[M] The Dark Knight Rises (SPOILERS) - Page 62

Gotta say, I watched the movie two days in a row (friday night/saturday afternoon) enjoyed it just as much the second time albeit a little tired of sitting for 3 hours. It's been a long time since I've seen a fight seen make me cringe (First Batman vs Bane). I really, really enjoyed Bane as a character. He gave a more "powerful" feel. Strength. Joker felt more dark and Heath really got the point across that the Joker doesn't have a method to his madness, just madness. That's what made it so special. Anyways, TDKR, amazing movie,yes a plot hole or two, but understandable ones if given realistic expectations.

Bane in the beginning on the plane jokes about his henchmen wondering why the FBI guy would shoot them before throwing them out of a plane....... then seconds before Talia is about to push the button and nuke the whole city, bane starts tying up batman? Also, what's up with the Darth Maul exit for Bane? Amazing villain, made a bitch in the end...

when Bane and Batman fight for the first time. Then when Batman escapes the pit prison

I couldn't stand the part where the police all clogged up in a street then charged the tanks and automatic rifles. And somehow everyone got within hand-fighting range. That was just stupid.

The John Blake climax arc, where he's trying to move the kids away from the island. It was cheesy and didn't provide any intensity to the story.

The Ras al ghul daughter twist was interesting, but nothing ever really came out of it. She told her secret, then hopped into a truck and crashed. Not really an exciting ending to that character.

Batman dies
Bruce Wayne lives
Nightwing is born

The entire movie was about him regaining the will to live and move on after losing the woman he loved and everything he dedicated his life to. As Harvey Dent told Wayne in TDK, "You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villian." Having seen himself become the villain, and realizing that he wouldn't physically be able to continue as batman much longer, he knew that the only way he could reestablish the symbol he meant for batman to inspire was through his death.

But having given up on his own life and dreams made him weak. This is what Alfred is talking about throughout the early parts of the movie. When Wayne asks him "Are you afraid I'll fail?" and Alfred says "No, I'm afraid you want to." It's like when someone is just going through the motions at work just for the paycheck rather than putting their heart and soul into it. In this case the pay check would have been the redemption gained by going down fighting against tyranny, and the release from the burdens and responsibilities he carried as batman that had all but destroyed him physically and emotionally.

This last part, about wanting to be free from the burden of batman, is why he feels a connection to Selena Kyle and puts trust in her at the end even though she betrayed him. She wants to start over, escape her past, but she can't. And she copes with this by pretending that she has no compassion or responsibility to anyone or anything. But Bruce Wayne knows this isn't true. Just like he knows that deep down there is a part of him that wants to pass on the job of batman to someone who can carry the torch longer than he can and live out the rest of his life happily rather than becoming a martyr. He and she are opposite sides of the same coin which is why he says "I know there is more to you than that."

It takes the experience in the pit to force him into rekindling his will to live though. Without that primal strength that comes from fighting tooth and nail for your life you have no chance of overcoming the obstacle that blocks your path. Laying aside the safety of that rope holds him to a higher standard: Make the jump or die. And from then on he returns to holding himself to a higher standard as batman as well: Its not ok to just die fighting and be remembered as a hero. He has to find a way to succeed as batman and then go on living for himself.

In the end he is presented with the situation where he can do both. He can let the world see batman sacrifice himself to successfully save gotham, and in doing so free himself from the burden that he has carried as long as he could, and pass it on to a successor who is ready, willing, and capable to carry on the legacy he built as batman.

Personally I would have been much more disappointed if he had died in the end after the personal journey he made throughout the movie. I mean, I think at this point there is nothing novel about the hero dying at the end of the story. We have seen plenty of stories that end with a heroic sacrifice. This ending is perfect to me because it creates finality and closure to the character and the story, while the world I've come to love and everything I've come to love about it still goes on.

There were no subterfuge or babbling of mad men. It was straight up occupation, and with occupation and all out war, if you can't show blood or excessive death, things are gonna feel... stale. Still good stuff, themes are good as always with Nolan's films. Look forward to more movies from this crew.

It doesn't really matter to me as much whether or not TDK was better than TDKR, this movie was a worthy end to the trilogy and an amazing movie of its own right. One of the things that Nolan did really well which I really love is that when I watched TDK and TDKR is that I feel like I'm watching a Joker or a Bane movie rather than a Batman movie. It kinda gives them an "aura of invulnerability." Which is why the Bane vs Batman sewer scene was so amazing and the city hall fight scene felt lackluster for me. Honestly, the best part of the ending for me was the Robin revelation. It was foreshadowed in the film multiple times but I didnt pick up on it which was why that was the best twist for me.

A big part of batman is sacrifice and batman (including Bruce Wayne) dying is the ultimate sacrifice. Him living and getting to have his own life is barely any sacrifice in comparison. Him truly dying creates the same result you mention while also showing the true sacrifice he had to make.
(another reason I personally would have liked Batman to die is because it prevents WB from milking the franchise without Nolan and ruining the amazing trilogy)

For example, she has Gordon and co. mark the wrong truck when they're looking for the bomb.

Bruce Wayne, in the movie, states that he set out to create Batman as an icon, a mask. He says that anyone can be the Batman.
So instead of your interpretation of "Batman dies->Bruce Wayne lives->Nightwing is born", I would say simply that John Blake(Robin) becomes the Batman.
This would be consistent with "Prodigal" story arc, where Dick Grayson (Robin/Nightwing) becomes Batman after having his back broken by Bane in the Knightfall arc. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman#Dick_Grayson)



So basically I'm just saying that there are many more parallels with comics of Robin becoming Batman instead of Robin becoming Nightwing.