Batman

Video: Clip From DC Universe’s ‘Superman Batman: Public Enemies’

BrianTT — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 17:13:06 -0600

CHICAGO – All of you fans of “The Dark Knight” and the amazing new game “Batman: Arkham Asylum” should mark your calendar for the next promising release in the legacy of Bruce Wayne, DC Universe’s latest straight-to-DVD release, the highly anticipated “Superman/Batman: Public Enemies,” landing in stores on September 29th, 2009. We’ll have a review for you later this month, but for now we have a new clip to make sure you mark your calendars.

Official synopsis: “Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation are set to release the all-new film in a Blu-Ray™ Hi-Def edition, a special edition 2-disc DVD, and a single disc DVD. Warner Home Video will distribute the action-packed movie, which will also be available OnDemand and Pay-Per-View as well as available for download that same day.

Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is based on the popular Jeph Loeb/Ed McGuinness comic series/graphic novel. Bruce Timm (Superman Doomsday, Green Lantern) is executive producer. Michael Goguen (Justice League: The New Frontier) is supervising producer. Sam Liu (The Batman) is directing a script written by Stan Berkowitz (Justice League: The New Frontier).

In the film, United States President Lex Luthor uses the oncoming trajectory of a Kryptonite asteroid to frame Superman and declare a $1 billion bounty on the heads of the Man of Steel and his “partner in crime,” Batman. Heroes and villains alike launch a relentless pursuit of Superman and Batman, who must unite – and recruit help – to stave off the action-packed onslaught, stop the asteroid, and uncover Luthor’s devious plot to take command of far more than North America.

“Superman/Batman: Public Enemies” features a star-studded voice cast filling the roles of super heroes and villains alike, including Kevin Conroy (Batman), Tim Daly (Superman), Clancy Brown (Lex Luthor), Allison Mack (Power Girl), Xander Berkeley (Captain Atom), Ricardo Chavira (Major Force), John C. McGinley (Metallo), LeVar Burton (Black Lightning), CCH Pounder (Amanda Waller) and a host of others.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Interview: Tom Bastounes on Michael Keaton For ‘The Merry Gentleman'

PatrickMcD — Fri, 01 May 2009 14:30:55 -0600

CHICAGO – “The Merry Gentleman” is enhanced by an unusual police detective character. Tom Bastounes plays Dave Murcheson: a vulnerable protector of society who’s caught in his own self delusion. The film is Michael Keaton’s directorial debut.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

Keaton also stars as Frank Logan, a professional hit man whose dark thoughts after an assassination job lead him to the brink of suicide. When a delicate office worker, Kate Frazier (Kelly Macdonald), witnesses Keaton’s near death attempt, an unlikely coalition forms between the two fellow travelers (Kate has run away to the city from an abusive husband).

Michael Keaton and Kelly Macdonald of ‘The Merry Gentleman’
Photo credit: Matt Dinerstein, Samuel Goldwyn Films

Bastounes, as the cop assigned to find Logan, awkwardly attempts to woo the emotionally upset Kate, and the three desperate souls meander through the early winter urban landscape searching for redemption.

HollywoodChicago.com got the privilege of interviewing Bastounes recently, who also served as executive producer for The Merry Gentleman.

HollywoodChicago.com: Besides your role as executive producer of this film, had you always intended to play the role of Dave Murcheson, the cop?

Tom Bastounes: I wasn’t initially cast as Murcheson. The screenwriter, Ron Lazzeretti, goes through the process of creating and after the script was done we both felt that maybe I would be a good choice to play the character. Maybe I was in his head when he wrote it, I don’t know.

We needed to get the name actors at the top. We didn’t want to make a film without a star, so once we had Michael Keaton and Kelly Macdonald signed on, that’s enough star power, so now I could take the role.

HC: Your approach to the character is one of extreme vulnerability, but with an eye toward your professional duty as a detective. How did you find the right balance for the character in these opposing emotional states?

TB: I just tried not to “cop” it up. Cops in movies are what cowboys in films used to be and there are cops on TV every night of the week. There is a caricature of how cops act and I thought it would be interesting not to play to that at all, forget about all the stereotypes, put the gun and the badge on, and be a normal, problematic guy.

HC: The sacrifice of personal life for this cop character is on display within the narrative. What kind of motivation did you use for the sadness behind this sacrifice?

TB: Just loneliness. Just being isolated and being alone. That’s enough. Any more would be too much.

