11:08 am - 07/31/2012
50. Plane heist
Source
The 50 Best Moments Of "TDKR"
50. Plane heist
49. Modine’s arc (his journey from careerist Deputy Commissioner back to dedicated cop)
48. Talia revealed
47. Bruce vs the paparazzi
46. "Not everything, not yet."
45. Josh Pence (aka young Ra's al Ghul)
44. The pit (Wayne's underground prison is full of visual echoes with key locations in “Batman Begins”)
43. Football pitch explosion
42. Bruce and Miranda meet
41. Batman’s truck jump
40. John Blake confronts Bruce
39. Batman & Catwoman ‘s rooftop fight against Bane’s men
38. Batman saves Blake
37. Bruce & Alfred in The Batcave
36. Selina’s bar fight
35. Alfred’s confession
34. Catwoman hands Batman over to Bane
33. Bruce Wayne’s funeral
32. Lucius meets Batman
31. Selina’s introduction
48. Talia revealed
47. Bruce vs the paparazzi
46. "Not everything, not yet."
45. Josh Pence (aka young Ra's al Ghul)
44. The pit (Wayne's underground prison is full of visual echoes with key locations in “Batman Begins”)
43. Football pitch explosion
42. Bruce and Miranda meet
41. Batman’s truck jump
40. John Blake confronts Bruce
39. Batman & Catwoman ‘s rooftop fight against Bane’s men
38. Batman saves Blake
37. Bruce & Alfred in The Batcave
36. Selina’s bar fight
35. Alfred’s confession
34. Catwoman hands Batman over to Bane
33. Bruce Wayne’s funeral
32. Lucius meets Batman
31. Selina’s introduction
30. Bane’s turn
When Bane turns on his Gotham paymasters, revealing his true nature to Daggett (whose first name is never given, despite some publications calling him ‘John’ possibly because they’ve watched too much X-Files and not enough Batman: The Animated Series), there are some lovely little details that turn what could be a throwaway scene into a memorable one.
When Bane threatens Daggett, telling him that paying a terrorist doesn’t guarantee power over him, he has such condescension in his voice it almost borders on a kindness.
“Do you feel in charge?” Bane says, laying the back of his hand on Daggett’s shoulder, practically stroking him. Bane then grips Daggett’s head and neck and Nolan cuts away – mirroring Ledger’s Joker’s “Why so serious?” kills, we don’t see the details of the death.
Lesser actors would have gripped that shoulder – but Hardy’s choice adds to the intensity of the scene, and gives the audience something they haven’t seen before. The scene has an intense weirdness that makes it one of the stand-out moments.
29. The arrival of The Bat
From the trailers, we totally assumed that Batman would turn to The Bat as a last resort - as part of an escalation in the war on Bane.
As it turned out, Bruce couldn't wait that long to get his hands on his new toy - taking it out on his very first foray back as Batman. Why? Just like everything else he does, presumably - to scare the pants off criminals.
Only, in practice, it has a slightly different effect - wiping the smile off a particularly smug Deputy Commissioner.
"He's trapped like a rat!" drools Foley, shortly before The Bat roars into action.
"Are you sure you have the right animal, sir?" A police officer says.
"Are you sure it's him?" John Blake smiles.
28. The Bat saves the day
We're deep into the third act. Deputy Commissioner Foley is leading the charge of the police against Bane's army. One of the commandeered camouflage Tumblers whirs into action - turning its turret towards the advancing officers. All looks lost... until suddenly The Bat swoops in, releases an EMP charge, and destroys the machine's electronics.
The source of Foley's embarrassment has become his saviour. It's a goosebump moment, one best enjoyed on the big screen.
27. John Blake's bridge confrontation
It’s one of Blake’s most heroic scenes. Facing down a bureaucratic police officer - who would rather follow orders than save a bus-load of kids - Blake walks into impending gun-fire to prove his point, before the officer blows the bridge, much to John's rage.
It’s Blake’s biggest step towards leaving the police force, to seek a new way of dispensing justice.
And his words about the importance of hope when he’s putting the kids back on the bus makes us think that, whilst Batman Begins main theme was fear, The Dark Knight's was chaos, The Dark Knight Rises key theme is indeed that - hope.
From Bane's evil observation that without hope despair loses potency, to Alfred's yearly visits to Italy, references to hope are scattered throughout the film. And, as we'll eventually discover, to fully appreciate the film's ending, the audience needs a bit of hope in their hearts, too.
26. Bane's tears
It's a powerful moment. First, we get the brilliant flashback twist revealing that Talia was the child who escaped the prison pit. Then, we find out just how close Talia and Bane are.
It's a brilliant switch, instantly placating all the fans ready to hit Internet forums to complain that Bane was never Ghul's kid. But more impressive than that, it makes us feel sympathy for one of the most brutal movie maniacs in cinema history, by utilising one of the small parts of his face that's on show. Bane cries, and several people in the audience join him.
We haven't felt this sorry for a monster since King Kong. Take a bow, Chris. Take a bow, Tom.
25. Bane and Batman's final confrontation
"Where is the trigger? Where is it?" barks Batman, in a manner that's hugely reminiscent of The Dark Knight interrogation scene. He then tells Bane that when he has the location of the detonator: "You have my permission to die."
Batman never felt in charge when he was interrogating Joker, here it's Bane whose control is slipping.
