The Official Rate/Review Thread for TDKR (TAG SPOILERS!!!) - Part 3

[Tequilla]

Originally Posted by MagnarTheGreat

The appearing, disappearing, reappearing, disappearing hand on Bruce's cane during his first meeting with Fox is something you can't unsee when you see it.

I just caught some awkward editing during Talia's reveal where her upright head is facing Batman, then it's tilted off to the side in less than the blink of an eye.

A lot or most movies have continuity errors but I usually suck at finding them. I noticed the night I first saw the movie that stuff felt wrong such as the Miranda, Bruce, Lucius, and Selina scene. Later I found out that in the old script it was in a different position in the movie. I should have never have felt that way on my first viewing but I knew it felt wrong right away.

A piece of advice. Dont start to pay attention to these continuity erros in Scorsese movies...or else you will never be the same

Continuity is a very small part of editing. Its very much discarded by a stronger image . I said Scorsese , i could said a lot of other directors. In his case , well Thelma Schoonmaker is a legend , and her movies collaborations are full of these sort of thing.

I actually think Lee Smith's editing in this movie is nowhere near as good as his previous collaborations with Nolan. But its the not the continuity that bugs me.

[Frodo]

Originally Posted by Raoul Duke

i enjoyed this film a lot. but it's incredibly sloppy, especially with the editing. it's also strangely paced and the screenplay seems like it could have done with a bit more fine tuning.

the day to night in under 8 minutes in the stock exchange scene is just amazingly sloppy for a big budget film directed by someone like nolan. and the final act and everything leading up to it seems very disjointed. we keep cutting from bruce in the pit back to gotham back to bruce in the pit back to gotham numerous times with no real sense of the time frame. and with the finale being so break neck the twist and the demise of bane and talia just seems too rushed. i think a lot of fat could have been cut out of the middle sections which would have allowed the final act to breathe a little bit. the film is also still plagued with some strange dialogue. why does the clean slate need to be explained to a character who knows what it is anyway? and the exchange of dialogue between modine's character (who is perhaps the single worst character in this entire trilogy, writing and acting wise) and the guy at the stock exchange about the nature of the stock market and the money was incredibly on the nose and silly.

i'd say it's a film driven by it's great performances and set pieces. it's the best performance bale has given as batman, by quite a margin. he goes through all the emotions and does it well. hathaway is stunning as catwoman. sexy, smart, witty and unpredictable. hardy as bane was also fantastic, although at first i didn't like the voice he chose, it definitely grew on me. i loved the scene where bane broke batman, even if the actual combat was disappointingly average. hardy was clearly having a lot of fun taunting batman there.

overall i'd give this film a solid 8. there is a lot to like about it. but in the end, it's very, very sloppy on a technical film making level. not enough to ruin my enjoyment of it however. although i don't think it will hold up to repeat viewings.

Ditto. Your review pretty much sums up my feeling on the film.

[Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by BatLobsterRises

I think the day to night thing for the stock exchange happened for one reason: the stock exchange closes at like 4pm, but Batman's return had to be at night. To the movie's credit, it did show a dusk transition shot, and then cut to Daggett's apartment where he's watching the chase on the news and it's night. This was a decent way to imply a time jump because it's easier to accept time jumps if you're jumping between locations too. And Nolan has definitely used montage style editing in his action sequences in the past, the TDK chase scene comes to mind.

The movie uses similar techniques to make the longer time jumps work. That wide shot of Blake walking up to Wayne Manor after the back breaking scene has leaves falling to establish the season. Autumn is further established by setting up that it's football season. So the moment we see snow on the ground in Gotham, we know that a significant amount of time has passed.

Exactly. The transition at the end of stock exchange scene and Batmans return wasn't as blatant as I originally thought. The dusk transition during that scene was apparent.

That was really my only main gripe on the editing and yes the detail and crispness of TDKR Blue Ray is just fantastic!

Plus, do some people expect Nolan to do something silly and spell out on the bottom during each time jump..." 1 month later, 3 months later or 6 months later or something?

[Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by BatLobsterRises

You asked for scale. That's on an even bigger scale, plus it's a plot with the League.

Just saying there is precedent for Bane to do things besides break Batman's back and take over the criminal underworld. I think he fit the military leader role like a glove. Bane is all about demonstration of power, and was known for being a master strategist too.

Exactly.

They established in the beginning with the CIA douche that Bane already had a very formidable reputation within the mercenary/terrorist world.

