The Dark Knight Rises

[Pariah]

1. The theater I saw it in yesterday (Friday) at 4:00 was only about half full....and it was a small theater. I suspect the sales will be hurt more here in Colorado than around the rest of the country.

2. I liked it. I didn't love it, and I really didn't care for Bale as Batman in this one (he was okay as Wayne...though granted, the lines blur a lot more in this film than the others).

3. As has been noted, Bane's voice: uber annoying.

4. Also, I didn't buy the whole "he wears the mask to keep the unbearable agony at bay" thing. It doesn't make any sense at all.

5. I'd love to see Nolan do another film/series of films that picks up where this one left off. Otherwise, I fear we'll be left with another reboot. I hate reboots of iconic characters. If you don't know how batman is batman by now, get out from under your rock already.

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

I'd love to see Nolan do another film/series of films that picks up where this one left off. Otherwise, I fear we'll be left with another reboot. I hate reboots of iconic characters. If you don't know how batman is batman by now, get out from under your rock already.

Spoiler

When Robin found the Batcave, and triggered the platform that had Wayne's Batsuit in it, I said to my friend "Nightwing?"

I think Nightwing would be a great way to relaunching the series post-Batman with the way that the epilogue left off.

Although...

I feel that if someone decides to continue the Batman saga within Nolan's Milieu it'll be more of the "symbol being bigger than the man" sort of thing, and he'd roll as the next Batman.

 

[Pariah]

Spoiler

When Robin found the Batcave, and triggered the platform that had Wayne's Batsuit in it, I said to my friend "Nightwing?"

I think Nightwing would be a great way to relaunching the series post-Batman with the way that the epilogue left off.

Although...

I feel that if someone decides to continue the Batman saga within Nolan's Milieu it'll be more of the "symbol being bigger than the man" sort of thing, and he'd roll as the next Batman.

Spoiler

I think if someone else is going to do the film they'll be really bummed if they can't use Bruce Wayne.

The storyline should play out with Nightwing wearing the batsuit for a while, then something extraordinary happens in Gotham that gets Wayne's attention so he comes back and they end up defeating it as Batman and Robin (which would really be more of a Nightwing character)

 

[Gee!]

What I don't get is why you guys keep calling this the last Batman.. Hasn't there been like 5 different Batman movies? Michael Keaton ( my favorite, probably because I was a kid ) did one.. They'll just start over and do it all again.. This is one of the reasons I don't get comic book movies.. Any day now a new Superman movie will be popping up.. And the kid will land in a field straight from Krypton all over again..

 

[Covert Rain]

We went to go see this yesterday and it was definitely worth the price of Admission. Personally I think Avengers was better but they are two different types of comic movies so it's hard to compare. In terms of where this movie ranks in the trilogy?

Better than the 1st, not as good as the 2nd. Sort of what I expected after the brilliant last film.

Characters.

Bane. Was really annoyed with Bane. His voice was beyond annoying. What the hell Nolan....you seem to have a problem with those. Although I give him credit for having Bale really tone down Batman's voice. Bane's voice sounded like bad dub over and sometimes you couldn't understand him at all. Also, Bane was not that interesting and unlike the Joker Bane didn't carry much weight for me in the movie. IMO Bane should have never been more than a secondary character in the film. It's odd because it just seemed to me that Bane was an after thought and his entire character's scenes were meant for another bad guy.

Catwoman. I thought Anne Hathaway did a great job. It's a different kind of Catwoman versus MP version in which she was off her rocker. Character didn't have enough screen time IMO but it's also understandable because they jammed so much on screen. Bottom line is I wanted more of her and less of Bane. Her character in some ways saved the film for me because I was disappointed in the Bane character.

Alfred. I don't think Michael Cain gets enough credit as Alfred. His performance in this movie is Oscar worthy IMO. He simply had a few scenes where after they were over....I was wowed.

Putting the rest in the Spoilers section:

Spoiler

First the not so good:

Even though I think I liked the back story of Batman Begins I would have preferred they included a more main stream bad guy in the first film. After seeing this film now it makes more sense as it appears this was Nolan's plan all along. This film ties everything in a bow by linking it to the first via Talia and Bane. Personally I think this plot point was utterly unnecessary. I never felt like the league of shadows had to be revisited. I personally would have preferred a completely new antagonist and a more interesting one at that. I thought in a way it hindered the film.