24. Batman first revealed in costume
It takes around 45 minutes for Batman to appear in costume, but when he does it's almost impossibly cool. His Bat-suit has evolved over the course of the trilogy, with this latest version being - fittingly - the most impressive of them all. And it holds up even in the magnified spotlight of the IMAX screen.
Basically, we want one.
23. The Catpod
When Batman gives Catwoman her own Batpod, it's a cool scene for several reasons.
Firstly, just the sight of Catwoman and Batman striding down an alley together in the snow is clearly ridiculously awesome. But secondly, the fact that it's not especially a big deal that Batman had a hidden Batpod. The implication is that he has them stashed all over Gotham.
Just when you think Batman can't get any cooler, he goes ahead and just is.
22. "Exile or death"
Every single villain in The Dark Knight trilogy has offered a choice that turned out to be fixed, and the Scarecrow's court scene contains the most vivid example.
His sentenced victims are offered a choice between exile or death. The cowardly choose exile. Gordon, as brave as he is good, chooses death. Only to be told: "The sentence is death. By exile."
The fixed odds also remind us of the Judge Dredd story Tour Of Duty, when Dredd is exiled to The Cursed Earth. Which is fitting, because as comic fans will know, Dredd and Batman are old pals. Well, in a way.
21. Exile
A date in Scarecrow's courtroom ends in the same way for everyone - with a trip across the ice surrounding the city.
Again, this resonates with events in Batman Begins - specifically the sequence where Bruce is being trained by Ra's. "You have sacrificed sure footing for a killer stroke!"
When Gordon goes out onto it, we fear for his safety - we've already seen one person, albeit a sniveling criminal, slip through a crack - but Batman wouldn't let something as simple as a transatlantic flight (without money or a passport) or a martial law lock-down stop him from getting to his friend, and his return is as glorious as it is welcome.
We really don't care that Bruce's trip from Bane's prison back to Gotham stretches credibility. When Gordon lights that flare, and sends the flame that lights up the building sized Bat-signal, all of our cynicism fades away to be replaced by wonder.
20. The Dark Knight's return
It's a moment of pure cinema. The sound of the Batpod humming past a police-car, the sight of a cape flapping in the wind, and then a line ripped straight from the comics (The Dark Knight Returns, to be exact): "You are in for a show tonight, son!"
As an audience, we've waited a long time for this moment. And, boy, was it worth it.
19. Bane's henchmen
We know from the very first action sequence that Bane's crew are ready to die for the cause - "The fire rises" - but it doesn't quite prepare us for how casual Bane is with his followers' dedication.
When they bring him Gordon, he's almost offended by their presence.
When he asks "What are you doing here?" it initially appears that he's addressing Gordon. But it quickly becomes apparent that he's talking to his men. He orders one to search Gordon. "Search him, and then I'll kill you," he says, with the menace in his words increased by the lack of threat - Bane isn't angry, just wearily annoyed.
We remember William Fichtner's Dark Knight bank manager lying on the ground, complaining about the lack of loyalty amongst modern Gotham criminals.
Bane isn't even loyal to his own acolytes - and his complete disregard for them matches Joker's attitude to his fellow bank robbers.
The scene adds to the motif of Bane as an inversion of Batman - whereas Bruce values human life so highly he won't even kill the criminals he so despises, Bane considers murder to be at the same level as simple admin.
18. Talia's demise
It's the climax of an exciting pursuit. Talia's truck has been blown through a hole in the freeway, plummeting in a manner that reminds us of her father's death (this isn't an accident - even the same music is playing).
The scale of the stunt also recalls The Dark Knight's truck flip.
But whereas Ra's didn't get any final words, Talia does - and they're as bitter and cruel as you'd expect. When she finally goes, it's a quiet moment, especially in a third-act packed with so much noise.
If we're being completely honest with ourselves, both Talia's and Bane's demises are something of an anti-climax. But we have a feeling that's kind of the point.
This film isn't about Batman's villains. In fact, one of Nolan's key ambitions with this project was to make the hero more interesting than his enemies.
We'd say that with this one, he's succeeded.
17. Catwoman vanishes
For such a dark, grim film, The Dark Knight Rises has a lot of laugh out loud lines, delivered perfectly.
16. The building signal
This one made us want to punch the sky with glee when it happened.
The sight of Batman's symbol, in flames, on the side of the building not only evoked the imagery used in The Dark Knight's 'welcome to a world without rules' poster campaign - which some people complained wasn't in the actual film (once again Nolan delivers for the fans here) - it made us all feel like kids again, beyond excited that our hero was back to save the day.
And once again, the concept of Batman becoming more than a man, a symbol, was affirmed.
It was certainly enough to shake Bane. "Impossible!"
15. Wayne bankrupt
Bane's Stock Market heist is quickly revealed to be a direct attack on Bruce Wayne himself, instantly bankrupting the billionaire.
When Ra's al Ghul reveals his master plan in Batman Begins, he confesses the League Of Shadows first tried to destroy Gotham using economics. "Over the ages, our weapons have grown more sophisticated. With Gotham, we tried a new one: Economics. But we underestimated certain of Gotham's citizens... such as your parents. Gunned down by one of the very people they were trying to help. Create enough hunger and everyone becomes a criminal." When that plan failed, Ghul turned to violence, stealing Wayne Enterprises tech and attempting to use it against the citizens of Gotham. Again, he was unsuccessful.
The fact that Bane's plan combines two strategies that previously failed - it even involves the use of a Wayne Enterprises invention - not only makes sense in the context of the character's arrogance regarding his place in the League - "I am the League Of Shadows!" - it increases the tension of the film (the economic element succeeds this time, so why not the violence?), as well as providing a mirror to the first film.