HC: What traits are most prevalent, in your estimation, for playing a recovering alcoholic and how did you, Ron Lazzeretti and Micheal Keaton discuss the scene where Murcheson breaks down and has a drink?

TB: I played him as if he never stopped drinking. Clearly he’s just a liar. He lies about smoking, drinking, his life. Yes, he’s a likable liar, and I got the sense that he was trying not to do these things, but the lying is part of the character.

Tom Bastounes, Executive Producer and Co-Star of ‘The Merry Gentleman’, in Chicago on April 27, 2009
Photo credit: Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

HC: There was the thin line of sanity representing the “protectors” of society both in your cop portrayal and Bobby Cannavale’s police character. What were you and the filmmakers communicating with these darker representations?

TB: When we say an occupation, whether its neurosurgeon, garbage man or cop, generally we want to pigeonhole the occupation and think a certain way about the person doing them.

The reality is even though you may be a cop protector, it doesn’t necessarily make you a nice guy. It’s a job. It’s like going to the doctor and thinking he’s always right, just because he is the “doctor”. We’re all human.

HC: What did your character see in the relationship he was trying to establish with Kelly Macdonald’s character? Was it the idea that as a cop you are most qualified to protect her obvious vulnerabilities?

TB: He’s interested in her because he’s lonely. And all the men in the film are attracted to her because she seems like someone who can offer up forgiveness.

My character would do a better job as a cop just because he’s seeking both her and that forgiveness as well.

HC: Kelly Macdonald is establishing a notable reputation as a high octane dramatic film actress. How was the experience for you working with Macdonald in the actor’s give and take? What were you giving each other, in cooperation with director Keaton, that turned up the volume on the awkwardness and misunderstandings in the couple’s misconnection?

TB: I think those were hard scenes for both of us. I’m sitting with the woman and obviously I want her to like me, and clearly she is agitated when she figures out why she is there. At the same time I’m a cop trying to get information from her and that makes the situation more awkward.

The awkward moment is interesting to watch, because you don’t see it that often in films. It’s like hitting two discordant notes on a piano.

Kelly is a wonderful actor, because she listens in her scenes to the other actor and then responds. She is a great listener.

HC: Since the elements of filming this movie included an unpredicted switch of directors, how did the ensemble cast react towards Keaton’s approach as a first time director and how did you help him as executive producer?

TB: It was easy to except him because he is a big movie star, and people want to like movie stars, right? (laughs) You want to like him and help him. So everyone was engaged to help make it work. He was open to collaboration, open to everyone to give feedback, so he was confident we were all going in the right direction.

I think it worked for the crew, even though we shot in a very tight schedule. But no one wanted to disappoint Michael Keaton. It made it more fun.

HC: If you were spreading word of mouth about your film The Merry Gentleman, what would it be?

TB: It’s a very smart film, you’ll think about it for awhile and you’ll leave the theater knowing that it was time well spent.

’The Merry Gentleman’, with Michael Keaton, Kelly Macdonald, Tom Bastounes, directed by Michael Keaton, opens Friday, May 1st, 2009. Check local theaters for film and showtimes

By PATRICK McDONALD
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

The Producers: Behind the Scenes of Michael Keaton’s ‘The Merry Gentleman’

PatrickMcD — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:18:04 -0600

CHICAGO – The nature of making an independent film versus a mainstream Hollywood production is evident through the efforts of two Chicago-based producers – Steven A. Jones and Paul Duggan of “The Merry Gentleman”.

Jones, who also produced last year’s “The Promotion”, works more as a creative producer within the filmmaking process. Duggan, a first time executive producer, handled more of the financial details of the production. Together they helped deliver – for first time director and star Michael Keaton – a stellar morality tale that has echoes of film noir.

First Time Director Michael Keaton with the Crew of ‘The Merry Gentleman’
Photo credit: Matt Dinerstein, Samuel Goldwyn Films

HollywoodChicago.com sat down with both producers, for a fascinating conversation about the parameters and challenges of independent filmmaking.

HollywoodChicago.com: What drew you into this project? Was it the pitch or the script?

Steven A. Jones: It was the script. Ron Lazzeretti [the screenwriter], I knew him tangentially from the advertising side, back when I was a animation director. He asked me if we could make this movie in Chicago. I took one look at the script and thought it was a great one, I’m sure there is some way to do this.

HC: This is your very first executive producer credit for a film. Who or what got you involved with The Merry Gentleman and what drew you to the project?

