The Dark Knight Rises

[Adm56]

So I'm watching TDK on blu-ray this morning....about 10 mins in....Batman broke up the drug deal and spoke to Gordon in the bank vault. And BAM....I can't shake the feeling that I've already seen about as much of Bale in the costume as I saw in ALL of TDKR. Of course I'm exaggerating a bit but not by much!

[baumer]

The Dark Knight Rises is a complete mess. It's convoluted, silly, inconsistent and worst of all DULL.First I should give a frame of reference for giving it 6 out of 10. It's not a terrible film but it's not nearly as good as the other two. I'd rate Batman Begins as an 8/10 and The Dark Knight 10/10.The main problem here is just unchecked excess. Nolan has being given (and rightfully earned) complete free reign to do what he likes with this franchise. So it's at his door that the blame must fall for this overblown mess.Third films in a franchise disappointing are nothing new. Look no further than films like Spiderman 3, Terminator 3 and even films like Austin Powers and Rush Hour. One of the big problems here is Nolan gets drunk on plot. There are so many plot strands running here and they all end up half-baked and largely redundant. And in his desperate struggle to weave them into something coherent, Nolan is forced to completely abandon character motivation and common sense and literally just shifts characters from one place to another with no cause-and-effect whatsoever.There are so many plot holes here it's simply not worth listing them. A few plot holes can be forgiven in films that set the story in a fantastical universe, but Batman Begins and The Dark Knight were refreshingly serious portrayals of the superhero films and grounded them in a reality close to our own. The Dark Knight rises destroys that reality completely.Holding an American city hostage for five months with no outside help is ludicrous.Having every cop in the city stranded under ground for 3 months is silly.Having Bruce break his back, get a vertebrae punched back into place, leave the prison in the middle of nowhere, somehow find a way to get back to Gotham, when he has no money and no means of travel, get back into the city and then find Selina in one part of the city is beyond dumb. I just can't get past the logic of this film when it slaps you across the face with silliness after silliness. Then to top it off, Bruce tells Alfred to take a hike after 50 years service to the Wayne family because he tried to protect Bruce by throwing away Rachel's letter. Bane gets beat in a fist fight by Batman the second time around and I could go on and on and on. And finally the dialogue is awful. Remember when Harvey Dent says to Bruce Wayne in TDK "you either die as a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain"… That was a nice line. But if EVERY character talks like that for the whole film it loses all meaning and suddenly you see the writer's hand everywhere. In TDKR people just start spouting pseudo-philosophical metaphors at each other about what the city needs. The city needs an airport, that's what it needs. And the franchise needs a long rest before the inevitable reboot.6/10

[Adm56]

Your comment about the characters doing crazy things just to service the convoluted plot is dead on. You can tell Nolan got bored with the franchise. Everything is done in the 'easiest' manner possible:The fight scenes are the biggest example. If you compare the fight scene editing in TDK to the fights in TDKR the latter scenes are just boring static shot snooze fests. I think the people that like them are reacting to finally seeing epic moments on screen (which is fine to a certain extent) but there was no reason they couldn't be visually interesting as well. In general the camera just has a lot more ENERGY in TDK...and according to IMDB all of the big players involved in the last film are still here (Director, Editor, Cinematographer). So why the change in style to favoring boredom? LAZINESS.Major villain deaths. Bane's death is used to prove Catwoman's loyalty but it's done too quickly. As is the introduction of the big bad and her death.There are also other minor things like 'we need the Batcopter back so lets just say he left it under a fairly obvious tarp for 5 months while visiting his chiropractor'. Lazy.

Edited July 22, 2012 by Adm56

[fishstick]