The Dark Knight trilogy is so intricately connected that the closer you look, the more impressive it is.
14. The master plan
Bane's plan doesn't just tie into Batman Begins, it also echoes one of the Joker's plots in The Dark Knight.
When the Joker handed detonators to the citizens on the two boats, he offered them a choice. Blow up the other boat before midnight, or face your own explosion. They fail to play by Joker's rules - but we have a feeling that, even if they had, the Joker would still have destroyed the remaining boat. It's the sort of thing he finds funny. As it happens, society triumphs over chaos, and Joker, beaten, tries to blow up both boats, before Batman intervenes.
In The Dark Knight Rises, Bane has, like Joker, seemingly given Gotham's residents power over their own destiny. He's even handed a detonator over "To an ordinary citizen." But as with the Joker, ultimately, Bane holds all the cards - no matter what happens, he's intending to ensure the bomb goes off.
It's the boat gambit on a grand scale. It's all part of a plan to show Batman how quickly society can crumble, before its inevitable destruction.
13. Gordon's speech
Within moments of the film's opening, Nolan presents the audience with a fresh mystery - Gordon's alternate speech. He's clearly desperate to read it - its words are written in every fresh wrinkle on his face - but his conscience forces him to wait for the right moment.
When it's stolen by Bane (fittingly, in the City's sewers, where Gotham's dirt is hidden), we know that it won't be long before its secrets are revealed.
When the speech is finally read aloud by the masked terrorist, it's transformed into a weapon as powerful as any neutron bomb. And, like Wayne Enterprise's energy weapon, what was intended as a force for good - the confession of Gordon's sins, the absolution of Batman - is twisted into a tool of evil, shattering not just the Gotham residents' belief in Harvey Dent, but in the very concept of justice itself.
And yet, even though Gordon's words are spoken through a mask, by a maniac whose every utterance sounds sarcastic and mocking, as an audience, we feel the emotion of the words, and we hear them as though they were coming from Jim himself.
For us, stealing Gordon's moment of attrition is one of Bane's worst crimes.
12. Catwoman’s heels
When Selina’s employers make the mistake of confronting her when she’s wearing her full Catwoman kit, she’s able to show off just how good she is at accessorising.
When one thug looks at her shoes, and asks her: “Isn’t it hard to walk in those?” She spins, turns and shoves her razor-sharp heel into his leg. “I don’t know, is it?” is the reply.
Brilliant – and people accuse Nolan of being humourless.
11. Scarecrow's court
So, the much-rumoured Scarecrow courtroom cameo turned out to be real. We expected it would, but what shouldn't have surprised us was how well delivered it was.
The set design of Scarecrow's courtroom was gorgeous - the towering bench looked torn straight from the pages of the comics. Crane's costume design was also a triumph - we loved the way frayed edges poked through his ripped suit, like straw on a scarecrow.
But it wasn't just about the little details - the concept of the court, the way it tied into both the structure of the French revolution styled third act, and the key theme of the trilogy (justice is a fluid concept, and it's not always fair) was a masterstroke.
10. Ra's return
It's been long confirmed that Liam Neeson was going to appear in The Dark Knight Rises, we just didn't know it what capacity. Was he still alive? Would it be a flashback?
As it turned out, neither theory was correct. But, from a certain point of view, both were.
Ra's' line "There are many kinds of immortality." is a lovely one - it both nods to the the character's ability to cheat death in the comics and therefore, by proxy, the fan expectation of how he would reappear.
Not only that, but it ties to Ghul's main message about the importance of becoming a legend. Ghul is a legend to Bruce, he has life for as long as Bruce remembers him. And that will be a very long time, Ghul is a significant father figure, both to Bruce and to Batman.
His appearance feels like a flashback, even though his dialogue is entirely new. That's because it so closely resembles their first meeting, Neeson's even styled in the same way he was when he first appeared to Bruce, in another prison cell.
It's a great moment, not least because it's lovely to see Liam again.
9. Bane's musical appreciation
It's the moment that got the biggest laugh in the screening we were in, possibly because some people were straining to understand everything Bane said, but more probably because our audience appreciated the chutzpah of the Nolan brothers including a line that clearly referenced Bane's bonkers enunciation.
One thing's for sure, when Hardy commented on the skills of the Gotham Rogues' intro singer - "What a lovely, lovely voice," - the laughter that rang out in the theatre suggested that our audience heard every word.
8. Bruce visits Gordon in hospital
In the very first teaser trailer we saw Gordon in a hospital bed, talking to what sounded like Bruce Wayne, demanding Batman’s return. It presented the first major mystery of the marketing campaign – why is Gordon asking Bruce Wayne to bring back Batman? How could he possibly know about their connection?
As it turns out, it’s another lovely Batman Begins call-back, with Bruce wearing a balaclava to disguise his identity – looking a lot like he did on his first night fighting Gotham’s criminals, before he designed the Bat-suit, when he first visited Gordon’s office.
He’s even positioned at a similar low angle, albeit in front of Gordon instead of behind.
There’s so many franchise references in TDKR, but this is particularly well-delivered.
7. Breaking The Bat
We should have always known it would happen. You don’t put Bane in a Batman film without including his most iconic contribution to the canon (well, you do if you’re Joel Schumacher, but that’s another story).
