The Dark Knight Rises TDKR Reviews/Reactions (SPOILERS/Read At Your Own Risk) (NO DISCUSSION!)

[LostSon88]

I don't even know where to begin but I'll give it a shot.

LOL What the hell did I just watch? The Dark Knight Rises was a great movie in general, but a piss poor excuse for a Batman movie. What kind of lousy Batman doesn't do any planning, preparation, doesn't have any useful gadgets, and is stupid as hell? Not the Batman I grew up reading.

This is a Batman that's not only been out of the game for 8 years. Not only that, as Alfre pointed out, he's not the same man who he once was and can't simply expect to jump back into it like it was yesterday.

1) So you mean to tell me Batman walked around with no gadgets? I accept that he got beat in a fist fight with Bane, but to not use any gadgets? WTF happened to the Batarangs? Plastic Explosive grenades? Smoke capsules? Bat darts? Bat Goo Gun? Bat Stun gun? Brass knuckles? What in holy hell did he have in his utility belt? Pieces of ass? What in the ****?

He shot smoke pellets at Bane, he used his belt to shut off the lights. Bruce was trying to use "theatricality and deception" in addition to his fighting skills to defeat Bane and failed miserably. The point was that he's been out of the game for so long that he underestimated his opponent.

If Batman used gadgets and Bane outsmarted him at each turn, I could completely accept that. But the dude doesn't even dig into his utility belt, except one time for the most useless gadget I've ever seen in my entire life? He walked around like that? We are supposed to believe Batman walked around completely unprepared, with no gadgets, like a dumbass?

Again, he thought he could simply jump back into things after 8 years and underestimated Bane.

2) To walk right into it all with no anticipation? The cynical, cool, calculating, prepared Batman we all know and love just trusts Catwoman?

I'm not saying it a third time.

3) Batman WOULD NEVER ABANDON GOTHAM AFTER ONE YEAR OF BEING BATMAN. You can't tell me nothing, he just wouldn't do it. It doesn't matter if all the criminals magically dissipated, there will always be crime. No place on earth is a goddamn utopia that doesn't need to be looked after.

Did you even bother to see TDK? His absence was necessary. He took the fall to protect the 'golden boy' image of Harvey Dent.

And again, as mentioned in the film, by TDKR crime was under control. The mayor said that like any other city, they have issues every now and then but things are better than ever. It was 'peace time'.

4) So in the Nolan-verse we are supposed to believe Mr. Freeze never existed, Poison Ivy never existed, Deadshot never existed, The Penguin never existed, Harley Quinn never existed, The Riddler never existed, Killer Croc never existed? We are supposed to believe they were able to keep the Joker locked up for 8 years? That is not a Batman universe I can accept. Ever. That is unacceptable. Unprecedented. Unfounded. Unbelievable. Unacceptable. Was there a problem with not having Bruce retire and let there be a mention of Batman having locked everyone up in Arkham, then Bane comes in? I can accept that.

Sorry but this is Nolan's world. Don't like it? Fair enough. But everyone else seems to.

5) We saw throat cancer Batman for about maybe 25-30 minutes in a goddamn 2 hour and 45 minute movie. Years from now, I will tell my kids of this day, and we'll laugh at this notion.

Thats sad.

6) Catwoman was better than Batman. This is the second movie in which Batman has been outshined, the last being TDK with the Joker. This wouldn't be a bad thing by any means if it didn't take so LITTLE to actually outshine Batman in this film.

The message was more about what Batman represents and why the city needs a hero to inspire them. He may not have been on screen as much but his presence was throughout.

7) What the hell has Bruce been doing in his house for 8 years? Watching porn? Why the **** is he limping around? So you mean to tell me Bruce Wayne moped around his house for 8 years, without getting some surgery, rehabilitation, at least making sure his body was ready if he needed to be Batman again? Maybe making some new gadgets, learning new things, giving to the poor in other ways? He just stayed in his house? This is the most pathetic version of Batman I've ever seen in my entire life, from comics, to television, to movies.

