The Dark Knight

I had this idea that I can't believe I never thought of before during class the other day. Some people might know that I am a total movie buff and I love going to movies and seeing them over and over and over and over again. So over the next couple weeks I'm going to try to take some of my favorite movies and look at their opening scenes - see what happens, how it sets up the plot, tone, and characterization, and maybe even compare it to other similar scenes. So this week it begins with one of my favorites: Batman: The Dark Knight.

In the opening scene of this movie (if you haven't seen it), a bunch of thugs dressed like clowns rob a bank. But the clever part is that each one of the thugs, after they complete their job (cutting the power, opening the safe, taking the money), is killed by the next thug. However, none of the guys realize that the Joker is actually one of the thugs working with them. As always, the Joker prevails untouched with all the bank's money. This scene full of gunfire sets the stage for the movie as explosive and exciting. For example, the best part of the whole scene is at the end when a bus just randomly breaks through the side of the bank. It's totally unexpected but totally awesome. The Joker and the rest of the gang's immense desire to rob the bank conveys a sense of caustic ferocity as though they were babies that would do anything to get their toys. And of course nothing will stop the Joker from getting what he wants because frankly he has nothing to lose.