What’s so surprising about this key moment is that when it finally happens, it’s delivered almost casually – it’s over pretty much in an instant. Bane raises Batman high in the air, before dropping him onto his thigh. And that’s it. There’s literally no dialogue about back-breaking – we don't even find out it's happened until much later on.
The fact there’s no grand speech (before or after), and certainly no "I can't feel my legs" moment, adds to the shock of the event, and solidifies Bane’s casual cruelty.
6. Bruce Wayne faces fear
When Bruce Wayne begins his final attempt to escape Bane’s prison without the safety of a rope to halt his fall, he does so because he believes his fear will save him – it will give him the extra edge required to make the final jump.
When he reaches the last level, before he attempts the leap he’s failed several times, a cloud of bats seem to appear out of the walls. On first watch, it feels like a coincidence. But, reflecting on the moment afterwards, we wonder if it’s the product of Bruce’s imagination – part of the process of him facing his fear.
We can’t wait to watch it again, to decide whether it’s real or a hallucination.
5. Robin rises
It's the last shot of the film. John Blake has sought out the Batcave deep underneath the Thomas & Martha Wayne Children's Home.
He's standing at the precipice of a fresh challenge, as the new guardian of Gotham City.
Suddenly, a platform shudders into life, and he begins his ascent.
4. Batman confesses to Gordon
Before Batman makes his supreme sacrifice, Gordon cries out that the people of Gotham should know the identity of the man who saved them.
Batman replies, “A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a little boy's shoulders to let him know that the world hadn't ended.” We cut to the relevant flashback from Batman Begins, and Gordon staggers backwards, a look of slow realisation on his face. “Bruce Wayne?” he says.
It’s a moment that both references Batman Begins (directly with the flashback), and mirrors it – it’s the same method Bruce used to tell Rachel his secret identity.
It’s wonderful.
3. Robin John Blake
This brief scene is part of a wave of wonderful moments that make up the last 10 minutes of the film.
By this point, John Blake has long proven himself to be both decent and tough. He has fought alongside Batman – even being directly taught by him at one point – and, by the mere strength of his actions, become one of the most likeable characters Christopher Nolan has ever put on screen. He’s noble, strong, kind, and extremely intelligent – he deduced Batman’s identity without half the clues Lucius Fox had. Every hero who meets him, admires him.
And, guess what? He’s Nolan’s Robin.
When Blake is handed his identification back by an administrator, she tells him that he should use his full name. “It’s a nice name, you should use it… Robin.”
We’ve argued in the past that the Batman mythos isn’t complete without Robin, but we conceded that it would be extremely difficult to reboot the character following Schumacher’s disastrous interpretation. Well, Nolan’s achieved the near-impossible – and it’s a gift to any filmmaker that follows him.
There isn’t a single fan who’ll leave The Dark Knight Rises without a deep respect for Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s John Blake, which means, by implication, Robin is one of the most respected characters in the film. We never expected to be writing those words.
Of all the fan-pleasing bits in The Dark Knight Rises, this is by far the best.
The fact that it's such an unexpected surprise adds to the intense feeling of giddy joy when it's revealed. Nolan the magician strikes again.
2. Batman's sacrifice
We didn't realise it, but we'd already seen elements of Batman's death in those early trailers. One shot in particular, the awed reaction of the kids in the bus, was edited very cleverly to look like it was caused by the bridge collapse.
But no, those kids were witnessing Gotham's dark knight embark on the single greatest act of heroism the city has ever known.
We particularly liked the one kid's reaction when he first arrives: "It's Batman."
Up until this point, every citizen has referred to him as 'The Batman' - so the child's simpler version makes the moment more personal somehow.
When the moment happens, and The Bat explodes in the distance, we're hit with emotions so powerful they feel like an aftershock.
That is, until the final coda. The Batman is dead. Long live Bruce Wayne.
1. The End
Brilliantly, beautifully, Christopher Nolan has given each member of the army of fans who have followed his Batman saga their own individual perfect ending.
That's because everyone is able to interpret it in their own way.
The debate amongst fans as to whether Alfred truly saw Bruce sitting in that cafe in Italy, or whether it was his imagination, has already begun.
The believers point to the presence of Selina Kyle, and ask why Alfred would imagine her there when he had so little interaction with her. The non-believers point out that Selina's spent the entire film in black, and the blue linen outfit means she's clearly a construction.
The believers point out the auto-pilot foreshadowing and resolution. That silences the non-believers momentarily, before they argue that the film is full of hallucinations, both definite - Ra's al Ghul in the prison cell - and debatable - the bats flying out of the pit walls - so why wouldn't it end on one?
Nolan's 'choose your own' approach to film finales was first seen in Inception, but here it provides even greater catharsis.
Some people wish the film had cut to black on Alfred's expression, to heighten the mystery. We're glad it didn't, because as far as we're concerned, Bruce Wayne is alive.
The reason Selina is there is she was associated with the Clean Slate device, a device that Carmine Falcone's 'Prince Of Gotham' would definitely need to begin again. She's wearing the linen outfit because black would be a bit hot in the Mediterranean climate. And more than that, the costume change is symbolic of her desire to leave her past behind.
As for the hallucinations, they were experienced by one character - Bruce. And they happened when he was at his lowest point, both physically and mentally. Alfred is grieving, but a man who still has enough hope to make his yearly trip to Italy is not a man broken enough to experience visions. Especially not one who has operated as the voice of sanity throughout the trilogy.
But that's just our opinion, whichever way you look at it, Nolan has given this saga a happy ending. We couldn't have asked for more, really.