Yes, because Batman has never been depressed in the comics, right? You need to understand the context of this Bruce Wayne.

He lost the love of his life, he took the fall for a deranged criminal, Gotham is at piece. In his eyes, there's nothing to live for anymore.

Again as Alfred said, he fears that Bruce in a way wants things to go bad again so that he can feel needed. Bruce felt that Batman is all he has. Alfred's telling him he isn't.

forget what it was, but I once read this comic with Batman and Superman where when they both retired, Supes became a farmer like his father and Bruce become a doctor like his father. Bruce Wayne's conviction to help those in need by any means necessary is a core element of his character. It would have made more sense for Bruce to be giving to charities, helping the needy and poor in other ways. But to just mope around his house? That is no Bruce I've known, seen, or read. That is a pathetic excuse for a Bruce Wayne, for a Batman. I cannot accept that version of the character, by any means.

I really like how you seem to ignore all the trauma he went through in TDK. In his eyes he failed as a hero. He's depressed and has lost the will to go on. The suggestion that he should just suck it up and start up charities and immediately help others is quite far fetched.

Granted his actions (or lack there of) are a tad selfish. But it's realistic.

Bane was fantastic, Catwoman was fantastic, Batman was the worst part of the movie.....in a Batman movie. Well **** me senseless. My closing sentiment: At least in the Joel Batman movies, Batman was the featured character.

So your going to give Schumacher points for featuring Batman? Nevermind that he f'ed up pretty much everything else?

Okay.

 

[LostSon88]

Disagree, no music increased the tension. To hear all the effort Batman was exerting with no effect while Bane was going on and on like it was nothing. My audience was attentive and quite the entire time.

You could hear a pin drop in my theater. Everyone seemed to be totally in the moment as nothing was working against Bane.

This was probably the most brutal, one-sided superhero fight in all CBMs.

The lack of music definitely made it more intense. Almost made you feel like you were there.

 

[karatemanchan37]

You could hear a pin drop in my theater. Everyone seemed to be totally in the moment as nothing was working against Bane.

This was probably the most brutal, one-sided superhero fight in all CBMs.

The lack of music definitely made it more intense. Almost made you feel like you were there.

Agreed. The "crunch" of the back-breaking.

 

[Dark Sentinel]

My review:

http://mavonduri-trilogy.blogspot.com/2012/07/he-is-risen-dark-knight-rises-review.html?spref=tw

 

[Alienous]

I agree that the lack of music was intense, but the fight was long. It was almost entirely muted, and not all of it was Batman being dominated. I would have enjoyed it starting with typical 'Batman' music, which slowly mutes as you realise he is being overpowered. It felt hopeless from the beginning.

On another note, Bane's name isn't explained. I'm glad he didn't say "I am the Bane of Gotham", but everyone else gets their names explained.

 

[souvlaki]

I'm really glad I went to see this on Saturday instead of seeing a midnight showing because a lot of the nitpicking here and on other sites did a lot to manage my expectations. Between the shooting and some of the various gripes from everyone I went into this half expecting disappointment but left really satisfied. Most of the complaints I've read seemed to be about the first hour of the film so once I made it through that first hour and still liked what I saw I knew I'd walk out happy. There are obviously things about this film that are not perfect but if I had to rate it I'd put this somewhere between TDK and BB which is really all I could have asked for.

 

[KingMadness]

I don't even know where to begin but I'll give it a shot.



This is a Batman that's not only been out of the game for 8 years. Not only that, as Alfre pointed out, he's not the same man who he once was and can't simply expect to jump back into it like it was yesterday.



He shot smoke pellets at Bane, he used his belt to shut off the lights. Bruce was trying to use "theatricality and deception" in addition to his fighting skills to defeat Bane and failed miserably. The point was that he's been out of the game for so long that he underestimated his opponent.



