Question: Did Harvey Dent die? I've heard theories that he did die, but I've heard that he didn't die but they told everyone that he did because they didn't want people to know that he became a villain. I was just wondering which one is true.
Tailkinker
5th Jan 2009
The Dark Knight (2008)
3rd Jan 2009
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: In the scene where Batman shows Lucius his giant sonar thing, why is he talking in his big scary voice? Lucius knows who he is, so why does he bother disguising his voice?
Answer: It's habit, and a sensible one at that. When he's in the mask, when he's being Batman, he uses the voice, even if the person he's with knows who he is. If he drops back to his normal voice with some people, it sets the precedent for using it while wearing the cowl, which means that he's more likely to slip up and use it around people who don't know, potentially revealing his true identity. If he sticks rigidly to using the voice when kitted up as Batman, regardless of situation, it minimises that possibility.
Answer: At the bottom of his cowl Batman has devices designed to keep his voice at that level. The director revealed it, of you look at the right screenshots you can see speakers.
31st Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: I'd like to know how it's possible that Joker wasn't tied up more efficiently, i.e. in a straitjacket. And WHY, oh WHY was there a policeman inside? It looks really ridiculous in those circumstances.
Answer: What, it's ridiculous to have somebody watching a prisoner, nice and close to make the point that he's being watched, to try to stop any escape attempt before it happened? It didn't work, sure, but that doesn't make doing so stupid. Maybe they should have spent time getting the Joker a strait-jacket, maybe they should have spent time going over the holding room with a fine toothcomb to make sure that there aren't any shards of glass big enough to be used as a weapon, maybe they should have done a lot of things differently, but they've got other priorities at that particular point, most notably getting to two of Gotham City's public officials before they get blown to hell. They felt that Stephens, an experienced officer, would be capable of handling the supposedly unarmed Joker. Being wrong doesn't make them ridiculous.
30th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Did the Joker originally want to kill Harvey Dent during the convoy chase? If Dent had been blown up, the kidnapping scenario could not have happened, and Joker implies this was his "ace in the hole" plan. So what were Joker's intentions?
Answer: No, he definitely doesn't intend to kill Dent - at that point, he can't dismiss the possibility that Dent could be Batman, who he wants to keep alive because it's just more fun that way. The convoy chase is, at least, in part, designed to draw Batman out - Joker knows that, if Dent isn't Batman, there's no way that the Caped Crusader wouldn't intervene in a situation like that. If Batman doesn't show, then, in all probability, Dent is Batman and Joker can focus on him. Batman shows up, thus eliminating Dent from consideration, allowing the Joker to go to the next stage of his plan, the kidnapping scenario.
30th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Does Joker really want to kill Batman at first? He says explicitly during the interrogation, "I don't want to kill you." Yet earlier he told the mob "It's simple, kill the Batman," and he says later (when he makes the threat on the hospital) that he's changed his mind. So did he want to kill Batman at first? And at what point exactly did he change his mind?
Answer: The Joker has his own agenda, which is basically the promotion of anarchy in Gotham City. With both the police and the mob gunning for him, that's going to be tricky to do. He can hardly ally himself with the police, so he tells the mob what they want to hear to get them off his back while he takes over. There's no particular indication that he ever really wants to kill Batman.
29th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: If Bruce Wayne's penthouse was so safe, how did the Joker manage to bust into it during the fund-raising party? Also, if the penthouse was safe, why in the world did Alfred let the girlfriend just leave?
Answer: Wertz is shown at the door holding up his badge as the Joker bursts in. The implication (to the party guests and the audience at the time) is that Wertz was forced to use his police credentials to get past building security. We find out later that Wertz is dirty and probably was ordered by Maroni to help the Joker. Alfred lets Rachel leave because she insists that she is safe, since she was never the Joker's intended target.
Answer: The Joker got in there during the chaos of a party; people are coming and going, guests, caterers, waiters - security is inevitably going to be compromised under such circumstances. Later on, when only Bruce and Alfred should be present, the place is much more secure. As for Alfred letting Rachel leave, what choice does he have? He can hardly keep her there against her will. Short of resorting to physical restraint, he can't stop her leaving and trying to do so, when she's already angry at Bruce for letting Harvey pretend to be Batman, would only annoy her further.
29th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Batman talked about jumping out of an airplane to capture the money man in China. What happened to that scene? Did he do it off-screen, just to enter the country illegally?
Answer: Yes, just did it off-screen with the aim of entering the country illegally. Not really a terribly important thing to actually show - they mention how he intends to get in there, then we see him in Hong Kong, so we can assume that it went well. Showing it would just have slowed down the pace of the film.
28th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: The money the Joker burns - why did he get it? I thought he wants to have the money for killing Batman. And he has neither killed him nor unmasked him. So why did the Mob give him the money? They knew that Dent wasn't the real Batman.
