The Dark Knight (2008) is an action/crime movie directed by Christopher Nolan and based on DC comics character Batman. The movie stars Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Aaron Eckhart in lead roles. The film’s music is composed by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard. Story and screenplay is written by Nolan brothers (Christopher and Jonathan) and David S. Goyer.
The Dark knight poster
The Dark Knight (2008) is the 2nd part of the Dark Knight Trilogy. With the help of Police lieutenant James Gordon and new district attorney Harvey Dent, caped crusader (Batman) raises the stakes on his war on crime by setting out to dismantle the remaining mafia groups that plague the streets. Everything goes as planned until a new criminal maniac knows as The Joker breaks havoc and chaos in Gotham. The Dark Knight must test his mental and physical strength in order to fight for Gotham before Joker causes the biggest anarchy.
The Dark knight joker
The movie won 2 Academy Awards and several other awards. It is the greatest superhero movie ever. Well, today I have a list of Interesting facts and details about the movie The Dark Knight (2008). Let’s have a look.
The Dark knight bat mobile poster
24. Heath Ledger designed his own Joker Makeup!
Actor Heath Ledger designed the Joker make-up himself, using white clown makeup and cosmetics from a drugstore. According to him since the Joker himself would design and apply it, Ledger should do so as well. Once his design was approved, the makeup team was responsible for replicating the look each day for filming.
Heath Ledger as Joker
23. Jokers famous Laugh was developed by Legder himself!
In preparation for his role as The Joker in The Dark Knight (2008), actor Heath Ledger hid away in a motel room for about six weeks. He devoted himself to developing The Joker’s every tic, namely the voice and that sadistic-sounding laugh.
22. IMAX camera was destroyed during the SWAT chase!
While filming the chase scene with the Joker and the SWAT vans, one of only four IMAX cameras in the world at that time was destroyed. The Dark Knight (2008) is also the first film shot with IMAX to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography.
The Dark knight movie scene
21. Stuntman was killed during the shoot!
While the film is dedicated to late actor Heath Ledger (Joker), it also bears a dedication to Conway Wickliffe, a stuntman who was killed when the car he was driving crashed.
Late. Stuntman Conway Wickliffe
20. Health Legder won every Award there was for his role!
Actor Heath Ledger posthumously (After Death) won a total of 32 Best Supporting Actor awards for his work on this film, including the Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA, SAG and Critics’ Choice award. The only awards he was nominated for but didn’t win were the Satellite Award (which went to actor Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road (2008)) and the London Film Critics’ Circle Award for actor of the year (which went to actor Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler (2008)).
The Dark Knight (2008) is the comic book film with the most (8) Academy Award nominations. Actor Heath Ledger’s Best Supporting Actor Oscar win marks the first time an Academy Award has been awarded in a major category to a comic book movie.
Joker in Nurse getup
18. Nine months between Batman Begins and Dark Knight!
The Dark Knight (2008) takes place roughly nine months after Batman Begins (2005) ended.
The Dark knight bat mobile
17. 39 Vehicles were destroyed!
There are a total of 39 vehicles crashed, shot, blown up, bumped, or otherwise involved in some sort of violence in this film.
An exceptional Actor and an amazing human being Christian Bale was born on 30th Jan 1974. This week marks his 41st Birth Anniversary. His birth Name is Christian Charles Philip Bale. He is known for his physical and mental commitment to his character. He is the only actor to loose 63 pounds to get in the shape of a character. Well, I am his die-hard fan and can tell you thousand things about him. Let’s not go there now (maybe Later sometime).
Christian Bale Picture
I have a list which contains personal quotes of Christian Bale. It is so much fun reading about any actors personal quotes, specially when it is about Batman/Bale (whether you are a fan or not you will enjoy it). Coz it gives you a insight about them. And many times a great backstage story too. Enough motivation now Let’s get to it.
1. [on dealing with the resulting media attention of Empire of the Sun(1987) at age 13] It was horrific. I was almost crying in interviews and running away during press conferences, pretending I was going to the bathroom and just disappearing.
Christian Bale in Empire of the Sun
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2. I don't want to know about the lives of other actors and I don't want people to know too much about me. If we don't know about the private lives of other actors, that leaves us as clean slates when it comes to playing characters. That's the point, they can create these other characters and I can believe them. I think if you're a good enough actor, that's the way to longevity in the film business. Keep everybody guessing.
Christian Bale in Exodus
3. [on his 63-pound weight loss for The Machinist (2004)] I had a stupid kind of feeling of invincibility, like, "I can do it, I can manage it." I really did feel like I hit this point of enlightenment.
