The MoFo Top 100 of the 2000s Countdown

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Rewatched The Dark Knight as part of my prep for this and it was in with a shout of making my personal ballot but I'd be lying if I said it was a hard cut to make.

Seen: 63/91 (Own: 44/91)



Faildictions (millennial edition v1.01):
26. Superbad (2007)
25. Memento (2000) [11]
24. Road To Perdition (2002)
23. The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers (2002) [15]
22. Shrek (2001)
21. Requiem For A Dream (2000) [26]
20. Oldboy (2003) [22]
19. Inglourious Basterds (2009) [18]
18. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)
17. City Of God (2002) [25]
16. In The Mood For Love (2000) [12]
15. O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000) [21]
14. Children Of Men (2006) [17]
13. Amélie (2001) [16]
12. Zodiac (2007)
11. WALL·E (2008) [13]
10. The Departed (2006) [19]
9. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)
8. Shaun Of The Dead (2004) [20]
7. Mulholland Drive (2001)
6. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
5. There Will Be Blood (2007)
4. The Dark Knight (2008) [10]
3. Spirited Away (2001)
2. The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King (2003)
1. No Country For Old Men (2007)

Nineteen down, seven to go...



"Menacing, mercurial, droll and diabolical, Heath Ledger as the Joker in the Dark Knight kept us all on edge, anxious to see what act of appalling mischief he might commit next.
With this bravura performance as well as with a wide range of other roles to which he put his unique signature, Heath Ledger has left us an original and enduring legacy."



I’m a massive Batman fan and TDK is one of the better live action ones but alas, no room on my list.



The Dark Knight was #5 on my ballot. Re-watching this for the countdown I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it and it overtook some of my other favourite movies unexpectedly.



The Dark Knight as a film is kind of a mess and overstuffed. I also think Christopher Nolan is one of the worst action directors around. I still put it on my list at #24 because Heath Ledger's performance is so good it deserves to be recognized. Maybe this is just sentimental, but I'll accept that.



Welcome to the human race...
I saw The Dark Knight on opening day and came home to write an effusive
review for this very website. I last watched it in full for my 2015 "One Movie A Day" review thread and have felt very little cause to revisit it since then. Maybe I'll catch that opening heist sequence while I'm flicking channels on TV and watch the whole thing from start to finish (still a very tautly-rendered cold open regardless of its sillier aspects like the getaway vehicle being a school bus that is able to crash through a bank wall and then blend in with a line of other seemingly ordinary school buses), but I never feel like sticking around for the remaining two-and-a-half hours.
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Have seen so far: 31 - The Dark Knight - Great batman film, the best one I think
Have not seen so far: 65

My Ballots So Far

#9 - Spider Man 2 (2004)
#15 - The Dark Knight (2008)
#20 - Hot Fuzz (2007)
One Pointer - #25 - Anger Management (2003)
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It's pretty good, not my favorite Nolan, was quite a theater experience when I first watched it in the summer of 2008. But another movie with Joker got a high spot on my list.



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
The Dark Knight is my #9.

I felt that the Joker was actually one of the more honest characters in the movie. Even if he changed the story of his origin depending exactly on who he was talking to, and he does deliver one baldfaced lie, it appears to all be within the realm of his believing in having fun by playing games. Batman seems to force himself to have to believe in what he stands for, but the Joker has no problem whatsoever in letting you know that he believes in Anarchy and the vileness of human nature, but it still has to be demonstrated with a maximum amount of "fun". This Joker is definitely one of the scarier characters I've ever seen. I don't know if you think that escalating one-note symphony which played during the tenser moments of the film was a cheat or super-effective, but I always took it to be what the Joker hears inside his mind when things are going his way.

Many of the characters in the film are duplicitous, but the Joker seems to stay true to his beliefs. He's obviously very smart and possesses some form of mind control to be able to pull off all the things he does with no visible means of support. I mean, he must have some financial backing, but it isn't anything comparable to Bruce Wayne's. Plus, the Joker commits a heinous crime in the film: he burns money! (I'm only discussing what's seen in this film, not the comic books.)

In some ways the Joker and Harvey Dent both seem interested in playing games of chance, whether involving playing cards or coin flips. The Joker probably enjoys doing magic tricks more than Harvey, but he certainly did a good one when he spoke to Harvey Dent (offscreen) in the hospital room.

My List

1. The Incredibles
5. Ratatouille
7. Downfall
8. Up
9. The Dark Knight
10. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
11. Everything Will Be OK
12. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
15. WALL·E
16. Children of Men
19. The Pianist
21. Pride & Prejudice
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2002's Insomnia, he would go 5/5 and 100% for the decade. Do you believe in miracles?

