They call him the Dark Knight but the caped crusader is certainly the loudest this cinemagoer has yet heard. Guests emerged shell-shocked from the Leicester Square premiere of the new Batman caper, not from the quality of the film but the sheer volume with which the audience was constantly assaulted.

From the front row position, bang in front of the Wembley-sized speaker system, thoughtfully assigned to myself by the distributors, every bazooka explosion and crunching blow dealt by the Joker was presented at deafening pitch. Chunks of dialogue too disappeared in the booming melee, in truth no great loss.

Because cinema is a “lean-back” medium, studios presume popcorn-munchers simply want to be overwhelmed by the spectacle. Multiplexes are, after all, competing with HD-ready home entertainment centres with pin-perfect surround-sound.

But many audience-members at The Dark Knight premiere complained afterwards that the already over-long film was a numbing experience, partly due to the constant volume peak.

The transition from analogue to digital film has exacerbated the problem. Analogue soundtracks would simply distort at high levels but a digital transmission allows for a wider dynamic range and more volume peaks.

In the music industry, CDs are mastered to give the loudest possible sound, reducing the gaps between peaks. This is to make a song sound “loud” on the radio but creates a similar buzzing, numb effect, when tracks are played at volume.

Studios release films with a reference sound of 85 decibels but its up to multiplex managers whether they whack the volume up to full. Landlords turn the music volume up in pubs because it deters talking, prompting more drinking. Perhaps cinemas are seeking to drive fans into the foyers during dull films to buy more popcorn?

Westminster City Council has been know to investigate reports of potentially ear-damaging volume at West End cinemas. Or maybe, like at rock gigs, film fans should now be issued with earplugs.

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