Introduction:
In 2005 Christopher Nolan spearheaded the commercial re-boot of the Batman franchise with the movie Batman Begins, the movie achieved wide critical acclaim, and, subsequently generated, talk of a sequel. In the summer of 2008, after a vast amount of advertising and viral marketing, the highly anticipated sequel was finally released. The film 'The Dark Knight' grossed almost $67,165,092 in its first day and went on to break countless box office records. Later the next year the film won 2 Oscars and was nominated for a further 6, one award won was the 'Best Supporting Actor' award which the late Heath Ledger posthumously received, for his portrayal of the 'Joker'. Due to Ledger's untimely death the film gained even more publicity and Heath's performance was spotlighted, many people thought this might take the focus off what might be a great film and onto Ledger's performance alone. The film was released, and, although Ledger's performance was nothing short of astonishing the spotlight and focus was not taken off the film itself and the movie subsequently gained wide, and thoroughly deserved, critical acclaim. In my opinion an exceptional solo performance isn't capable of taking focus off a good film if it is itself worthy of credit, the performance is simply a different aspect of the film.
''Nevertheless, according to Gustin Wyatt (1994), sometimes a stars uniqueness functions as 'excess', uncoupled from either plot or character development, as with Jack Nicholson's quirky turn as the Joker in Batman (1989)''. (Pam Cook: 2007, p.131).
This statement being even more relevant with Heath Ledgers performance. Both Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008) were released after the terrorist attacks of September...
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...revolutionize a whole new genre of movie, a genre which is fast becoming more and moe popular. 'As filmmaking technology has made it more and more feasible to bring the worlds of the comics to movie theaters, the comics themselves have begun to provide a broader and richer array of material.. from which films might be made' (Booker 2007: Paul Benton, Lecture notes). All the mentioned arguments throughout this essay on top of; the star performances, unique marketing and special effects, help make The Dark Knight a truly great film. Prior to the movies release it was questioned wether the film could sustain the 'increasing moral weight imposed upon it', the movie to date has more than dealt with this pressure, and has become a focal point for many discussions and essays, and finally it is because of the morals and ethics within the movie that I have written this essay.
This paper will discuss similarities between 9/11 and Pearl Harbor that describe the Presidential responses to the attacks, as well as investigate the roles that class, culture, religion, and nations of superiority played in these attacks on the United States.
1. Sobchack’s argument pertaining to on -screen violence that she wrote thirty years ago was that any violent acts portrayed in movies back then was to emphasize the importance of an element in a story, an emphatic way of engaging the viewers and forcing them to feel what the movie was about. It gave them a sense of the substance of the plot which would allow them to feel for the characters and yearn for good to overcome evil. In other words, the effort made to engage audiences through depictions of violence created violence that was artistic and well done, or as Sobchack writes, violence was “aestheticized.” Violence was incorporated into film in a stylistic way, and even though violence in all forms is offending, twenty five years ago when it was seen in film, it had a greater impact on audiences because it had meaning (Sobchack 429).
It has been eight years since the ending of the previous movie, The Dark Knight. At the end of this movie, Batman took the blame for the people killed by Harvey Dent, the district attorney who set out a war against crime. During The Dark Knight, crime had decreased dramatically because of him and Batman. Numerous criminals were placed in prison because of him. Therefore, Batman took the blame for his murders because he understood that a discovery of Harvey Dent’s killings would allow the numerous criminals that he imprisoned to be set free.
The attacks that occurred on 9/11 took place on September 11th, 2001. In this devastating event, four different attacks had taken place. Each of the attacks were carried out by terrorists. The group responsible for the attack was Al-Qaeda, a militant Islamist organization that is known to be global in present day. The group itself has a network consisting of a Sunni Muslim movement that aims to make global Jihad happen. Furthermore, a stateless, multinational army that is ready to move at any given time. This terrorist group focuses on attacking non-Sunni Muslims, those who are not Muslim, and individuals who the group deems to be kafir. Ever since the late 1980s, Al-Qaeda has been wreaking havoc all around the world. The leader of the group once being Osama bin Laden. Three planes were bound for New York City while another plane headed towards Washington, D.C. which was supposed to take out the U.S. Capitol. Two of the airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center. One plane hitting the North Tower and the other hitting the South Tower. The third plane had crashed into the Pentagon taking out the western side of the building. The last and final plane was focused solely on taking out the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. but failed due to passengers of the plane coming hijacking it from the hijackers. The passengers attempted to take out the hijackers but sadly failed, crashing it into a field in Pennsylvania. Throughout the content of this paper, we will be focusing on the role of media when it comes to 9/11; more specifically: how the media's coverage of 9/11 manipulated our feelings towards 9/11, how it affected Islamophobia in America, and the lasting effects of 9/11.
The Dark Knight Rises can be seen as portraying Batman as more of an ubermensch rather than a Jesus-like figure. Connecting Batman as an ubermensch conveys his superiority to a level of where he is above human but not at the state of being a Jesus-like figure. The film can be interpreted as alluding to the idea that we do not need a savior because we can have someone within humanity adapt that particular role. Even though Batman can be seen as a savior that does not necessarily make him a Jesus-like figure due to the luxuries that Batman had. His company is what allowed him to become who he is. If it weren 't for his money he probably would not be who he is now. Batman was not chosen from above to be the messiah of Gotham as opposed to Jesus who was chosen from above to be the people’s messiah. Batman at the same time carried human-like characteristics that allowed him to connect more to the people of Gotham which demonstrates that we can have a Jesus-like figure come from within humanity. A claim that can be assumed is that humanity does not necessarily need Jesus because a human, someone like Batman can take on that same role. The film also can be interpreted as trying to portray Jesus through Batman. Batman’s presence is reassuring to the people of Gotham because
Batman (Christian Bale) is hoping to hand on his crime fighting duties to D.A Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) yet when Batman’s cards are on the table the twisted mastermind who goes by the name of the joker (Heath Ledger), forces the masked vigilante to go against everything he ever stood for.
