Chapter 612:

David Denbigh was disappointed that the cruise ship didn't explode.

But clearly, the audience had a different opinion. For the first time, there was a strong movement in the theater—applause, accompanied by whistles and cheers.

David Denbigh gave a wry smile and joined in the clapping.

"The victory of human nature, the failure of the movie (artistically); the victory of the movie, the failure of human nature... Haha, Martin's choice should've been expected. After all, there's a layer of perfect businessman in his various lights!"

"If you want to make money and be watched by the general public, then the movie must give people a little bit of humanity—hope!"

What David Denbigh found interesting was that every year, Hollywood produces a large number of colorful films that depict human nature, yet the audience doesn't like them. In contrast, Martin's type of film—showing a little light in the darkness and depression of a blockbuster—was incredibly touching.

He saw a few audience members burst into tears.

"Is this the movie plot version of 'hunger marketing'?"

Los Angeles Theater

While applauding, Jonathan Nolan murmured as if he had some enlightenment: "It is precisely because of the darkness and depression in the previous plots that the truth, goodness, and beauty of human nature are shown here, making it so infectious!"

For some reason, he always felt that the script for The Dark Knight, written by Martin, was particularly to his liking.

The applause lasted for a minute before stopping.

The theater fell silent again, with everyone quietly waiting for the final climax of the film to arrive.

It was almost time—the two-hour mark had passed, and the end was near.

Batman found the Joker.

In the final fight, Batman defeated the Joker. The Joker was a master at stirring up people's hearts, but his fighting ability was instantly reduced to scum by Batman.

But did Batman really win?

His lover, Rachel, was killed in a bombing; the man he admired, Harvey, was bewitched by the clown into a "Two-Face" after being disfigured.

The clown's criminal behavior had two characteristics: violent destruction and the torture of people's hearts.

He always carried out his criminal activities in unpredictable ways.

In this series of events, his only purpose was to break all rules.

In Gotham, even the underworld, which is outside the law, has its own underground rules.

But the clown only believed that "things that can't kill you make you weirder."

This sentence can be said in reverse: Only by becoming weirder can you prevent yourself from being eliminated—the clown became weird to prevent himself from being eliminated.

That said, the only rule for the Joker is that there are no rules.

He used the elimination of Batman as bait to make the gangs sign a devil's contract, meaning the gangs had no rules; he threatened the police with his family's safety to do his bidding, meaning the police had no rules; he stood on the street and faced Batman's chariot to make Batman have no rules; and his most successful move was turning Harvey Dent, who represented the law, into a double-faced man who trampled on the law.

Harvey was the Joker's most successful work so far. This handsome and upright prosecutor embraced the ideal of fighting crime and practiced it personally, bringing almost all the gangsters in the city to court for trial.

Harvey dared to take responsibility. He resolutely replaced Bruce Wayne and was arrested because he believed that Gotham City needed Batman more. And because of this, he captured the hearts of beautiful women and defeated Batman in love.

He was what people called the "Knight of Light," a man that even Batman would be ashamed of.

But the Joker successfully transformed him from the bright knight envied by Batman into a criminal who tramples the law—Two-Face.

The Joker did not lose in this regard. He proved his concept that even a righteous knight of light like Harvey could still fall with his own "gentle push."

When Harvey tossed the coin up and down to try Sheriff Gordon and Batman, everyone in the theater sighed with regret, and at the same time, they felt even more terrified of the Joker.

At this moment, the former Bright Knight no longer had order and law in his mind. The basis for his judgment was the front and back of the coin.

Yes, it's luck.

In the end, Harvey chose to let Sheriff Gordon's son accept the punishment so that he could experience the feeling of losing a loved one.

But before the coin hit the ground, Batman tackled Harvey and saved the child.

The coin hit the ground at that moment. Heads, Harvey lost, and he chose to fall to his death.

This scene made countless viewers sigh because a series of foreshadowing before the film had made Harvey's image in the eyes of the audience too good.

The Joker, or rather the plot of the film, destroyed this beauty.

Batman's victory over Harvey is victory over evil?

No one thinks so. It is not Batman or justice that wins, but the Joker.

He completely destroyed Gotham's hope and the most perfect person in Gotham.

Then, the most touching scene of Batman in the film happened.

In order not to lose hope in Gotham City, Batman is determined to bear all the blame. Harvey cannot be a criminal, so Batman, who caused Harvey's death, can only be a criminal.

"I'm whatever Gotham needs me to be."

At the end, the film once again played with the hearts of the audience, leaving them with mixed emotions.

Batman's "not killing" led to the Joker's escape, which made the audience indignant. Some viewers even believed that Gotham ended up like this, and Harvey's death was caused by Batman's cowardice.

"If he had crashed out of the motorcycle, wouldn't there have been so many things?"

But when Batman escaped into the darkness, chose to take on all the crimes committed by Harvey, was wanted by the Gotham police, and became a notorious fugitive, the audience felt a similar feeling of heartbreak and admiration.

The conversation between Gordon and his son made many viewers cry.

"Why hunt down Batman? He didn't do anything wrong?"

"Because he is Gotham City's true hero, but Gotham City doesn't need him right now. So we're going after him because he can take this. Because he's not only our hero, he's a silent guardian, a vigilante protector, he's the Dark Knight."

At this point in the film, Batman has finally become the real Dark Knight.

The soundtrack is booming, and the epic music, together with Sheriff Gordon's narration, rings in the ears of all viewers.

The subtitles rise, and David appears. He couldn't let it go for a long time.

It wasn't until the lights in the theater came on that he wrote this sentence in his notebook:

The Joker did not lose, and Batman did not win. Although Batman physically destroyed the Joker, the Joker psychologically destroyed Batman and Gotham. He turned Harvey, the city's symbol of justice on the surface, into a criminal; he turned Batman, the city's secret symbol of justice, into a criminal. I found this"criminal,", win.