Robert Downey Jr. Disses The Dark Knight, Tells DC Comics to FO!

Posted on Wednesday, August 13th, 2008 by Hunter Stephenson

Iron Man just bitch slapped The Dark Knight for having a BA in philosophy. To be more precise, a non-blackface Robert Downey Jr. candidly discussed his rabid thoughts about the biggest fanboy movie of all time to MovieHole. Nice.

“The Dark Knight. “My whole thing is that that I saw The Dark Knight. I feel like I’m dumb because I feel like I don’t get how many things that are so smart. It’s like a Ferrari engine of storytelling and script writing and I’m like, ‘That’s not my idea of what I want to see in a movie.’ I loved The Prestige but didn’t understand The Dark Knight. Didn’t get it, still can’t tell you what happened in the movie, what happened to the character and in the end they need him to be a bad guy. I’m like, ‘I get it. This is so high brow and so fucking smart, I clearly need a college education to understand this movie.’ You know what? Fuck DC comics. That’s all I have to say and that’s where I’m really coming from.”

It’s on the table like a fanboy buffet. What else needs to be said? RDJ gave a hat tip to Tropic Thunder and Iron Man 2 screenwriter Justin Theroux, expressing relaxed confidence in the Marvel sequel. Moreover, Theroux made an apples-and-oranges comparison to TDK and Iron Man 2 yesterday to Vulture. His take: TDK is Days of Thunder and Iron Man 2 is Talladega Nights. Yep, it’s war.

Discuss: Are Robert Downey Jr.’s criticisms worthy? In your opinion, how much better was TDK than Iron Man? Did anyone like Iron Man more?

Update: Hmm, there’s some TDK backlash in the comments. Is RDJ a cigar-chomping harbinger?

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  • Riser
    Something about that interview makes me think that something was lost in translation. I can just imagine RDJ laughing and smiling while saying all of that.
  • The Jezzus
    Get'em Downey!
  • DrathosXeon
    Why so serious?
  • EMP
    Two different beasts.
  • 88
    Dark Knight sucked.
  • Matt H
    LOL i have to give Downey props for this. I definitely think he was messing around, he seems like a pretty fun guy.

    If I must:

    Iron Man is the Raiders of the Lost Ark of comic book films
    The Dark Knight is The Godfather Pt. 2 of them

    both classics, just in different ways.
  • Palmer
    Seriously, I can just imagine that this was said as a joke.
  • I've heard many people say something akin to what Downey is getting at.

    I like it, even if (as I must assume) his tongue was planted firmly in cheek while saying it.
  • b-nasty
    i loved both tdk and iron man but i must say, i see where robert is coming from.
  • I've put it this way: Dark Knight was the best movie of the year, Iron Man was the most entertaining. Dark Knight was by no means a popcorn movie.
  • Hendo
    SOUR GRAPES. He went from having the best CB film to playing second fiddle. I'd be a little bitter about it too if I was him.
  • The Cheat
    Downey is just mad because his entire career combined hasn't made as much money as TDK has in a matter of weeks....
  • Brian
    I agree with RDJ. I personally liked Iron Man a lot more. I don't think he is necesarily saying TDK is a bad movie, but its just not as thematically smart as people are making it out to be, which i agree with.
  • Christopher Marc
    I think Downey Jr. is just upset his blockbuster success with Iron Man is being overshadowed by The Dark Knight...now with his next blockbuster most likely to be beaten by TDK...he's frustrated by a well made movie that doesn't have comedy in it, so he doesn't get it...Iron Man was a decent comic book movie but it had it's problems...

    TDK is far from being a movie for smart people it's based on comic themes with some psychological theory...I would say Watchmen would be more of a study for the sociology majors and a deeper/intellectual film...
  • Ben C.
    I came out of the Dark Knight and was floored. But I have to say the more I think about the movie I do start to see where Robert is coming. I do believe though that Iron Man and TDK shouldn't really be compared as they were going for different things. I think someone on AICN said it best when they said Iron Man was the best Comic Book movie ever and TDK was the best Graphic Novel movie ever. I would say though that RDJ's performance ran laps around Bale and his Batman. Loved both movies though.
  • Adrian
    I have to admit, when I read the headline I got my hopes up for RDJ starring as a villian in the next Batman. Hopes considerably dashed!

