Video Breakdown: Visual Continuity in 'The Dark Knight'

A lot of people have come to see Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight as a modern classic in the time since its 2008 release, and rightly so. It featured some fascinating performances, notably from the tragically departed-upon-release Heath Ledger as the Joker, and a moral complexity not often seen in the super hero genre.

But if there was one criticism that managed to make itself heard over the cacophony of adoration, it was Nolan's inability to craft fluid, or even coherent, extended action sequences. New York Magazine's David Edelstein challenged viewers to dissect and categorize the increasingly sloppy scenes and Salon's Stephanie Zacharek called the movie's visual storytelling method "a mess," and declared, "if this is genius, give me hackery."

Apparently, Press Play's Jim Emerson felt like The Dark Knight was still getting too much praise several years on and created detailed video breakdown of the movie's convoy chase scene and what he calls its "lapses in visual logic." Emerson's meticulous breakdown is worth watching, even if you loved The Dark Knight. It's not a damning critique of the entire film, just a playful poke at one of its more glaring weaknesses.

In the Cut, Part I: Shots in the Dark (Knight) from Jim Emerson on Vimeo.

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http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/09/video-breakdown-visual-continuity-in-the-dark-knight/245038/