“3. Visual Appeal

Even on the surface, Sith trumps Dark Knight in terms of eye candy and visual imagination, and that goes double for the IMAX screen. Aside from a few swooping city shots, The Dark Knight wallows in the murk of its drab, modernist Gotham, which has lost its Gothic appeal. Like all Star Wars prequels, Sith is overstuffed with creatures, costumes, and effects, but here, the baroque design is subjected to an appropriate third-act treatment as it slowly descends into darkness: for most of the film, it is dusk, and after Anakin’s turn, night falls on the galaxy. The illuminating use of darkness can’t be matched by The Dark Knight’s heedless back-and-forth between moody night shots and overlit day, serving no dramatic purpose. “