Again, he thought he could simply jump back into things after 8 years and underestimated Bane.



I'm not saying it a third time.



Did you even bother to see TDK? His absence was necessary. He took the fall to protect the 'golden boy' image of Harvey Dent.

And again, as mentioned in the film, by TDKR crime was under control. The mayor said that like any other city, they have issues every now and then but things are better than ever. It was 'peace time'.



Sorry but this is Nolan's world. Don't like it? Fair enough. But everyone else seems to.



Thats sad.



The message was more about what Batman represents and why the city needs a hero to inspire them. He may not have been on screen as much but his presence was throughout.



Yes, because Batman has never been depressed in the comics, right? You need to understand the context of this Bruce Wayne.

He lost the love of his life, he took the fall for a deranged criminal, Gotham is at piece. In his eyes, there's nothing to live for anymore.

Again as Alfred said, he fears that Bruce in a way wants things to go bad again so that he can feel needed. Bruce felt that Batman is all he has. Alfred's telling him he isn't.



I really like how you seem to ignore all the trauma he went through in TDK. In his eyes he failed as a hero. He's depressed and has lost the will to go on. The suggestion that he should just suck it up and start up charities and immediately help others is quite far fetched.

Granted his actions (or lack there of) are a tad selfish. But it's realistic.



So your going to give Schumacher points for featuring Batman? Nevermind that he f'ed up pretty much everything else?

Okay.

Your blind defense is absolutely disgusting.

 

[Agent Orange]

Your blind defense is absolutely disgusting.

He's just as entitled to his glowing opinion as you are to your scathing one.

 

[Alienous]

And those goggles. They don't even explain where they come from, do they? When a film explains almost everything, these moments stand out.

 

[Agent Orange]

*shrugs* She stole them. The film establishes her as an extremely skilled thief and con-woman.

 

[LostSon88]

Your blind defense is absolutely disgusting.

Your lack of an actual response is disgustingly predictable.

 

[Reikowolf]

Yeah, I don't think he's actually Robin. He was pretty much Robin throughout the entire movie, but at the end he is becoming Batman, as I understand it.

Thats also what I got. Especially with the rebuilt bat signal.

he was a composite character.

 

[atxhardhitter03]

after the second time watching im a lil more satisfied........i was uneasy about the revealing of robin...at first it was cheesy but after the second time i kinda got what nolan was doing. nolan said robin didnt exsistin his world of batman so instead of bat having a caped masked partner, his partner was a normal average cop who shared the same ideals and morals as batman did and revealing his real name robin was just clarification for viewers to understand the role blake was playing. symbolism at its best

the relationship build up between tate was kinda rushed..."she just met this guy"...n for batman to be so worried about her like shes rachel was unbelievable

the first fight with bane was pretty intense..batman should used some actual gadgets just to show how tough and strong bane really is....make him seem a lil more unbeatable....im not sure if it did happen but in the second fight i would have liked to see batman catch banes punches n overpower him like bane did in the 1st fight...

the whole talia reveal scene coulda have been way better....maybe include a fight between talia and catwoman and a different death for bane....it was cool to see him get slugged like that...but coulda been better n more climatic...overall least favorite scene in the movie

talias death was cheesy as hell...esp the shot with batman n catwoman n gordon jus starin at her like "the f*** this woman talkin bout"

 

[KingMadness]

Nah, what I said wasn't scathing, no matter how you look at it it was the truth. This kid came in and gave me the most blind answer I've seen on this site. No thanks.

 

[Venom75]

I really liked the film,esp. Hathaway's performance. But,at least for me,The Dark Knight is still the best of the trilogy.

 

[Reikowolf]

Nah, what I said wasn't scathing, no matter how you look at it it was the truth. This kid came in and gave me the most blind answer I've seen on this site. No thanks.

You and the truth can enjoy watching Batman and Robin again.

