The Dark Knight Rises The TDKR General Discussion Thread - - - - Part 153

[JackWhite]

I knew I forgot a scene!! The plane conversation with Alfred, so damn good.

 

[ThePhantasm]

Good thing he wasn't Bond at all.

Bond gets all his gadgets from Q / BaleBat gets all his gadgets from Lucius

BaleBat's parents / the Bat iconography barely seem to affect the character post-BB. He's just a super agent with a Bat theme, not someone psychologically bound to that motif. Alas, the fall into the well is all but forgotten.

BaleBat fights one organization the majority of the time (LOS), a bit like Bond's rivalry with Spectre.

There are lots of Bond influences on the Nolan films.

 

[Malicked]

He screwed one woman, one, in the course of three films. James Bond screws one woman every act of a film.

Bale was a disgrace of a James Bond then.





Good thing he wasn't Bond at all.

He took home those chicks in Batman Begins and slept with Talia and got together with Selina. Not Bond level of course but still decent t:

 

[BatLobster]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but honestly he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole "Christian Bale package" he inherently brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

 

[JackWhite]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but really when you break it down, he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole Christian Bale package he brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

Well said.

 

[The Joker]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but honestly he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole "Christian Bale package" he inherently brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

 

[Keehar]

Bond gets all his gadgets from Q / BaleBat gets all his gadgets from Lucius

That is like the only legit similarity and it don't make him Bond.

BaleBat's parents / the Bat iconography barely seem to affect the character post-BB. He's just a super agent with a Bat theme, not someone psychologically bound to that motif. Alas, the fall into the well is all but forgotten.

Nope wrong. His folks are relevant in like two out of the three movies. He doesn't have to be always thinking of his folks. Look at that animated Bats show, the Kev Conroy one. What is it like 70 episodes in it? How many of 'em had his folks referenced in it? Not even a fifth of them.

BaleBat fights one organization the majority of the time (LOS), a bit like Bond's rivalry with Spectre.

HA what. There's like 24 Bond movies and he's only fought that Spectre crowd in like 7 of them. Not even half his movies.

There are lots of Bond influences on the Nolan films.

 

[Malicked]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but honestly he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole "Christian Bale package" he inherently brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

Agreed 100% I rememer reading that he was saddened when Nolan said he was done with Batman and that Bale wouldn't have minded doing another Batman film. No matter if you're an Oscar winning actor or regarded as one of the best actors of your generation, playing such an iconic character like that for 3 long movies does stay with you.

 

[georgec]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but honestly he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole "Christian Bale package" he inherently brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

Lobster on point as usual. Bale's performance especially as Bruce Wayne is the heart of TDKT.

 

[Brother Jack]

I may get heat for this but I honestly feel like Bruce/Batman in TDKT is one of the best and most fully developed protagonists in the history of film. I'm hard pressed to think of many other characters who are taken on such complete journeys and explored in so many varying ways through multiple films. Michael Corleone is one of the few. Fortunately Nolan's third act was much better than Coppola's.

 

[The Joker]

I may get heat for this but I honestly feel like Bruce/Batman in TDKT is one of the best and most fully developed protagonists in the history of film. I'm hard pressed to think of many other characters who are taken on such complete journeys and explored in so many varying ways through multiple films. Michael Corleone is one of the few. Fortunately Nolan's third act was much better than Coppola's. :haha:

Why would anyone give you heat for that? It's no secret that a good trilogy is somewhat rare. Especially one that encompasses a character's journey from beginning to end.

Your Michael Corleone analogy is a good one. Like Bruce it shows his beginnings and how he rises to power in the first movie. Then shows him at the height of his power, and effects and consequences of him being in power in the second one. And finally an older, aged, more weathered Michael in the third, trying to deal with the consequences from the second movie, and he even appoints a successor for himself.

 

[BatLobster]

Yeah, I think that's a pretty fair thing to say. I'm trying to think of other potential examples. Maybe Harry Potter, because you literally track his journey from a little boy to a young man fulfilling his destiny over the course of 8 films which is pretty unprecedented. There might be other examples that were developed as much or more, but to think of other examples that showcased such an epic multi-film journey with a dramatic heavyweight actor in the role is harder to come by. Most of the other characters that are coming to mind are TV roles like Tony Soprano, Walter White, Don Draper etc.