Answer: He stole it. He took Lau from police custody, found out where he stashed all the mob money and simply took it.
27th Dec 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: In the scene where Wayne and Fox are looking at the new Batman stuff. Wayne ask Fox if the armor will stop and dog attack and Fox asks if its for a Rottweiler or Chihuahua. Fox then says it will stop a cat. So does that mean that Catwoman will be in the next movie?
Answer: No. It's an off-handed jokey comment by Fox, don't read anything more into it than that. It is, of course, possible that Catwoman could appear in a sequel, but the simple fact is that Christopher Nolan gave no thought to a possible sequel while putting this film together, preferring to focus on the job at hand, and has only recently started considering possible story ideas for a third film that, at this point, he's not even committed to making. If Catwoman serves the story that he decides that he wants to tell, he'll include her, otherwise, he won't. But there's no point in looking for foreshadowing in The Dark Knight, because there really isn't any.
15th Sep 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: In the courtroom scene, the mob guy suddenly pulls out a gun and attempts to kill Harvey Dent. How was he able to get a gun into the court building? Surely the metal detectors and/or security would have easily caught him?
Answer: Dent specifically describes it as a ceramic gun, which is presumably designed not to set off metal detectors. It's arguable that security should have frisked him more closely, but as the witness was expected to be cooperative, based on his previously sworn statement, it's understandable that they didn't consider him a major threat and simply relied on the metal detectors.
12th Sep 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: In the bank robbery at the beginning of the movie, the Joker and his henchman are being shot at by the Bank Manager. They decide to return fire and the henchman says something to the Joker. He jumps up and starts shooting but the Joker delays a few seconds before jumping up and shooting the Bank Manager. The Henchman then says to the Joker, "Where did you learn to count?" My question is, what was said before they decide to return fire?
Answer: He says "He's out, right?", basically asking if the bank manager has any ammunition left, based on how many shells a gun of that type should carry. The Joker thinks for a moment, then nods, so the henchman stands up to fire, thinking that he's safe, that the manager is out of bullets. Unfortunately, the Joker having lied, he's wrong and ends up getting shot. The Joker then stands up and shoots the manager, having maneuvered his henchman into taking the last bullet.
9th Sep 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Why doesn't Wayne Enterprises conduct business in the same building as in Batman Begins? The building is seen in the background during the scene with the Joker firing the machine gun at Batman whilst he's on the Batpod. It was damaged at the end of Batman Begins, but the next day Fox is holding a meeting there when Earle walks in, and after 6/8 months when this film takes place I would have thought it would have been repaired.
Answer: A company the size of Wayne Enterprises would have multiple buildings. As much of Bruce's interest revolves around the applied sciences and research and development divisions, he presumably decided to use the building that contained those areas as the company's main base of operations.
9th Sep 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Still can't quite get this to make sense: why would the citizens of Gotham buy the story that Batman killed the five people, as planned by Gordon and Batman in the effort to maintain Dent's status as a hero, so as to keep hope alive? Last word from Harvey was to the reporter: "Batman saved my ass." Other reasons the fake story might not be believed are that Batman has never killed anybody before. As well, what would his motivation be? Are they planning to cover up the kidnapping of the Gordons, saying that Batman was there alone with Harvey Dent and killed Harvey? Why would any of that happen? And asking the Gordon family who underwent trauma to lie about how it happened is taking a big chance, especially since there are kids involved, who might slip. Thematically, the ruse makes sense, and it makes sense that Batman would be willing to be hunted. But I don't see why the citizens wouldn't question why he killed the people.
Answer: Harvey's never killed anybody before either, and what would his motivation be? In the absence of direct evidence, people will generally believe what they find it most comforting. The citizens of Gotham will not want to believe that the decent, trust-worthy, law-abiding man that they elected as their protector could have been torn down and turned into a monster, dispensing life or death at the flip of a coin. Batman, on the other hand, is entirely self-appointed, hides his identity and uses tactics that are often very similar to those of the criminals themselves - people would find it far easier to believe that he could somehow snap and descend to killing. Yes, there will always be questions, rumours about what really happened, but the vast majority of people will accept the fake story that they're presented with, simply because it's easier for them to do so than to consider the alternatives.
28th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Why did everyone have to leave the city? Two boats, one for citizens, one for criminals. Was the entire city rigged to explode?
Answer: No, of course the entire city's not wired up. But the Joker's said that he's going to start killing people - would you stick around for that? Pretty much everybody wants out.
24th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: After the Joker cuts a man's face for the first time, he brings some kind of stick out and breaks it into thirds. Then he throws it at the ground and states something about "tryouts". I didn't really understand that scene, can someone please explain it?
