Cinematography Techniques in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight
When order is taken away chaos takes over. In Christopher Nolan’s, The Dark Knight (2008) there are many cinematic techniques which are used to highlight the mayhem that the Joker creates throughout the film. The Joker is a character in the film that does not care about the reward or the financial gain that most criminals want after they commit a crime, he just wants to kill and destroy everything for no apparent reason. In The Dark Knight there are many cinematography techniques used however there are six main techniques which are used to focus on the chaos which the Joker creates; cross cutting, smash cut, extreme close up, zoom shot, tracking and fast cut.
In The Dark Knight, smash cut is a technique in the film where one scene brusquely cuts to another without alteration, which is usually used to startle the viewers. In scene 20 the cinematic technique, smash cut is clearly evident. The first example of a smash cut is when the Joker shows his “Magic trick” (scene) this show that the Joker does not care. Another example of the smash cut is when the helicopter is flying above following Dent’s convoy. The scene the cuts to where the Joker is coming out from behind a truck driver to then proceed to shoot a police officer with a shot gun which results in the officer getting killed. It then cuts back to the convoy flyover (Scene 20). This unpredicted smash cut foreshadows what is yet to come throughout the rest of the movie- violence, death and chaos which is caused by the Joker.
Cross cutting is an editing technique most often used in films to establish action occurring at the same time in two different locations. In a cross-cut, the camera will cut away from one action to another action, which can suggest the simultaneity of these two actions. The initial bank job by the joker and his men show how the robbers work simultaneously and in doing so, it also foreshadows the inevitable chaos the Joker will be responsible for throughout the film (Scene 1).
Extreme
In The Dark Knight, smash cut is a technique in the film where one scene brusquely cuts to another without alteration, which is usually used to startle the viewers. In scene 20 the cinematic technique, smash cut is clearly evident. The first example of a smash cut is when the Joker shows his “Magic trick” (scene) this show that the Joker does not care. Another example of the smash cut is when the helicopter is flying above following Dent’s convoy. The scene the cuts to where the Joker is coming out from behind a truck driver to then proceed to shoot a police officer with a shot gun which results in the officer getting killed. It then cuts back to the convoy flyover (Scene 20). This unpredicted smash cut foreshadows what is yet to come throughout the rest of the movie- violence, death and chaos which is caused by the Joker.
Cross cutting is an editing technique most often used in films to establish action occurring at the same time in two different locations. In a cross-cut, the camera will cut away from one action to another action, which can suggest the simultaneity of these two actions. The initial bank job by the joker and his men show how the robbers work simultaneously and in doing so, it also foreshadows the inevitable chaos the Joker will be responsible for throughout the film (Scene 1).
Extreme