Paul Duggan: I first went for a free steak dinner at Gibson’s, and it ended up costing me 6.2 million (laughs). I met Tom [Bastounes, producer and actor in the film] there about 3-1/2 years ago and afterwards we started having meetings about the film. We invested in other businesses together and as a trade-off – because I helped him learn about financing – he increased his producing staff to include me.

HC: Your bio states you have worked as producer on films with five different first time directors. What techniques have you developed that make you a good colleague for the sometimes volatile nature of a first time director? How was your experience with first timers crucial in helping Michael Keaton get what he needed?

Jones: I think a lot of what I have to do with first time directors is trouble shoot. Try to anticipate for them what’s going to happen. A lot of it has to with how much time is spent on any given scene in terms of time and money. For example, pointing out that there money would be more wisely spent doing one thing rather than another.

As far as Michael’s directorial debut was concerned, it was his education on the other side of the camera, because he had always been on the actor’s side. Communicating to him that no matter how much he thought he knew what the director is doing, when you get to the other side it’s going to be completely different.

For example, convincing Michael that we could make this film in a short schedule, you have to educate without being off-putting.

Producers Steven A. Jones and Paul Duggan of ‘The Merry Gentleman’, in Chicago on April 27, 2009
Photo credit: Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

HC: As a financial guru, what kind of pitch is most effective for drawing investors in on an independent film like The Merry Gentleman?

Duggan: We went out to a very select group of people and in the spirit of ‘trying anything once’ we collected units of funding for the film. Some did it based on their trust in me and others were large investors who wanted to dabble in show business. We brought together a combination of people.

There are risks in all businesses, like for example making computers. There is not an independent computer business, but there is an independent film business. This is a niche that attracts more interest than in other conventional businesses, with a possible avenue to success.

Jones: You mitigate the risk by bringing on good people to make the movie, and involving them in the approval of lead actor Michael Keaton, which made them a little more secure with this investment.

HC: With the different background coming into the role of executive producer, what observations did you make regarding the contrast in business acumen between the film industry and other, more common types of business ventures?

Duggan: They are very similar in the fact that you are still dealing with lawyers and contracts. You have to have an understanding of business law and how it applies. That doesn’t change whether it’s a real estate closing or a production of a movie.

Actors do have agents…and lawyers, so there are more layers in that aspect of it.

Jones: Those layers are also buffers, you sometimes don’t get the opportunity to talk to the person you really need to talk to. So when you talk to the representatives your inquiry is being filtered one way and it’s filtered when the answer comes back to you. The worse thing that does is chew up time.

HC: What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in the film business from when you were starting out with ‘Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer’ versus the types of issues you have with The Promotion and The Merry Gentleman?

Jones: Henry was done in the days of videotape rental. Now it is a completely different landscape with On Demand, Pay-Per-View, Satellite Systems and all these other places where an independent film can be shown. With Henry we were just concerned with small distribution and eventual rentals.

I can talk about the independent film business, and tomorrow it changes. For example, independent film has been called dead so many times, but then somebody makes a film for $20 and it makes a 100 million and suddenly independents are alive again.

HC: What was the moment that really made you, as a first time participant, really feel proud in the accomplishment of helping to produce The Merry Gentleman?

Duggan: There was a rush when the room darkened at Sundance and the film starting running, and there was the credit – Executive Producer: Paul Duggan. That’s something I’d never signed up for, it was not on my things to do and I may never do another movie, but…that was cool.

TOMORROW – Tom Bastounes, supporting actor and executive producer, on co-starring with Michael Keaton and Kelly Macdonald in ‘The Merry Gentleman’.

’The Merry Gentleman’, with Michael Keaton, Kelly Macdonald, Tom Bastounes, directed by Michael Keaton, opens Friday, May 1st, 2009. Check local theaters for film and showtimes

By PATRICK McDONALD
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

‘The Dark Knight’ Returns to IMAX Theaters on Jan. 23, 2009

BrianTT — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 14:13:48 -0700

CHICAGO – You can celebrate the very likely Oscar nominations for “The Dark Knight” or lament the film’s snubbing by the academy by revisiting Christopher Nolan’s masterpiece in all of its IMAX glory starting this Friday on Jan. 23, 2009.

“The Dark Knight” will reopen at four theaters in the Chicagoland area: the Navy Pier IMAX in downtown Chicago, the Seven Bridges IMAX in Woodridge, Ill.; the Lincolnshire 20 in Lincolnshire, Ill.; and the Randall IMAX 15 in Batavia, Ill.

