The Dark Knight Rises Critic Review Thread

[Keyser Soze]

Hey folks,

I see that the first press screenings of The Dark Knight Rises are being held, and a review thread has opened up on the spoiler board. However, I see it is mixed in with general advance audience reaction, and I get a sense such a thread could be a minefield for massive spoilers, I got too much spoiled for me in the final run-in to The Dark Knight, it won't happen again: I think it'd be best to just avoid the spoiler board until I see the movie.

I thought I would make a non-spoiler thread where people can post up critics' reviews of the film and discuss those reviews, and get a sense of the buzz around the movie, without fear of catching any major spoilers in the process.

So, see a review?ost it here!

[Bluesummers]

Kudos! The spoiler board is getting more and more dangerous every day lol. Any reviews, let's see them!

[serb7]

agreed

[ImWithTeamConan]

Yes please! I've been perusing around that Review post in the Spoilers thread trying to just catch review links and avoid spoilers, haha

[Art Damage]

THANK YOU! I'm wanting to check out the reviews just as much but I've noticed it's been getting way too dangerous over there in the other thread. haha.

So is anyone else getting chills with the fact this movie got a standing ovation? I felt so proud of being a fan of this series after hearing that.

[Keyser Soze]

With The Dark Knight review thread on the spoiler board back in 2008, the thread-creator kept his original post dated with quick links to any new reviews posted, so people didn't have to wade through spoilers discussion to find the good stuff. that doesn't seem to be getting done this time, however.

[vanson]

so i'm switching from the spoilers board to here now ... I mean like so see everything when productions is going on.. but thats too much specific stuff now... its a freaking minefield :)

[Keyser Soze]

so i'm switching from the spoilers board to here now ... I mean like so see everything when productions is going on.. but thats too much specific stuff now... its a freaking minefield :)

I've had the last two films spoiled for me, don't want it happening again....

BATMAN BEGINS: I was on the X-Men board, and out of the blue someone posted saying OMG LIAM NEESON IS ACTUALLY RAS AL GHUL LOLZ!

THE DARK KNIGHT: I was reading about Christian Bale's arrest in London in the community board, and someone says, "It was actually Aaron Eclhart, but Bale's taking the blame."

[vanson]

I've had the last two films spoiled for me, don't want it happening again....

BATMAN BEGINS: I was on the X-Men board, and out of the blue someone posted saying OMG LIAM NEESON IS ACTUALLY RAS AL GHUL LOLZ!

THE DARK KNIGHT: I was reading about Christian Bale's arrest in London in the community board, and someone says, "It was actually Aaron Eclhart, but Bale's taking the blame."

oh dear.. those basterds... :/

[Keyser Soze]

I just read that there is an embargo on all reviews until July 19th. So there may not be any activity in this thread for a while. :(

[Sikri06]

I just read that there is an embargo on all reviews until July 19th. So there may not be any activity in this thread for a while. :(

That's weird. If the movie is good they should get the word out. Good reviews helpes to create buzz.

[Notrip]

embargo is lifted on the 17th, Next Tuesday! maybe 16th. Chances are someone will break it and some reviews will hit later this week. there is a slight chance, especially since this movie seems to be getting rave reactions. lots of positive buzz right now. WB doesnt want the movie spoiled (by a review) cuz some reviewers will go into detail about the movie.

[chesslover]

One reviewer said it was(for him)the best ending since The Shawshank Redemption. Another called it a brilliant brilliant film and compared it favorably with The Godfather II.

[ImWithTeamConan]

One reviewer said it was(for him)the best ending since The Shawshank Redemption. Another called it a brilliant brilliant film and compared it favorably with The Godfather II.

Ahh finally, some word about the film. Thank you!

[Jokers_Wild]

One reviewer said it was(for him)the best ending since The Shawshank Redemption. Another called it a brilliant brilliant film and compared it favorably with The Godfather II.

Wow. That's really saying a lot about the ending. I keep racking my brain as to how it's all gonna end up. I'm so scared to read any articles about TDKR for fear someone's gonna drop a huge spoiler somewhere. I must show restraint for a few more days, but it's so hard! :doh:

[doctorkenyon]

The non spoiler forum is my new home now. There's no way I'm going to let the ending get spoiled for me if it's as good as reports are saying.

It's the ending that we come away thinking about when we leave the cinema (just look at all the post Inception talk), so this is really exciting!

[eXperiment]

The non spoiler forum is my new home now. There's no way I'm going to let the ending get spoiled for me if it's as good as reports are saying.

It's the ending that we come away thinking about when we leave the cinema (just look at all the post Inception talk), so this is really exciting!

Agreed! :yay:

[Minus Shock]

The non spoiler forum is my new home now. There's no way I'm going to let the ending get spoiled for me if it's as good as reports are saying.

It's the ending that we come away thinking about when we leave the cinema (just look at all the post Inception talk), so this is really exciting!

Seconded.

[Ashok]

Hehe yes I can't believe we are less than a week away and I'm still spoiler free (minus whatever was in the official trailers). Time to go off the grid.

[Minus Shock]

So IGN reviewed the movie. Gave it a 9 out of 10. I skimmed through as to avoid any possible spoilers and the only negative I got from the movie is it didn't have Heath and wasn't DARK KNIGHT. Considering the insane positive reaction the movie has gotten I would take IGNs review with a grain of salt. They gave MW3 a 10... so... yeah.

[AlmightyBong]

Reviews are now up at RottenTomatoes.com. A word of caution though, don't even dare to check the comments section for any of the reviews. An idiot posted what seems to be a potential spoiler, and it's hard to miss if you accidentally clicked for comments. Right now, the movie is at 100% Fresh, as expected.

I would recommend the review written by Drew McWeeny.

[Jokers_Wild]

Reviews are now up at RottenTomatoes.com. A word of caution though, don't even dare to check the comments section for any of the reviews. An idiot posted what seems to be a potential spoiler, and it's hard to miss if you accidentally clicked for comments. Right now, the movie is at 100% Fresh, as expected.

I would recommend the review written by Todd McCarthy and Drew McWeeny.

Thanks for the heads up! Is the McCarthy Variety review spoiler free?

