Dark Knight Rises
ManArchy Mag lands the first review of Dark Knight Rises!
http://manarchymag.com/core/2012/07/dark-knight-rises-sneak-review/
I've been waiting for this movie ever since I finished watching The Dark Knight.
Pretty much, yeah.
THIS.
In 20 days I'll go see it at the movies, woohoooo!
It comes out the day I get back from NY. So I will either go that night with some people or I will go that weekend. I don't care, but I will see it before I leave.
Yeah, watching the dubbed version in France wouldn't be very awesome. 
I should go see The Amazing Spiderman because it's already in cinemas, but I can't wait for The Dark Knight Rises either. It opens in 2 weeks and I've been really excited about it.
Yeah, don't want to know crap about this until I see it.
I'm in this. See Tuffy on IMAX 3-D!
This is why we can't have nice things.
A few months ago I read some guys theory about how the series might end and it seems so plausible that I feel like the film has already been spoiled for me.
I wanna understand something. Are the series related? I've never read the comics so I have no clue. Why do they say this is the end of a trilogy? Because they change directors, or because this is the end of Batman?
Christopher Nolan is directing three related Batman movies. So it's a trilogy. It revolves around the same Batman "character" so to speak, i.e. Christian Bale as Batman, with a string of events that affect his character and follow across the series. It is the end of the trilogy, because they are changing directors after this, in all likelihood. Also, the next movie would have to be directly related to this set of movies in order for it not to be considered a "trilogy".
That's what I'm thinking, at least.
Tim Burton's Batman has nothing to do with Joel Schumacher's Batman has nothing to do with Christopher Nolan's Batman. To answer your question, every switch of directors sees a completely different Batman.
Schumaker's were *supposed* to be a continuation of Burton's storyline. They were just doused in failsauce.
This is why we can't have nice things.
And even the Batman of certain comic writers isn't the Batman of other comic writers. The only consistencies with Batman are that he's a vigilante who dresses Bat-like (not even necessarily black, thanks Adam West) and hides his secret identity, which is Bruce Wayne the zagillionaire whose parents were killed when he was a kid.
And one thing that's as consistent as the black suit, but hasn't proved consistent overall (thanks to Tim Burton), is that Batman isn't supposed to kill people. He doesn't even really make sense if he kills people; killing people, he becomes a psychopath instead of a psychopath who is convincingly not psychotic. But in Tim Burton's Batman he goes into a factory and blows it up, killing presumably hundreds of workers without even getting out of the Batmobile.
This completely destroys his image because the fundamentally interesting question about every good Batman comic is: Why doens't he kill the joker? Which has never even been touched on in any of the movies aside from the Dark Knight Trilogy, which is part of what makes the Dark Knight Trilogy the best attempt yet at a Batman.
"You won't kill me out of some misplaced sense of self righteousness, and I won't kill you because you're just too much fun. I think we're destined to do this forever."
-Joker
In this book, a bunch of fiends philosophize on why Batman doesn't kill Joker and whether or not he should have.
The trolley conundrum comes up: If a trolley were heading down a set of tracks and you saw that it would hit and kill two people, and all you could do to prevent it is switch the trolley onto a different rail, which means it would kill one person, what is the right choice?
By killing Joker (hitting the switch to switch rails) Batman would be saving lives. Two, in the case of the trolley and the rails, and perhaps hundreds in the case of the Joker.
A utilitarian would hit the switch, not even having to think about it beyond this math: 2 lives > 1 life. But Batman can't make the conscious decision to take a human life, because Bruce Wayne became Batman to stop that exact sort of behavior.
The choices Batman makes are all questionable, and The Dark Knight deals with enough of them to get the point across that Batman's purpose, the brunt of the good he does, is not in beating people up but in the symbol he makes of the Bat; a symbol of justice and right and standing up against criminality, giving hope to the people.
In matters of utility, it can pretty much be said that Batman does more bad than good. He puts on a mask to fight robbers and rapists and mobsters, and then the criminals he's fighting do the same thing, creating symbols opposite his own and wearing masks themselves. He corrupts Harvey Dent, creating a monster; the Joker takes lives just because he's bored and wants to play his game with Bats; Batman creates a Robin only to have him killed, replaced, and I think the replacement was killed as well; he creates an alliance with Commissioner Gordon whose daughter suffers because of it, turning Gordon's life into hell.
Dark Knight touches on enough of these points to get it across that the symbol created by Batman is bigger than the utilitarian losses and gains; i.e: the criminals on the boat who decide not to blow each other up. The symbol of the Bat in the sky represents the city's awareness that there is good and evil not only in Gotham but within themselves, and by being aware of it they're able to decide which side they want to be on.
When the Joker wants Batman's identity, he decides he'll kill one person every day until Batman confesses; he thinks that Batman, being a hero, MUST give up his identity. But it's not so. Batman can't press the switch to take one life on the rail tracks and save two because he can't make the conscious decision to take a life, despite the utilitarian value; the same: he doesn't have to make the choice to give up his identity and stop the Joker's killings because he isn't consciously deciding that those people should die.
Nevertheless, he finally does give up, but Harvey Dent, inspired by the symbol of the Bat as more than the Batman, decides to give himself up as Batman instead, not to save the Batman himself or Bruce Wayne (Harvey doesn't know who Batman is) but to save the symbol, which is the symbol not only of the good but of the good's inability to tolerate evil; Batman, Harvey Dent feels, can't possibly lose, that loss would be too substantial, because now that it's a symbol of the good itself, the loss of it isn't Batman's loss or even to do with Batman, but it's Gotham's loss, his loss, his firm's loss.