Smoke billows out from a Manhattan skyscraper, damaged by a fiery explosion. This could easily be a scene from 9/11, however we see Batman looking grimly on as a poster advertises the film will be released soon. Clearly this film plays on the fears of terrorism. As depicted in The Dark Knight, the Joker plays the terrorist, while Gotham’s leadership struggles to contain him. The film departs from the superhero ideals of pure good versus pure evil, showing a murky world where moral decisions have to be made in order to stop evil. Because of this, The Dark Knight seems to be an allegory for the War on Terrorism. This paper will look at how the Joker represents terrorism, while Batman represents George Bush and his administration’s War on Terror.
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
Being one of the world’s most popular art forms, it was inevitable that these archetypes would find their way into film as well. In this essay I will argue that the films Pulp Fiction, Taxi Driver, Watership Down, and Trainspotting are all versions of The Hero’s Journey, consequently demonstrating just how prevalent these archetypes have become in modern cinema. And that mythology and storytelling are important parts of each culture because they prevent the darkness in our hearts from spreading.
In 1692, one of the most inhumane tragedies occurred in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts. Now infamously recognized as the “Salem Witch Trials,” the trials were based on faulty accusations that charged others of being witches. These accusations resulted in a considerable amount of people being imprisoned and hanged, and it ended with 20 people being killed. 309 years later, four planes were hijacked by terrorists and were set to crash in four important government centers and buildings. Consequently, these attacks resulted in 2,966 deaths and it was the most severe attack ever on American soil. The terrorists were revealed to be Muslims, and that they supposedly did it in the name of “Allah”, which is the Arabic translation for God.
This paper will break down the elements of the critical process using the three critical methods that were discussed in class. Also included in the paper will be the notes that were taken from the conversation I overheard at Hardees, about the movie “Batman: Mask of the Phantasm” between Seiter, Thompson, and Meehan. This critique will discuss the several components to each of the three critical methods including cultural codes in the movie, gender roles, and advertisement placement with in the movie.
In today’s naturalistic-influenced western culture, many of Hollywood’s movies contain existential and nihilistic themes. According to Leonard Manschreck, nihilism has not only infiltrated drama and the arts, but also our religion. He goes on to urge westerners to understand the nihilistic tends in our everyday life. In the movie, The Dark Knight, Joker serves as an example of nihilism by suggesting that life is meaningless and we are all part of a chaotic world.
In our society, certain ideals are held in high regard. Individuals relentlessly pursue these ideals to achieve a perceived perfection. These principles are often depicted in media that further glorifies and establishes a desire to pursue these paragons. In a medium such as comic books, however, these standards and perceptions are heavily distorted by the characterizations and settings. Particularly, the superhero genre absorbs the ideals we strive towards and regurgitates them in an extreme and unrealistic manner. The superhero genre is often reflective of societal changes in ideas and morals. These ideals are then molded into misleading representations that influence the behaviors of viewers. Comic books absorb elements of our society and transform them. For example, as the enemies of America change, so do the enemies of our superheroes. However, the enemies are transformed into supervillains that are extremely dark and villainous. Such characterizations cloud people’s understanding of real threats and enemies affecting our society. Also, to cater to the value that American society places on intelligence, attractiveness, and physical strength, comic books create characters that epitomize these characteristics. Though the represent society’s ideals, these characters manipulate the ideas and convey them back to the audience in an unrecognizable manner. In developing such distorted representations, the superhero genre affects human behavior and perceptions of these ideals.
Best known for his unique and non-linear style and to many people as the best director of the past decade, Christopher Jonathan James Nolan or just simply Christopher Nolan, is one of the most talented and influential film directors and screenwriters of our time. He, like most directors have never studied film and is a self-taught filmmaker. In this essay I am going to write about his early life and how he got into filmmaking. His early career and his rise to fame with Batman movies, his personal life and the influences he have had on the film industry which makes him one of the best directors of all time and my personal favorite.
Batman Begins has an incredible amount of struggles that not only Bruce Wayne must face but all of Gotham must face. The first of many of these was Thomas and Martha Wayne's sudden death at the beginning. This left both the people of Gotham and Bruce Wayne to struggle along without them “Their deaths galvanized the city into saving itself and Gotham has limped on ever since.” (Batman Begins, Ras Al Ghul, Scene 31) This also created much anger and rage in Bruce Wayne that he released as Batman. There is also the struggle with the crime rate in Gotham and keeping alive the cities slowly falling government. These things differ from the Dark Knight where the struggles are with mainly the Joker and his actions. Many more unexpected and out of control struggles occur in The Dark Knight. The Joker (mastermind terrorist) creates many series of problems and difficulties for Batman, Gordon, Dent, and all of Gotham in general. Another big problem, quite different from the first one is the capturing of Joker. Unlike the first film, the struggles of The Dark Knight are much more external while the first one was fixing what was on Gotham’s internal problems. An example was after Rachel’s death it changed Harvey into an evil person therefore changing the whole ending of the movie, and a lot of the next one. Another big difference between the two films is The Dark Knight has a lot more violence and explosions,