The Dark Knight is a superhero film of 2008, co-written, directed, and produced by Christopher Nolan. It is inspired by DC Comics character Batman. The second film to be released by Nolan’s The Dark Knight Trilogy and a continuation to Batman Begins (2005), featuring Christian Bale with backing from Morgan Freeman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman, Heath Ledger, and Michael Caine.
The film features Bruce Wayne, aka Batman (Bale), District Attorney Harvey Dent (Echart), and Police Lieutenant James Gordon (Oldman), cooperate to get rid of well-laid crime in Gotham City but is challenged by a group called the Joker (Ledger), who intends to dilute Batman’s influence and put the city in disarray.
Nolan drew his inspiration for the film from the Joker’s comic book, The Killing Joke, and The Long Halloween of 1996. Primary photography was conducted in Chicago and several Hong Kong locations, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The film was received with lots of appreciation for its performances, themes, musical score, visual effects, screenplay, direction, and action sequences. It appeared on 287 top ten lists of critics surpassing all other films of 2008 apart from WAAL-E. The film grossed more than a billion internationally, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2008 and the fourth highest-grossing film. The film was nominated at the National Film Registry in the United States by the Library of Congress for its contribution in history, culture, and aesthetics.