Answer: He tells Gambol's three henchmen that there's an opening in his organisation. However, there's only one opening, so he's giving them the opportunity to prove themselves. Whichever one is left alive gets to join - he breaks the pool cue to give them a weapon to use against each other.
23rd Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: When the joker is caught by the police he does not talk to any of his henchmen regarding a revision of plans. Then how can the Joker have planned all along that Dent and Rachel get kidnapped and rigged to explosives - before unsuccessfully trying to kill Dent with a bazooka? Had Batman's tumbler not hindered the missile's trajectory it would have hit the side of the van, killing Dent - ruining the plan involving Dent and Rachel and the explosives. Furthermore the Joker thought Dent was Batman so he could not have anticipated the tumbler would take the hit from the bazooka and allow his master-plan to live on. And the Joker's plan to get caught also came down to Gordon, whom the Joker's plan could not have taken into account because he was believed dead. Everything in Joker's plan seems meticulously planned (i.e. knowing that police will call in a helicopter and that it will fly by exactly where henchmen are posted with wire-guns etc.) - but how can his plan be so flawless that it takes every implausible twist of events into account? Had these implausible twists not happened (so that everything is as it seems and Gordon is really dead, Dent is the Batman; Joker fires the bazooka into van killing Dent alias Batman) then isn't Joker's further plan completely ruined?
Answer: He's anticipating, covering his options ahead of time. He knows that the police have access to helicopters, so he positions his henchmen along the route to take one down. He knows that he could get captured, so he arranges things to ensure his escape in that eventuality; kidnapping Dent and Rachel to distract the cops and sneaking the bomb in to allow him to break out. He doesn't need to contact his people to say that there's a change of plan, because his henchmen already have orders how to proceed in particular situations. None of this is implausible, none of this somehow relies on impossible foreknowledge. It's purely and simply the Joker anticipating possible outcomes (of which there are few variations - largely just success or failure) and planning ahead what to do if they occur.
The joker wanted Dent dead, plain and simple. He organized several scenarios to make that happen.
19th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Batman is able to deduce the fingerprint from the the bullet hole in the wall. How is it that the Joker knows that Batman has this ability? As soon as the fingerprint is identified, (which ends up not being Joker's real identity; random thug?) he is able to set up a window shade to go off like clockwork? Designed to get police snipers to shoot at the window. Was it set up by the Joker? If so, was it an intended trap for Batman? How did he expect Batman to find the room with the tied up cops without prior knowledge of Batman's abilities?
Answer: The whole thing's a distraction, not for Batman, but for the Gotham City Police Department. Something to get the attention of all the snipers, while the Joker's standing right there, directly in front of the mayor with his henchmen and a load of rifles. Point the attention of the authorities elsewhere for a moment and it gives him the chance to kill the mayor and escape cleanly (which he does). There's nothing to suggest that he expected Batman to locate it. If he had, he undoubtedly would have set up something more interesting for Batman to find rather than just a bunch of tied-up cops, who, as we see, are able to tell Bruce exactly what the Joker's up to. Given his plan to assassinate the mayor, the Joker wouldn't have left people who could spoil his plan anywhere that he expected them to be found.
9th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: When Dent first meets Alfred at the fundraiser, he says, "You've known Rachel her whole life?" Alfred replies, "Not yet." Was this an intentional attempt to foreshadow Rachel's death?
Answer: Principally it's intended as Alfred making a small joke, but it's certainly an ironic one given subsequent events. As for the precise intent, the only ones who could confirm that are the scriptwriters.
8th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Why did Maroni survive being dropped 3 stories by Batman, but Harvey Dent did not?
Answer: It all depends on how you land. Maroni landed on his legs, which would break them, but wouldn't necessarily be life-threatening. We don't know how Dent landed - he could easily have just broken his neck on impact or something.
8th Aug 2008
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: This question probably is insignificant but I was just wondering - why didn't Rachel want to be with Bruce, and choose Harvey over him? Did she love him more and not love Bruce anymore? And did she really die at the end? I know she probably did but I thought maybe there was a chance she survived? Thank you.
Answer: Bruce has a darkness to him - she says in the first film that she can't be with him while Batman exists. Then Dent appears on the scene and has the same drive for justice that she and Bruce do, but goes about it in a much more open fashion - it's not that she doesn't care about Bruce any more, it's simply that Dent is a man that she can be with, which Bruce isn't. Then, when Bruce fails to hand himself in, letting Dent pretend to be Batman instead, she feels that Bruce is in the wrong and that basically ends it for her - she still cares, but it pushes her into finally making her choice to be with Dent. As for her death, there's no indication whatsoever in the film that she survived the explosion.
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Answer: According to Aaron Eckhart, he has been told specifically by director Christopher Nolan that Harvey was killed in the fall, so he would not be back in any potential follow-up film.
Tailkinker ★