True Heath Ledger fans and “The Dark Knight” junkies may feel the need to see the film on opening night at Navy Pier because they will also be admitted to a special screening of “Batman Begins” at midnight for no additional cost. Yes, the 9 p.m. show of “The Dark Knight” at Navy Pier IMAX scores you tickets for this one-time event. Tickets are $15 for adults and $13 for children and can be bought at the Navy Pier IMAX Web site.

Christian Bale stars as Bruce Wayne in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ action drama “The Dark Knight”.
Photo credit: Stephen Vaughan

All across the country, Warner Bros. is bringing back the IMAX presentation of “The Dark Knight” to give audiences one more chance to see the film on the big screen.

Dan Fellman (president of domestic distribution for Warner Bros. Pictures) said in a statement: “‘The Dark Knight’ is a crowning achievement in every sense of the word. We wanted to provide one more opportunity for moviegoers to experience it on the big screen as it was meant to be seen.”

Christopher Nolan has already received a Directors Guild of America (DGA) nomination and producers Nolan, Charles Roven and Emma Thomas have garnered a Producers Guild Award nomination. A Writers Guild of America (WGA) award nomination for best adapted screenplay has gone to Chris Nolan, Jonathan Nolan and David S. Goyer.

Cast member Heath Ledger received a Screen Actors Guild award nomination and has also won a Golden Globe, Critics’ Choice Award and numerous other critics groups’ awards for best supporting actor.

“The Dark Knight” also won the Critics’ Choice Award for best action film and swept the People’s Choice Awards in five categories including favorite movie and favorite cast. It will very likely score a number of Oscar nominations when they are announced on Jan. 22, 2009. Heath Ledger’s searing performance is a front runner for best supporting actor.

“The Dark Knight” is being rereleased by Warner Brothers Pictures and stars Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman. It was written by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan and directed by Christopher Nolan. It will be rereleased in IMAX theaters on Jan. 23, 2009.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Family of Heath Ledger Responds to ‘The Dark Knight’ Golden Globe Nomination

BrianTT — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 11:11:00 -0700

CHICAGO – Heath Ledger’s searing performance as The Joker in “The Dark Knight” has been earning acclaim all year and the late actor landed a posthumous Golden Globe nomination this morning when the Hollywood Foreign Press Association revealed their choices for the best of 2008.

The family of Ledger responded this morning with a statement republished by People Magazine. The father of the nominee for best performance by an actor in a supporting role said, “We thank the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for honoring Heath’s performance in The Dark Knight.”

Kim Ledger went on to say, “This nomination is deeply appreciated and is not lost on those of us who continue to love and miss him. We are so proud our boy’s work is being recognized in this way.”

Heath Ledger stars as the Joker in “The Dark Knight”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros., copyright DC Comics

To win the posthumous Golden Globe award, Heath Ledger will have to beat both Tom Cruise and Robert Downey Jr. from “Tropic Thunder”, Ralph Fiennes from “The Duchess”, and Philip Seymour Hoffman for “Doubt”. The 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards will be broadcast live on NBC at 8 p.m. EST on January 11th from the Beverly Hilton.

Heath Ledger passed away on January 22nd from an accidental overdoe of prescription drugs in his New York apartment.

Heath Ledger has already been nominated for best actor for “The Dark Knight” from The Australian Film Institute and supporting actor from the Golden Satellite Awards. This morning’s Golden Globe nomination is the second for Ledger with the HFPA choosing him for his work in “Brokeback Mountain” in 2005, a nomination echoed by the Academy Awards that year.

Read about all of the Golden Globe nominees.

Get the details on the Dark Knight Blu-Ray release.

Check out Adam Fendelman’s Five-Star Review of The Dark Knight.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

DC Universe Releases Images, Premiere Details For ‘Wonder Woman’

BrianTT — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:55:19 -0700

CHICAGO – Warner Brothers announced this week that their fourth original DC Universe animated original film, “Wonder Woman”, will debut at the New York Comic Con in February and sent along a couple of brand new images to get audiences excited.

Preceding the March 3rd, 2009 release of “Wonder Woman” on Blu-Ray, DVD, OnDemand, Pay-Per-View, & Digital Download all simultaneously, the original animated movie will receive a big screen premiere at the New York Comic Con on February 6th, 2009 at the IGN Theater at the Javits Center.