I also thought Bane reading Gordon's letter and all of the sudden the people would believe that Gordon wrote it and would believe Bane so easily....just to reveal Batman was the real good guy was a very weak plot point.

Talia and Wayne's involvement was much more extensive and they basically sped that up by them sleeping together. Again, understand it was a time thing but I would have given her some of Bane's screen time in a heart beat.

Nolan took some of the wind out of "Batman's back" scene. The scene where he was finally back was a power house scene of "hell yeah". Then he took the umph out of the original scene by taking Batman away and then having another "hey I am back again" scene. Mistake IMO.

Also, I am really annoyed there was no reference to the Joker but Nolan thought he was doing it out of respect. However, one thing that bugs me is the Scarecrow scenes. Scarecrow was just as insane. He was at Black Gate Prison but the Joker was not? You could make the argument that the Joker was in Arkham but IMO Scarecrow would be there too.

Last but not least the reveal of "Robin". His name was Robin John Blake. Really?? Seriously, again weak. It's an obvious attempt at simply changing his name completely to salvage a reveal at the end of the movie. 20 minutes into the movie I knew he was either Robin or the next Batman. Why not write something in like he took on his fosters parents last name and "John" was his middle name. His birth name could have been Richard John Grayson or something. That would have been better IMO.

OK enough of the complaints. Here is what I loved:

The set pieces and the grand scale of the thing was epic. The shot sequences of the city scape throughout the film just gave you the grand scale of how big Gotham really is. I love his ability to show multiple worlds of the same city. He has done that well in all 3 movies. Also, the FX in the movie were simply 1st rate yet Nolan is an obvious fan of less is more when possible when it comes to CGI and I am so happy he is not doing what other films are doing and that is relying too much on green screen etc. He built some major set pieces for this film.

Nolan also did a masterful job of grounding as much as he could in all 3 movies. He stayed loyal to the concept but making sure he didn't go to over the top in all 3 films. I have always loved the explanation of military contracts that ended up becoming some of his gadgets. The BAT was very very cool.

There were some good writing aspects of the film. It has a good balance of humor at times despite being "dark". I have to say the scene were the older cop says basically your in for a show when Batman returns was hilarious. I love how he alluded to Raz's immortality yet kept that within the realm of reality by making it plausible that Bruce was hallucinating in prison. Nice nod to the comics IMO. Aside from the Scarecrow issue I have I thought that having him reside as the judge was rather funny at the same time. Having him as the judge would scare the heck out of anybody LOL.

Nolan knows how to build up the last hour of a movie. He simply builds and builds to the final act of the movie and what a final act it is. This movie completely is a fitting ending for the trilogy that makes sense in Nolan's version of the universe. The scene with Robin getting directed to the cave at the end was awesome. Not sure how everyone else interpreted but I did as he would be the next Batman for sure. Simply, because Nolan made it a point in Batman's conversation with Gordon to have Batman say anybody could be Batman. That told me that the last scene meant Robin was the next Batman. At least that is how I took it.

Last but not least, the acting was simply awesome. I already said what I said about Michale Cain's Alfred. His scenes were gut wrenching at times and you really got a sense for how much he really loved Bruce and his family. Oscar worthy IMO. The rest of the cast was also equally brilliant considering some of the limited time some of them had on screen.

This ranks as still one of the best hero movies I have seen but not as good as it's predecessor. Worthy chapter in Nolan's trilogy and despite the flaws the best interpretation to date of Batman on film. This only helps solidify the trilogy as a classic IMO. It's a must see. Bottom line is that I want more of the Nolan Batman universe. Sad to see it's coming to an end.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Personally I think Avengers was better but they are two different types of comic movies so it's hard to compare.

Unless you want to go the easy route and just say Marvel > DC.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Short review: good, not great. Loved the first half all the way through bat and bane's first fight. Then the movie became REALLY predictable, which I actually would jar been fine with if not for the second to last reveal. That left a bitter taste in my mouth.

But I agree with whoever said it as the weakest of the series.

Glad it's I've so Nolan can go do something original again

 

[Pariah]

What I don't get is why you guys keep calling this the last Batman..

There will most certainly be another batman movie. But it's the last one in this storyine by Christopher Nolan.

 

[Louis]

Very much enjoyed the movie from beginning to end.

Though my prevailing thought from this whole thing was hoping Bane would ask Alex to take "The Rapist" for $100.

