Kind of ho-hum for me. Where are the villains? Why is Batman posing in an iconic stance that is not his style, ie lurking, crouching over a gargoyle, sinister etc? Also is it daytime? Looks like it. His chest is way too lit -- hes not Superman, you know. Also, while that fire looks cool, why is it in the shape of a bat symbol? It would make more sense creatively if it was in the shape of the joker's smile or something along those lines... I'm not sure if this is the final one-sheet, but it feels like Warner doesn't want to give away too much about Harvey dent aka Two-face (is he in it? not in it?), and neither do they seem to want to promote Heath at all, at this point... The Hulk one-sheet is cooler than this, man.
Yeah, the first thing I thought after seeing this (okay, second after "That's badass!") was Fight Club/Project Mayhem. The "World Without Rules" tag at the top lends to that.
But, given some of the terrorism metaphor in Batman Begins, a allusion to WTC isn't terribly surprising.
The two one-sheets I've seen for this might be the two greatest of all time. For any film, ever. Everyone involved with the marketing of this thing has a long, bright future ahead of them.
The first 2 posters didn't feature Batman at all (not counting the international one, which still had his back to the camera). Why get upset that he's central to this one?
Joe: Yeah I understand that Caine has a couple Oscars over Ledger but I'm assuming that Ledger has much more screen time in the film than Caine...and Ledger is The Joker!
But -- unless it's actually part of the story -- wouldn't it have made more promotional sense to have the building tagged with a Joker symbol? Because it looks like Batman vandalized city hall with his logo. Or did the Joker do that to frame Batman, and now Batman's standing there all like, "I'm Batman and I got Punk'd."
Tortured and maimed. I see your point. Very well stated. Any particular reason, or is having an opinion you disagree with the reason itself. Either way I'm honored.
Mr. Gittes - unless you're Ledger's agent, who cares about what order their names appear in?
I think it's a damned cool poster -it's moody and it shows Batman. I don't think people have to shout "9/11 - TOO SOON!" every time a building on fire appears anywhere.
The burning Jedi Temple in Episode III was a very 9/11 reference but I didn't see anyone complain or bitch about it. So why get pre-worked-up here?
It's all fine and good to wonder "where are the villains?" but I don't think anyone is surprised that Ledger will be a little less prominent in the marketing than he otherwise might have been.
They always stated that Joker was phase one for print and then shifting over to Batman, so I don't see what the big deal is. I wouldn't be surprised if there's another poster on the way closer to July.
I bought a Ledger Joker poster late last year off of ebay and I may have to get this one. It would be cool to have both framed in my place. It's a great looking image IMHO.
The fire should have been in the form of a dollar sign. That's what it's all about, especially with the people going to see the movie because of Ledger. You know it's true.
Fellow HE readers... First off it's obvious the 'bat logo' is the Joker's doing. In fact you could argue it also resembles the jagged Joker's smile as well.
I can understand the 9/11 reference but this building is clearly not a modern skyscraper.
The first few posters for this film have all been Joker centric, so Bat's was due his turn.
Caine gets billing first because he is part-in-parcel of this new reboot franchise. He is also an international star.
I would venture had Mr. Ledger not passed on, that he wouldn't have been in the next one anyhow.
The one good thing about all the posters so far for this release is the unrelenting doom and gloom, it's about time we got down to the adult business of delivering a dark Dark Knight.
So are people saying that Batman Begins, with Liam Neeson as a charismatic religious cult leader who seeks to purify "Gotham" through a symbolic act of mass slaughter, wasn't making 9/11 references?
Phreek: It is pretty dumb for Nolan to sell the film with WTC allusions, considering that kind of thing killed United 93. I'm starting to worry that Dark Knight will be the extreme opposite of Katie Holmes looking concerned in the previous film.
Gittes: Caine can act.
DavidF: People were too busy being upset at how disappointing Sith was to complain about any political imagery Lucas incorporated into the film.
Mgmax: Spot on. There's also the idea of a that small militant group trying to wipe out a culture for it's decadence, using fear as their greatest weapon. The only ones who don't see the parrellel are those refusing to look.
