I don't like The Dark Knight, but if you run a business called Chicago Movie Tours, then you must submit to the superhero movie at some point.
When I saw The Dark Knight in the theater in 2008, I repeatedly looked down at my watch.
“Surely, this is almost over,” I thought to myself no more than 20 minutes into the picture. “The masked guy will take down the clown-faced guy shortly, won't he, so I can go eat dinner?”
But, no, the movie dragged on (for me) for another 2 hours.
In short, I dislike The Dark Knight—and most superhero movies for that matter.
And that’s okay.
I’m guessing you might dislike movie musicals and Shakespeare film adaptations, both of which served as my bread and butter for many a year.
That’s cool. We all like different genres and characters and stories for different reasons.
I’ve studied this stuff long enough to know that I can come to appreciate a film like The Dark Knight without legitimately liking it.
Vertigo, Dr. Strangelove, and Taxi Driver function similarly for me. I don’t care for any of these movies. However, I can appreciate what they’re doing in terms of genre-bending, cinematography, and characterization.
All this to say: if you live in Chicago and run a small business named Chicago Movie Tours, as do I, then you must defer to The Dark Knight at some point, in some way.
And I have with at least 5 events:
Chicago and Movies Highlights (walking tour)
Batman, Route 66, and The Berghoff (YouTube video)
Low-Angle Shots and The Dark Knight (online mini course)
The Dark Knight and Chicago’s Millennium Station (virtual tour)
With each of the above ventures, I will admit this:
I have come to respect aspects of The Dark Knight that I did not in that darkened movie theater in 2008.
For example, the film’s practical effects, stuntmen, and makeup should impress any viewer—as should the way Chicago functions as the seedy but mesmerizing Gotham City.
But don't get too excited: I still have my watch handy.