When Bane turns on his Gotham paymasters, revealing his true nature to Daggett (whose first name is never given, despite some publications calling him ‘John’ possibly because they’ve watched too much X-Files and not enough Batman: The Animated Series), there are some lovely little details that turn what could be a throwaway scene into a memorable one.
When Bane threatens Daggett, telling him that paying a terrorist doesn’t guarantee power over him, he has such condescension in his voice it almost borders on a kindness.
“Do you feel in charge?” Bane says, laying the back of his hand on Daggett’s shoulder, practically stroking him. Bane then grips Daggett’s head and neck and Nolan cuts away – mirroring Ledger’s Joker’s “Why so serious?” kills, we don’t see the details of the death.
Lesser actors would have gripped that shoulder – but Hardy’s choice adds to the intensity of the scene, and gives the audience something they haven’t seen before. The scene has an intense weirdness that makes it one of the stand-out moments.
29. The arrival of The Bat
From the trailers, we totally assumed that Batman would turn to The Bat as a last resort - as part of an escalation in the war on Bane.
As it turned out, Bruce couldn't wait that long to get his hands on his new toy - taking it out on his very first foray back as Batman. Why? Just like everything else he does, presumably - to scare the pants off criminals.
Only, in practice, it has a slightly different effect - wiping the smile off a particularly smug Deputy Commissioner.
"He's trapped like a rat!" drools Foley, shortly before The Bat roars into action.
"Are you sure you have the right animal, sir?" A police officer says.
"Are you sure it's him?" John Blake smiles.
28. The Bat saves the day
We're deep into the third act. Deputy Commissioner Foley is leading the charge of the police against Bane's army. One of the commandeered camouflage Tumblers whirs into action - turning its turret towards the advancing officers. All looks lost... until suddenly The Bat swoops in, releases an EMP charge, and destroys the machine's electronics.
The source of Foley's embarrassment has become his saviour. It's a goosebump moment, one best enjoyed on the big screen.
27. John Blake's bridge confrontation
It’s one of Blake’s most heroic scenes. Facing down a bureaucratic police officer - who would rather follow orders than save a bus-load of kids - Blake walks into impending gun-fire to prove his point, before the officer blows the bridge, much to John's rage.
It’s Blake’s biggest step towards leaving the police force, to seek a new way of dispensing justice.
And his words about the importance of hope when he’s putting the kids back on the bus makes us think that, whilst Batman Begins main theme was fear, The Dark Knight's was chaos, The Dark Knight Rises key theme is indeed that - hope.
From Bane's evil observation that without hope despair loses potency, to Alfred's yearly visits to Italy, references to hope are scattered throughout the film. And, as we'll eventually discover, to fully appreciate the film's ending, the audience needs a bit of hope in their hearts, too.
26. Bane's tears
It's a powerful moment. First, we get the brilliant flashback twist revealing that Talia was the child who escaped the prison pit. Then, we find out just how close Talia and Bane are.
It's a brilliant switch, instantly placating all the fans ready to hit Internet forums to complain that Bane was never Ghul's kid. But more impressive than that, it makes us feel sympathy for one of the most brutal movie maniacs in cinema history, by utilising one of the small parts of his face that's on show. Bane cries, and several people in the audience join him.
We haven't felt this sorry for a monster since King Kong. Take a bow, Chris. Take a bow, Tom.
25. Bane and Batman's final confrontation
"Where is the trigger? Where is it?" barks Batman, in a manner that's hugely reminiscent of The Dark Knight interrogation scene. He then tells Bane that when he has the location of the detonator: "You have my permission to die."
Batman never felt in charge when he was interrogating Joker, here it's Bane whose control is slipping.
24. Batman first revealed in costume
It takes around 45 minutes for Batman to appear in costume, but when he does it's almost impossibly cool. His Bat-suit has evolved over the course of the trilogy, with this latest version being - fittingly - the most impressive of them all. And it holds up even in the magnified spotlight of the IMAX screen.
Basically, we want one.
23. The Catpod
When Batman gives Catwoman her own Batpod, it's a cool scene for several reasons.
Firstly, just the sight of Catwoman and Batman striding down an alley together in the snow is clearly ridiculously awesome. But secondly, the fact that it's not especially a big deal that Batman had a hidden Batpod. The implication is that he has them stashed all over Gotham.
Just when you think Batman can't get any cooler, he goes ahead and just is.
22. "Exile or death"
Every single villain in The Dark Knight trilogy has offered a choice that turned out to be fixed, and the Scarecrow's court scene contains the most vivid example.
His sentenced victims are offered a choice between exile or death. The cowardly choose exile. Gordon, as brave as he is good, chooses death. Only to be told: "The sentence is death. By exile."
The fixed odds also remind us of the Judge Dredd story Tour Of Duty, when Dredd is exiled to The Cursed Earth. Which is fitting, because as comic fans will know, Dredd and Batman are old pals. Well, in a way.
21. Exile
A date in Scarecrow's courtroom ends in the same way for everyone - with a trip across the ice surrounding the city.
Again, this resonates with events in Batman Begins - specifically the sequence where Bruce is being trained by Ra's. "You have sacrificed sure footing for a killer stroke!"
When Gordon goes out onto it, we fear for his safety - we've already seen one person, albeit a sniveling criminal, slip through a crack - but Batman wouldn't let something as simple as a transatlantic flight (without money or a passport) or a martial law lock-down stop him from getting to his friend, and his return is as glorious as it is welcome.