DZ: Yeah, Batman and United 93, practically the same movie. I'm sure people will be driven away in droves. Now shut the fuck up, you're a complete idiot.
p.Vice:...Yeah, see my last comment for DZ. You two are peas in a pod.
anyone who equates a building on fire with 9/11 needs to get out more often. maybe see a therapist too. this is a MOVIE about a COMIC BOOK CHARACTER. nothing about this poster says 9/11. nothing.
I guess a remake of THE TOWERING INFERNO with Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Susan Sarandon, Kevin Spacey, Robert Downey Jr etc isnt incoming anytime soon...
By the way, I've been reading Jake Rossen and Mark Millar's Hollywood vs. Superman and something occurred to me. Has Nolan pushed the envelope too much this time?
Remember, Tim Burton rode the wave of a dark Batman film and used the clout to make the terrific, but even darker and more fetishistic, Batman Returns. When McDonald's realized they couldn't use it to sell Happy Meals, they raised all holy hell and we ended up with Schumacher.
Don't get me wrong. Batman Begins was very good and I don't think Nolan should compromise his ideal of what the movie should be. But if it's as disturbing as they say, when all is said and done don't be surprised if the corporate synergy monkeys come down hard.
You're right, Aris. There's no Osama Bin Laden in Ras al-Ghul, there's no parallel with resisting jihad in 300, there were no echoes of the attack on New York in War of the Worlds or Cloverfield, Tolkien wasn't thinking of Hitler and Stalin when he wrote Lord of the Rings, and neither was Dr. Seuss when he wrote Yertle the Turtle. Pop culture is only ever about itself, it never taps into deeper currents in society.
if you guys can't see that this is obviously a frame job by the joker (which is even spelled out for you in the title above the building) you shouldn't be allowed to watch movies.
i wrote that nothing about this poster should make people think about 9-11. it's a building on fire. that does happen, you know. and Ras al gul was created in the 70s, 300 was about something that happened thousands of years ago, war of the worlds came about in the 50s. tolkien may have been referring to hitler, i don't know anything about that. I do know, however, that reading too much into things takes the pleasure out of what actually IS.
i know all about pop culture and its place in culture, thank you. but a burning building set by a character named THE JOKER, in a movie about a comic book created in the 40s featuring a crime fighter named BATMAN has nothing to do with 9-11. not everything has deep meaning.
Nice One-Sheet. Based on two of the three domestic one-sheets, Joker's main goal in this movie will be to make Batman look bad. The very first teaser had the Batman symbol as his smile so it's a no brainer.
I just watched 28 Weeks Later. Guess it's a coincidence that they call the safe area "the green zone" in that. No comment on Iraq or anything. Thanks for setting me straight!
In all seriousness, fine and dandy if you want your 12-year-old pleasures undisturbed by deeper currents, but some of us actually find it fun to approach things on an adult level, not to remain in perpetual adolescence.
comment #1
CinemaPhreek
says ...
How long before the complaints about how it makes people think about the WTC start popping up?
Which news outlet will pander to this "controversy" first? Probably not the good folks at CNN, but not for any reasons related to journalism.
Posted by CinemaPhreek
at April 25, 2008 10:07 AM
comment #2
Wrecktum
says ...
Well, it reminded you of the WTC, and me too, so I'm sure it'll be a common thought for people who see the poster.
WB marketers aren't dumb, so they obviously saw the connection and decided to go with the image anyway. Smart marketing?
Posted by Wrecktum
at April 25, 2008 10:14 AM
comment #3
Mr. Gittes
says ...
Caine gets top billing over Ledger? Huh?
How is this poster controversial? Made me think of project mayhem from Fight Club.
Posted by Mr. Gittes
at April 25, 2008 10:15 AM
comment #4
Aris P
says ...