[AlmightyBong]

Thanks for the heads up! Is the McCarthy Variety review spoiler free?
I edited my post. THe THR review is NOT SPOILER-FREE... Avoid it.

[AlmightyBong]

Thanks for the heads up! Is the McCarthy Variety review spoiler free?
McCarthy reviews for THR. I basically just skimmed through it and read parts about technical stuff and the last few paragraphs. Another article said that it's got spoilers all throughout so DO NOT DARE READ that one.

[Baneis8feettall]

I've had the last two films spoiled for me, don't want it happening again....

BATMAN BEGINS: I was on the X-Men board, and out of the blue someone posted saying OMG LIAM NEESON IS ACTUALLY RAS AL GHUL LOLZ!

THE DARK KNIGHT: I was reading about Christian Bale's arrest in London in the community board, and someone says, "It was actually Aaron Eclhart, but Bale's taking the blame."

I haven't watched those movies. You ruined it all for me.j/k

[Voyeur]

The positive reviews completely overwhelm the negative so far, yet when I do a google search of "Dark Knight Rises", I keep seeing the same Christine Lemire negative review of the film reposted over and over and over again. It's annoying...stupid Associated Press. LOL

[Bruce_Begins]

I am staying here, I don't want to hear spoilers but I just googled RT rating, it is at 91 % now with 3 negative reviews (one is from top critic.)

But it is still too early, only 15 reviews so far.

[Voyeur]

I am staying here, I don't want to hear spoilers but I just googled RT rating, it is at 91 % now with 3 negative reviews (one is from top critic.)

But it is still too early, only 15 reviews so far.
Yeah, that darn Lemire lady. She loved TDK, yet she didn't like BB. Thought BB took itself too seriously.

I think it'll be inevitable that a near-3 hour epic Batman film that doesn't feature the Joker will probably get occasional negative reviews. Because critics love the Joker, yet they don't always like "serious" superhero films.

Hopefully, there won't be many negative reviews though. I can't wait though. As much as I love Batman's rogue's gallery, I love even more the idea of this being Bruce Wayne's film.

[Bruce_Begins]

Yeah, that darn Lemire lady. She loved TDK, yet she didn't like BB. Thought BB took itself too seriously.

I think it'll be inevitable that a near-3 hour epic Batman film that doesn't feature the Joker will probably get occasional negative reviews. Because critics love the Joker, yet they don't always like "serious" superhero films.

Hopefully, there won't be many negative reviews though. I can't wait though. As much as I love Batman's rogue's gallery, I love even more the idea of this being Bruce Wayne's film.

Agreed.

[Minus Shock]

I read one of the negative reviews. Or rather the heading because I am trying to avoid spoilers and the point made was that there is so much action they may as well watch Transformers. To which I say you are stupid and all credibility is lost. I am sorry but the way reviews and media has gone is just extremes. Movie can't have awesome action pieces bookend story telling? Piss off.

[Aggressive Sock]

So far the positives have outwighed the negatives, based on the few things I have read from reviews. I, like many others, don't want spoilers...but I carefully read a few snippets from the negative ones, and this is what I have gathered with no spoilers:

1. This is more like Batman Begins, than The Dark Knight. So if you liked Batman Begins, or if you were part of the group that enjoyed Batman Begins more than TDK, you will love this movie. If you liked both BB and TDK, this prob won't beat out TDK in your opinion as the best movie, but you will still like it.
(summed up from the IGN review that wasn't really negative, but this was something he mentioned)

2. Bane doesn't grab your attention when on screen as much as the Joker did. He isn't as charismatic.
(personally I think they are 2 completely different characters, so to compare him to the Joker doesn't really make sense. Hardy even said in an interview months ago that Bane is not like the Joker, he is all about brute force, not showmanship etc.)

3. It's too long/bloated, and it takes a good hour to get going.
(Once again, if you are a fan of the series so far, why would you care how long it is? TDK was only 10 min. shorter than this, and I sat through it 4 times in theatres and always wanted more. This being the last one, I want as much as we can get. Also about the taking an hour to get going, to me that makes me think they take a good time with things and have a good buildup to things. That it tells a story rather than just action. Considering an hour of buildupm then that's an hour and 45 minutes of payoff...that's as long as a normal movie. Which I am very ok with.)

4. Bane is hard to hear.
(Said by a reviewer who saw it with his 21 year old son, and he too said he couldn't understand him. Personally I have never had a hard time understanding him, even in the very first trailers where others had trouble understanding him. Also, I will note that this was the only review where this was mentioned...so it could just be a problem with the viewer rather than the movie.)

5. It doesn't live up to the hype/isn't as good as TDK.
(This was from Christy Lemire's negative review. She was disappointed by the film and most of it was based on the fact that it wasn't as good as what she expected it to be and didn't live up to how crazy the hype was. Admittedly she said she didn't like Begins. She was a huge fan of Heath's Joker, but didn't find Bane as sexy or charismatic here. So take it for what it's worth.)

These are the complaints I gathered from the few negative reviews that are out there. Personally, none of these complaints are things I am worried about, nor are they things I usually complain about a movie.

[Keyser Soze]

It's sad that, amidst the sea of glowing positive reviews, the emerging story that's getting real traction is the 2 negative reviews and the vitriolic abuse and death threats those who wrote them have been subjected to.

DEATH THREATS. Over a review.

If you wish death upon someone for not liking this movie, you are an embarrassment to All Batman fans, if not comic fans as a whole. You give us all a bad name. thanks to your idiocy, when this gets brought up in mainstream press articles (which it already has) people will think, "Wow, those Batman fans are real crazy losers."

No movie will be loved by everyone. Can't you be happy with the overwhelming majority of positive reviews? I'm not saying you can't disagree with a negative review, or say the critic is wrong or has a dodgy basis for their opinion. but maybe wait until you've actually SEEN the film in case, you know, you end up agreeing with them? But don't resort to personal abuse. Grow up!

[Bruce_Begins]

It's sad that, amidst the sea of glowing positive reviews, the emerging story that's getting real traction is the 2 negative reviews and the vitriolic abuse and death threats those who wrote them have been subjected to.

DEATH THREATS. Over a review.