We really don't care that Bruce's trip from Bane's prison back to Gotham stretches credibility. When Gordon lights that flare, and sends the flame that lights up the building sized Bat-signal, all of our cynicism fades away to be replaced by wonder.
20. The Dark Knight's return
It's a moment of pure cinema. The sound of the Batpod humming past a police-car, the sight of a cape flapping in the wind, and then a line ripped straight from the comics (The Dark Knight Returns, to be exact): "You are in for a show tonight, son!"
As an audience, we've waited a long time for this moment. And, boy, was it worth it.
19. Bane's henchmen
We know from the very first action sequence that Bane's crew are ready to die for the cause - "The fire rises" - but it doesn't quite prepare us for how casual Bane is with his followers' dedication.
When they bring him Gordon, he's almost offended by their presence.
When he asks "What are you doing here?" it initially appears that he's addressing Gordon. But it quickly becomes apparent that he's talking to his men. He orders one to search Gordon. "Search him, and then I'll kill you," he says, with the menace in his words increased by the lack of threat - Bane isn't angry, just wearily annoyed.
We remember William Fichtner's Dark Knight bank manager lying on the ground, complaining about the lack of loyalty amongst modern Gotham criminals.
Bane isn't even loyal to his own acolytes - and his complete disregard for them matches Joker's attitude to his fellow bank robbers.
The scene adds to the motif of Bane as an inversion of Batman - whereas Bruce values human life so highly he won't even kill the criminals he so despises, Bane considers murder to be at the same level as simple admin.
18. Talia's demise
It's the climax of an exciting pursuit. Talia's truck has been blown through a hole in the freeway, plummeting in a manner that reminds us of her father's death (this isn't an accident - even the same music is playing).
The scale of the stunt also recalls The Dark Knight's truck flip.
But whereas Ra's didn't get any final words, Talia does - and they're as bitter and cruel as you'd expect. When she finally goes, it's a quiet moment, especially in a third-act packed with so much noise.
If we're being completely honest with ourselves, both Talia's and Bane's demises are something of an anti-climax. But we have a feeling that's kind of the point.
This film isn't about Batman's villains. In fact, one of Nolan's key ambitions with this project was to make the hero more interesting than his enemies.
We'd say that with this one, he's succeeded.
17. Catwoman vanishes
For such a dark, grim film, The Dark Knight Rises has a lot of laugh out loud lines, delivered perfectly.
16. The building signal
This one made us want to punch the sky with glee when it happened.
The sight of Batman's symbol, in flames, on the side of the building not only evoked the imagery used in The Dark Knight's 'welcome to a world without rules' poster campaign - which some people complained wasn't in the actual film (once again Nolan delivers for the fans here) - it made us all feel like kids again, beyond excited that our hero was back to save the day.
And once again, the concept of Batman becoming more than a man, a symbol, was affirmed.
It was certainly enough to shake Bane. "Impossible!"
15. Wayne bankrupt
Bane's Stock Market heist is quickly revealed to be a direct attack on Bruce Wayne himself, instantly bankrupting the billionaire.
When Ra's al Ghul reveals his master plan in Batman Begins, he confesses the League Of Shadows first tried to destroy Gotham using economics. "Over the ages, our weapons have grown more sophisticated. With Gotham, we tried a new one: Economics. But we underestimated certain of Gotham's citizens... such as your parents. Gunned down by one of the very people they were trying to help. Create enough hunger and everyone becomes a criminal." When that plan failed, Ghul turned to violence, stealing Wayne Enterprises tech and attempting to use it against the citizens of Gotham. Again, he was unsuccessful.
The fact that Bane's plan combines two strategies that previously failed - it even involves the use of a Wayne Enterprises invention - not only makes sense in the context of the character's arrogance regarding his place in the League - "I am the League Of Shadows!" - it increases the tension of the film (the economic element succeeds this time, so why not the violence?), as well as providing a mirror to the first film.
The Dark Knight trilogy is so intricately connected that the closer you look, the more impressive it is.
14. The master plan
Bane's plan doesn't just tie into Batman Begins, it also echoes one of the Joker's plots in The Dark Knight.
When the Joker handed detonators to the citizens on the two boats, he offered them a choice. Blow up the other boat before midnight, or face your own explosion. They fail to play by Joker's rules - but we have a feeling that, even if they had, the Joker would still have destroyed the remaining boat. It's the sort of thing he finds funny. As it happens, society triumphs over chaos, and Joker, beaten, tries to blow up both boats, before Batman intervenes.
In The Dark Knight Rises, Bane has, like Joker, seemingly given Gotham's residents power over their own destiny. He's even handed a detonator over "To an ordinary citizen." But as with the Joker, ultimately, Bane holds all the cards - no matter what happens, he's intending to ensure the bomb goes off.
It's the boat gambit on a grand scale. It's all part of a plan to show Batman how quickly society can crumble, before its inevitable destruction.
13. Gordon's speech
Within moments of the film's opening, Nolan presents the audience with a fresh mystery - Gordon's alternate speech. He's clearly desperate to read it - its words are written in every fresh wrinkle on his face - but his conscience forces him to wait for the right moment.
When it's stolen by Bane (fittingly, in the City's sewers, where Gotham's dirt is hidden), we know that it won't be long before its secrets are revealed.
When the speech is finally read aloud by the masked terrorist, it's transformed into a weapon as powerful as any neutron bomb. And, like Wayne Enterprise's energy weapon, what was intended as a force for good - the confession of Gordon's sins, the absolution of Batman - is twisted into a tool of evil, shattering not just the Gotham residents' belief in Harvey Dent, but in the very concept of justice itself.