    He's right, in a way. But DK is a better movie.... Iron Man is simply a more accessible one.
  • 88
    I think he might be right.

    Unless someone can explain to me why they had to pin the Dent murders on Batman (when they could have just as easily pinned them on the Joker) then Downey is right: TDK makes no sense.

    Its characters lack consistent motivation and the plot has holes big enough to drive a back-flipping semi through.

    There's only one solid explanation for this rabid fandom of TDK, and that is MASS HYPNOSIS. GROUPTHINK. Broad-based ZOMBIFICATION.
  • StarBlazer101
    haha I'm surprised the batman fanboys aren't bashing Robert's head on a concrete wall.

    IRON MAN RULES!!!!
  • Alan Geiss
    Wow, If that was a joke RDJ is terrible at them. If he's serious what an unprofessional disrespectful guy, and an asshole.
  • Adam B.
    Iron Man is like the Transformers of this year, simple script/story with some shinny shit and explosions. The Dark Knight is a completely different machine. If you have to have a college education to understand it, so be it. I'd rather have a complexed movie like that over brain dead bullshit like Meet The Spartans, for example, any day.
  • ifthenwhy
    Downey nails it!

    Although Im not sure it's a "smart" movie. More like a muddled screenplay movie.

    Let the fucking Dark Knight backlash begin!!
  • John84
    Hah, well i don't agree with him, but i think he's just trying to promote himself and his films by blabbering about popular things.
  • Indiefilm
    I respect The Dark Knight's criticism.
    Its not for everyone. The picture is
    a different Batman film than
    anyone has seen before. That's part
    of why I loved The Dark Knight. The
    movie is 1/2 about how the Batman became
    Batman. Through his struggle, he's
    becoming what gotham needs him to be.

    He's a vigilante, and hopefully, I'm seeing
    signs that for the third film, he'll eventually
    be put on a golden pedestal for his heroic acts
    like where Batman's character was in
    Burton's 89 film andit's sequel, Batman Returns
    ...briefly.

    Nolan and Burton's take on Batman are different,
    but I put the comparison because in The Dark Knight
    Bruce Wayne is still growing. His character's arch isn't
    finished. There's experience that he's learned from
    and continues to grow. Batman isn't respected yet.


    I loved the line where Joker says
    to Batman, we're meant to do this
    forever. This is film that goes beyond
    halloween costumes, its a tragic, oscar-worthy
    melodrama disguised as a summer blockbuster.
    I love it.

    I respect Robert's comments. There's a lot
    of people that didn't care for it. I
    love film, and I like some change in the
    same-old blah summer flick so naturally,
    it was amazing in my opinion. Nolan
    is my favorite living filmmaker
  • Goldfoot
    @88, Your negative opinion doesn't mean the movie actually sucked. If it did, it wouldn't be breaking records left and right. Name all these plot holes that you have found. I'm sure you just didn't take the time to actually think about it and prefer everything to be spoon-fed to you. Nolan doesn't do that and one of the things I love about movies is when they require you to think on your own.
  • dvq
    wtf? The Prestige is WAY more complex than TDK, come on!, he must have been kidding.
  • 88
    Right, Goldfoot. Why don't you answer the first question I asked, and do it logically, and then I'll spoon-feed you some more once you take care of that one. Eh? Eh? Eh? You have no idea who you're dealing with.
  • kr1sko
    The Dent murders had to be pinned on Batman to save Dent's status as savior of Gotham and return Batman's credibility. Batman, although it was never said, probably preferred this because now he remains the vigilante that is capable of anything at anytime. He's not just the police's watchdog that plays by their moral/ethical rules. It returns Batman to his roots of terrorizing Gotham rather than being McGruff the Crime Dog.
  • Gart, Bo
    This might play differently than intended in print, since we can't hear how he was actually saying it. He may have just been rabble-rousing.

