National Film RegistryLibrary of Congress · Inducted 2020
“Bob Kane and Bill Finger's dark, enduring creation first flew onto the screen in a 1943 B-movie serial and would return to theaters several times in treatments both camp and action-oriented.”
Warner Bros. Entertainment · Legendary Pictures · Syncopy Inc. · 153 min
Box office
$1.01B worldwide on a $185M budget
Honors
Academy Awards — 2 wins, 8 nominationsNational Board of Review — 1 winMTV Movie Award — 1 winKids' Choice Award — 1 nominationAll 4 wins · 9 nominations on record
Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actor
Academy Awards: Best Sound Editing
National Board of Review: National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
MTV Movie Award: Best Villain
Scholarship
Named in the title of 23 peer-reviewed works
Examples
The Dark Knight Rises, 2012
The Dark Knight, 2012
The Dark Knight — Journal of Religion & Film, 2008
Sources: Wikidata · Library of Congress · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
The Dark Knight arrived from Warner Bros. in the summer of 2008, directed by Christopher Nolan as the second chapter in his Batman trilogy. It redefined the modern superhero picture, pairing blockbuster scale with a crime drama sensibility, and earned a place in cultural memory partly through Heath Ledger's performance, honored posthumously with an Academy Award. The film remains a touchstone for collectors of the genre, marking the moment comic book cinema was taken seriously as prestige filmmaking.
This 35mm cell preserves a fragment tied to the Gotham Gala, the fundraising event at Bruce Wayne's penthouse where the Joker makes his uninvited appearance. The scene is prized among collectors for placing Ledger's Joker in a formal, high society setting, a striking contrast to his usual chaos in the streets and alleys of Gotham. Owning a piece of this sequence connects directly to one of the character's most quoted and referenced set pieces in the film's second act.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of The Dark Knight (2008)
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched holes appear cleanly cut with no visible tearing
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a dual variable-area (stereo) format; Dolby Digital data blocks are visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge; a DTS timecode stripe appears as a thin line adjacent to the optical track
Edge print
Edge print reads mirrored as 'KODAK 21 2008 S' indicating Kodak stock with a 2008 date code
Base & colour
Base appears with a slight cyan-green tint consistent with Kodak color print stock; dye image appears neutral with no visible fading or red shift
Projection history
Light vertical scratch lines are visible running through the frame area, consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks are visible in this capture
Picture
Positive color image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot; the formal attire and setting are consistent with The Dark Knight (2008)
Era check
The combination of Kodak print stock with a 2008 date code, dual variable-area optical track, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks, and DTS timecode stripe is fully consistent with a 2008 theatrical release print
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000063060
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
