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Tuesday
20Jan2009

Heath Ledger Saw Opening 'Dark Knight' Sequence

DateTuesday, January 20, 2009 at 5:53PM
It could be a monumental week for The Dark Knight. The Oscar nominations will be revealed Thursday morning, and the film's chances at the Academy Awards have long been the subject of speculation. Can it grab a Best Picture and Best Director nomination? Will Heath Ledger win Best Supporting Actor? (Maybe, Possibly, Absolutely.)

Then on Friday, in case you've forgotten, Warner Bros. is re-releasing The Dark Knight in standard format theaters and in IMAX, meaning if you somehow missed it, you'll have a chance to see it for the first time. However, this is really one for the most ardent fans as the studio moves closer to Titanic on the all-time box office chart, but not close enough to overtake it.

The film will be in 250 locations this weekend, a run that won't last that long, just enough to earn a few million more bucks.

Most of you have seen the film, so you know about the first six minutes, one of the best openings for a movie of this type ever made. The bank robbery scene is a classic, and frankly, I wish other parts of the film had this stripped-down immediacy. It turns out that it's the only part of The Dark Knight that Heath Ledger ever saw.

Producer Charles Roven tells Entertainment Weekly that he took Ledger to see what was at that point the only completed section of the film at an IMAX theater in London. "I said, 'You have to see this...' He watched it, and it just blew his mind. He was so thrilled, he was just laughing. He said, 'I want to see it again.'"

"We showed it to him again," Roven adds. "That was the last time I saw him."

Look for The Dark Knight to be a major player in the technical awards this year at the Oscars, although I don't anticipate a huge run for the top prizes. The win for Ledger will likely be the highlight. And don't forget to see it this weekend, particularly in IMAX, if you haven't already.

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AuthorColin Boyd | | in , , , , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment2 Comments |

Reader Comments (2)

that just brings tears to my eyes

to think he never saw the majority of his brilliance on screen

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 | Unregistered Commenterabower

To be honest, Ledger had been doing very fine roles for some time when he died.

He had a rather peculiar screen presence that was a mix of confidence and vulnerability.

The Joker was of course a very impressive role but it wasn't his best and it didn't show his full range.

Does he deserve an Oscar for it? Of course he does.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterLengthy Johnson

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