Kind of ho-hum for me. Where are the villains? Why is Batman posing in an iconic stance that is not his style, ie lurking, crouching over a gargoyle, sinister etc? Also is it daytime? Looks like it. His chest is way too lit -- hes not Superman, you know. Also, while that fire looks cool, why is it in the shape of a bat symbol? It would make more sense creatively if it was in the shape of the joker's smile or something along those lines... I'm not sure if this is the final one-sheet, but it feels like Warner doesn't want to give away too much about Harvey dent aka Two-face (is he in it? not in it?), and neither do they seem to want to promote Heath at all, at this point... The Hulk one-sheet is cooler than this, man.
Posted by Aris P
at April 25, 2008 10:18 AM
comment #5
storymark
says ...
Yeah, the first thing I thought after seeing this (okay, second after "That's badass!") was Fight Club/Project Mayhem. The "World Without Rules" tag at the top lends to that.
But, given some of the terrorism metaphor in Batman Begins, a allusion to WTC isn't terribly surprising.
Posted by storymark
at April 25, 2008 10:20 AM
comment #6
Mr. Gittes
says ...
OT: Has anyone seen Christopher Nolan's first feature, The Following?
Just an excellent film...netflix, surprisingly, has it.
Posted by Mr. Gittes
at April 25, 2008 10:22 AM
comment #7
Joe Leydon
says ...
"Caine gets top billing over Ledger? Huh?"
Caine has two Oscars to his credit. Ledger? Zip.
Posted by Joe Leydon
at April 25, 2008 10:24 AM
comment #8
4th grade army
says ...
They should have included The Joker in this one sheet. Stupid not to. It certainly won't bum people out more than the WTC image.
Posted by 4th grade army
at April 25, 2008 10:25 AM
comment #9
roman
says ...
The two one-sheets I've seen for this might be the two greatest of all time. For any film, ever. Everyone involved with the marketing of this thing has a long, bright future ahead of them.
Posted by roman
at April 25, 2008 10:25 AM
comment #10
CinemaPhreek
says ...
For those not seeing it, look in the upper left corner. It's that smoke that makes the connection most strongly.
Posted by CinemaPhreek
at April 25, 2008 10:28 AM
comment #11
4th grade army
says ...
Also...Maggie Gyllenhaal sucks.
Posted by 4th grade army
at April 25, 2008 10:28 AM
comment #12
Wrecktum
says ...
Hyperbole much, Roman?
Posted by Wrecktum
at April 25, 2008 10:28 AM
comment #13
storymark
says ...
The first 2 posters didn't feature Batman at all (not counting the international one, which still had his back to the camera). Why get upset that he's central to this one?
Posted by storymark
at April 25, 2008 10:29 AM
comment #14
Mr. Gittes
says ...
Joe: Yeah I understand that Caine has a couple Oscars over Ledger but I'm assuming that Ledger has much more screen time in the film than Caine...and Ledger is The Joker!
Posted by Mr. Gittes
at April 25, 2008 10:41 AM
comment #15
MickTravis
says ...
I think it looks amazing.
But -- unless it's actually part of the story -- wouldn't it have made more promotional sense to have the building tagged with a Joker symbol? Because it looks like Batman vandalized city hall with his logo. Or did the Joker do that to frame Batman, and now Batman's standing there all like, "I'm Batman and I got Punk'd."
Posted by MickTravis
at April 25, 2008 11:00 AM
comment #16
oranthal james
says ...
Aris P should be tortured and maimed.
Posted by oranthal james
at April 25, 2008 11:16 AM
comment #17
Aris P
says ...
Tortured and maimed. I see your point. Very well stated. Any particular reason, or is having an opinion you disagree with the reason itself. Either way I'm honored.
Posted by Aris P
at April 25, 2008 11:28 AM
comment #18
T. S. Idiot
says ...
The protagonist of Following has a Batman emblem on the door to his apartment.
Posted by T. S. Idiot
at April 25, 2008 11:42 AM
comment #19
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
Yeah, duh 99 to 1 this scene is Joker's doing (a la frame)...really surprised you guys didn't "catch on" to that, Jesus....
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at April 25, 2008 11:52 AM
comment #20
DavidF
says ...
Mr. Gittes - unless you're Ledger's agent, who cares about what order their names appear in?