If you wish death upon someone for not liking this movie, you are an embarrassment to All Batman fans, if not comic fans as a whole. You give us all a bad name. thanks to your idiocy, when this gets brought up in mainstream press articles (which it already has) people will think, "Wow, those Batman fans are real crazy losers."

No movie will be loved by everyone. Can't you be happy with the overwhelming majority of positive reviews? I'm not saying you can't disagree with a negative review, or say the critic is wrong or has a dodgy basis for their opinion. but maybe wait until you've actually SEEN the film in case, you know, you end up agreeing with them? But don't resort to personal abuse. Grow up!

I am a Batman fan but seriously, I cannot support such attitude even if the review is negative (whether it is fair and objective or a biased and unfair) at the end of the day it is still just a review, it does not affect the quality of the movie on screen(or lack of it.)

People are going to watch it and then they are free to decide whether they agree with a certain reviewer or not.

Post Avengers success, we all (comic book movie fans) expect every damn cbm to make 1.44 billion dollars at B.O. and get a 92 % RT rating or the movie is a failure. :csad:

[Aggressive Sock]

I am a Batman fan but seriously, I cannot support such attitude even if the review is negative (whether it is fair and objective or a biased and unfair) at the end of the day it is still just a review, it does not affect the quality of the movie on screen(or lack of it.)

People are going to watch it and then they are free to decide whether they agree with a certain reviewer or not.

Post Avengers success, we all (comic book movie fans) expect every damn cbm to make 1.44 billion dollars at B.O. and get a 92 % RT rating or the movie is a failure. :csad:

Agreed with both statements. It's really unfortunate and ridiculous that such immaturity runs rampant amongst fans. It's not just in terms of Batman fans though, it goes for fans of many things, but it seems to be at it's worse over the internet. Be it for a game, movie, tv show, or anything along those lines, people get way too obsessive over something so meaningless and unimportant as a review.

A review is just an opinion, we've all been in the minority when it comes to liking or disliking something that wasn't what most people felt. So it's ridiculously narrow minded to act so crazy when you are part of the majority and not show those people respect who have different opinions. Nothing is universally loved or hated, there's always gonna be a small group that feels differently than the rest. Not even God himself is beloved by all, and even the Devil has his worshipers. Martin Luther King was hated by some, and Hitler was loved by some. That's just the way the world works. So something way less important such as a movie, is certainly no exception.

It's a shame that fans have to do this in any case, but it's the most embarassing when you are a fan of something and other fans of the same thing choose to act in such childish hateful ways.

Oh well...just one issue among a whole heap that make society look like such selfish hateful beings.

[jmc]

See internet, this is why you can't have nice things. Some of these people need to have a long hard look at themselves, it's a ****ing movie for christ sake. :dry:

[Keyser Soze]

I don't know if this is a bit condescending and sexist of me, but in my opinion, in the case of the Christina Lemire review, it's made all the more repugnant that it's a bunch of mostly men aiming abuse and threats of violence towards a woman.

[Maximus]

I don't know if this is a bit condescending and sexist of me, but in my opinion, in the case of the Christina Lemire review, it's made all the more repugnant that it's a bunch of mostly men aiming abuse and threats of violence towards a woman.

The real irony here is that these "fans" of Batman are the exact opposite of what Batman stands for.

[TomPiltoff]

And the thing that gets me is that these people still don't seem to understand the concept of a review. They read a negative review and react as if somebody has started a campaign against the thing they love, as if the movie won't be available to them unless this person shuts up immediately.

[Baneis8feettall]

84% at RT by the way.

[Aggressive Sock]

84% at RT by the way.

Based on the way things are going, I expect it to get around an 85-90% fresh rating. Probably around 210 fresh ratings, and around 30 rotten. With an average score of 8.2/10. (Begins got 85%, 7.7/10 average and this movie has been said to be more like Begins than TDK)

Which is good. So nobody should really feel disppointed or as if it's bad because it wasn't loved by everyone. No movie is. Not TDK, not Avengers, not Citizen Kane...nothing. There's always gonna be people who don't care for the same things the majority does. It especially won't appeal to everyone because of it's length(a lot of people hate long movies), and it's dark and grim tone. It's been labeled by many reviewers both positive and negative as the grimmest, darkest, depressing, and bleakest summer blockbuster yet. So it's like the Batman Returns to Batman 89'. So of course it's gonna turn away some people who want that happy feel good light hearted story.

[Keyser Soze]

And those who want to whine about any negative reviews should bear in mind that professional critics can be a community too, and a bunch of morons personally attacking a critic for their negative opinion could also serve to harden other critics against the film, given how crummy the film's ambassadors are.

[Minus Shock]

I really hate the whole way reviews are written anymore. I feel that the content should really only count for about 25% of the review. Everything else isn't as subjective. Is it well shot, well written, well performed, well directed, well edited, etc... those are yes and no. Whether or not you like Bane less or more than Joker is not that important to me. I want to know if the movie is written well, which I don't really have to worry about in this case. But I just see so many people interjecting their opinion on content far over how well the movie was made and if it is indeed worth the 7 bits to 12 bits you have to throw down for it.

I feel Avengers got higher reviews because expectations were lower therefore easier to surpass and the honeymoon affect hasn't worn off. Yes I love Whedon, Yes I love the cast, but it just is what it is. People liked it more because they expected it to be worse or even flat out fail. Batman's track record has been great, incredible so the expectation is FAR higher. And when people let their personal matters blind them from what is in front of them.. it's easier to be harsh on it. Plus being that guy who rail roads a highly anticipated movie has it's appeal to people.

Once the movie comes out I have a feeling it will level off at about 90% which whatever man. I love movies that are considered Rotten. What I am saying though is the priority and agenda of reviewers seems to be more of an ideological "I can do things better than this filmmaker and here is why I think so...". Now I am not saying DONT inject your personality into review writing.. I am saying don't let it account for more than it should.

By that logic I can say that simply because they didn't use Riddler and introduce Dick Grayson this movie is a failure. Which is absolutely absurd. If I am watching a movie made by anyone other than myself then I am accepting that it is not MY vision... IDK my two cents.