I think Bale's Bruce definitely has to be up there. Especially when it comes to 'darker' male protagonists. The Corleone analogy is an apt one for sure.

 

[The Shape]

I may get heat for this but I honestly feel like Bruce/Batman in TDKT is one of the best and most fully developed protagonists in the history of film. I'm hard pressed to think of many other characters who are taken on such complete journeys and explored in so many varying ways through multiple films. Michael Corleone is one of the few. Fortunately Nolan's third act was much better than Coppola's.

I'll agree with that.

 

[Brother Jack]

Why would anyone give you heat for that? It's no secret that a good trilogy is somewhat rare. Especially one that encompasses a character's journey from beginning to end.

It just seemed like a pretty extreme thing to say. But yeah I think the evidence speaks for itself.

I would put Luke Skywalker up there as well but the structure of those films was more ensemble driven. TDKT really does come down to Bruce in pretty much every way while the OT has other intersecting focal points.

 

[BatLobster]

Yeah. At its core TDKT is a story about a man. ANH is a classic coming of age story, but the sequels end up becoming more of a story about a man and his friends and a man and his his father. It's a little bit different, but obviously Luke still has a great character arc. He's a bit goody two shoes perhaps though.

Then again, Luke's story isn't over yet.

 

[hafizbat]

People can diss the voice and the suit all they want, Bale's Bruce Wayne will always be the gold standard to me because he A. he was physically suited for the role, and B. he showed a lot of range, and really nailed the balancing act of playing all these different facets of Wayne. He had the anger and determination in spades, he was able to effortlessly portray 'damaged goods'. But at the same time, he had likability and genuine warmth and compassion, you could tell he was a man driven by dark and tragic things but had found a purpose and was trying to achieve a better tomorrow for his city. He wasn't flat out crazy, but he was driven and obsessed to the point of near absurdity and had to portray that all within a more 'realistic' setting, and Bale made all of that feel psychologically credible. He captured the soul of the character...better yet he captured it three times during three distinct stages of Bruce's life and gave three different performances to reflect that, but the character felt consistent all the way through.

I think perhaps people take his Bruce Wayne for granted because Bale is such a good actor and has done more flashy performances, but honestly he brought a tremendous amount to the role by sheer virtue of the whole "Christian Bale package" he inherently brought to it. Though I do think he cared a lot about the role and was never phoning it in, despite what people say about TDK.

I may get heat for this but I honestly feel like Bruce/Batman in TDKT is one of the best and most fully developed protagonists in the history of film. I'm hard pressed to think of many other characters who are taken on such complete journeys and explored in so many varying ways through multiple films. Michael Corleone is one of the few. Fortunately Nolan's third act was much better than Coppola's.

 

[shauner111]

A lot of good posts above.

The best comparison is Michael Corleone. I do think Rises is better than Godfather 3, but both are controversial.

The successor to Bruce and Michael are both hotheads apparently

 

[Tacit Ronin]

But only one of them can feel it in their bones and stuff.

 

[shauner111]

Andy Garcia?

 

[Malicked]

I may get heat for this but I honestly feel like Bruce/Batman in TDKT is one of the best and most fully developed protagonists in the history of film. I'm hard pressed to think of many other characters who are taken on such complete journeys and explored in so many varying ways through multiple films. Michael Corleone is one of the few. Fortunately Nolan's third act was much better than Coppola's.

The only major problem I had with The Godfather Part III was that it became overly complicated with that whole Vatican plot. The conclusion to Michael's story was perfect I thought and it came to its natural conclusion. Of course he doesn't get his happy ending like Bruce

 

[shauner111]

I felt like Bruce had earned his happy ending. Michael didn't.

 

[The Joker]

Probably why Michael didn't get one. I felt no sympathy for him, even though he was trying to redeem himself in 3, he'd just done so much evil stuff in the last two movies.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

Yea. Bruce banged Selina at the end, while Michael banged the rocking chair.

 

[JackWhite]

Yea. Bruce banged Selina at the end, while Michael banged the rocking chair.

 

[lndsaico]

Yea. Bruce banged Selina at the end, while Michael banged the rocking chair.