TDKR Act 1:Bruce: We`ve gathered to spoil the ending to the audience. Please spill the beans generously.Lucius: The autopilot needs to be fixed. Autopilot. Need.Fix.Bruce:Noted. NextAlfred: I had a dream...that all men are created equalEveryone:????????????????????Alfred: Oh c`mon, I`m the token old wise man so I have to spew some old wisdom. Anyway, back on topic. I had a dream that Bruce disappeared and than I see him and his wife in a Paris cafe.Selina:Coincidently, I want a clean slate.Bruce:So do I!John: I want to announce that I`m an oprphan and like all orphans I`m full of anger and wear a mask and that`s how I figured Bruce is Batman. So we are,like, kindred spirits and soulmates and shit,so my point is that when autopilot is fixed and Bruce and Selina sit in the Paris cafe, Gotham may need an orphan to keep wearing the mask if you know what I`m sayin?Alfred: Since I`m the wise old man I have a wise advice - now that we told the audience how the movie will end, lets throw them off the scent, so they think the movie will not end like we told them, only to see that the movie ended like we told them.Lucious: Genius. Lets do that by supporting Miranda Tate as the company CEO, future Mrs Wayne, guardian of a would-be atomic bomb...John:Who Hell Miranda Tate?Bruce: And who hell you, John? Seriously, who hell you to already have more screen time than all of us canon characters together? Eh?Act 2John BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeSomewhere in Mexico that looks like Any Stan desert but whateverBruce: Oh shit I broke back.Magic healer: Brokeback?Bruce:You know about Brokeback?Magic healer: We have a TV bro.Bruce: Holy shit, the latest jumbo plazma screen! I`d buy that if I didn`t go broke. Lets see what`s on.TV: John BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeSomewhere in the desert that definitely isn`t Mexico but for some reason is said to be in MexicoForeign Language Speakng Basil Exposition: tumba lumba rata tataMagic healer translation: The child with very feminine delicate face like a shaven headed girl escaped.Bruce: That sounds awfully like Bane.Foreign Language Speaking Basil Exposition: wrooom wroomMagic healer translates: The child had big blue eyes like Miranda Tate.Bruce: Definitely Bane!Foreign Language Speaking Basil Exposition: yippeee ka-yayMagic healer translates:The child`s protector was a really big dude,like really big, and he,like, always wore some shit over his face and was beaten up badly so I had to fix him...Bruce: I see...So delicate girly-faced blue-eyed child Bane was inspired to become a big dude with some shit over his face and dark eyes like his protector. Figures. nevermind that you guys never address the child as he by his name that I know is Bane but for some reason you never call him Bane which should be awfully suspicious as if I got it wrong but it isn`t suspicious to me at all even though Alfred said the pit is in Mexico and it obviously isn`t in Mexcio and he also said Bane escaped from it so if the pit isn`t in Mexico but he said it was maybe Bane didn`t escape either but nah that thought never crossed my mind not even once. Lets watch TV.TV:John BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeAct 3Somewhere in the desert that isn`t in MexicoBruce: Shit! My soul is crushed by this jumbo plazma TV showing that Who Hell He John Blake has highjacked the movie from me. I must escape from the pit and remind the world that I am the Dark Knight from the movie ttile but for some uncomprehensible reason I can`t! WTF is wrong? I was healed from a serious spine injury with a single rope as prescribed by a guy who never walked by medical school let alone finished one. I should be able to climb Mt Everest after such a professional medical treatment. WTF is happening?Foreign Languge Speaking Basil Exposition (in English): You can`t escape from the pit before hearing an inspirational speech in English, bro.Bruce: Right! So what do you have for me?Foreign Language Speaking Basil Exposition (in English): The child escaped cause the child feared death. You must fear death.Fear death and you`ll escape. Don`t fear death and you will not escape. Do and do or don`t and don`t. Fear on climb on. Fear off climb off.Bruce: So you are telling me you and 300+ prisoners can`t escape cause all of you don`t fear death? You all are,like, super-fearless?Foreign Language Speaking Basil Exposition: Non halbla InglesJohn BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeBruce:I`m back to Gotham which is cut-off from the rest of America by thin ice and blown up bridges. I walked through a desert, that I thought was in Mexico but wasn`t,5 months after a major spine injury. I have no money in my pocket nor on my bank account. Yet here I am so if you ever wondered how the Venture crew transfered King Kong from Skull island to NY and never got the answer, same shit here. Suspend the disbelief!John BlakeJohn BlakeJohn BlakeBruce: Anyway, I managed to come to Gotham despite spinal injury, unknown desert`s heat, no money, thin ice and blown up bridges guarded by US Army on one side and some crazies on the other side.But I can`t get to Lucious Fox!What a bummer, what to do? lets see. Selina Kyle betrayed me to Bane which makes her a perfectly trustworthy person for the job. Cause I can`t contact John Blake and give the bastard even more screen time can I?Ending = see Act 1

Edited July 22, 2012 by fishnets

[DeeCee]

You have to much time on your hands.

[Ezen Baklattan]

Even if I didn't love it, it's hard to keep audiences interested for a nearly 3 hour run time, but this film does it with ease.

[Adm56]

Even if I didn't love it, it's hard to keep audiences interested for a nearly 3 hour run time, but this film does it with ease.

Personally I felt every second of the bloated run time and looked at my watch at least three or four times.

[fishstick]

You have to much time on your hands.

It`s weekend,bro. I don`t have to work so too much time on my hands is justified.

[baumer]

Fish, I'm not going to quote that post, it'll take up too much space, but that post there is one of the reasons I love you as a poster and why you will always be my cyber-chick. That was epic, funny, true and so over the top that it should be sent to WB, even they would have a laugh.Bruce: Anyway, I managed to come to Gotham despite spinal injury, unknown desert`s heat, no money, thin ice and blown up bridges guarded by US Army on one side and some crazies on the other side.But I can`t get to Lucious Fox!What a bummer, what to do? lets see. Selina Kyle betrayed me to Bane which makes her a perfectly trustworthy person for the job. Cause I can`t contact John Blake and give the bastard even more screen time can I?EPIC!!!!!!Well done my fellow GTA'er.