Alfred clarifies this even more later when he tells Bruce more about him after doing research on Bane.

[CoolCadaver49]

Originally Posted by Dark Knight

Plus, do some people expect Nolan to do something silly and spell out on the bottom during each time jump..." 1 month later, 3 months later or 6 months later or something?

No, but he'd likely do well to incorporate the time-lapses into dialogue. I haven't seen the film for a couple of months, so I can't guarantee that he didn't do that. All I know is that it never really hit me that everything was stretched over a course of several months until, like, my third viewing. I stopped and was like... "Hold on a minute... It's snowing... How much time has passed??"

[Mac_Hine]

Just saw it on blu-ray again. I freaking love this movie! It gets better with each viewing as you pick up things you missed before like all other Nolan movies. The whole "how did Bruce get from the pit prison to Gotham and find Selina so fast?" question for me got answered as I paid careful attention to the dialog. A scene before Bruce escapes, Fox explains how the bomb will go off in 23 days. When Bruce finds Selina he says that the bomb will go off the next day. So Bruce had 20+ days to get back to Gotham and track and find Selina. He's the goddam Batman so he should have no trouble doing that in that amount of time.
TDKR is tied with TDK as my favorite Batman movie with Begins coming in next.

[CoolCadaver49]

Dang, that ruins my theory, Mac Hine.

I was almost certain that Superman flew Batman back to Gotham after he climbed out of the pit...

[GremlinZilla89]

I love Rises. I love it more and more on each watch. I honestly think many people who dislike it are blinded by the "flaws" in TDK as well. There are just as many inconsistencies, WTF's, and gaps in that film but for some reason it gets a pass while Rises takes the brunt of the attack.

[BatLobsterRises]

Originally Posted by GremlinZilla89

I love Rises. I love it more and more on each watch. I honestly think many people who dislike it are blinded by the "flaws" in TDK as well. There are just as many inconsistencies, WTF's, and gaps in that film but for some reason it gets a pass while Rises takes the brunt of the attack.

It's okay. Rises can "take it".

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I have to say that TDKR doesnt hold to repeat viewings as much as BB and TDK, I have watched it 3 times now on BD and 1st enjoyed it just as much as the cinema, but my enjoyment has gotten less and less with each viewing, and this didnt happen with BB and TDK, in fact both just got better.

I dont know what it is, the performances are superb, and whats happens to the characters within the story feels natural, but there is just something, off about it. The 3rd act or 'war' if you wanna call it that, seems to go by FAR too quickly, were as everything between Bane breaking Batman and him coming back seems to drag on a bit too much. I think a lot of the 2nd act could have been shortened and more fat added to the 3rd act, which it needed IMO. I still dont like the 8 year gap in movie-time either, I just cant see Bruce quitting like that even with Rachel's death, in fact I think he would just lose himself in Batman more and more.

I still like the movie, I just dont like it as much as I did in the cinema, I do feel the last 10 mins elevates the movie a lot as the way everything is wrapped up is superb. But overall, while still a very good movie, it is slowly becoming my least favourite of the trilogy. I will watch the movie again of course, and I intend to watch all 3 back-to-back very soon as after Xmas I am off work for 3 months, so maybe that'll change my perception.

[Filmboy]

Does Nolan have a special preferences over dark hair women?

He only cast Brunettes in his movies.....Katie Holmes, Maggie Gyllenhall, Ann Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page...........

[BH/HHH]

I watched it for only the second time ever (I know right?) but I'm glad I did. Even though I have my problems TIH it and Bane's voice is seriously stupid this movie is as awesome as it was when I watched it back in July 2012.

[Kryptonian Warrior]

So I just got done watching the movie again and I still absolutely LOVE this movie. However, I was left wondering why he would lie about the autopilot not functioning to Selina. I mean he just flat out told her "no autopilot", when in fact it was fixed. I wonder if the intent was to make the city think that he was dead and then reveal that he is alive to those closest to him? That just made me curious is all.

[BlueLightning]

I thought that it was because he still had the chance to fulfill the death wish he longed so much. For me, the close up is him pondering if he would choose to save himself.

Other posters had pointed out that perhaps he hadn't tested the autopilot, so there was still the chance that he couldn't make it, and he didn't want to give Selina a false hope.

[JackWhite]

Originally Posted by BlueLightning

I thought that it was because he still had the chance to fulfill the death wish he longed so much. For me, the close up is him pondering if he would choose to save himself.

