky
returned to its normal beat and the
the first half and then the music plays

In my opinion, this is the most effective shot of all in the opening scene. It includes
almost all of the aspects of cinematography and they each have their own effect. This
is a extreme-close-up (a shot which we have not scene throughout the opening scene)
which is used so the viewer can gain extremely important knowledge of the Joker like
what make-up he wears and what sort of mental state he is in. It uses a low angle so
we, the viewers, feel lesser than the Joker. There is no movement in this shot which, in
my opinion, is not needed due to the fact it adds to the sinister feeling of he scene and
we feel startled, just like the banker with the grenade in his mouth. The diegetic sound
of him speaking adds to the ominous effect of the non-diegetic drop of music.

Mise-en-scene

Set:
There arent that man different
sets in the opening scene of The
Dark Knight. Most of the action
takes place in the bank however
there are at least two more sets.
It films in the streets of Chicago,
in a office building and on a
rooftop. These sets are effective
because they all have the ability
to change its lighting and they
are the perfect place to film this
scene. For example, the bank is
perfect because it allowed the
banker enough room to shoot the
man and for the bus to crash into
the side of the building.

Lighting:
Lighting is a key aspect when
filming because otherwise it is
impossible to film the perfect
shot. The Dark Knight aces the
lighting in its opening scene
because it changes when the
mood does which is really
effective on the viewer.

Costumes:
He costumes in the Dark Knight
are very good. The bank robbers
are kitted out with informal suits
and a clown mask which makes
the whole scene more interesting
and iconic so the viewer can
understand that the film they are
about to watch includes the
Joker. The banker is wearing a
formal suit and glasses so he is
portrayed as wealthy and upperclass so there is a lot of contrast
but not a lot at the same time.

Mise-en-scene Continued
Make-up:
This is the only shot where you
really notice someone wearing
make-up and it is, obviously, the
Joker. This is probably the most
iconic Batman villain and in my
opinion, Heath Ledger nailed it.
The way HE did his make-up
made this shot one of the worlds
most recognised scenes in any
film. And it also plays a massive
part in the sinister theme of the
film.

Props:
There are so many props used in
the opening scene alone,
because as you can imagine,
most action films do. They use
props like grenades, drills,
money, guns, and even shoes to
stop electrical current! They play
an important part and are used
to their full potential so this is
why you may see the same
props in the film twice or more.

Actors/Dialogue:
The two noticeable actors in this
scene is Heath Ledger and
William Fichtner. As I have
already said, Heath Ledger
nailed the Joker due to his acing
and the fact that he changed the
way he lived his life to become
the perfect actor for the job. He
speaks in a dark, mysterious way
and the small tweaks of his face
shows the dedication that he put
in. William Fichtner also did a
great job as the banker and he is
suited to these sort of roles in TV
series and films. He plays the
same sort of part in Prison Break
which he also played a good part
in because he has the ability to
transform his voice into a lot of
tones.