    Rabble-Rousing.
  • @ Goldfoot
    88 is right, you're dealing with a twelve-year-old, it doesn't matter how much logic you use, he'll still think he's right.
  • I just watched the Prestige again....and my head still spins trying to figure it out.

    TDK was nowhere near as complicated.

    But, everyone's entitled to their own opinion. I think TDK would have been even better without the tacked on Two Face transformation at the end which made for an anti-climactic ending.

    But that's just my opinion!
  • H
    Iron Man is a pop corn movie. Theres cool suits (Batman cant even hold a candle to IM on this one), cool cars, somewhat naked airline stewardeses, making gwenth paltrow look hot, etc. The movie was great immensley entertaining.

    But the dark knight was meant to be more serious and required a bit more thought. It put us in the position to ask "would we cross over and go to that level, or would we stand by our convictions." It showed that goodness and hope in the world need to be protected by those who are willing to get dirty and do whatever is necessary to preserve them.

    This is my opinion, you dont have to agree.
  • prophecy_projectz
    This interview is like a week old though and one guy in the comments is growing backlash?

    Forcing backlash doesnt work....yawn
  • 88
    Right, kr1sko, I got the STATED reason for pinning the murders on Batman.

    But my actual question was why not just pin the murders on the Joker? Those murders were, indirectly, his fault anyway. Why pin them on Batman? It doesn't make any sense, outside from allowing the filmmakers an opportunity to close the movie on some jive-ass pseudo-heavy/pseudo-meaningful plot beat.

    Again, it doesn't make any sense.

    Mass hypnosis.
  • H
    wow 88 brings up a pretty good point.
  • Gartholomew
    Dark Knight = amazing film.
    Iron Man = amazing film.

    It's all a matter of taste. I loved both of them, but I prefer Iron Man way more. The Dark Knight was epic, but... well... dark- and moody, and philosophical. Iron Man was just plain fun, a rocking, kick-butt good time.

    Which is not to say that TDK wasn't fun, or Iron Man wasn't philosophical. It's just focus and tone.
  • charles
    hahahahahaa
  • H
    Think about it if the murders were pinned on the joker instead of batman than the police could have taken credit for the capture of the joker (im assuming he was captured and detained and sent to prison ) and the reputation of the police would rise. And batman would still be a hero and can still work with the police to capture the rest of gotham scum. Wow, thats a mighty big whole blown in the side of TDK.

    Besides this it was still a great movie and posted some good psychological questions.
  • &E B.
    I'd say he's being a little harsh, though I do think TDK is extremely over rated.

    I don't dislike Christian Bale, but he blows as Bruce Wayne. Heath Ledger was awesome as the Joker, but should have been in a better story than this one. TDK was all about Harvey Dent, which was boring. And Two-face looked lame as hell. Like something from Pirates of the Carribbean. And God, the cell phone thing? Fucking God.

    And you know, I just don't believe it when the mob isn't saying fuck. There needed to be a lot of fucks in that movie. It should have been rated R. Though I'm not going to start that argument. I know Nolan needed it to be more available to the larger masses.

    After all of that though, I still that TDK was way better than fucking Iron Man.
  • Poops
    Yep Robert, it's DC comics' fault that you've baked your brain with a large amount of drugs and can't follow a fairly simple story.
  • South Texas Terror
    I think Downey is right. Ledger lifted everyones opinion of TDK. If you look at the movie as a whole or take Ledger out of it, the movie isnt that great.
  • K.G.
    88, think for a moment. Gordon has alerted his police force that there is a hostage situation at the warehouse. The Joker, meanwhile, is in police custody. Some routine police work would probably lead the police to believe that the Two-Face murders/attacks are related and that the killer is now entrenched with Gordon in the warehouse. Again...Joker=in custody. Batman, meanwhile, is present at the scene AND already has a reputation as a violent vigilante. That he might kill a mob boss and some corrupt cops seems reasonable enough. So many criticisms I've come across on the web of TDK are based around these "plot holes." I've noticed that when viewers like 88 discuss plot holes they're really revealing that they aren't able to infer information from the film that isn't blatantly stated in the dialogue. Damn that Christopher Nolan for expecting the audience to think.
  • orange cinema
    too bad he took the less noble approach and decided to badmouth, when he and favreau should be calling nolan 'daddy'.