[jmc]

Expectations do come into play, I had pretty low expectations for Avengers given the other films in the series and in spite of the problems the film has came out enjoying the hell out of it, conversely I had high expectations for Prometheus and come out feeling rather nonchalant about the film. Thing is of the 9 negative reviews only one is really scathing, and that came from someone who hasn't rated any of Nolan's Batman film, or indeed most of his back catalogue. So I say relax folks.

[Baneis8feettall]

Is that true that there is criticism about Bane that isn't sexy like Joker? If so, who wrote that?

[darrenbevan1]

My review is here

http://darrens-world-of-entertainment.blogspot.co.nz/2012/07/the-dark-knight-rises-movie-review.html

[Maximus]

I also noticed that there are two reviewers from the same newspaper in Australia who both rated it negatively. I believe their reason was that it was too big and boisterous, but they rated the Avengers excellently when that is almost a carbon copy of Transformers.

They also rated uninspiring and boring movies like Captain America fresh despite TDKR obviously being a higher quality product. It just seems like they want to go against the grain, especially because they work together.

edit - Andrew Urban - rotten - but a bloated one, full of the bling of blockbuster superhero filmmaking, from the giant stunts...

This is the guy who rated Avengers fresh yet it sounds like it could be written for that movie, and he is not the only one. Marshall Fine did the same thing; they just seem like fanboys arbitrarily rating these movies based on their favorite company.

[Baneis8feettall]

"Too grim.", "Too long." ,"Bane isn't like Joker." "Too much action" same stuff

"Too grim"
It's the Dark Knight movie. Last movie had sad end.Of course it'll be grim. Protagonist lost his love, his possible successor, took the blame,beaten and shot, he is an outlaw. It would be big **** off to previous audience if it didn't have such tone.

"Too long"
The last movie. It better be long. It's farewell to fans.

"Bane isn't like Joker"
Because he isn't suppose to be like Joker. Tommy Lee Jones/Two-Face anyone?

"Too much action.Too big scale"
It's a Batman movie.Summer blockbuster.Not art house film.

They can criticize direction,acting,story, plot holes and mistakes but seriously, what's wrong with these guys?

It's like watching Red Thin Line and criticizing it because it doesn't similar to Rambo movies.

[Voyeur]

Yeah, it's like some of these critics are suggesting Batman isn't worthy enough to carry a film on his own. He must have the Joker to hook us in. This is silly, of course. Heck, by their measuring stick, Darth Vader (pre-prequel, of course) would not have been colorful enough a villain for Batman.

A good Batman story doesn't have to always include Joker. In fact, most of my favorite Batman comics usually didn't.

From all accounts, Dark Knight Rises appears to be Batman's movie, more so than Bane's. Which is a good thing, especially for Nolan's finale. If anything, I'm now glad they chose Bane as the villain. He's completely different from the Joker and most of the Rogues Gallery. And while he may not be as colorful as, say, the Riddler or Penguin, he seems the only one (short of Ra's himself) who could truly intimidate Batman and Gotham City.

As far as the film being "long" or "dark". Ironically, I seem to remember many critics calling The Dark Knight too long and with one too many endings. I dare say, I'm actually hearing less criticism about the length of this one and most agree the finale is emotionally satisfying.

I am hearing some call this film too serious and not fun. Well, this ain't the Avengers. It's not supposed to be. It's Batman. And my favorite Batman stories were hardly a barrel of laughs. Having said that, it is a movie so there should be some fun. And it seems there's still some humor in the film and some fun to be had with Selina Kyle. But for a film that's about Batman's conclusion, I expect it to be VERY serious. I swear, I still believe there are critics out there who honestly think a super hero film can't be serious or have high minded screenplays.

They believe as long as the film features a guy in a costume, the filmmakers must not take themselves or the characters too seriously. I'm sorry, but I can't subscribe to that believe. Yes, some superhero movies should be all about fun and light entertainment. And we had that (or at least a failed attempt) with earlier Batman films from Burton and Schumacher. But Nolan's films have showed the Batman I always wanted to see put to film. I've been satisfied so far. I hope I am equally so for the finale.

[NMaudlin]

Hey guys, I see the movie in 4 hours.

Insert jealous comments below. ;)

EDIT: Sorry, I though I was in General Discussion. Thats what I get for posting on an iPhone I suppose. To keep it relevant I will put up a quick review tonight. Im sure theShape has already covered everyones questions by now but I'll be hanging around for any further interrogations. Just dont start with the head...I'll get all fuzzy...

[Baneis8feettall]

^
http://blog.vh1.com/files//2010/03/cfc7_7_gif3.gif

[Rowsdower!]

Well, Rex Reed is apparently a troll. I haven't read his full review yet (which I won't do until I see the movie on Friday) but I think this quote on the RT page for TDKR says all you need to know about him:

"Speaking lines they cannot possibly understand, not one actor makes any attempt to be believable. So manufactured and synthetic that they eventually lose all sense of reality, they're like reconstituted orange juice and processed cheese."

Yes, Rex... I'm sure that this cast, packed full of Academy and Golden Globe Award winning and/or nominated actors, phoned in all of their performances, and even if they hadn't, it wouldn't have mattered because they're all morons, too stupid to comprehend the meaning of anything they were saying.

What a douchebag.

[Baneis8feettall]

Hey guys, I see the movie in 4 hours.

Insert jealous comments below. ;)

EDIT: Sorry, I though I was in General Discussion. Thats what I get for posting on an iPhone I suppose. To keep it relevant I will put up a quick review tonight. Im sure theShape has already covered everyones questions by now but I'll be hanging around for any further interrogations. Just dont start with the head...I'll get all fuzzy...

Well..Just don't forget this is a NON-SPOILER thread...if you do, we don't know who you are..but we will look for you..we will find you..and we will kill you. Have good time

[TomPiltoff]

"Too grim.", "Too long." ,"Bane isn't like Joker." "Too much action" same stuff

"Too grim"
It's the Dark Knight movie. Last movie had sad end.Of course it'll be grim. Protagonist lost his love, his possible successor, took the blame,beaten and shot, he is an outlaw. It would be big **** off to previous audience if it didn't have such tone.

"Too long"
The last movie. It better be long. It's farewell to fans.

"Bane isn't like Joker"
Because he isn't suppose to be like Joker. Tommy Lee Jones/Two-Face anyone?

