Special effects of The Dark Knight
In the film's plot, the superhero vigilante Batman, Police Lieutenant James Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent form an alliance to dismantle organized crime in Gotham City, but their efforts are derailed by the intervention of an anarchistic mastermind, the Joker, who seeks to test how far Batman will go to save the city from complete chaos.
The ensemble cast includes Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Morgan Freeman.
[4] His team had developed a prototype within four weeks, using a gyro-stabilized gimbal to help it remain upright, and a main body that required the driver to lay flat.
The wide tires were angled outward to make a narrower surface area when in contact with the road, improving its turning ability.
In motion, the cape flowed over the tire safely and the backpack idea was instead used for Batman's Hong Kong infiltration.
[11] Hemming, Crowley, and Nolan fully re-designed the Batsuit to answer the challenges faced by Bale with the previous incarnation that made it uncomfortable and inflexible and hot because of the rubberized materials plus body chemistry damaged the suit.
Urethane was used to replace the easily damaged foam latex and neoprene of the original, and a material normally used in medical and sportswear that was lighter, more flexible, and more breathable.
[16][17][18] Nolan also had her team look at the 1953 painting Study after Velázquez's Portrait of Pope Innocent X by Francis Bacon, which to him communicated the Joker's edge and unsettling essence.
[17] Hemming wanted a single, identifiable costume, a purple coat and green vest complimented with additional disguises and masks.
[17] "The first place that I looked [for inspiration] was obviously pictures of the Joker in past graphic novels, comic books, films, whatever, and then after that, I started to think, 'Well, how could someone be like this?'"
[21] Using a transferring technique he had initially conceived of on The Last Samurai, he produced silicone molds from which soft and skin-like applications could be made.
[23] The makeup was not applied in a uniform way but based on the context of the story, such as being more smeared for the bank heist scene because the character would be sweating more, while it was neater for his introduction the mafia leaders.
This figure was relatively small compared to other contemporary films, but the significantly larger IMAX resolution made the respective task longer to complete.
[25][26] The prologue was used as a test, with Double Negative adding CGI detritus and debris as the school bus breaks through the wall.
[27] New Deal Studios built a 1/4 scale miniatures were used for shots of Batman blowing up a corner of the Hong Kong high-rise using pyrotechnics with breakaway glass.
[27] The vehicles were attached to steel skates that were pulled together by a cable beneath a 120 ft long miniature replica of the Lower Wacker location.
Ten feet short of the miniature vehicles making contact, the crew released the garbage truck allowing it to fly erratically forward.
[27] Framestore provided effect shots for the Hong Kong IMAX sequences, including an animated Batman (made by Double Negative) moving between the city's rooftops and a digital Lau Chin for when the pair prepare to be picked up by a C130, although the following stunt was done for real.
[26] The Two-Face design was developed by sculptor Julian Murray based on Nolan's desire for a skeletal appearance without making it too gruesome.
[24][28] Murray studied the character as he appeared in Batman: The Animated Series (1992–1995) and identified key aspects such as an exposed eye and teeth.
[29] Nolan preferred practical effects but accepted they could not realize his intended design without CGI, and that prosthetics could restrict Eckhart's acting.
[31] Framestore developed 120 different Two-Face shots that were matched to Eckhart's live performance and had to individually paint each frame to blend the two sides.
[24] The scene opens with a pair of robbers (stuntmen Tom Struthers and Kevin Mathews) ziplined from a 400 ft high adjacent building to the Post Office.
[33][34] Corbould tried to dissuade Nolan from the 18-wheeler truck flip, because of the uncertainties of conducting the stunt on a public street, and failed to convince him to use a smaller vehicle such as a SWAT van.
Veteran stunt driver Jim Wilkey drove the vehicle in Joker makeup with a fire suit and helmet inside a reinforced cabin.
[40] The chase continued on to LaSalle Street, featuring a practical truck flip stunt, and helicopter sequence that was combined with CGI to show it crashing into the road.
[36][38] Several months were spent scouting for a site that could be destroyed before finding the four-story former Brach's candy factory that was already scheduled for demolition.
He performed a few half-speed rehearsals to refine the movement of Jarman sweeping his hand across to take the pencil while his head moved toward the table.
[51] Jarman said he was knocked unconscious three times, developing a large welt on his forehead after the first day of filming, but said he continued because he did not want to let the production down, but in a 2018 interview he admitted he would not do it again given the choice.
Nolan wanted Rottweillers in the scene, but it took some time to find a handler willing to manage several dogs simultaneously as the animals generally did not like each other.
