Special effects of The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan from a screenplay he co-wrote with his brother Jonathan. Based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, it is the sequel to Batman Begins and the second installment in The Dark Knight Trilogy. 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.
Nolan avoided using computer-generated imagery unless necessary, insisting on practical stunts such as flipping an 18-wheel truck and blowing up a factory.
Design
Unlike the design process on Batman Begins, which had been restrained by a need to represent Batman iconography, audience acceptance of its realistic setting gave The Dark Knight more leeway. Chris Corbould returned as special effects supervisor. He described The Dark Knight as "the Batman I always wanted to make, but we had to step over Batman Begins to get to it. I am a desperate modernist. I like simplicity. On Batman Begins, I struggled with trying to make sure we didn't destroy the comic book-ness... I'm grateful for because he burned everything down Batman Begins."Batpod
Nolan developed the Batpod, also known as the Batcycle, because he did not want to heavily reuse the Tumbler. He decided on a two-wheeled vehicle but did not consider it a motorcycle because it was more "exotic and powerful-looking than a traditional motorcycle." He developed a design by combining different commercial model components in his garage office alongside production designer Nathan Crowley who did the designs, and built a full-size version from various construction hardware. He recalled sneaking onto the Warner Bros. lot to steal two Tumbler tires to use in the model. He flew Corbould from England to help as he had overseen the design of the Tumbler. Corbould believed the design was "bizarre-looking" and would never work, and set about making it functional because the 508 millimeter wide tires would make it difficult to maneuver. 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 lie flat. The engine was concealed within the body, exhaust systems into the chassis, and radiators were disguised as footpads. The wide tires were angled outward to make a narrower surface area when in contact with the road, improving its turning ability.A Warner Bros. executive suggested the Batpod detaching from the main Tumbler body. Nolan wanted to achieve the Batpod emerging from the Tumbler remains practically, and Corbould's crew developed a rig that could move the Tumbler wheels into the Batpod mod and create enough momentum to make it appear to explode out of the old one with some minor CGI enhancement. Six Batpods were built in total in case any were destroyed in crashes. Steering was controlled by shoulder instead of hand, and the body on which the rider lies could move up and down.
Stuntman Jean Pierre Goy was the only person capable of riding it, spending months training in its use. During filming, Goy wore the full Batman costume plus a custom crash-helmet resembling the mask. The cape was a point of concern due to the risk of it getting caught in the rear tire. Hemming and her crew developed a prototype backpack that could automatically retract the cape, but Corbould suggested performing a test run with the normal cape with an easily tearable release in case it did get caught. In motion, the cape flowed over the tire safely and the backpack idea was instead used for Batman's Hong Kong infiltration. Goy had to ride the Batpod at up to 80 MPH, only falling off once. Bale was also eager to try it out but could not control it and when shown riding it is actually being dragged behind cars at 60 MPH.
Batsuit
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. Its rigidity also made it difficult to sit down so it was physically demanding on Bale and the head and neck were difficult to move. Hemming worked on the redesign with concept artist Jamie Rama, rendering over 20 different concepts to create a streamlined design composed of smaller plates of armor with open spaces. 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.Several prototypes were worked on for the neck, separating the head from the neck, but instead of the cowl and neck extending down into the suit as it had, the neckpiece was part of the suit and came up to meet the cowl. The cowl jaw area was scaled down to blend it with the scaled-down neck. The new mask is modelled after a motorcycle helmet. The final suit involved casting and molding over 100 individual pieces compared to Begins one big piece of molded latex. The new suit is made of 200 individual pieces of rubber, fiberglass, and nylon and metallic mesh. The urethane also served as a light armor for stunts, but it was not any lighter than the original. The blades on the suit's gauntlet were also retractable and launchable.
The Joker
Hemming also designed the Joker's outfit. Although she looked at Nicholson's costuming, Hemming considered that the character would be portrayed by a younger and modern male and wanted his look to be something audiences could identify with and was believable. She looked at images from Vivienne Westwood which were generally brightly colored, radical lines, and geometric prints as well as images of Johnny Rotten, Iggy Pop, and Pete Doherty. She wanted the Joker to appear like a vagrant who does not care about or look after himself. 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. Hemming wanted a single, identifiable costume, a purple coat and green vest complimented with additional disguises and masks. Twenty Joker coats and vests were made as well of multiples of his shirt which was based on an antique shirt she found. Turnbull & Asser, responsible for James Bond's shirt and ties, wove a custom fabric for the character's tie after Ledger suggested a thin, 1960s style one. "The first place that I looked 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?'" explains Hemming. "Then I wanted to contemporize it, so I started looking in fashion." Hemming says another element of inspiration came from the world of punk rock. "You say, 'What's the rationale for him being able to dress like this?' That's when I started looking at the pop world and I ended up looking at the Sex Pistols and Johnny Rotten," says Hemming. "I was just thinking, 'Well, there are plenty of guys out there who actually are as extreme as this, and there's nothing wrong with doing it.' You've got to make it look like someone really dresses like this. It can't just be, 'Hello, I'm putting on my costume.' It's got to be wherever he lives and whatever he's been doing, he's been wearing that."His makeup and styling was rationalized as him being disfigured first and over time going crazier until he starts covering the scars and eventually his entire face in makeup, while his green hair was a "bleach job that had gone terribly, terribly wrong." Prosthetics supervisor Conor O'Sullivan created the scars by researching different types of scarring. He said "the skin has a nape... just like fabric does. If it's cut one way there will be minimal scarring, another way it is very difficult to heal which is what happened to the Joker." O'Sullivan was not given a concept or reason for the scarring, and developed ideas with influence from the punk and skinhead era, unsavory people he had met, and a delivery driver with similar scarring to the final Joker makeup. Using Hemming's concept art, he developed three different scar versions and with Nolan's approval he developed one that amalgamated all three and molded to produce the applications. 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. These could generally be applied directly to the skin while in the mold to make sure they were always fitted to the same place, rather than just fitting them by hand after taking them out of the mold. This preserved the delicate blending edges and the integrity of the sculpture while allowing for very soft pieces. Blending makeup was then added. This process made it harder to produce the applications but in turn only took 25 minutes to apply. The whole bottom lip is fake according to Ledger.
Makeup artist John Caglione sketched eight clown makeup concepts using photos of Ledger for the makeup which Nolan wanted to look "organic" instead of clean or refined. To look like he's worn it for days and slept in it." Nolan provided a book featuring other Bacon paintings for inspiration. “The corrupted clown face is built into the icon of the Joker, but we gave a Francis Bacon spin to it. This corruption, this decay in the texture of the look itself. It's grubby. You can almost imagine what he smells like,” Nolan said. Once a concept was finalized, Caglione performed tests on Ledger using a theater makeup technique in which Ledger wrinkled up his face, raising his eyebrows and crinkled his crows feet, and then the area was painted over. Once Ledger relaxed his face it created cracks and textures. During filming the pair used the same technique with Caglione adding layers of white and gray. Caglione used a dry face paint activated with alcohol which made it dry quickly and stay on all day. Kryolan Aquacolor black makeup was smudged around Ledger's eyes and sprayed with water to create smears. Ledger always applied the lipstick himself because he believed it was essential to his character. Makeup took a further 15 to 20 minutes. 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. It took about an hour to 90 mins to get the whole makeup process done.