"The Dark Knight Rises" Review and Discussion Thread (spoilers)

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by JacksonArcher, Jul 10, 2012.

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How do you rate "The Dark Knight Rises"?

  1. Excellent

    147 vote(s)
    58.3%
  2. Good

    61 vote(s)
    24.2%
  3. Fair

    26 vote(s)
    10.3%
  4. Poor

    12 vote(s)
    4.8%
  5. Terrible

    6 vote(s)
    2.4%
  1. Allyn Gibson

    Allyn Gibson Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I actually haven't seen Inception, and even without seeing it the interpretation of the ending I had coming out of the film was that the final scene was possibly, even likely Alfred's dream. I thought it was a brave and bittersweet way to end the film, on an ambiguous note.

    I consider myself agnostic on the ending to The Dark Knight Rises. The evidence in both directions is compelling but not convincing.
     
  2. Set Harth

    Set Harth Vice Admiral Admiral

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    The scene where it is explained that Wayne patched the autopilot is no dream. That scene has an obvious implication, without which it serves no purpose.
     
  3. Allyn Gibson

    Allyn Gibson Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Like I said, the evidence in either direction is compelling, but not convincing. In the one direction, you have the narrative evidence of the autopilot patch and the missing string of pearls. In the other direction, you have the science of nuclear explosions and the narrative evidence of Batman in the Bat with five seconds before detonation.
     
  4. Greg Cox

    Greg Cox Admiral Premium Member

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    Honestly, I read the script and there was no indication that those final scenes were meant to be ambiguous or open to interpretation in any way. Or that the final scene with Alfred was some sort of fantasy sequence. It was just as real and concrete as Gordon finding the new Bat-signal on the roof, as real as Lucius discovering that Bruce had secretly fixed the autopilot, as real as the orphans moving into the manor, as real as John Blake finding the Batcave . . . .

    I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are speculating that the Alfred scene was a dream or a vision or whatever. That's certainly not how I handled it in the novelization (on sale tomorrow, btw). And certainly nobody at Warner Bros. told me to make it ambiguous or anything . . . .

    Besides, if Batman was supposed to be dead, and that last bit was just a reverie, what about Selina? She didn't "die" in the explosion, so why wouldn't she get an epilogue of her own, if that final scene wasn't meant to wrap up her story as well?
     
  5. doubleohfive

    doubleohfive Fleet Admiral

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    ...never mind the fact that he's the goddamn Batman, and clearly he had time to prepare...
     
  6. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    I think most of the "it's a dream" view comes from how the scene was filmed. It had a certain dreamlike quality.
     
  7. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Commodore Commodore

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    Great point Greg, that is the last image of Selina in the whole film. Before that they kissed goodbye in costume right? Clearly setup for the revelation at the end. There is nothing dream like about that scene at all. Also the last image is Blake in the cave. Strange to have a fake dreamlike moment before a real one.
     
  8. CaptainCanada

    CaptainCanada Admiral Admiral

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    Science really doesn't enter into it. Plenty of stuff happened in this series that doesn't take that into account. The editing of the sequence is designed to mislead, but I don't see how that could possibly stand up to all the clear narrative points indicating his survival.
     
  9. Agent Richard07

    Agent Richard07 Admiral Admiral

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    About 5 months had passed.

    That's pretty much what I want... A good long dramatic thriller with several acts, dectonstructing the idea of what it takes for a man to fight crime and what his life and relationships go through as a result. ...with the story of Batman being the vehicle for that.

    Well, it could have been a fantasy sequence. You never know.

    I'm kidding. I took it to be 100% real and never questioned that.
     
  10. Captain Craig

    Captain Craig Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I saw it with a group of 6 and one of the women in the group brought this up as her first critique. No way they hadn't atrophied from 80+ days underground with little to no means to stay fit.

    I segued with a similar point about how Bruce had apparently atrophied from ceasing his activities and how the medical diagnosis showed us perhaps why. YET, after his back injury in those same 80 days his body was ready to fight, loss of cartilage etc that caused him to use a cane be damned. Guess the prison work out regrows cartilage. His leaping from the pit was made sans knee brace which he clearly needed earlier.

    These are not only NOT the same type of movie experience but not the same era. Bay has been making movies since the 90's afterall. The Marvel style is not in tone or pacing similar to a Bay film, it's a bit insulting imo to put them together like that.

    I get that this was how you chose to pay respects but let me say that I chose to go as a big FU to all crazy mofo's that I will not alter my life based on you. I went for those people who had the opportunity to do so taken from them.


    I'm seeing the movie one more time but let me chime in that our group also had issue with Bane's voice. It was not that clear. Me and another guy also felt the film did a poor job of displaying the passage of time for those 80+ days the city was under siege.
     
  11. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Well that and the sheer implausibility of him surviving a nuclear blast at that close a range.

    Like me, I imagine most people during that final scene were thinking "wait, exactly how did he survive that again?"
     
  12. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    If Bruce fixed the autopilot who's to say he didn't eject before the Bat crossed out over the bay? When the Bat is seen flying over the bridge Bruce might already have bailed among the canyon of buildings.
     
  13. Flying Spaghetti Monster

    Flying Spaghetti Monster Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I'd have to watch it again. We'd have to know the very last moment Nolan cut to a shot of Wayne in the cockpit
     
  14. Guartho

    Guartho Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I think my theater had crappy sound. Could be as simple as well meaning teenage theater employees going "Hurr durr, turn the bass up. That'll be aw3som3!" You know, because kids talk in leet speak these days.
     
  15. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Commodore Commodore

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    He was prepared!

    Its a cliche I don't like but I used it.

    There is an interesting dichotomy at work with this film. Fans always say they prefer Batman over actual super powered heroes. Because he is human. But even a man at the height of human physical perfection could never do what Batman does for a long time. While Batman retiring has been criticized, its acknowleding his humanity. Which is a huge part of his appeal.

    But another part of his appeal is that he can survive anything. That has been true of most versions of the characters. Even if it pushes the realm of plausibility and this human hero basically is superhuman. Well the movie is being true to the character! I like that for this finale Nolan really embraced the more fantastic comic elements.
     
  16. Guartho

    Guartho Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    When Batman ramps the car carrier and escapes the horde of cop cars and Foley asks on the radio "How did he escape?" Was I the only one who really really really wanted to hear over the radio "What are you dense? What are you retarded? He's the god damned Batman!" or at least "He's the god damned Batman!"
     
  17. Guartho

    Guartho Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Bane's fatal mistake was locking Bruce Wayne up with nothing but time.
     
  18. tighr

    tighr Commodore Commodore

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    We saw BATMAN in the cockpit, but was it WAYNE? ;)
     
  19. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    :techman:

    I liked the sense I got that most of the rank-and-file regular cops didn't seem to buy the bogus story about Batman being a murderer and having killed Harvey Dent and the others. Blake and the kids we saw really got this across.
     
  20. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

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    We see that closeup shot of him staring at the sun right before the bomb goes off, and he's clearly still in The Bat.