Chapter 74

Batman also violated his taboo at this time, activating all citizens' mobile phones simultaneously and using a sonar system to locate the Joker.

A race against time was unfolding!

Seeing this, the audience in the theater all thought the criminals would definitely be the first to detonate the bomb, as they were all vicious bad guys.

Unexpectedly, the group of criminals threw away the detonator,

and the group of citizens voted to detonate, but later, because no one dared to press the button, they gave up the chance to survive.

The only one who could save both ships was Batman.

Using the sonar device, Batman successfully found the Joker's location.

After seeing through the Joker's trick, he rescued the tied-up officers and found the Joker himself at midnight.

The Joker was disappointed; neither ship had exploded. Were they all so benevolent?

Just as the Joker was about to detonate the bombs, Batman intervened and grappled with him, firing a cable to hang him before he could fall from the building.

Spider-Man would call him an expert!

"This city has shown you what justice is!"

"No, when their faith collapses, see if they're still just. Gotham's White Knight, Harvey Dent—what will everyone think when they see him now?"

Hanging upside down, the Joker was still chatting and laughing.

It turned out that the fallen Two-Face, Harvey Dent, had already begun using a coin game to take revenge, killing multiple corrupt police officers and the mob boss Maroni.

Two-Face was currently kidnapping Commissioner Gordon's family!

If Harvey Dent's fall became public knowledge, Gotham would fall into chaos again.

"To drive someone crazy, you only need a little push. Hahahaha."

Batman could no longer care about the Joker and rushed over to save Commissioner Gordon's son, but in the process, he killed Harvey Dent; he had another life on his hands.

At the end of the film, the audience all thought it would end like a normal movie.

Batman would become a hero of Gotham, and the Joker would be locked in Arkham Asylum, waiting for an opportunity.

However, the film co-written by Nolan and Xu Can brought one last twist to everyone.

To maintain Gotham's faith, Two-Face Harvey Dent's crimes were covered up; he remained that righteous White Knight!

And Batman took all the crimes—murdering police officers, killing Harvey Dent, and kidnapping Commissioner Gordon—upon himself!

"I can't let the Joker win this round, even if I have to sacrifice myself!"

"They'll hunt you, Gotham will despise you!"

"Yes, you have to hunt me. You must."

"But Batman didn't do anything wrong." Commissioner Gordon's son was very confused, just like the audience at the scene.

"Because he's the hero Gotham needs, because he can bear all the darkness."

"He is a silent guardian, he is Gotham's protector..."

"He is the Dark Knight!"

At the end of the film, accompanied by Commissioner Gordon's wistful voiceover,

Batman rode the Bat-pod, his cape fluttering in the night, disappearing into the Gotham night.

Dum-dum-dum-dum—

Dum-dum-dum-dum—

Hans Zimmer's score played at the perfect moment; the heavy strings and drums struck everyone's soul, beat by beat!

[Batman: The Dark Knight]

[Director: Christopher Nolan]

[Screenplay: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan, Xu Can]

[Producers: Emma Thomas, Xu Can]

[Based on DC Comics]

[Jointly produced by Warner Bros., DC, and Galaxy Pictures]

[Starring: Christian Bale]

[Xu Can]

[Michael Caine]

On the pure black screen, devoid of flashy special effects,

lines of pure white subtitles scrolled continuously.

The thousands of premiere audience members in the theater sat firmly in their seats, silent.

Only Hans Zimmer's Dark Knight theme seemed to linger in people's hearts.

If the film had ended with Batman winning a complete victory and everyone being happy,

it would at most be an excellent commercial film, a successful comic book adaptation no worse than *Spider-Man*.

However, the film underwent a sublimation at the end,

portraying Batman not as a superhero in the light, but as a Dark Knight who bore the burden and guarded silently in the darkness!

At this point, it had become art!

The final shockwave was too powerful, leaving everyone to savor it slowly.

Until the film's credits ended completely and the lights in the theater came on, everyone stood up one after another to offer their highest respect to *The Dark Knight*!

"Hell yeah! Perfect! Woo-hoo! That was amazing!"

Amidst these enthusiastic cheers, Stewart noticed his girlfriend was also shouting.

Wasn't she acting all cold and indifferent when she first arrived at the theater?

How had she become so excited now!

"You think it's good?"

"Of course! This is simply the most brilliant movie I've seen in years! Why didn't you take me to see Batman before! The Joker is so cool!"

Stewart's mouth twitched a few times.

Before? Nolan hadn't made a movie before, and Xu Can hadn't appeared in one before—where were you supposed to see it?

He had to admit, this was simply the best comic book adaptation in his mind!

Although it didn't completely stick to the original work, it had thoroughly grasped the spirit of the original Batman!

Brilliant!

The applause at the scene lasted for several minutes and only stopped when the creators took the stage.

Next was the traditional Q&A session, and the media already had a belly full of questions waiting to be asked!

At the premiere of *The Dark Knight*, the creative team is answering bizarre questions from the media and the audience.

Everyone is so enthusiastic about this film that the host doesn't know who to call on.

Everyone is waving their hands frantically, a dizzying sight to behold.

"Hello, I'm an ordinary DC fan and also a fan of Xu Can... May I ask, in the scene where the hospital is blown up, was the Joker's reaction in the script?"

The media is also very interested in this question.

Xu Can doesn't answer; he simply hands the microphone to the director, Nolan.

Nolan smiles and says:

"It wasn't in the script. The remote detonator had a glitch at the time, and a portion didn't explode."

"Since it was shot on location, the hospital was actually destroyed, and we only had one take, so the actors had to improvise."

"Xu's performance was truly brilliant. He completely saved the shot and made it even more dramatic. It was a perfect performance!"

Nolan's praise reveals two facts:

The hospital explosion was entirely real, with no special effects used!

Second, Xu Can's improvisation has reached a terrifying level!

The reporters and audience at the scene are so shocked they are speechless.

"Hello, I'm a reporter from *The Hollywood Reporter*. May I ask, since the Joker doesn't die at the end, will he appear in the third installment?"

To this question, Xu Can only offers a mysterious smile.

"Wait and see. Perhaps one day in the future, the Joker will suddenly appear in an unexpected way."

Perhaps having just seen his Joker, Xu Can's current smile makes the reporter shudder.