And yet, even though Gordon's words are spoken through a mask, by a maniac whose every utterance sounds sarcastic and mocking, as an audience, we feel the emotion of the words, and we hear them as though they were coming from Jim himself.
For us, stealing Gordon's moment of attrition is one of Bane's worst crimes.
12. Catwoman’s heels
When Selina’s employers make the mistake of confronting her when she’s wearing her full Catwoman kit, she’s able to show off just how good she is at accessorising.
When one thug looks at her shoes, and asks her: “Isn’t it hard to walk in those?” She spins, turns and shoves her razor-sharp heel into his leg. “I don’t know, is it?” is the reply.
Brilliant – and people accuse Nolan of being humourless.
11. Scarecrow's court
So, the much-rumoured Scarecrow courtroom cameo turned out to be real. We expected it would, but what shouldn't have surprised us was how well delivered it was.
The set design of Scarecrow's courtroom was gorgeous - the towering bench looked torn straight from the pages of the comics. Crane's costume design was also a triumph - we loved the way frayed edges poked through his ripped suit, like straw on a scarecrow.
But it wasn't just about the little details - the concept of the court, the way it tied into both the structure of the French revolution styled third act, and the key theme of the trilogy (justice is a fluid concept, and it's not always fair) was a masterstroke.
10. Ra's return
It's been long confirmed that Liam Neeson was going to appear in The Dark Knight Rises, we just didn't know it what capacity. Was he still alive? Would it be a flashback?
As it turned out, neither theory was correct. But, from a certain point of view, both were.
Ra's' line "There are many kinds of immortality." is a lovely one - it both nods to the the character's ability to cheat death in the comics and therefore, by proxy, the fan expectation of how he would reappear.
Not only that, but it ties to Ghul's main message about the importance of becoming a legend. Ghul is a legend to Bruce, he has life for as long as Bruce remembers him. And that will be a very long time, Ghul is a significant father figure, both to Bruce and to Batman.
His appearance feels like a flashback, even though his dialogue is entirely new. That's because it so closely resembles their first meeting, Neeson's even styled in the same way he was when he first appeared to Bruce, in another prison cell.
It's a great moment, not least because it's lovely to see Liam again.
9. Bane's musical appreciation
It's the moment that got the biggest laugh in the screening we were in, possibly because some people were straining to understand everything Bane said, but more probably because our audience appreciated the chutzpah of the Nolan brothers including a line that clearly referenced Bane's bonkers enunciation.
One thing's for sure, when Hardy commented on the skills of the Gotham Rogues' intro singer - "What a lovely, lovely voice," - the laughter that rang out in the theatre suggested that our audience heard every word.
8. Bruce visits Gordon in hospital
In the very first teaser trailer we saw Gordon in a hospital bed, talking to what sounded like Bruce Wayne, demanding Batman’s return. It presented the first major mystery of the marketing campaign – why is Gordon asking Bruce Wayne to bring back Batman? How could he possibly know about their connection?
As it turns out, it’s another lovely Batman Begins call-back, with Bruce wearing a balaclava to disguise his identity – looking a lot like he did on his first night fighting Gotham’s criminals, before he designed the Bat-suit, when he first visited Gordon’s office.
He’s even positioned at a similar low angle, albeit in front of Gordon instead of behind.
There’s so many franchise references in TDKR, but this is particularly well-delivered.
7. Breaking The Bat
We should have always known it would happen. You don’t put Bane in a Batman film without including his most iconic contribution to the canon (well, you do if you’re Joel Schumacher, but that’s another story).
What’s so surprising about this key moment is that when it finally happens, it’s delivered almost casually – it’s over pretty much in an instant. Bane raises Batman high in the air, before dropping him onto his thigh. And that’s it. There’s literally no dialogue about back-breaking – we don't even find out it's happened until much later on.
The fact there’s no grand speech (before or after), and certainly no "I can't feel my legs" moment, adds to the shock of the event, and solidifies Bane’s casual cruelty.
6. Bruce Wayne faces fear
When Bruce Wayne begins his final attempt to escape Bane’s prison without the safety of a rope to halt his fall, he does so because he believes his fear will save him – it will give him the extra edge required to make the final jump.
When he reaches the last level, before he attempts the leap he’s failed several times, a cloud of bats seem to appear out of the walls. On first watch, it feels like a coincidence. But, reflecting on the moment afterwards, we wonder if it’s the product of Bruce’s imagination – part of the process of him facing his fear.
We can’t wait to watch it again, to decide whether it’s real or a hallucination.
5. Robin rises
It's the last shot of the film. John Blake has sought out the Batcave deep underneath the Thomas & Martha Wayne Children's Home.
He's standing at the precipice of a fresh challenge, as the new guardian of Gotham City.
Suddenly, a platform shudders into life, and he begins his ascent.
4. Batman confesses to Gordon
Before Batman makes his supreme sacrifice, Gordon cries out that the people of Gotham should know the identity of the man who saved them.
Batman replies, “A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a little boy's shoulders to let him know that the world hadn't ended.” We cut to the relevant flashback from Batman Begins, and Gordon staggers backwards, a look of slow realisation on his face. “Bruce Wayne?” he says.
It’s a moment that both references Batman Begins (directly with the flashback), and mirrors it – it’s the same method Bruce used to tell Rachel his secret identity.
It’s wonderful.