[ddddeeee]

And finally the dialogue is awful. Remember when Harvey Dent says to Bruce Wayne in TDK "you either die as a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain"… That was a nice line. But if EVERY character talks like that for the whole film it loses all meaning and suddenly you see the writer's hand everywhere. In TDKR people just start spouting pseudo-philosophical metaphors at each other about what the city needs. The city needs an airport, that's what it needs. And the franchise needs a long rest before the inevitable reboot.

A million times this.

[fishstick]

Fish, I'm not going to quote that post, it'll take up too much space, but that post there is one of the reasons I love you as a poster and why you will always be my cyber-chick. That was epic, funny, true and so over the top that it should be sent to WB, even they would have a laugh.Bruce: Anyway, I managed to come to Gotham despite spinal injury, unknown desert`s heat, no money, thin ice and blown up bridges guarded by US Army on one side and some crazies on the other side.But I can`t get to Lucious Fox!What a bummer, what to do? lets see. Selina Kyle betrayed me to Bane which makes her a perfectly trustworthy person for the job. Cause I can`t contact John Blake and give the bastard even more screen time can I?EPIC!!!!!!Well done my fellow GTA'er.

You`ll always be my cyber man! :wub: :wub:

[lancer1997]

I always have found it fascinating how two people can watch the same thing and reach vastly different conclusions.For all of the moments Baumer & Fishnets bring up, none of that bothered me. I guess I just lose myself in the movie and don't think about plot stuff like that and enjoy the movie for what it is. If it is entertaining then great. If not, then oh well. Seems like a lot of you didn't even find it entertaining.Both my wife and I liked it better than TDKR.Anyway always interesting to see the differing opinions on the same thing.

[baumer]

I always have found it fascinating how two people can watch the same thing and reach vastly different conclusions.For all of the moments Baumer & Fishnets bring up, none of that bothered me. I guess I just lose myself in the movie and don't think about plot stuff like that and enjoy the movie for what it is. If it is entertaining then great. If not, then oh well. Seems like a lot of you didn't even find it entertaining.Both my wife and I liked it better than TDKR.Anyway always interesting to see the differing opinions on the same thing.

I respect your opinion. I heard a lot of people praise the film, so you are obviously not alone.

[CoolioD1]

I thought it was great. 165 minutes that just flew by. Christian Bale was really great in this, but the MVP was definitely Anne Hathaway, she's no Michelle Pfeiffer, but still awesome.BTW, probably Wallly Pfister best work here. Too many awesome shots.

[fishstick]

Is anyone else surprised none of the main protagonists died? I was really expecting Lucius to bite it.

I remember a rumour that Talia kills him.I`m not for senseless massacre of characters for the sake of shock value only (CoughPOTC:AWEcough) but this was Breaking Dawn safe. That absolutely none of favorites bit the dust is just too much fan service.Also, there were too many characters who didn`t go anywhere. Matthew Modine served as a banter buddy to JGL at the beginning and than petered out. Selina, while great, didn`t really add up much. You could achieve all that w/o her. Tate was already discussed as completely underused which is why the twist didn`t work. Orphanage,lol, why were they in the movie at all? I mean, Nolan is,like, smart and whatever, so it`s weird that he couldn`t see that there was nothing in there to make those kids relatable and worth the emotional investment. They were randomly popping up when the plot requiered "poor Gothamer`s POV". That was all.As Baumer said, dialog was terrible. Stilted, artififical, every quasi-physlosophy rolled in one until actors got purple in the face from wrapping their thongues around conversations they never had in real life and never will.Oh, and the dreaded only-in-the-movie moment when a cop looks at his badge and tosses it into the river. It`s funny how in movies cops always decide to resign when they see big water and than they take a good long last look at the symbol of their profession and than toss it and walk away without looking back and you know their soul is free. I thought Nolan was above such silly tropes but TDKR was wallowing in them. His first stupid movie.

[rockNrollaDIM]

Is anyone else surprised none of the main protagonists died? I was really expecting Lucius to bite it.

I thought he was gonna drown with the nuke!

[fishstick]

I really REALLY don`t hate TDKR. But it`s ripe for poking fun at because it`s so pretentious and takes itself way too seriously and yet is loaded with utter silliness and nonsense. And that can`t stay unmocked.

[acsc1312]

Hathaway: :worthy:One place where I HAD to laugh, couldn't control myself was "WHAAARE'S THE DETONATOR!?!?! WHAAAAAREEEE IS IT?!"

[rockNrollaDIM]

You guys are ruining the movie for me, lol

[ddddeeee]

My friend completely ruined Aliens for me the other night. He found the Alien Queen using the elevator at the end hysterical and I'll never be able to watch that scene again without laughing.