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I went to see this yesterday, and was really looking forward to it. Especially as Heath Ledger would be in it.

I was left feeling really...I dont know! You know when you see a film and you call it a feel good film, this one leaves you feeling quite morbid and empty.
Heath Ledger was fantastic as the Joker...im not sure on Batman thou, but the amount of voilence for a film which is a 12...really suprised me. It left me at times turning my head away.

It is very bleak, but a lot of Batman is like that. He wins the battles (largely), but the war keeps going. One thing I've never found entirely plausible is the enormous number of deaths his foes cause, especially the Joker. Someone would have poured Drano into his food by now... Anyway, the casualty level was pretty high, but definitely in keeping with some of the storylines (in fact, quite low compared to a few, like 'Contagion').

It's not even a 12 certificate, though, Sophie. That would stop anyone under 12 from seeing it. It's a 12A certificate. One of my colleagues said she saw someone with a four year old in the cinema when she went to watch 'The Dark Knight'. Ignoring the plot, what a stupid idea for a film that's about two and a half hours long.

Maybe it's just me but I like violent films (Sweeney Todd). I'll go and see it if I decide to cough up that much for a movie, and I'll return to share my input.

I really enjoyed it!
But I have only realized since you mentioned it, the amount of violence in the film. Should really be a 15, not an 18...then I wouldn't of being able to watch it :>

thease films based on dc comic characters are much darker and more realistic than the idealised caped crusaders of yester year.
the dc comic characters are generaly born out of tragerdy, like two face in the film and are basicly vigilanties with access to weapons and tech, this film acuratly reflecs the scured logic of the vigilanty and shows the way they justifie there actions.
a classic line I'm paraphrasing from the film says it all, "some vilans don't have an agenda, they just wan't to see the world burn".
the censors have also relaxed the amount and type of vilolence that can be shown to reflect the amount of violence and crime thats prevelant in todays society that young people are exposed too.

I think the film dipicts well that a hero dosn't have to be liked, he's a hero because he makes the sacrifices we can't.

Yeah, the best batman material was the darker stuff. Not the laughable screen efforts that came before Batman Begins.

I dont know about relaxing censors to show relevant amounts of violence. There have always been films that show that kind of stuff but it has never meant that they'd allow younger people to watch it.

Censors do sometimes bow to the will of the public. The 12A category was created to allow kids to see Spider-man because there was a great upset when that came out with its 12 certificate.

Perhaps when Batman comes to DVD, it'll be reassessed as a 15. Its happened before.



I've not yet seen the film but im going tomorrow. Heard plenty of great things though. Might sit and watch 'Begins' again to get me in the mood for it.

The BBFC does have stricter certification rules for DVDs/videos than cinema releases, mainly because with a video you can choose to play individual clips over and over, out of context.

There's been an enormous outry in the papers (well, certainly in the Telegraph) about giving the new Batman a 12A certificate. It's definitely not suitable for children, not just because of the graphic violence but for the overall theme, where good not only doesn't come off a clear winner, but also doesn't seem nearly as much fun as being evil.

Just goes to show, the old Adam West/Burt Ward TV version was the best! Loads of Kapow!, Kerplunk! and Zonk! but no need for censors, padded rubber suits, nobody got hurt and kiddies could watch it in safety - same bat time, same bat channel !

Ah! What a wonderful film! I've seen it twice already i was so impressed. I was also slightly taken aback by the low age rating. Not so much the violence, but more the rather intense, drawn out, threatening scenes involving the joker. They often had my skin crawling... "Why... so... SERIOUS?" Not that I'm complaining Heath Ledger's performance exceeded all my expectations. Wow.

Mandrake wrote:Just goes to show, the old Adam West/Burt Ward TV version was the best! Loads of Kapow!, Kerplunk! and Zonk! but no need for censors, padded rubber suits, nobody got hurt and kiddies could watch it in safety - same bat time, same bat channel !

Ah it all comes flooding back... batarangs, Burgess Meredith, Eartha Kitt, Cesar Romero... they don't make classy tv like that any more!

Mandrake wrote:Just goes to show, the old Adam West/Burt Ward TV version was the best! Loads of Kapow!, Kerplunk! and Zonk! but no need for censors, padded rubber suits, nobody got hurt and kiddies could watch it in safety - same bat time, same bat channel !

No need for censors? What were kaplow and kazunk?

Good old Adam West. Not quite the same as mayor of Quahog...

Come to think about it, a single bloke living with a young boy, both spending a lot of time running around in tights and funny costumes.....

i hope they dont give a charity oscar though...

i remember one comic, batman and two face, batman appears in court saying "there's a difference between the law and justice..."

batman was pretty much the only dc character i liked....superman - rubbish!

This film exceeded my expectations, absolutely awesome.

You should all read the graphic novel "The Long Halloween", by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. It influenced the film heavily, and is most good.

BBC 4 has been showing the old Batman TV series for some time now, at 7:30 on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings (extending to Thursday for the occasional three-parter). Well worth a watch and a giggle.