"Too much action.Too big scale"
It's a Batman movie.Summer blockbuster.Not art house film.

They can criticize direction,acting,story, plot holes and mistakes but seriously, what's wrong with these guys?

It's like watching Red Thin Line and criticizing it because it doesn't similar to Rambo movies.

You're in absolutely no position to be acting like 'oh too long? psh, watch this - IT'S THE LAST MOVIE! Criticism solved.'

That guy has seen the movie, you haven't. Wait until you see it, judge for yourself, and leave other people alone who have different opinions. You'll be amazed at how much stress 'live and let live' will save you in the next few days.

By the way, "The last movie. It better be long. It's farewell to fans." is a terrible argument.

[NMaudlin]

First, and foremost you have nothing to fear. There will be NO SPOILERS in this review. Until 3-4 hours ago I was hiding under a rock in fear of spoilers just like you. I won't be spoiling a thing. I may post a spoiler review elsewhere for those interested in seeking it out. Finally, I DID see it in traditional IMAX the way it absolutely should be seen. :)

The movie is fantastic to say the least. Anne and Hardy stole the show. I had no trouble understanding lines. Bat-voice was better than in TDK. Lots of really great and unexpected callbacks to the previous films. Im surprised reviewers complained about the second act/halfway point because it contained some of my favorite scenes (though the climax/third act is in a league of its own!) The predictability/unpredictability will vary from reviewer to reviewer. I had a strong suspicion how certain things in the ending would go, but I was surprised by others. The phrase full circle is thrown around a lot and it definitely applies, because the film is the absolute perfect bookend to the trilogy. I have some minor gripes (most are too spoilery to post here, I'm afraid) but as I was leaving the theater I got in my car and as I was navigating home I pulled on to a small side-street that just so happened to be named "Shumacher Lane". That puts perspective on things. ;)

As far as Oscars, Id say chances are low. Its just not an Oscar film (and it wasnt ever meant to be). Maybe some of the smaller awards but not Best Pic in all likeliness. Ill answer any other non-spoilery questions that I can, but I probably wont get to them until tomorrow.

[El Payaso]

It's sad that, amidst the sea of glowing positive reviews, the emerging story that's getting real traction is the 2 negative reviews and the vitriolic abuse and death threats those who wrote them have been subjected to.

DEATH THREATS. Over a review.

Aaaah, reminds me of the good ol' days of death threats over Michael Keaton.




I also noticed that there are two reviewers from the same newspaper in Australia who both rated it negatively. I believe their reason was that it was too big and boisterous, but they rated the Avengers excellently when that is almost a carbon copy of Transformers.

They also rated uninspiring and boring movies like Captain America fresh despite TDKR obviously being a higher quality product. It just seems like they want to go against the grain, especially because they work together.

edit - Andrew Urban - rotten - but a bloated one, full of the bling of blockbuster superhero filmmaking, from the giant stunts...

This is the guy who rated Avengers fresh yet it sounds like it could be written for that movie, and he is not the only one. Marshall Fine did the same thing; they just seem like fanboys arbitrarily rating these movies based on their favorite company.

Of course they are. They're reviewers: people giving an opinion. Not any different from what you can find here. What are poeople expecting from them? To tell us what is actually really good? They're just telling us what they think/feel.

[Minus Shock]

You're in absolutely no position to be acting like 'oh too long? psh, watch this - IT'S THE LAST MOVIE! Criticism solved.'

That guy has seen the movie, you haven't. Wait until you see it, judge for yourself, and leave other people alone who have different opinions. You'll be amazed at how much stress 'live and let live' will save you in the next few days.

By the way, "The last movie. It better be long. It's farewell to fans." is a terrible argument.

I disagree heavily with you. It's pretty clear that people are rating this movie not as much based off the quality of the film but the content. I suppose you can argue back and forth that content drives quality, but I don't think that way. I think it's the movies. A Transformers movie COULD be great if it were given half a thought at story and actual film making tactics applied, like acting... direction... etc. It's a movie, they are fantasy no matter what the genre (see Magic Mike, there aren't that many awesome looking male strippers who ARE into chicks) but as long as the actual film making end of things is solid the movie will be at least solid.

Being harsh on a movie because of the villain they used is one of the silliest things I have ever heard. As someone said... Fans pressured Marvel into pressuring Rami to use Venom and look what we got. Because the movie has huge action pieces.. Uhm did you forget what movie you were going to? That is LITERALLY like giving a Metallica concert a bad review because they played loud and fast music. The negative points that I have read thus far are just complete ********. I haven't heard anyone say the sound sucked, the visuals were bad, the acting was bad, the editing was bad, etc. In fact even in the negative reviews those are given praise. So I stand by what I have said and what it sounds like others are saying, The movie is getting a bit rail roaded because of how people think the movie should have been made. The reviewer should rate the movie they saw, not talk about the movie they want to make. idk it's insanely frustrating. I used to be a reviewer on a fairly prominent website a few years a go. I saw like two movies a week and would review them, so it's not like I am just pointing a finger, I don't really review movies anymore because anymore if you are being fair and being realistic it's boring. People will fluff their reviews to make a name for themselves.

[TomPiltoff]

I have no idea why you're telling me how much better Transformers could be and how Spider-Man 3 went wrong.

Sorry to say this, but you're just reading off the same butthurt template that always begins towards critics around this time of a movies release. Negative reviews come up, fans feel the need to discredit the review and reviewer. Oh not because they didn't like the movie, no of course not. Just that they're terrible reviewers who don't even know how to do their jobs. OK.

Reviews are subjective. People approach movies differently. People write differently. Just accept that you will agree with some and you will disagree with some.

[Baneis8feettall]

You're in absolutely no position to be acting like 'oh too long? psh, watch this - IT'S THE LAST MOVIE! Criticism solved.'

That guy has seen the movie, you haven't. Wait until you see it, judge for yourself, and leave other people alone who have different opinions. You'll be amazed at how much stress 'live and let live' will save you in the next few days.

By the way, "The last movie. It better be long. It's farewell to fans." is a terrible argument.

It has to be long. Also fans would like to see as much as they can for the last time. It's not just 3rd part.. It's conclusion. They must create a story includes previous movies and this one.

I don't need to see the movie to tell what's obvious BS.