    bottom line: ironman is a very safe/risk-free franchise. i'd be intimidated by the superior batman films too, if i was him.
  • Travis Mcgee
    Now I'm worried about Iron Man 2...

    "Theroux made an apples-and-oranges comparison to TDK and Iron Man 2 yesterday to Vulture. His take: TDK is Days of Thunder and Iron Man 2 is Talladega Nights."
  • Lucin
    88:

    Since we're asking questions. I have one that bothered me with the ending to TDK as well.

    Harvey lost it because the Joker convinced him that Batman and the law inforcement plan everything and that he doesn't. Now at the end when Batman is standing before Two Face trying to reason with him, and Harvey kept throwing out his reasoning for the murders as pay back for himself being saved instead of the girl. Why didn't Batman just simply explain that he wasn't going after Harvey in the first place? The Joker tricked Batman into saving Harvey instead of the girl.
  • sean coates
    RDJ's frontal lobe was melted by cocaine, i love the guy and all his movies. However TDK was amazing, edgy and fresh and Iron Man is like all Marvel movies they pull a couple easy laughs. DC took the darker approach and it paid of ten fold. If u cant understand the meanings in TDK and the prestige maybe u should stick to the kids section of your local movie store.
  • akumi okuda
    Are we sure he's off the drugs? Cause he sounds like he's on crack har har har har.

    Anyways, it seems fairly obvious that he was being sarcastic for anyone who missed that, and so what he means is basically that the Dark Knight made no sense. In particular, it made no sense for Dent to suddenly become a bad guy. In my opinion, that's kinda like saying, "Dude, it makes no sense that King Oedipus gouged out his eyes at the end. That's just weird."
  • 88
    Right. And the police would never allow those murders to be pinned on the Joker after all the trouble he's put them through. Um....
  • Ben
    Ok. I'll put it this way. Iron Man was a great superhero movie with a great performance by RDJ, a great, funny script, and, most of all, it was simple and exciting. It was light, fun, a great popcorn flick.

    The Dark Knight, however, was a stunning, dark, complex and profound masterpiece. It had almost equally great performances from its 4 leading men, though they don't seem as strong as Heath's because they weren't as showy. It was 2 hours of masterpiece epic crime drama, 32 mins. of a great superhero flick like Iron Man. I personally was deeply terrified by the bleak realism of the mob. It was so brutally real that it convinced me that something happened for good reason even when there were small holes in motives. It was visually striking, blackly comedic, it had great action sequences, themes, performances. It only started to falter as Batman began using the cell-phone sonar (admittedly a rather dumb gadget). It had certainly begun ascending again by the closing speech by Gordon, though. And the Joker's pencil trick and the scar story he tells to Gambol are both classic scenes that will stick in my mind forever.

    And Iron Man is a great popcorn flick.
  • 88
    That, too, Lucin.... right. Exactly. How much headache could have been averted if Bats & Gordon had simply explained that they were tricked into saving him? (Heckuva job they did, anyway, but still....) Yeah, instead, Batman just stands there while Aaron Eckhart gets more and more bent out of shape. It makes no sense.
  • Jack M.
    LMAO

    And you thought us black people would tear him a new one for dressing in so called "blackface", when in reality, we could care less.

    Lets see which is worser

    Black people rioting in the streets because Robert Downey Jr is dressing like a Black dude.

    Retarded People rioting in the streets because the Tropic Thunder movie wasn't nice to them.

    or TDK fanboys rioting because he just said The Dark Knight could go f*ck itself.

    The only thing that could top all that is a "Black Retarded TDK fanboy"
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