Other posters had pointed out that perhaps he hadn't tested the autopilot, so there was still the chance that he couldn't make it, and he didn't want to give Selina a false hope.

My thoughts exactly. You can even say Bruce's expression was one of relief. Very, very nice moment.

[The Guard]

Edited.

[AnneFan]

Apart from Nolan using it as a narrative misdirection device, I read it as Batman saying there is no autopilot as manual control is necessary up to a point. Until he hit the ocean he had to negotiate the streets and skyscrapers, using The Bat’s cannons to clear a path. The bomb was very heavy and scraped along the ground upon take-off. Once The Bat was in the clear, he definitely had a choice to make if he wanted to live.

[FeedOnATreeFrog]

Originally Posted by Kryptonian Warrior

So I just got done watching the movie again and I still absolutely LOVE this movie. However, I was left wondering why he would lie about the autopilot not functioning to Selina. I mean he just flat out told her "no autopilot", when in fact it was fixed. I wonder if the intent was to make the city think that he was dead and then reveal that he is alive to those closest to him? That just made me curious is all.

He didn't plan on bringing Selena with him. I mean, up to 11 minutes prior, he was in a relationship with Miranda.

He wanted everyone to think he was dead.

I imagine that it isn't till afterwards, thinking about that kiss, that it hits him that he still has a hope for a 'normal life', so he brings Selena with him.

[Travesty]

They just threw that in there, so there could be a cheap twist at the end. That's really the only explanation to it.

[Picard Sisko]

I already wrote this in another thread but here you go:

This is my take on TDKR. It was a very good conclusion to the Nolan Batman trilogy. But it was full of plot holes, and several things I just didn't buy, such as the scene where the Cops and Mercenaries have their battle in the streets of Gotham, the "clean slate" device, even or the whole ending for that matter. Bane was a good villain, but if it wasn't for his cool voice, he would be rather unmemorable IMO. The pacing was off, and the editing could have been better; the first chase scene begins during the day, but seconds later it is suddenly nighttime. Seriously?

There were a lot of problems I had with the movie, some nitpicks, others legit complaints. Aside from that, like I said earlier, its a good conclusion to the Nolan trilogy. It was a great experience, and I'm happy we were given some of the best Batman movies we will probably ever see. I am still not happy that Batman only donned the Batman costume for about a year and a half within the three films, but oh well.

My final grade for the film:

8/10

Just so you can compare to my ratings to the other Batman films:

Batman Begins - 8.5/10
The Dark Knight - 9.5/10

Also:

Batman (1989) - 7/10
Batman Returns - 7.5/10
Batman Forever - 3.5/10
Batman & Robin - 2.5/10

[Vartha]

Just stopped by to say bought the Walmart 2 disc dvd with 3 hours of extras with the batmobile.... LOVED the movie.

[Bruce_Begins]

Originally Posted by Vartha

Just stopped by to say bought the Walmart 2 disc dvd with 3 hours of extras with the batmobile.... LOVED the movie.

[Anno_Domini]

I need to see TDKR again....I need my fix, lol. Maybe I'll just watch the entire trilogy.

[L3G3NDK1LLER]

I notice a lot of people have problems with no real answer as to how Bruce got back to Gotham after he climbed out of the pit. But I got to thinking, is it really that hard to assume that he did something similar to what he did in begins? I mean he hid on a boat and disappeared for years overseas before training to become Batman. So being as skilled as he is at that point in time, wouldnt getting back to Gotham unnoticed be easy?

[Brain Damage]

Originally Posted by L3G3NDK1LLER

I notice a lot of people have problems with no real answer as to how Bruce got back to Gotham after he climbed out of the pit. But I got to thinking, is it really that hard to assume that he did something similar to what he did in begins? I mean he hid on a boat and disappeared for years overseas before training to become Batman. So being as skilled as he is at that point in time, wouldnt getting back to Gotham unnoticed be easy?

The problem with that is that the filmmakers quite clearly set up how impossible it is to get in or out of Gotham. That Bruce managed to find a way into the country, fine, I'll buy that without having to see it. But when you take screentime to set up the difficulty of getting into a place, it feels awful cheap to have your protagonist magically find a way in off screen.

Maybe some will say "Well, he IS Batman".
Fine, but let's not forget that we had an entire movie in this trilogy that was dedicated to showing HOW Batman operated in great detail. TDK, while not as in depth about it, certainly maintained that notion of letting us see how Batman operates. So for TDKR to pull the "well, he IS Batman" card feels both cheap and inconsistent with the other films.