[Baneis8feettall]

I have no idea why you're telling me how much better Transformers could be and how Spider-Man 3 went wrong.

Sorry to say this, but you're just reading off the same butthurt template that always begins towards critics around this time of a movies release. Negative reviews come up, fans feel the need to discredit the review and reviewer. Oh not because they didn't like the movie, no of course not. Just that they're terrible reviewers who don't even know how to do their jobs. OK.

Reviews are subjective. People approach movies differently. People write differently. Just accept that you will agree with some and you will disagree with some.

If you are a critic and you are gonna write about KFC hotwings, you suppose to be proffesional. You can't give negative opinion because of you don't like chicken. You can't give negative opinion because it's hot, it's wings, it's too much.Critics aren't average joe. They are critics. They must do their job objectively.

Again, if i go to KFC and rant about my hotwings are spicy, who would take me serious? If i go to Batman movie, i must know what i'll get and give an opinion about that.

Same for movies. You can't give negative opinion about Charlie Chaplin movie is slapstick, Batman movie is grim, Kill Bill has cheesy dialogs,Machete is ridicilous or Jurrassic Park isn't gore. That's difference between being proffesional and amateur. Knowing what you are talking about. Being objective.

If it was random dude says movie was too grim, i would say it suppose to be grim,maybe Batman isn't for you. But if a critic says it's bad because it's grim, i would call him amatuer and trash his lights off. :woot:

[TomPiltoff]

It has to be long.

No, it doesn't have to be and you've yet to make an argument for that (because "it's the last one" doesn't hold water at all).

Also fans would like to see as much as they can for the last time.

Right but that's outside of what goes into making a movie. If it was all about how much people would tolerate, TDKR would be 5 hours long.

If you are a critic and you are gonna write about KFC hotwings, you suppose to be proffesional.

Let me stop you right there, because everything that comes after this is built on that faulty premise. A critic is supposed to tell us whether they liked the movie or not, period. It's not supposed to be people who are just pre-disposed to like Batman that review the movie.

Semi-related, this is farking embarrassing. (http://www.mediaite.com/online/rotten-tomatoes-forced-to-suspend-comments-after-furious-batman-fans-attack-negative-reviewers/)

[Baneis8feettall]

No, it doesn't have to be and you've yet to make an argument for that (because "it's the last one" doesn't hold water at all).



Right but that's outside of what goes into making a movie. If it was all about how much people would tolerate, TDKR would be 5 hours long.



Let me stop you right there, because everything that comes after this is built on that faulty premise. A critic is supposed to tell us whether they liked the movie or not, period. It's not supposed to be people who are just pre-disposed to like Batman that review the movie.

Semi-related, this is farking embarrassing. (http://www.mediaite.com/online/rotten-tomatoes-forced-to-suspend-comments-after-furious-batman-fans-attack-negative-reviewers/)

That's were you wrong about it. If proffesional critics must be objective and able to support thoughts with facts. They can't be emotional, can't be subjective about the movie.

Their job isn't tell us if they like the movie or not. Their job giving their objective opinions.What's good and what's not with facts. They must know what kind of movie they are talking about.

A critic watch shakespeare's work and say "it's not good, they don't talk like average joe, unrealistic and poetic language is boring" That's just indicates he is amateur. He should have know it's shakespeare. He should know the source.

Seriously, i don't like romantic movies. If i go to a romantic comedy and say "i didn't like it because it was kinda romantic but also it had humour. Not a good mix." That's makes me, me. I don't even write it like that in SHH,but these people able to write in newspapers and such.

That's difference between being a critic and average joe.

About being too long, it's only 13 minutes longer than previous movie. It's a conclusion, 13 minutes more is not much for ending a trilogy.

Fan attack is quite normal. If they do their job bad, they'll be under heat. That's same about every job. Do it good or quit. Funny they can't take negative opinions about themselves but they give it easily. :woot:

[TomPiltoff]

If proffesional critics must be objective and able to support thoughts with facts. They can't be emotional, can't be subjective about the movie.

Completely false. Critics are people like anybody else - it's a given that what they write is their opinion.

Now, that doesn't mean that you have to take all critics seriously. Because they're individuals with different tastes, you can find reviewers you trust more than others. I'm not telling you you have to take negative reviews to heart - if you think somebody sounds like an idiot for complaining about length or tone, fine! Feel free to discount them and never take them seriously again. But they aren't doing their job incorrectly.

Their job isn't tell us if they like the movie or not. Their job giving their objective opinions.

WTF is an objective opinion? Please define that for me.

A critic watch shakespeare's work and say "it's not good, they don't talk like average joe, unrealistic and poetic language is boring" That's just indicates he is amateur.

No, it indicates he doesn't like Shakespeare. In the future when that guy critiques something, you can say 'hey I remember this guy, he thought Romeo and Juliet sucked. I won't pay him any mind'.

About being too long, it's only 13 minutes longer than previous movie. It's a conclusion, 13 minutes more is not much for ending a trilogy.

When critics say the movie is too long, they mean unnecessarily so. It's not '2 hours and 45 minutes? That's just too long!' Their argument is that the movie doesn't need to be that long, that the story could be tighter and more concise. You and I may see the movie and disagree, but it's an opinion - you aren't going to disprove it. And based upon your line of argument, you don't even understand the critique.

Fan attack is quite normal. If they do their job bad, they'll be under heat. That's same about every job. Do it good or quit. Funny they can't take negative opinions about themselves but they give it easily.

Well that's just all BS. Fan attack is normal, but normal ≠ justifiable.

We're just going to have to agree to disagree, because to be honest you're giving the impression that everything you're complaining about stems solely from the fact that you like Batman. None of these criticisms would come up if they were in favor of the film. The final straw was when you acted as if the idiotic, predictable fanboy backlash is somehow a measured, justified response.

[Baneis8feettall]

We can argue about this all day, but you are not willing to understand the line between being a professional and amateur.

People who don't do their job professionally will always be under heat.

If a critic gives a negative opinion about shakespearian play that "they talk too much and poetic way" He'll be a joke or attacked and probably get fired rightfully.