Christian Bale in The Machinist
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4. I'd love to remain a secret and still work, but I also want people to see the movies I'm in and get a higher profile because of that. I like to think that as long as you continue choosing diverse roles, you can avoid becoming predictable.
Christian Bale in American Psycho
5. It's the actors who are prepared to make fools of themselves who are usually the ones who come to mean something to the audience.
Christian Bale Picture
6. [on his transformation into Patrick Bateman for American Psycho(2000)] The character is so vain and obsessed with his looks. While the psychology of the character was something that I could perform, you can't fake the physicality. Being English, I tend to enjoy going down to the pub far more than going to the gym, so it was very unnatural for me. I just had to convince myself that I loved it, which was the most difficult thing about playing this part. Working out is incredibly boring. I swear it's true that the bigger your muscles get, the fewer brain cells you have. I found I had to stop thinking when I was in the gym because if I thought about it, I'd realize how ridiculous it was that I was pumping iron when I could've been out having a drink and a cigarette and enjoying some lunch. I did three hours a day for six weeks with a personal trainer and some time before that. I ate an awful lot during training and then almost nothing during filming.
Christian Bale in Batman Begins
7. The only thing that I'm obsessed with is sleeping and, actually, it is more than an obsession, it is a pleasure. I love sleeping so much that I could do it 12 hours a day if I didn't have to turn on the alarm clock... and still, sometimes...
Christian Bale
8. Our Batman [Batman Begins (2005)] is centered on the early days. It's an explanation. It's certainly not Batman No. 5. It's a reinvention. We want you to forget there has ever been a Batman before this one.
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9. [on Batman Begins (2005)] I've never felt like the Batman character in the films was given as much time as any of the villains. The villains were always the most interesting characters, too. Batman has always been this very bizarre, almost blind character running through the middle of the story. Our film is different.
Heath Ledger as Joker
10. [on Batman Begins (2005)] I contacted them. I heard they were doing some low-budget Batman not aimed at kids and I was tantalized. I had appreciated the Batman movies, but I wasn't really a fan and I didn't know the TV series. But I read some of the graphic novels, and they were very dark and very interesting.
Christian Bale in Batman Begins
11. I spent about three weeks in Chicago last July doing night shoots [forBatman Begins (2005)]. It's a great city, but the humidity was tough under the Batsuit. Uh, it got a little bad. It's hot enough in the Batsuit, let alone in the Chicago heat.
Christian Bale in Batsuit
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12. I had spent weeks staring at the wall in my house out of depression because of things that had gone wrong and the choices I had made. When I read The Machinist (2004), I just went, "Wow! This is perfect." I was having dreams about the character and I couldn't stop thinking about it. I felt like this one was going to save my arse, and pull me out of the depressed state I had got into.
Christian Bale
13. I did other things, but my heart was never in it. A lot of actors say that theater's the thing for them. And that's great, and I'm not one to speak with any authority about it because of not having done it properly. For me, movies are what I love.
14. At first, I was somewhat hesitant to do the role [Batman Begins(2005)]. I mean, after all, Batman is an icon. But I remember, as clear as day, being at the grocery store the day the movie opened, and this little boy saw me. He couldn't have been more than five years old. He just walked right up to me and hugged me. He hugged me, and I was so moved by it that I hugged him back. Then he looked up at me and said, "You're my hero." And in that moment, I knew that not only as an actor that I had done my job, but that I had made the right decision to play Batman. And I've never looked back on my the decision to play Batman since.
Christian Bale Picture
15. [on playing Batman] You couldn't pull it off unless you became a beast inside that suit.
Christian Bale in Batsuit
16. I don't think I'm like any of the characters I've played. They're all really far from who I am.
Christian Bale
17. I like being kept in the dark myself. You know, like mushrooms: Keep 'em in the dark and feed 'em shit. See, I think that's an enjoyable vegetable to be.
Christian Bale
18. At the time that [Christopher Nolan] asked me to do it [Batman Begins(2005)], I actually couldn't do one push-up. They sent me to a trainer, who was having to hold my T-shirt at the back just to pull me up. I've come a long way from that.
20. [on director Christopher Nolan's method for filming Batman Begins(2005)] We tend to shoot at night like some kind of covert operation. So, we have minimal people actually seeing me in that way.
Christian Bale and Christopher Nolan
21. [on the character of Batman] He's a messed-up individual, as well. He's got all sorts of issues. He's just as twisted and messed-up as the villains he's fighting, and that's part of the beauty of the whole story.
