Throughout April, we’re counting down to the release of Marvel’s Iron Man 3 with our picks for the Greatest Comic Book Movies of All Time; and here it is, our #1 pick…
The Dark Knight, 2008.
Directed by Christopher Nolan.
Starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman, Eric Roberts, and Cillian Murphy.
So, we’ve reached first place in our countdown of the Greatest Comic Book Movies, and of course our pick for the number one spot is none other than Christopher Nolan’s masterful Batman sequel The Dark Knight – which is hardly surprising really, considering our writing team selected it as the greatest film of all-time back in August of last year. While that accolade may be debatable, it would take a brave man (or a huge Marvel fan) to argue against The Dark Knight being the absolute pinnacle of the superhero genre, and the finest comic book adaptation to have ever graced the screen.
Having rejuvenated the Batman franchise – and redefined the superhero movie – with Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan took things one step further with this 2008 sequel, which elevated the entire genre and raised the bar for everything that’s followed. More crime epic than comic book caper, The Dark Knight sees Christian Bale’s Batman forming an alliance with Police Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) to free Gotham of crime and corruption – pact that will lead to tragic consequences. And at the centre of all the chaos is Batman’s arch-nemesis The Joker, played to perfection by Heath Ledger, who was duly recognised with a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, making him the first person to be honoured by the Academy for acting in a comic book movie.
Released in July of 2008, The Dark Knight proved to be a phenomenal hit with audiences and critics alike; it became only the fifth movie to cross $1 billion at the global box-office, making it the then-highest-grossing comic book movie of all-time (although it has since been surpassed by The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises) and Heath Ledger’s performance was central to a run of awards success which culminated with eight nominations at the Academy Awards – breaking the record for a comic book adaptation previously held by Dick Tracy – where it was successful in two categories, winning Best Sound alongside Best Supporting Actor.
Following The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan brought the curtain down on his epic Batman saga last year with The Dark Knight Rises, leaving the crime-fighter’s screen future unclear. Talk of Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale returning for Warner Bros. long-rumoured Justice League movie has been dismissed by Nolan, and it’s been speculated that the studio will use the team-up to introduce a rebooted Batman into a shared DC universe spearheaded by this summer’s Man of Steel. One thing that is certain however is that whoever steps in to oversee the next phase of the Batman franchise has a monumental task on their hands to even come close to matching the quality of Nolan’s trilogy, and in particular the masterpiece that is The Dark Knight.
The Dark Knight makes it three out of three for Christopher Nolan’s epic Batman trilogy in our top ten, with The Dark Knight Rises at #7 and Batman Begins at #2, and it’s also the sixth time the Caped Crusader has appeared in our top 50, with Batman Returns at #27, the animated Batman: The Mask of the Phantasm at #25 and Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman at #9.
Keep up to date with our entire countdown here.
Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen – Available now via Amazon.co.uk
Originally published April 25, 2013. Updated November 30, 2022.