I think it's a damned cool poster -it's moody and it shows Batman. I don't think people have to shout "9/11 - TOO SOON!" every time a building on fire appears anywhere.
The burning Jedi Temple in Episode III was a very 9/11 reference but I didn't see anyone complain or bitch about it. So why get pre-worked-up here?
It's all fine and good to wonder "where are the villains?" but I don't think anyone is surprised that Ledger will be a little less prominent in the marketing than he otherwise might have been.
Posted by DavidF
at April 25, 2008 12:03 PM
comment #21
Dan Revill
says ...
They always stated that Joker was phase one for print and then shifting over to Batman, so I don't see what the big deal is. I wouldn't be surprised if there's another poster on the way closer to July.
I bought a Ledger Joker poster late last year off of ebay and I may have to get this one. It would be cool to have both framed in my place. It's a great looking image IMHO.
Posted by Dan Revill
at April 25, 2008 12:09 PM
comment #22
Movie Watcher
says ...
The fire should have been in the form of a dollar sign. That's what it's all about, especially with the people going to see the movie because of Ledger. You know it's true.
Posted by Movie Watcher
at April 25, 2008 1:23 PM
comment #23
atticusrex
says ...
Fellow HE readers... First off it's obvious the 'bat logo' is the Joker's doing. In fact you could argue it also resembles the jagged Joker's smile as well.
I can understand the 9/11 reference but this building is clearly not a modern skyscraper.
The first few posters for this film have all been Joker centric, so Bat's was due his turn.
Caine gets billing first because he is part-in-parcel of this new reboot franchise. He is also an international star.
I would venture had Mr. Ledger not passed on, that he wouldn't have been in the next one anyhow.
The one good thing about all the posters so far for this release is the unrelenting doom and gloom, it's about time we got down to the adult business of delivering a dark Dark Knight.
Posted by atticusrex
at April 25, 2008 1:56 PM
comment #24
p.Vice
says ...
They might as well use some of Ledger's autopsy photos to market this turkey, considering there's really no other reason to see it.
Posted by p.Vice
at April 25, 2008 3:26 PM
comment #25
Mgmax, le Corbeau
says ...
So are people saying that Batman Begins, with Liam Neeson as a charismatic religious cult leader who seeks to purify "Gotham" through a symbolic act of mass slaughter, wasn't making 9/11 references?
Posted by Mgmax, le Corbeau
at April 25, 2008 5:27 PM
comment #26
D.Z.
says ...
Phreek: It is pretty dumb for Nolan to sell the film with WTC allusions, considering that kind of thing killed United 93. I'm starting to worry that Dark Knight will be the extreme opposite of Katie Holmes looking concerned in the previous film.
Gittes: Caine can act.
DavidF: People were too busy being upset at how disappointing Sith was to complain about any political imagery Lucas incorporated into the film.
Posted by D.Z.
at April 25, 2008 5:32 PM
comment #27
Wrecktum
says ...
"It is pretty dumb for Nolan to sell the film with WTC allusions, considering that kind of thing killed United 93."
I thought the 9/11 allusions in United 92 were rather subtle myself.
Posted by Wrecktum
at April 25, 2008 5:39 PM
comment #28
storymark
says ...
Mgmax: Spot on. There's also the idea of a that small militant group trying to wipe out a culture for it's decadence, using fear as their greatest weapon. The only ones who don't see the parrellel are those refusing to look.
DZ: Yeah, Batman and United 93, practically the same movie. I'm sure people will be driven away in droves. Now shut the fuck up, you're a complete idiot.
p.Vice:...Yeah, see my last comment for DZ. You two are peas in a pod.
Posted by storymark
at April 25, 2008 7:07 PM
comment #29
D.Z.
says ...
storymark: "Yeah, Batman and United 93, practically the same movie. I'm sure people will be driven away in droves."
V for Vendetta clearly made less money than the Matrix films, so you never know...
Posted by D.Z.
at April 25, 2008 8:33 PM
comment #30
Aris P
says ...
anyone who equates a building on fire with 9/11 needs to get out more often. maybe see a therapist too. this is a MOVIE about a COMIC BOOK CHARACTER. nothing about this poster says 9/11. nothing.