Christian Bale as Batman
22. I'm accustomed to not having any map for my life. I'd be reaching for an Uzi if I knew what was going to happen every day. If anybody tells me I shouldn't jump, of course all I want to do is jump and show it can be done.
Christian Bale as Batman
23. I don't think I was particularly in need of superheroes. I never had any fascination with Superman or Spider-Man or a Batman kind of character. If it happened at all, it was imagined characters that I had invented. My dad was a role model for me. He was a fascinating man. There was intrigue and entertainment growing up with him. He gave me an edict that I still pursue: "Life should never be boring".
Christian Bale
24. You look back at the history of the Oscars - some of the best movies never got sh*t.
Christian Bale Picture
25. [on avoiding media coverage of Heath Ledger's death] I paid no attention to it. I knew him, I knew the family and why the hell would I sit there listening to idiots who don't know anything at all? I literally didn't read anything, didn't watch anything (after he died). If I happened to be watching anything that came on, I switched over straight away. It's incredible the way the voyeuristic outlook is accepted as news.
Christian Bale and Heath Ledger
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26. [on The Dark Knight (2008)] Many times, I'll work with actors and I can tell they're thinking: "What are you doing? Why are you going that far with it?" or "You're nuts!". With [Heath Ledger], I could feel him going: "I love it!".
Christian Bale and Heath Ledger
27. [on his infamous onset rant on Terminator Salvation (2009)] I don't feel like I have to explain, "Well, I'm not really like this. I'm a wonderful guy and I have a lovely smile and how can you not like me?".
Christian Bale in Terminator Salvation
28. [on his infamous onset rant on Terminator Salvation (2009)] It wouldn't have happened if we hadn't been playing that scene, for Christ's sake, between John Connor and his wife, which is probably the most intense one in the movie. I'd definitely say that that guy who was yelling was at least half John Connor, and the rest was Christian Bale.
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29. Look, I hate to throw people under the bus for making movies I don't think are very good. But for Terminator Salvation (2009) to be considered with any legitimacy, you have to throw number three [Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)] under the bus. It began to spoof the whole thing. To me, that was a sign that the franchise was dead, the mythology was finished.
Terminator 3 Rise of Machines
30. [on Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)] I really liked the second one. It had as much to do with the electric atmosphere in the theater when I saw it at 17, when I was first getting out to the States, and I'd never been in a movie theater that had that much noise and excitement throughout the entire movie.
Arnold in Terminator 2
31. I was up in Toronto and went to see that movie Life Is Beautiful (1997). By myself. And when I came out, I had a craving for blood unlike anything I had ever experienced since I decided to go vegetarian at the age of 7. It was a compulsion. It was undeniable. I went to several restaurants, one right after the other, and got the biggest, bloodiest steaks I could get my hands on. It was the first time I had tasted flesh in almost twenty years.
Life is Beautiful movie
32. I wouldn't want someone making a film of my life. I'd be on set every day saying they're telling it wrong.
Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne
33. [on portraying Bruce Wayne as a jerk] That's always his cover. It's something that has to be there to make people never suspect that he's someone that would ever have the desire or belief, the passion or intelligence, the capability to be Batman. He has to be this kind of ridiculous cliché of a playboy.
Christian Bale Picture
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34. I have very strong opinions about why kids should not be working at such a young age. I think introducing children to a professional industry where they may not recognize the pressure is wrong. Very quickly they're going to be under pressure. This is an adult industry. I would be very skeptical putting anybody I cared about, who was close to me, in this profession at a young age. I absolutely support it as a hobby and as an amateur pursuit, but to enter into it in a professional way is a whole different ball game.
Christian Bale in Empire of The Sun
35. To be honest, it was only a couple of years ago that I finally decided to stick at acting. Before that, I used to think, "I don't want to do this any more - I want to quit. I hate it." It's such a silly job. Some days I'd think I should be doing something much more important than this. I'd like to say acting is a meaningful and difficult job but it's actually damn easy and pretty pointless. Sometimes I love it but other days I think, "This sucks.".
Christian Bale in American Hustle
36. [on how David O. Russell likes to hide places on set] One of the funniest things for me on set [of American Hustle (2013)] was watching where David was going to hide. He always likes to be very close to the actors. He likes to be able to feel the atmosphere of the scene. So literally he'd be trying to hide under our chairs and the DP would be "No David, I see you there." And then he'd be jumping over a table somewhere and finding a spot where he could be very close and get a sense of being right there with us.