A full month before the availability of “Wonder Woman” on the home market, fans can see the entire film and participate in a panel discussion featuring members of the film’s cast and crew that will follow the 8:30 p.m. screening. Exact talent available for the Q&A is not yet clear.

Wonder Wonder prepares to take on Ares in battle in “Wonder Woman,” the all-new DC Universe animated original movie will be distributed by Warner Home Video on March 3, 2009.

“Wonder Woman” is presented by Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Animation, and DC Comics and will be distributed by Warner Home Video on March 3rd, 2009. It will be available as a Single Disc DVD, 2-Disc Special Edition DVD, and Blu-Ray Disc. “Wonder Woman” will also be available OnDemand, Pay-Per-View, and available on digital download on the same day as the film’s street date.

Steve Trevor gets his first look at the Amazons in “Wonder Woman,” the all-new DC Universe animated original movie will be distributed by Warner Home Video on March 3, 2009.

“Wonder Woman” is being produced by the legendary and Emmy Award-winning animation king Bruce Timm and features voice work by Keri Russell in the lead role and Nathan Fillion, Alfred Molina, Virginia Madsen, Rosario Dawson, Oliver Platt, and David McCallum in supporting roles. Bruce Timm will actually be a Guest of Honor at the New York Comic Con along with previously-announced Guests of Honor including Geoff Johns, Jim Lee, George Perez, J. Michael Straczynski, and Michael Uslan.

The DC Universe series of animated PG-13 films written and directed by acclaimed comic book directors have been very successful for Warner Brothers and include the acclaimed “Superman: Doomsday”, “Justice League: The New Frontier”, and “Batman: Gotham Knight”. Films in development include works based on Batman, Superman, Justice League, Green Lantern, and The Flash.

‘Wonder Woman’ will be released by Warner Home Video and includes voice work by Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Alfred Molina, Virginia Madsen, Rosario Dawson, Oliver Platt, and David McCallum. It will be released on March 3rd, 2009.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Three Months Early, First Review For ‘The Dark Knight’ Surfaces Online

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 23:05:10 -0600

CHICAGO – With today being April 9, 2008 and with “The Dark Knight” scheduled to open on July 18, 2008, the difference between the two dates, of course, is more than three months. Even so, the first review for the monolithically anticipated film has just hit the Web in Portuguese.

Contributor Alexandre Winck for the respected Batman site Batman-on-Film.com reports that the review comes from a “well-known blog in Brazil” that’s part of the “largest media corporation” there, which is known as Globo. Winck says the author is a “respected journalist”. While the translation into English is a bit rough, you’ll get the gist. The following information may contain spoilers.

Director Chris Nolan on the set of “The Dark Knight”.
Photo credit: Released by the New York Times on March 9, 2008

My secret agent between the Armani suits saw a super private session for “The Dark Knight” and came out drooling. It will be a great success, he guarantees.

The gadgets – especially the [Batpod], [which is] responsible for an acclaimed action sequence – are crazy and Heath Ledger might receive a deserved [award?] for his Joker. [He is] a mixture of a fool/clown, schizophrenic, sadistic and crazy.

The guy delivered, got himself into the role and it’s unrecognizable. There will be no other Joker after him.

Many great scenes. Impeccable effects. Music and sounds pretty loud, but helping the story. They have a heartbeat they use in a sensational way [that helps to anticipate] the next scene [as] a psychological trigger [like in “Jaws”].

The cast is awesome. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman [steal] scenes in which all are present. Maggie Gyllenhaal [is] fantastic replacing Katie Holmes and Aaron Eckhart [is] a great surprise as the politician with a heart of gold whose personality changes after a horrible accident.

Another surprise is Eric Roberts as the mobster he knows so well how to do. Christian Bale [is] solid as ever [and] cool since Bruce Wayne is a rich playboy and Batman is the opposite. The film plays a lot with this duality. All the characters are complex, [have] ambiguities [and are] very interesting and delicate.

The humor … is totally dark. The movie is very dark and, in this version, a little too long. [It] will blow [everyone] away.

Due to its sensitivity, part of the next sentence is whited out in case you don’t want to read it. If you do, select it with your mouse.

Another scene … with Ledger [as] the Joker playing dead inside a body bag caused adverse reactions in the audience for obvious reasons. It will possibly be cut.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

‘The Dark Knight’ Delivers Sensory Orgasm in IMAX Prologue Before ‘I Am Legend’

HollywoodChicago.com — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 22:23:29 -0700

I went to screen “I Am Legend” on Wednesday to experience “The Dark Knight”.

