I think you guys are missing what I'm talking about when I say identity. I'm not talking about identity in the literal sense, but with the deeper definition of personal identity.
Who is Bruce Wayne? With the love of his life gone and his public image nothing more than a public idiot, how does he come to terms with who he really is now that Batman is considered a criminal?
Simultaneously, after The Joker's rampage the criminal circuit in Gotham is equally tarnished. The mob has to struggle to re-establish its identity of being "high brow" criminals while at the same time you have freaks and loons like The Joker, Riddler, Black Mask, whoever, trying to take control of the underground that used to belong to them.
Above all, what is the identity of Gotham City now that its been completely torn apart politically and socially thanks to The Joker, Harvey Dent's death and Batman's status as a murderer. How does a city survive when it's so overrun with crime that no one wants to live in it?
Really think about what happened in New York City after 9/11 or New Orleans after Katrina and then think about what Gotham would be like now that The Joker has run a muck. The city politics, economics, tourism, philanthropy, crime, everything...it all changes. Gotham has to reinvent itself.
With that said, so do its characters.
Bruce Wayne would have to do some deep soul searching to remember why he even became Batman in the first place after the abysmal failure he experienced with The Joker.
All the while, various small-timers such as Black Mask, Firefly, whoever, would try and exploit the current state of confusion in Gotham by trying to usurp control of the underground from the mafia, forcing Batman/The Police Force to make a difficult decision as to whether they should protect the mob and let the nuts rule Gotham or try for the near impossible task of tackling both at the same time.
Edward Nygma becomes the backbone of this story, learning Batman's true identity and stalking/preying on his psyche, becoming the true villain of the story but in more of a mental context than a physical one. He pushes Batman's brain to its limits and shows no signs of backing down. He could also reveal Harvey Dent's crimes to the public in an attempt to completely destroy Gotham's morale, but Batman steps up to the plate and becomes "the hero Gotham needs."
I really think the media could play a huge role in this movie, almost like with Robocop or "The Dark Knight Returns."
I had a dream last night that the Bat symbol came zooming into the screen like it did with BB and TDK at the beginning. The difference was, instead of it being in bats or blue flames, the backdrop was various news channels reporting on the death of harvey dent/batman being wanted/the joker being incarcerated/sal maroni's death etc. while the bat symbol zoomed in from the center as white noise until it filled the entire screen.
The biggest thing of all: How is Batman supposed to fight crime if every cop in town is gunning for him? It's hard to be a superhero when everyone thinks you're a murderer.
See, it all ties into confusion of identity. I have a feeling that this could be the reoccurring theme of the next movie. It makes way more sense than simply "redemption," which is always nice to see on film but has been done time and time again.
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