Ah yes, his redheaded stepchild



Ah yes, his redheaded stepchild
And yet, I would put it above The Dark Knight in my Nolan ranking.
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The Dark Knight severs as a perfect example that a dark and gritty superhero movie doesn't have to build itself on CGI, that the superhero fanbase occasionally wants something deeper and more philosophical. Ledger's Joker is currently my favorite Joker. This was my number 9. I still prefer Memento. I knew the two would be pretty close on this list.



Sent-In Ballot:

#2. Oldboy (22)
#3. Sin City (47)
#5. Requiem for a Dream (26)
#6. Memento (11)
#7. Yi Yi (49)
#8. The Departed (19)
#9. The Dark Knight (10)

#10. Casino Royale (37)
#13. Million Dollar Baby (57)
#15. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (53)
#16. Let the Right One In (29)
#20. Iron Man (83)
#21. Inglourious Basterds (18)
#22. Pirates of the Caribbean (63)
#25. Hot Fuzz (30)

Post-Ballot:

#2. Oldboy (22)
#3. Sin City (47)
#5. Requiem for a Dream (26)
#6. Memento (11)
#7. Yi Yi (49)
#8. The Departed (19)
#9. The Dark Knight (10)
#10. Casino Royale (37)
#12. Snatch (71)
#14. Million Dollar Baby (57)
#16. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (53)
#17. Let the Right One In (29)
#18. Slumdog Millionaire (not placed but it made my new 25)
#19. Monsters, Inc. (74)
#22. Iron Man (83)
#23. Fantastic Mr. Fox (70)
#24. Inglourious Basterds (18)
#25. Pirates of the Caribbean (63)

Seen 53/91



Critics




Critics thoughts on our #10, The Dark Knight...



It currently has a 94% Certified Fresh Tomatometer score among critics, and a 9.0/10 score on IMDb (with 2,500,000 votes).

Roger Ebert gave it ★★★★ and said:
"Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight is a haunted film that leaps beyond its origins and becomes an engrossing tragedy. It creates characters we come to care about. That’s because of the performances, because of the direction, because of the writing, and because of the superlative technical quality of the entire production. This film, and to a lesser degree Iron Man, redefine the possibilities of the “comic-book movie.”"
Meanwhile Jonathan Romney, of Independent on Sunday, said:
"This is an impressive film in many ways, and Nolan directs with real confidence, yet the overall result feels cumbersome."
As for our MoFo reviewers, @Diehl40 said:
"I am of the opinion that the one element that caused this movie to be the gem in this series is the acting of Heath Ledger... As it is he left us with a great performance as the Joker. I remember the TV series when I was young and the character of the Joker in the later comic books and this movie takes the madness of the Joker to a whole new level. Instead of a crackpot in a purple suit you have a nihilist who is totally unhinged."
And @grampaglasses said:
"This movie is like watching two movies mashed together. On one hand, you have the outstanding performance of Heath Ledger in his final role as the Joker, that is hands down the best supervillain portrayal to ever make the silver screen. There's also Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent, and he was cast perfectly as well. But then we have Christian Bale as Batman. I like Christian Bale as much as the next guy, but the Batman he plays is a complete joke."



Darn, Memento got fairly close to beating The Dark Knight

Regardless, I don't consider [i]The Dark Knight[/I} to be a bad film by any means. It's actually quite good. Ledger's performance is excellent, the film maintains a menacing and dark tone throughout, the soundtrack is solid, and several scenes, like the opening heist, are terrific. Granted, the last act is really rushed in terms of Two-Face's character arc, but aside from that, it's a pretty good film. Given how popular it is though, it's definitely one of the most overrated films of all time.
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Memento got my Nolan vote, but The Dark Knight rules. One of the few superhero movies I'd call an actual good movie.



THE DARK KNIGHT: I love the opening bank robbery scene. It's an absolutely perfect beginning to bring us back to this grim superhero world Nolan created in Begins. Also, all the Heath Ledger hyperbole's are well earned. One of the most captivating performances of recent years. Just brilliantly imagined menace. But I think the rest of the film is a sloppy pile. What seemed deliberately and brilliantly unformed and unresolved in the story arc of Begins, in Dark Knight, which requires a much firmer narrative hand as it is juggling all sorts of narrative threads and thematic concerns, this unformed, unresolvedness becomes a real Albatross. While I do still like the movie (for the most part) regardless of this, I don't get the cries of 'perfection' or 'superhero masterpiece' here. I think it is mostly a really interesting and ambitious failure. And mostly because I think Nolan is a great conceptualist, but not so great a director or even story teller. An easy 3/5 from me and never remotely in consideration for my list.