This much thought can't really be put into any Batman movies aside from the Dark Knight; the comics, yes, but my advice to anyone is to forget every Batman movie except for this trilogy unless you fiend the novelty and excellence that is Jack Nicholson as the Joker or Michelle Pfeiffer in cat leather.
Most Batman movies, Batman just wins without any serious casualties, because the storylines aren't deep enough to justify any loss of life.
I'd like to hereby elect Nightrious as new overlord of the universe. That's one of the greatest things I've ever read. I feel so goddamn informed about Batman now.
I don't know as much about Batman as I should, but wasn't Jason Todd the only Robin to be killed?.... And then revived.....I hate how death means nothing in comics. I swear, if they ever revive Uncle Ben in Spider-Man I will seriously consider growing up.
The original (1930's?) Bat-Man carried a gun and killed bad guys. FYI.
I stopped reading comics because of the whole killing characters and bringing them back BS.
This is why we can't have nice things.
Check out videos on youtube of Johnathon Nolan discussing the Dark Knight, and you get a very thoughtful take on the Batman and Joker relationship, and Batman in general.
Johnathon Nolan is director Christopher Nolan's brother, and the co-writer of this Batman trilogy.
He also wrote the short story which eventually became Memento.
I think I'm in love with this thread.
Be Right Back from Swooning Coma
Jaz is in a coma!
Dibs on rifling through her personal effects!
This is why we can't have nice things.
All I have is a vagina protected by a Batman chastity belt that can only be unlocked with...well if I told you Batman would have to kill you.
Where does he get all those wonderful toys?
Edit: By toys, I of course mean sex toys.
-*insert easy and obvious joke*
This is why we can't have nice things.
Goddammit. I'm not just at your beck and call.
Or maybe I am.
What are you doing whilst on screen?
Are you the new Penguin?
This is in IMAX? Okay, cinema, have my 6 bucks.
What are you doing whilst on screen?
Are you the new Penguin?
He isn't going to tell he is going to be all elusive and instead of watching the movie the whole time we are going to be watching for him.
No really though, that is pretty awesome, when are you in it? An extra or a part with lines or what?
I thought he was at a football game or something. He said it a while ago and posted pictures, guys.
Yeah at a football game.
Bane is a bad bad man.
This is why we can't have nice things.
Bane is a bad bad man.
I do not have a clue who Bane is, so I will just have to trust you on that.
Will we be able to see you? Or are you lost in the crowd?
Yes, I remember that. I am just picking on him.
I have no idea if I will be visible or not. Proable though. I'm in the crowd close-ups at the stadium.
This is why we can't have nice things.
We know a movie star guys. 
My friends and I were going to go get to be extras in line at some movie that was being filmed here some years ago, I don't even remember which, what I remember is my friends wanting to get dressed up all "grunge" for it (that was what the extras were supposed to look like) and I was all annoyed because there was no reason any of us needed to dress up, we looked just fine in our regular clothing, no need to try to play it up. So we ended up not even going because they were being dumb.
The upcoming Maggie Gyllennhall flick I should be easier to see.
Maybe.
You never know with these things.
This is why we can't have nice things.
It's my birthday on the 21st and I shall be spending it with batman.
There is no proper way to cope, no everlasting grace.
Just a flame on a river floating away.
Better than birthday sex.
True. I'm a fan of black leather costumes but on someone more muliebrous.
There is no proper way to cope, no everlasting grace.
Just a flame on a river floating away.
Muliebrous?
This is why we can't have nice things.
Someone with more qualities like & also the shape of a woman. I think the fore-play before the birthday sex would be wasted on Batman & he might not enjoy it due to that reason. I think it would be an all round bad experiance for us both.
There is no proper way to cope, no everlasting grace.
Just a flame on a river floating away.
Maybe.
You never know with these things.
What movie is that?
I have no idea what it's called now. Ving rhames was in it.
This is why we can't have nice things.
I don't know who Ving Rhames is... I don't know who anyone is, I'm lame.
Oh. I googled. I know who that is.
Saw it. It was pretty badass. Only caught one major plot hole.
Si vis pacem, para bellum
Only one?
It was pretty amazing. I figured out a few of the twists but was pleasantly surprised by others. I'm pretty sad that this is the end of the Nolan Batman Trilogy. I wish I could say I'm looking forward to his new movie but I am not a Superman fan.
Yipes.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/20/us/colorado-theater-shooting/index.html
Where's your messiah NOW, Flanders??
I think I know which you mean, but it's not really a plot hole, because he's the goddamn Batman.
I'm talking about one concerning Alfred, who's just as badass, in my opinion, so maybe, again, it's not really a plot hole.
Si vis pacem, para bellum
Saw it. It was very good. Mixed feelings on the ending.
EDIT:
******Spoiler only for those who have more than just basic Batman Knowledge*************************
Don't know if I like how it implies the Dark Knight reality is leading to a reality with Huntress in it.
EDIT EDIT:
My dad thinks it was just a fantasy. Not real. I'm not sure though. I mean he's Batman, for crying out loud.
So pumped for this, I saw The Amazing Spiderman last night so now I'm in full superhero watching mode