Saying that the Two-Face we know could not survive in the world Nolan has established is true, but only because Nolan killed him in the world Nolan has established.
Frankly, that's utter nonsense.
Like what Nolan did, but don't pretend it began to reach Two-Face's full potential. There's a hell of a lot more to the character than "I want revenge because fate screwed me and I flip my coin to make decisions".
1) That was hardly generic.
I feel Two-Face's revenge plot in THE DARK KNIGHT was, with the exception of shooting the limo driver was in fact, pretty generic. Yes, he had the "fate" and "duality" elements, but that's because he, himself, is Two-Face. His actual plot was still pretty generic. He killed people who had wronged him, and kidnapped Gordon's kid to draw him in. It's like every post Western Clint Eastwood movie I've ever seen.
It was satisfying enough, I guess, but it wasn't real innovative stuff.
2) Look at how they developed him, revenge was his sole motivation as Two-Face. He lived that out to it's entirety. As far as it could logically go, anyway. I'm simply asking what more he would have left to do should he live. The answer is nothing. Like someone else said, it would be random and unnecessary for him to suddenly decide to become a mob boss or whatever. Completely out of character for this incarnation, and a shallow waste of screen time.
His motivaiton being revenge against the people who he used to work with, when they had nothing to do with his fall, is both misguided, and kind of boring. His motivation should have been justice, which could have carried into the sequel.
I understand you wanted to see more of him, because so did I. But it's simply inappropriate in this case. That's why I'm okay with it, because it ended on a poetic note and they didn't run him into the ground with repetitive nonsense. Well, I'll call it nonsense unless you can find a way to make his return relevant and not random or contrived or repetitive, or betraying to this telling of the character. Who knows though, maybe that can be done.
I don't really see how it's inappropriate to see more of Two-Face, because they didn't even complete his arc as it was set up in the film. The whole point of his arc in THE DARK KNIGHT should be not only that they'd lost Harvey, but that they'd lost him to the other side, that he'd become a freak villain, who would threaten the city he once swore to protect and save. To me, they missed a golden opportunity to complete his arc for a forced dramatic "death" and a speech, the speech which they still could have had.
I don't really think anyone should have to justify why Nolan's Dent became the Two-Face we know at least to some extent. I would have preferred this telling of the character aligned with...you know...Two-Face the character.
They delivered the nature of this Two-Face, his view of things. We got that. Dragging that out through another movie would be redundant.
Maybe if they had him shoot a couple of mobsters and kidnap Gordon's kid again.
The Two Face you want could not survive in the world Nolan has established. The Two-face with a facsination with the number two would not work either. If you got that you'd enjoy the movies much more.
Nolan and team gave Two Face a purpose, and an "real world" interpretation that was based on the question "What would these characters be like in real life", but with many of the liberties taken seen in many action movies. This Two Face would have died anyway as a result of his injuries not go onto to establish a criminal empire and have a bunch of henchmen. I think if Nolan had put Two Face as the main guy in Batman 3 his story would have been the same-short and tragic.
I don't think Harvey neccessarily would need to be obsessed with the number two or have a criminal empire. He would, however, need to be obsessed with duality.
And the things Two-Face could do in another film are obvious.
Infinity said it best: "I'm talking about Two-Face's obsession with duality. The light and dark in all people"
I would start with having him go after corrupt cops and judicial members as Gotham unravels.
These characters as established in these films are not going to be in countless battles. This is a finite Batman universe-one mans vision. The Joker was not going to escape 5000 times to battle batman yet again.
The Joker flat out said "You and I are destined to do this forever"
What about escaping twice? Or Two-Face escaping in this film, and like Batman, being hunted by the end of it moving into the next film?
Anyway, perhaps one day a director will come along and give you a Two-Face based on your favorite comic. This is not that movie. IMO Nolan did something pretty damn amazing with the character-I can't imagine a better story within the world that he established.
Boy, I hope someday a director comes along and bothers to make the characters I love into more than action movie cliches.
You say "With the world he's established".
The thing is...there's a better world that could have been established.
See, I don't agree that Nolan regulated Two-Face into a generic revenge plot. Of course, on the face of it, it did look like Harvey was going through his list, striking off one by one all those who were involved in the death of his girlfriend. But in actuality, he was in a downward spiral of self-destruction and was not exacting revenge so much as he was imposing his new-found law of 'fairness'.
Except that there was no downward spiral, and his reaction to it was because he was craaaaaaaaazy.
He had become a vigilante himself dealing his own brand of justice, and he had become so blinded by it that he had absolutely no hesitation with turning the gun on himself for his own involvement in the events that transpired. That is hardly a description of someone who simply wants 'an eye for an eye'.
Correct. It's the description of a vague character the writers couldn't quite nail down, and so they made him "craaaaaazy".
Whatever little we got of Two-Face in TDK was pure class. If only Nolan had saved some of it for the sequel...But still, it's hard to complain either way because it was Harvey's arc that was the most compelling part of the story in TDK. What Nolan did was he took Harvey Dent/Two-Face and essentially turned him into a Shakespearean character, the Othello of the saga if you will, who was undone by his own virtue and what he perceived as betrayal by those he trusted most that ultimately led to his tragic end.
Two-Face was already a tragic character.
What Nolan did was present some of that character, and then kill him off in a tragic end that was brought about by him going "craaaaaaazy".
Although I like what we got of Two-Face/Dent in TDK I do agree that it would have been nice to get the duality side from the comics too.
The duality theme was there. Right off the bat, as Harvey struggled with himself. It's there right up to the point where he has his final conversation with The Joker.
Then he stopped struggling and went "craaaaaaazy".
Nevermind that surviving would have allowed him to be in "two" movies.
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Everybody here criticizes TDK. It's just that not everyone agrees about what criticism is deserved and what criticism isn't.
I've got some free time lately so I like to enjoy my favorite movies while I do other things during the day, so that often means I leave them replaying. I don't get bored of quality films. Don't see the big deal, or the need for cheap condescension.