If you gave Raging Bull negative opinions because it's not entertaining like Rocky series, Jack Lamotta isn't like Rocky Balboa, same thing would happen. Batman has more hardcore and large fanbase, so rightfully they bash stupid reviews.

If you call yourself a critic, you must know Batman is a somber hero. You must know Joker must be funny and over the top and Bane must not. Critics can't be ignorant viewers, they must be re-search these things if they are professionals.

Even if they find the movie bad, they must have reasons that they can prove. Their idiocy exposed and fans are attacking them.

[TomPiltoff]

We can argue about this all day, but you are not willing to understand the line between being a professional and amateur.

We simply have different ideas of what a reviewer should be. It's not that I don't understand your argument, it's that it isn't persuasive. Like I said, we simply have different perceptions of reality if you're defending the people harassing reviewers.

Still waiting for you to clarify exactly what an objective opinion is, by the way.

[Juicy J]

We can argue about this all day, but you are not willing to understand the line between being a professional and amateur.

People who don't do their job professionally will always be under heat.

If a critic gives a negative opinion about shakespearian play that "they talk too much and poetic way" He'll be a joke or attacked and probably get fired rightfully.

If you gave Raging Bull negative opinions because it's not entertaining like Rocky series, Jack Lamotta isn't like Rocky Balboa, same thing would happen. Batman has more hardcore and large fanbase, so rightfully they bash stupid reviews.

If you call yourself a critic, you must know Batman is a somber hero. You must know Joker must be funny and over the top and Bane must not. Critics can't be ignorant viewers, they must be re-search these things if they are professionals.

Even if they find the movie bad, they must have reasons that they can prove. Their idiocy exposed and fans are attacking them.

Hahahaha. Wow.
Good to know that if I didn't like the movie and can't provide a satisfactory explanation as to why I felt that way that pleases you, I'm an idiot apparently.
Some people won't like this movie, plain and simple. Some critics won't like this movie, plain and simple.
Deal with it. You can't possibly justify fans attacking the negative reviewers simply because they didn't like the film, and the fact that you're even trying to automatically makes me lump you in with those 'fans' that are taking things way to far.

[Baneis8feettall]

Reviewing something without having bias opinion (emotional,political etc), knowing the genre and what audience expect, if it's adaptation knowing the roots and what fanbase expect and things like that.

If you review an action/crime movie based on comics, then you must know the action/crime genre and Batman comics well enough. Otherwise you get exposed like it happened by fanbase.

If my father was writing a review about Metallica's Master of Puppets.. he would complain about it's too loud, too fast, lyrics are horrifying, vocalist is screaming bla bla. That's because it's his subjective view. If he knew thrash/speed metal must be loud,fast and have such lyrics and vocals... and judged it after all, he could write an objective review and what's good and what's bad even if he doesn't like thrash metal at all.

That's the main difference between a good critic and my father. That's difference between being professional and amateur.

I'm not against bashing bad critics. They should knew the movie must be grim before watching it. If we know the difference between the tone in Avengers comics and Batman comics, they have to know it because they are the ones titled as "movie critic"

[Baneis8feettall]

Hahahaha. Wow.
Good to know that if I didn't like the movie and can't provide a satisfactory explanation as to why I felt that way that pleases you, I'm an idiot apparently.
Some people won't like this movie, plain and simple. Some critics won't like this movie, plain and simple.
Deal with it. You can't possibly justify fans attacking the negative reviewers simply because they didn't like the film, and the fact that you're even trying to automatically makes me lump you in with those 'fans' that are taking things way to far.

First of all, you are not a movie critic.You are one guy in general audience. You are not titled as movie critic, you are not earning your life for it. You don't have to know anything about what makes a good movie and you can still give an opinion about it even if it's stupid. You would be exposed if you can't back up your negative criticism. However you might still doesn't like the movie.

Movie critics are professionals. It's their job.That's what they do for living. They can't be ignorant, they can't be bias.Even if they give their emotional opinions towards to movie, they must put the line under it. Of course, i'm talking about good critics.

[Juicy J]

Fair enough. If you wouldn't mind, show me an example of a negative review you find biased and objectionable and another negative review that you find valid.

[Baneis8feettall]

Movie critics aren't paid for what they like or not. People don't care about their favorites.They care about if it's a good movie by it's genre, if it's good adaptation from it's roots,acting,story,visuals and other things.

A critic can't go to mexican restaurant and give negative rating because foods weren't like italian. He can't write foods are bad because they are spicy. Good critic would know they suppose to be spicy.Good critic would compare it with other mexican restaurants, compare it with origins and give sourceful review about it. He might say i don't like mexican foods, he might say people who don't like spicy food shouldn't go there but he can't say bad restaurant just because it's not his taste.

Criticism requires some knowledge,objectiveness. If you can't fill requirements,it will backfire like it happened with those critics.

You can't write The Godfather is failure because "it's all machoism, females aren't strong, too much guns and no room for love bla bla" That's something my girlfriend might say.Someone professional would know it's about mafia, it's a crime movie, the way italian mob families work, the original book and write something depends on that. His criticism would have some source.

There is a difference between an expert and random dude. An expert cannot have freedom of ignorance that random dude can have.

[TomPiltoff]

If you review an action/crime movie based on comics, then you must know the action/crime genre and Batman comics well enough.

OMFG, what? No dude, you are so entirely off. I know I said we just have to agree to disagree, and I stand by that as I'm not putting in the effort to rebut you point by point anymore, but this is just so far from the truth that it's laughable.

TDKR has to be a good movie before it can be anything else. If it requires the viewer to be familiar with the comics then it fails.

STILL waiting for you to explain what an objective opinion is.

[LegendAssemble]

OMFG, what? No dude, you are so entirely off. I know I said we just have to agree to disagree, and I stand by that as I'm not putting in the effort to rebut you point by point anymore, but this is just so far from the truth that it's laughable.

TDKR has to be a good movie before it can be anything else. If it requires the viewer to be familiar with the comics then it fails.

STILL waiting for you to explain what an objective opinion is.

Couldn't agree more! However I will say I much preferred Keaton's Batman to Bales until I more familiarized myself with the Batman comics...Now I just prefer Conroy ;)

Anyway I would also add that the truly greatest superhero movies fall into a different genre first. It's what made the Dark Knight so good and the reason Iron Man 2 ended up looking so lack luster compared to its predecessor.