Christian Bale, David O’Russell and Bradley Cooper
So how was the list ?? Did it enjoy it ? Have any questions, leave it in comments. We will discuss.
This week marks 7th Death Anniversary ( 22Jan 2008 ) of Heath Ledger.
He lived short (28 years) but marked his achievements. He still lives in the heart of his fans. Here is to remembering Heath Ledger.
“Why So Serious”. Put a wide smile on your face ( like the Joker )and read some of his real life Lesser known Facts.
1. He never attended Drama school and had no formal training when he decided to pursue an acting career. Of all the actors who played the Joker and won Oscars, he is the only one to win for playing the Joker.
2. Heath Ledger was of English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry.
3. Heath starred in 3 films which screened at the 2005 Venice Film Festival. They included Brokeback Mountain (2005), The Brothers Grimm (2005) and the out-of-competition Casanova (2005).
4. Heath Ledger became a father for the 1st time at age 26 when his fiancée Michelle Williams gave birth to their daughter Matilda Rose Ledger on October 28, 2005.
5. He was the first non-American actor to portray the Joker.
6. As a tribute, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law helped Terry Gilliam complete The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) by taking over Ledger’s unfinished role. Thus the public was able to watch his last performance. The three actors donated their salaries to his daughter.
7. Actor Jake Gyllenhaal and actress Busy Philipps are his daughter’s godparents.
8. Among his hobbies were surfing, skateboarding, chess, photography, directing.
9. Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment at 421 Broome Street in the SoHo neighborhood in New York City at 3:26 p.m. EST by his housekeeper and a massage therapist, finding him face down and unconscious in his bed with sleeping pills on a nearby table. [January 2008]
10. He was painfully shy and First acting role was as “Peter Pan”, at age 10, at a local theater company.
11. Heath Ledger is the second person to win a posthumous acting Oscar. The first was Peter Finch.
12. As a child, he owned a pet kangaroo that was found by his mother.
13. Heath Ledger is the youngest actor to play the Joker in a Batman movie The Dark Knight (2008), as oppose to Jack Nicholson and Cesar Romero.
14. In 2006, he took a year off from acting to raise his daughter Matilda Ledger while his girlfriend at the time, Michelle Williams, worked.
15. After his death his body was returned to Perth, Western Australia, where his body was cremated at Fremantle Cemetery, with his ashes to be “scattered in a family plot at Karrakatta Cemetery, next to two of his grandparents.
16. Heath Ledger is one of 9 actors to have won the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics’ Choice Award, Golden Globe Award and SAG Award for the same performance. The others in chronological order are Geoffrey Rush for Shine (1996), Jamie Foxx for Ray (2004), Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005), Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland (2006), Javier Bardem for No Country for Old Men (2007), Daniel Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood (2007), Christoph Waltz for Inglourious Basterds (2009) and Colin Firth for The King’s Speech.
17. He was offered the role of Peter Parker in Spider-Man (2002) which he turned down.
18. Heath Ledger was good friends with actors Christian Bale, Joaquin Phoenix and Matt Damon. He Said in 1999 that his favorite actors and directors were Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, Bob Fosse, Stanley Kubrick, Katharine Hepburn, Jack Nicholson, Marcel Cann, Terrence Malick, Mel Gibson, and Meryl Streep.
19. Was a great admirer of actor Johnny Depp’s work. Like Depp, Ledger worked hard to avoid being typecast as a teen heartthrob early on, in the hopes of expanding his career options. Both actors enjoyed taking risky, physically unappealing roles that surprised audiences.
20. Received his Oscar-nomination for The Dark Knight (2008) on the first anniversary of his death, January 22, 2009. He is not only the first and only actor to be nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of the Joker, but the first and only actor to secure an acting nomination for a Batman film.
21. In both his first and final complete roles, he portrayed a clown. The day after he died, he was supposed to meet with Steven Spielberg to explore the idea of playing Tom Hayden in a movie about the Chicago 7.
22. Heath Ledger met up with Christopher Nolan to exchange ideas about how he was going to play the Joker before there was even a script for The Dark Knight (2008). He was Christopher Nolan’s first and only choice for the Joker.
23. He was awarded the 2009 Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his work as the Joker in The Dark Knight (2008). This made him the first person to win a posthumous acting Oscar in this category.
24. His daughter Matilda Ledger will be the recipient of his Oscar for The Dark Knight(2008) when she turns 18. Up until then the statuette will be in custody of his father Kim Ledger, mother Sally Bell and sister Kate Ledger, per Academy rules.
Movie Details Facts and Trivia 