That statement doesn’t speak grimly about my feelings for Will Smith. I was looking forward to learning his legend and I’m glad I did. The night at Chicago’s Navy Pier IMAX, though, went to its first six minutes with the Joker as the star.

A production still from “The Dark Knight” prologue.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.
Before I skipped the capacity crowd awaiting entrance into the theater, I stopped to listen to people’s pre-conceived motivations for spending a chilly Wednesday evening at the movies.

People weren’t there because it was free. More important, many people weren’t talking about “I Am Legend”. The buzz king went to Nolan & Co. A few people even went so far as to say they’d consume “The Dark Knight” prologue and skip out immediately thereafter.

I spoke to the publicist running the screening moments before heading in. He was in a panic.

He just got off the phone from New York because “the prologue wasn’t going to show,” he said. At the mere quiet mention of the notion, the few critics who heard it threw their hands in the air in disgust.

I’m paraphrasing, but the publicist immediately retorted: “Don’t worry. It’ll be there now. I made sure of it.” Their nerves were calmed and I now felt vindicated after having to miss last week’s sneak peak of the prologue following yet another “The Dark Knight” viral game.

We were first treated to a trailer for “The Spiderwick Chronicles”.

The next trailer – for a film documenting a rock star – was relatively unimpressive and forgettable. Then a sweeping shot of downtown Gotham ushered in “The Dark Knight” prologue and the theater erupted in applause.

You immediately felt the difference between a typical trailer preceding the big event as this prologue is a short film in its own right. Its design is to introduce the Joker as the crazed fiend he is. He’s indeed feared, he’s indeed demented and he indeed delivers on the frenetic hype.

The story leading up to his unmasking deliberately makes his revelation deliciously climatic. You love to hate Heath and feel no remorse loving him all the while.

For this Chicagoan who has been covering the ins and outs of the film as it has taken over our Windy City, the prologue feels much like home. I’d be watching and instantly recall reporting on that courthouse and stepping foot on those very floors when I was beckoned there for jury duty.

A cameo by William Fichtner (“Go,” “Armageddon,” “Contact”) as a Gotham National Bank manager proves even in just a glimpse the power of this cast from roles as big as Heath Ledger as the Joker and Christian Bale as Batman all the way down to this small bank manager who dominates a memorable scene.

William Fichtner in “The Perfect Storm”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.
Director Chris Nolan will be remembered as an innovator who made the premeditated choice to work with director of photography Wally Pfister and IMAX technicians to mark the first time in Hollywood history the larger and heavier IMAX cameras were used to film select sequences.

Rather than succumbing to the quality degradation inherent in converting traditional 35-millimeter film to the largesse of IMAX, Nolan filmed directly using the 60-millimeter, sensually orgasmic format. The wait was worth the remuneration and serves as yet another telltale sign that “The Dark Knight” will be the film of 2008.

Warner Bros. Releases New Batpod Photo For ‘The Dark Knight’

HollywoodChicago.com — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 14:51:38 -0700

Warner Bros. on Monday released a new “The Dark Knight” photo of Batman riding his Batpod.

Batman riding his Batpod in “The Dark Knight”.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.
Click here for a high-resolution version of this photo. This photo was also picked up by /Film.

Also, the following three “The Dark Knight” images recently surfaced. I first learned about these from here. While we have seen the head-on Joker image before, we now see it without cover-page text.

Still Image, New Details Surface on Straight-to-Video Batman Anime

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:14:46 -0700

If there’s anything we’ve come to expect from “The Dark Knight” and the franchise lately, it’s these two words: always more.

On Nov. 30, I mentioned that Wizard’s 2008 movie spectacular magazine was hitting comic stores on Dec. 5 and newsstands on Dec. 18. On Wednesday, we learned more about a straight-to-video Batman anime story and saw a new still image to tease it.

“The Dark Knight” anime.
Image credit: Wizard
Credit for this post comes first from Paul. His fan site referenced a JustPressPlay article where we learn the following:

Far from just a cheap tie-in, this looks like it’s actually going to be an animated series with weight.

These shorts stand alone on their own [and] take place in (direct Chris) Nolan’s Batman universe … between the first (“Batman Begins”) and second (“The Dark Knight”) movie.

Let’s take a look at the amazing players involved.

All six shorts are directed by the great animation god Bruce Timm (“Batman: Mask of the Phantasm,” “Batman: TAS,” “Batman Beyond” and “Justice League”).

The writers along with more information can be found here.