Posted by Aris P
at April 26, 2008 2:38 AM
comment #31
Spacesheik
says ...
I guess a remake of THE TOWERING INFERNO with Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Susan Sarandon, Kevin Spacey, Robert Downey Jr etc isnt incoming anytime soon...
Posted by Spacesheik
at April 26, 2008 2:46 AM
comment #32
Rich S.
says ...
If you look very closely, I think you can see a little alien skull in the flames....
Posted by Rich S.
at April 26, 2008 4:17 AM
comment #33
Rich S.
says ...
By the way, I've been reading Jake Rossen and Mark Millar's Hollywood vs. Superman and something occurred to me. Has Nolan pushed the envelope too much this time?
Remember, Tim Burton rode the wave of a dark Batman film and used the clout to make the terrific, but even darker and more fetishistic, Batman Returns. When McDonald's realized they couldn't use it to sell Happy Meals, they raised all holy hell and we ended up with Schumacher.
Don't get me wrong. Batman Begins was very good and I don't think Nolan should compromise his ideal of what the movie should be. But if it's as disturbing as they say, when all is said and done don't be surprised if the corporate synergy monkeys come down hard.
Posted by Rich S.
at April 26, 2008 5:25 AM
comment #34
Mgmax, le Corbeau
says ...
You're right, Aris. There's no Osama Bin Laden in Ras al-Ghul, there's no parallel with resisting jihad in 300, there were no echoes of the attack on New York in War of the Worlds or Cloverfield, Tolkien wasn't thinking of Hitler and Stalin when he wrote Lord of the Rings, and neither was Dr. Seuss when he wrote Yertle the Turtle. Pop culture is only ever about itself, it never taps into deeper currents in society.
Posted by Mgmax, le Corbeau
at April 26, 2008 7:23 AM
comment #35
sweet_billy
says ...
if you guys can't see that this is obviously a frame job by the joker (which is even spelled out for you in the title above the building) you shouldn't be allowed to watch movies.
good lord.
Posted by sweet_billy
at April 26, 2008 9:29 AM
comment #36
D.Z.
says ...
Mgmax: The 300 book came out long before 9/11.
Posted by D.Z.
at April 26, 2008 10:34 AM
comment #37
Aris P
says ...
i wrote that nothing about this poster should make people think about 9-11. it's a building on fire. that does happen, you know. and Ras al gul was created in the 70s, 300 was about something that happened thousands of years ago, war of the worlds came about in the 50s. tolkien may have been referring to hitler, i don't know anything about that. I do know, however, that reading too much into things takes the pleasure out of what actually IS.
i know all about pop culture and its place in culture, thank you. but a burning building set by a character named THE JOKER, in a movie about a comic book created in the 40s featuring a crime fighter named BATMAN has nothing to do with 9-11. not everything has deep meaning.
Posted by Aris P
at April 26, 2008 2:25 PM
comment #38
typical4136
says ...
Nice One-Sheet. Based on two of the three domestic one-sheets, Joker's main goal in this movie will be to make Batman look bad. The very first teaser had the Batman symbol as his smile so it's a no brainer.
Posted by typical4136
at April 26, 2008 3:47 PM
comment #39
Mgmax, le Corbeau
says ...
I just watched 28 Weeks Later. Guess it's a coincidence that they call the safe area "the green zone" in that. No comment on Iraq or anything. Thanks for setting me straight!
In all seriousness, fine and dandy if you want your 12-year-old pleasures undisturbed by deeper currents, but some of us actually find it fun to approach things on an adult level, not to remain in perpetual adolescence.
Posted by Mgmax, le Corbeau
at April 26, 2008 10:17 PM
comment #40
actionman
says ...
What an amazing poster
Posted by actionman
at April 27, 2008 11:05 AM
comment #41
Cadavra
says ...
"Welcome to a world without rules." Wow, haven't heard that trope since...LEATHERHEADS. People actually get paid to come up with this?
Posted by Cadavra
at April 27, 2008 11:06 PM