3. Robin John Blake
This brief scene is part of a wave of wonderful moments that make up the last 10 minutes of the film.
By this point, John Blake has long proven himself to be both decent and tough. He has fought alongside Batman – even being directly taught by him at one point – and, by the mere strength of his actions, become one of the most likeable characters Christopher Nolan has ever put on screen. He’s noble, strong, kind, and extremely intelligent – he deduced Batman’s identity without half the clues Lucius Fox had. Every hero who meets him, admires him.
And, guess what? He’s Nolan’s Robin.
When Blake is handed his identification back by an administrator, she tells him that he should use his full name. “It’s a nice name, you should use it… Robin.”
We’ve argued in the past that the Batman mythos isn’t complete without Robin, but we conceded that it would be extremely difficult to reboot the character following Schumacher’s disastrous interpretation. Well, Nolan’s achieved the near-impossible – and it’s a gift to any filmmaker that follows him.
There isn’t a single fan who’ll leave The Dark Knight Rises without a deep respect for Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s John Blake, which means, by implication, Robin is one of the most respected characters in the film. We never expected to be writing those words.
Of all the fan-pleasing bits in The Dark Knight Rises, this is by far the best.
The fact that it's such an unexpected surprise adds to the intense feeling of giddy joy when it's revealed. Nolan the magician strikes again.
2. Batman's sacrifice
We didn't realise it, but we'd already seen elements of Batman's death in those early trailers. One shot in particular, the awed reaction of the kids in the bus, was edited very cleverly to look like it was caused by the bridge collapse.
But no, those kids were witnessing Gotham's dark knight embark on the single greatest act of heroism the city has ever known.
We particularly liked the one kid's reaction when he first arrives: "It's Batman."
Up until this point, every citizen has referred to him as 'The Batman' - so the child's simpler version makes the moment more personal somehow.
When the moment happens, and The Bat explodes in the distance, we're hit with emotions so powerful they feel like an aftershock.
That is, until the final coda. The Batman is dead. Long live Bruce Wayne.
1. The End
Brilliantly, beautifully, Christopher Nolan has given each member of the army of fans who have followed his Batman saga their own individual perfect ending.
That's because everyone is able to interpret it in their own way.
The debate amongst fans as to whether Alfred truly saw Bruce sitting in that cafe in Italy, or whether it was his imagination, has already begun.
The believers point to the presence of Selina Kyle, and ask why Alfred would imagine her there when he had so little interaction with her. The non-believers point out that Selina's spent the entire film in black, and the blue linen outfit means she's clearly a construction.
The believers point out the auto-pilot foreshadowing and resolution. That silences the non-believers momentarily, before they argue that the film is full of hallucinations, both definite - Ra's al Ghul in the prison cell - and debatable - the bats flying out of the pit walls - so why wouldn't it end on one?
Nolan's 'choose your own' approach to film finales was first seen in Inception, but here it provides even greater catharsis.
Some people wish the film had cut to black on Alfred's expression, to heighten the mystery. We're glad it didn't, because as far as we're concerned, Bruce Wayne is alive.
The reason Selina is there is she was associated with the Clean Slate device, a device that Carmine Falcone's 'Prince Of Gotham' would definitely need to begin again. She's wearing the linen outfit because black would be a bit hot in the Mediterranean climate. And more than that, the costume change is symbolic of her desire to leave her past behind.
As for the hallucinations, they were experienced by one character - Bruce. And they happened when he was at his lowest point, both physically and mentally. Alfred is grieving, but a man who still has enough hope to make his yearly trip to Italy is not a man broken enough to experience visions. Especially not one who has operated as the voice of sanity throughout the trilogy.
But that's just our opinion, whichever way you look at it, Nolan has given this saga a happy ending. We couldn't have asked for more, really.
Source
not for me, but i had no idea he was going to pop up and almost clapped when he did
him and his ragged suit. he was so in his element in that world, bless him
The Hobbit on the other hand....I'd buy tickets now if I could.
I could watch it every day.
(so far, only seen it 3 times.)
Edited at 2012-07-31 04:36 pm (UTC)
what stood out...the first fight (all banes blabbing how he owns the shadows and batman is just borrowing them n all that crap...LOOOOVEEED IT)
bane asking that doofus - Do you feel in control/charge, whatever it was, with his hand just hovering close to the guys neck
teary eyed bane and talia
and then the very ending with robin in the batcave and florence. i would have been ok with batman dying but this was just lovely. except i HATED that they paired up batman and catwoman (nothing against catwoman or anne, but bad bad pairing for me)
gonna check the list now
The silliest scene in the movie was the opening plane scene. I just could not take it seriously. The "so that's what it feels like" vanishing and Bat-Rave scenes tie for the close second.
Edited at 2012-07-31 03:24 pm (UTC)
The theater I was in all laughed at "Death...by exile", after Gordon made a big deal over not getting exiled.
Also, #51 - Bane's coat; #52 - Bane's black sweater in the plane scene tbh
and yet, i really disliked the voice (and sadly, the delivery) at times. it was good most of the time but in a few instances, i shook my head. just no. be quiet and menacing, none of that inquisitive slightly mad scientist slant pls.
Apart from that, he is indeed magnetic, i couldnt take my eyes off him, the brilliant man. i missed him the second he was gone and god damn did he deserve a better exit.
I want to see it again and def mostly because of Tom and his strut.
"ooooOo Rose is displeased! what to do!"
Edited at 2012-07-31 04:03 pm (UTC)
i screeched when they mentioned robin tho