[Baneis8feettall]

OMFG, what? No dude, you are so entirely off. I know I said we just have to agree to disagree, and I stand by that as I'm not putting in the effort to rebut you point by point anymore, but this is just so far from the truth that it's laughable.

TDKR has to be a good movie before it can be anything else. If it requires the viewer to be familiar with the comics then it fails.

STILL waiting for you to explain what an objective opinion is.

Being a critic is a serious job. It's not like random dudes throwing opinions. If you are titled as movie critic, that means you are a movie expert and you have fill all the requirements for it.

A critic MUST know the genre and if it's an adaptation they MUST know the source. They must know what fans expecting from that genre and the source material.

Their negative opinions doesn't depend on reliable things. That's why they get all the criticism by fans.

I already answered your question about objective review couple of posts ago btw.

[TomPiltoff]

A critic MUST know the genre and if it's an adaptation they MUST know the source. They must know what fans expecting from that genre and the source material.

[face_palm] No dude. Are you seriously not grasping this? TDKR is a movie. It's not a comic book. It has to stand on its own two legs as a movie. If it only works if you're familiar with the characters by having read the comics, then it fails.

Also, Batman fans are not the only people going to see this movie. You and I don't need to read reviews because we're going to see this no matter what. This may come as a shock to you, but not everybody goes on SuperHeroHype.com and is a guaranteed day one ass in the seat. There are people who don't read Batman comics or keep up on Batman news, and they rely on critics to decide what they're going to check out. So again, knowledge of the character is absolutely not required for critics.

I already answered your question about objective review couple of posts ago btw.

Was it when you said

Reviewing something without having bias opinion (emotional,political etc), knowing the genre and what audience expect, if it's adaptation knowing the roots and what fanbase expect and things like that. ?

Because honestly, and I'm not trying to be a jerk, that doesn't make any sense. Objective opinion is a nonsense term, as is the idea of 'reviewing something without having bias'. Bias is inherent in everything. It's like saying 'hey I know you hate hamburgers, but put your bias aside and tell me if this is a good one'.

[Voyeur]

Oh man, in less than 12 hours, I will be playing calling in sick to watch The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX at Universal Studios! Can't wait.

[er101]

Just leaving for the film now. Can't wait.

[Baneis8feettall]

I'm not saying they should be avid fan of comics. But they must know what's Batman and what makes a good Batman movie. And you gotta know it.

Same goes for any book adaptation. If you go to the Shining, you can't criticize the movie because it has supernatural elements. It's based best seller book.


They can criticize the story,storytelling,direction and all..but they can't criticize Batman being grim. That's ignorance. It's a character known as grim. Just because a critic don't like grim characters, doesn't give him right to bash the movie because it represent the character faithfully.

Batman is a comic book movie. It's not something totally new. It's 70 years of legacy. If they don't like darker superheroes, it shouldn't effect their review. They may hate the movie but can't say it's bad because it has darker tone.

Majority of audience is Batman fans. Not hardcore maybe, but still they know most of the characters, at least Batman. Then comic book movies fans.Then action fans. Then others.

[Baneis8feettall]

If i criticize LOTR movie because hobbits aren't sexy and trees are talking.. that makes me ignorant or a dumbass. Eighter i don't know LOTR is an adaptation and criticize main characters for what they suppose to be.

Of course it's still has to be good movie general. That's not what they criticize. They are giving their personal taste about characters and giving a negative note for it.

Can you criticize Peter Parker for being socially awkward? No. That's who he is. Just because a critic doesn't like awkward people, he can't has right the bash the movie because main character is faithful to main source of the movie.

[Bat-fan]

Nowadays everyone can write a film critic on the internet, it's no big deal, I usually read critics by "professionals" after having seen a film because they often contain too many spoilers and even if the majority of the reviewers finds it a good film it does not necessarily mean that I'll agree with them since something like an "objective critic" simply doesn't exist.
Professional critics are usually more profound and provide more film facts, they are written in a more sophisticated language which makes them appear more serious than those of ordinary writers.
I think that the film producers are interested in the attendance figures anyway and it's questionable whether film critics have such a big influence on them, a good trailer has much more impact on the viewers decision of wanting to watch it.

[Minus Shock]

Wow this debate is still going on :P. I am saying after seeing the movie, in the Marathon mind you, I could care less what anyone's opinion of the movie is. I am content with knowing that I have seen something so special on screen that I will likely never see again.

[TomPiltoff]

I'm not saying they should be avid fan of comics. But they must know what's Batman and what makes a good Batman movie. And you gotta know it.

There is no single answer to what makes a good Batman movie, that's the whole point.

By the way, are you still going to defend the people who sent death threats to reviewers?

[Baneis8feettall]

There is no single answer to what makes a good Batman movie, that's the whole point.

By the way, are you still going to defend the people who sent death threats to reviewers?

I have never defend death threats :whatever: Also if you are implying what happened it colorado, that's nothing to do with it.

There is nothing wrong to criticize anyone unprofessional in their jobs. If critics can't handle with cricitism, that's quite hypocrisy.

Making a good movie while being faithful to source enough. Like any other movie adaptation. Especially if it's as well known as Batman.

[TomPiltoff]

There is nothing wrong to criticize anyone unprofessional in their jobs. If critics can't handle with cricitism, that's quite hypocrisy.

Right, but I'm not arguing against the idea of writing in to critics. My issue is with this particular instance - people writing in angry about a review to a movie they haven't seen. You're defending that and trying to make it comparable to 'Roger, I saw Batman last weekend and I really disagree with your review and here are the reasons why...'

Making a good movie while being faithful to source enough.

Faithful to source? Which source? You mean the first Batman issues where he killed people? Or maybe the first appearance of Robin, the kid sidekick?

Again, my point - there is no one correct idea of Batman. Different writers have done different things with him in the comics the same way Nolan is doing his own unique take in his movies.

[Dannyboy3D]

It comes down to this...

WATCH TDKR & BE YOUR OWN CRITIC. IT'S THE BEST FILM I HAVE EVER SEEN!

[Keyser Soze]

A great review from the always-insightful Mark Kermode:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58FU_yQYqhc