 

[shauner111]

Nah, what I said wasn't scathing, no matter how you look at it it was the truth. This kid came in and gave me the most blind answer I've seen on this site. No thanks.

How is that a blind answer? He gave you a proper answer, you obviously havent been paying attention to the story in these movies and what Bruce is going through in THESE MOVIES. These are not the comics, so stop comparing them. Do you not understand that Bruce hasnt been Batman for 8 years, hes mentally and physically worn out and out of it. Hes also over confident before fighting Bane.

 

[Lunar_Wolf]

This was no TDK or even BB for me, but it was still a really great flick. Bane was a monster and the ending was done very nicely.

 

[BaleISBatman4ev]

You can put me in the camp that enjoyed TDKR MUCH better on a second viewing.

I think like a lot of you on this board, most of us have been speculating about our theories and ideas about how this film would transpire and I went into the film really having nothing left to discover or be surprised by.

On my second viewing I knew where the story was going and the moments hit me harder. It plays a lot slower on a second viewing and that's a good thing.

That being said, it does have some flaws that will never go away (maybe a new sound mix/audio dub for the blu-ray) But what we got is a GREAT film, just like Begins was Great... TDK was perfect IMO... the masterpiece of the series... looking back it was mighty ambitious to hope for 2 masterpieces in the same trilogy.

That being said i think TDKR has moments and scenes that are among my favorite in the trilogy, and just for that he succeeded mightily.

Thank you Nolan for my favorite trilogy of all time and the best version of Batman ill probably ever see.

 

[Primal Slayer]

I just saw it today and I enjoyed it. Selena Kyle was GREAT, Talia was enjoyable, Bane was a fun watch, and the ending was great aswell.

Though I am ready to move on from the Nolanverse and bring about a new Batman era that doesnt try so hard to be as realistic as possible.

 

[technobot]

Ok, after a 3rd watching time, here are some thoughts:

Bane is obviously nowhere near as menacing as Ledger's Joker. In fact, I distinctly got a James Bond villain vibe here, from his strange English-German accent to his penchant for monologues... I waited in vain for "No, Mr. Wayne, I expect you to die!" He also had the James Bond villain penchant for executing incompetent henchmen.

In fact, by the third watching let's just say Bane starts giving off a buffoon vibe. A clever, analgesic-enhanced buffoon, but a buffoon with a fetish for expository dialogue and talking general trash (he does have some pretty good lines, mind you).

Having said that, Tom Hardy is a phenomenal actor, and made gold out of what he was given (had to express menace with his eyes and body language). The acting was solid all around. Others have said all I could about Anne Hathaway (phenomenal), and Bale (top shelf as always). Everyone was great. Really, the only piece of acting I hated was Talia's last breath (wtf was that?)

There were some big gaps in logic (we could argue in circles all day) but I think it's important to remember that Nolan made a "realistic-take on a comic book movie". He did not adapt the true, real life story of Batman, because such a story only exists in our minds.

Won't watch a fourth (until it comes out on Blu Ray) but I loved it. I will have to meditate further before deciding where it ranks in the trilogy (early analysis is IMO as good as The Dark Knight, but in a different way)

 

[cerebrix]

This was by far, my favorite of the 3 so far. I have some theories though regarding the future of the franchise.

first, let me say, this was the first time i really "bought" bale as bruce wayne. I didnt really feel it in the first 2, so kudos to bale for a great performance.

now that said. I know nolan said this is his last batman movie. but looking at the ending, and knowing how much bale loves going to extremes with his method acting. I believe nolan saying he's done with batman was a misdirection. very much the same way nolan misdirected us in the press of batman begins. he said there, we'd never see robin. dont be surprised if in 5 or so years we see something very similar to the the dark knight returns from nolan. i can see it now. robin has been in gotham keeping the peace. gets murdered. wayne, in his late 50's now, snaps and well.. you read the graphic novel =p. it just seems like this movie was almost entirely a setup for that specific storyline.

i know frank miller already loosely gave zach snyder permission to make that movie. but i really think a 2nd trilogy from nolan is in the cards.

great movie though. much better than i expected.

