2008 in film

The year 2008 involved many major film events. ''The Dark Knight'' was the year's highest-grossing film, while ''Slumdog Millionaire'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture (out of eight Academy Awards).

Evaluation of the year

2008 has been widely considered to be a very significant year for cinema.

The entertainment agency website IGN described 2008 as "one of the biggest years ever for movies." It stated, "2008 was the year when the comic book movie genre not only hits its zenith, but also gained critical respectability thanks to ''The Dark Knight''. Animated films also proved a huge draw for filmgoers, with Pixar's ''WALL-E'' becoming not only the highest grossing toon but also the most lauded. Things got off on the right foot with the monster movie madness of ''Cloverfield''. Marvel got down to business laying the groundwork for their superhero team-up ''The Avengers'' with the blockbuster hit '' Iron Man'' and their respectable attempt at rebooting ''The Incredible Hulk''. The games-to-film genre took a hit this year, with only Max Payne proving to be a worthy adaptation of the source material. We also saw the highly anticipated big-screen returns of iconic characters like '' Batman'', '' James Bond'', and '' Indiana Jones'' – some were more successful than others."

The film industry and review website IndieWire described 2008 as "a stellar year for movies" that "gave us tons of unforgettable classics" such as '' The Wrestler'', ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'' and '' Che''.

Highest-grossing films

The top 10 films released in 2008 by worldwide gross are as follows:

For 2008, the top ten films consisted of three superhero films, three animated films, three action films and one musical film.

Box office records

* In the domestic box office, 2008 came very close in passing 2007 as the highest-grossing year, falling short by just $30 million.
* On August 4, ''The Dark Knight'' reached a $400 million domestic gross in a record time of 18 days. The previous record was held by ''Shrek 2'', which reached it in 43 days. On August 31, after 45 days in release, ''The Dark Knight'' reached $500 million domestically, becoming only the second film in history after '' Titanic'' to cross the half-billion-dollar domestic milestone, as well as the first film of the 2000s decade. Worldwide, it grossed $997 million on its initial release, and an IMAX reissue in 2009 saw it become the fourth film to gross $1 billion at the global box office.
* '' Mamma Mia!'' became the highest-grossing film in UK history until it was surpassed by '' Avatar'' in 2010.
* ''Slumdog Millionaire'' set several records. At the worldwide box office, it became the most successful British independent film of all time. At the UK box office, it became the highest-grossing British independent film (surpassing ''Four Weddings and a Funeral''), the highest-grossing British film without US studio investment, and the biggest ever weekly "increase for a UK saturation release" (surpassing ''Billy Elliot'')''.''

Events

Awards

2008 films

The list of films released in 2008, arranged by country, are as follows:
* American films
* Argentine films
* Australian films
* Bengali films
* Bollywood films
* Brazilian films
* British films
* French films
* Hong Kong films
* Italian films
* Japanese films
* Mexican films
* Pakistani films
* Russian films
* South Korean films
* Spanish films
* List of Kannada films of 2008
* Malayalam films
* Tamil films
* Telugu films

Births

*January 24 - Chlaui Malayao, Filipina child actress
*March 14 - Abby Ryder Fortson, American actress
*June 3 - Harshaali Malhotra, Indian actress
*July 15 - Iain Armitage, American actor
*August 1 - Emma Berman, American actress
*November 23 - Asher Blinkoff, American actor
*December 27 - Faithe Herman, American actress

Deaths

Film debuts

* Chadwick Boseman – '' The Express: The Ernie Davis Story''
* Jessica Chastain – '' Jolene''
* Boyd Holbrook – ''Milk''
* Felicity Jones – ''Flashbacks of a Fool''
* Jennifer Lawrence – '' Garden Party''
* Riyadh Mahmood – '' Aduri''
* Rooney Mara – '' Dream Boy''
* Margot Robbie – ''Vigilante''
* Davide Sordella, Pablo Benedetti – '' Woman's Hearts''

See also

* 2008

References

{{Portal bar, Film

Film by year