 

[Cheesebeef]

yeah... the further away I get from this movie, the less I like it, mostly because the 2nd half of the movie just felt very... conventional. I LOVED the first 80 minutes, but the movie kind of fell off a cliff for me after that.

gonna see it again this week and we'll see what I think on second viewing, but there's a couple things in that last act that really made me scratch my head.

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

7/10 for me...

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

Very much enjoyed the movie from beginning to end.

Though my prevailing thought from this whole thing was hoping Bane would ask Alex to take "The Rapist" for $100.

Lol!

 

[Chaz]

Great movie.

Very entertaining and very well done.

I enjoyed every minute of it. Some plot holes on final examination but I don't care.

 

[thirty-two]

Saw this last night. I saw the last Batman movie but none of the others nor have I ever read the comics.

It was entertaining but super super long. Did not see the twist coming at all.

As a chick who has no real knowledge of Batman or Bane, I thought Bane was friggin BAD ASS. There was maybe 3 times in the movie when I didn't understand what he was saying. The fight scenes between him and Batman were awesome.

LOVED Joseph Gordan-Levitt. Super hot, too. Michael Caine was great per usual. Love that guy.

Soo yeah, entertaining but long., 7.5/10

 

[gmabel830]

Saw it this morning, and very much enjoyed it!

 

[Pariah]

LOVED Joseph Gordan-Levitt.

He was great in this. He's been building up to a performance like this, which for me, was the first time I've watched him and not thought, "hey look, it's that goofy kid from 3rd Rock!"

 

[Brian in Mesa]

'Dark Knight Rises': WB, Studios Maintain Box-Office Data Blackout

http://movies.yahoo.com/news/dark-knight-rises-wb-studios-maintain-box-office-155732461.html

"The Dark Knight Rises" will be big at the box office, but how big – and how badly attendance was hurt by the Colorado theater massacre – will remain a mystery until Monday.

On Sunday, Warner Bros., rival studios and box office data firm Rentrak held fast to their decision to withhold early numbers and their estimates for the weekend. In a Friday release, the studio said it delay the report "out of respect for the victims and their families."

At 9:01 a.m. PT Sunday morning, Rentrak Theatrical sent out its box office data spreadsheet titled Weekend Estimates as usual -- but it was blank. The blackout means that there was no official data on any film, from art-house indie to blockbuster.

Based on Friday's grosses, pre-sale figures and anecdotal reports, analysts see the film taking in between $150 million and $170 million for the three days.

"By not releasing box office numbers this weekend, the studios are attempting to turn the focus away from the accustomed monetary rankings, and instead keep the focus on what's really important -- discussing the tragedy and its aftermath," Exhibitor Relations senior analyst Jeff Bock told TheWrap on Sunday. "We can all certainly wait one more day to pontificate on the tabulations."

 

[Brian in Mesa]

He was great in this. He's been building up to a performance like this, which for me, was the first time I've watched him and not thought, "hey look, it's that goofy kid from 3rd Rock!"

I might have to watch it again, but I think that film for me was The Lookout (2007).

 

[Dr. Jones]

I might have to watch it again, but I think that film for me was The Lookout (2007).

Agreed

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Pariah]

Agreed

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

He was good in that, but I still saw some of that kid in him. In all honesty, it may have more to do with me hanging on to it than him shedding it.

 

[Stout]

I might have to watch it again, but I think that film for me was The Lookout (2007).

Nah, Brick in 2005. Great, great film noir with a twist.

 

[FArting]

Saw this yesterday at Westgate

Movie was good. I was expecting to see more cops due to the incident on Friday.

 

[UncleChris]

Disappointing, 3 out of 5 stars for me. Bane sounded like Sean Connery recorded with his head in a toilet bowl, and couldn't be understood sometimes. The dialogue was occasionally drowned out by the music and/or effects. Plot holes and "oh, come ON!" moments aplenty. The disposal of Bane was very anticlimactic. Ann Hathaway was nice to look at, but her character was irritating and poorly written. The movie was way too long. Other stuff too but I'm too lazy to do a spoiler section.

On the good side, some excellent performances, particularly by Caine and Oldman. Very nice special effects. The foundational story was good and interesting.

Glad I only paid matinee price. A lot more hype than good movie....

 

[NJCardFan]

I hear the plot lies somewhere between Knightfall and No Man's Land, is that true?

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

I hear the plot lies somewhere between Knightfall and No Man's Land, is that true?

Add some Dark Knight Returns to the mix, and I think you've got it.