 

[TheIncredible]

One of the other reactions I had was to a criticism by some that said it was unrealistic for Bruce to take on the Batman mantle after the death of his parents but just grieve and do nothing after Rachel dies...

IMO, after watching the movie and considering the trilogy again, the reason why he's grieving over Rachel and isn't going out and bashing criminals to a pulp over her death has to do with the end of The Dark Knight. He actually DOES turn it up a notch with the Batman persona to catch The Joker after Joker kills Rachel and burns Harvey Dent. He literally "burns down the forest" trying to catch The Joker.

But since Batman has to take the fall for Harvey Dent's crimes and Joker's actions in TDK, out of necessity, Bruce cannot turn to the Batman persona anymore as a way to deal with his anger. When his parents died, Bruce used 20 years of anger and oppressed feelings to feed into his Batman persona. But after Rachel dies and The Dark Knight concludes, The Batman persona is viewed as an outlaw and murderer. On top of that, in Nolan's take on the series, the ending of TDK achieves a temporary 8 year peace in Gotham through the lie that Gordon and Batman come up with.

To me, that's why Bruce is so lost, reckless, and essentially a shadow at the start of TDKR. It's not that he doesn't want to be Batman and exact revenge on criminals to make up for the losses of his parents and Rachel. It's the very fact that he can't do this which makes him such a recluse. As Alfred said...Gotham was saved for 8 years, but Bruce never moved on. That's also why I believe Alfred is more negative towards Bruce dawning the Batman persona this time around. In the previous movies, Alfred understood that Bruce needed to become Batman to deal with his issues. But at the beginning of TDKR, he sees a Bruce that is still caught inside the monster he created, and he also sees Bruce as aging and mortal.

So to me, the movie was very coherent in tone and character motivations with respect to the previous two movies. We saw a full arc here and that's what made the movie so great to me. Characters and story lines came full circle. Even that speech in Begins that Alfred makes to Bruce during Bruce's birthday party, where he talks about how Bruce needs to live up to his family name and not get lost inside Batman, has such relevancy to this movie. That's a credit to Nolan for writing such a great story that really connects everything really well.

Another thing: The full on attack on Gotham by Bane is chilling. It's the first time since seeing The Joker's actions that I've actually felt disturbed and frightened by a villain's actions in a movie. There are some seriously powerful images of the destruction of Gotham and seeing those soldiers hung on the bridge as an example ... again, just chilling. The real world that Nolan captured in this series was exceptional. It really made you feel like there was a lot at stake, and not just a typical "I'm going to take over the world" plot as in other movies.

 

[Keyser Soze]

A great review from the always-insightful Mark Kermode:

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

 

[Supermansteve]

Longtime lurker. Been around the Hype since the Superman Returns days. Even though my name might suggest Superman is my guy its actually 1) Batman 2) Superman. That being said onto the movie.
I caught The Dark Knight Rises with the midnight viewing on Thursday. I was very conflicted about it, it felt like way too much to cram into a movie. The pacing and editing seemed way off. I felt overwhelmed with the entire movie until the final act which made me like the movie and not hate it. It was a perfect ending that could have been given to Bruce. After that viewing my rating was 7/10, only because of the epic ending Nolan gave it.
Now I watched it back 2 more times. Boy was I completely wrong. This movie was absolutely epic. What a great film from start to finish. Not every film is without its issues but this was one hell of a ride. I guess upon first viewing it was just a lot to take in and comprehend and it felt rushed. But, after multiple viewings this movie is amazing. It's such a great conclusion to the trilogy and it was a typical Nolan film. I see a lot of people complain just as I was upon my first viewing. But, after multiple viewings it all works for me and I love this film. Now my Dark Knight Rises rating is 9.5/10.