Ok, so i've not had time to read through the entire so these are my thoughts independent of it.
I don't know how I can separate the film from my (limited) knowledge of the comics and how unbiased I can, or even if I should be but i'm stick a rating of
for time being and certainly not afraid to tell Nolan if his **** stinks.
I was apprehensive about Bane but he actually turned out to be a highlight, the voice in particular was distinctive and pretty cool. Still maintain his costumes were a bit poor though but let's ignore trivial complaints. Anyway, for the most part he was a strong villain, I LOVED the breaking the bat scene and it's inclusion and was giddy when it happened. However Bane quickly went downhill when he turned out to fill exactly the same role as Bane in
Batman & Robin- a hired muscle for the woman pulling the strings. The attempt at making him a sympathetic character was effective in a way but also undermined his menace throughout the preceding events, likewise, once they shifted sympathy towards him, he went out like a chump without even a closing shot. Much like all the prior deaths the camera was too afraid to show. The biggest issue with Bane was his motivation, he may not have the most logical motivation in comics but it was defined. A lot of his plan seemed to be Nolan shoehorning a social message about Occupy Wall Street etc, which is fine but for another movie. It didn't show Bane's intellect, uncovering Batman's identity, which would have been a far more effective scene nor did he actually have any super strength. The painkillers maybe an 'realistic' equivalent to Venom giving superhuman strength but as realistic as it is, it's hardly a tactical choice for such a physical brawler. In the end, it seems a lot of what he did in the build up to everything was moot as all he needed a was a nuke, which could have been obtained in a far simpler manner imagine without being initially hired to cripple financial operations of Wayne Enterprises.
It's odd they seem to try and make it realistic in some aspects but then have The Bat. What a cartoon device, Fox never happened to mention it before and it conveniently serves to resolve the final problem which was left feeling like a James Bond comically in the nick of time moment. The narrative itself, while it unwound in an engaging manner that didn't really cause me to groan/face palm/eye roll in it's duration did have a distinct lack of cohesion between scenes. They didn't naturally segue and seemed like snippets of pertinent bits from a larger film (or two). The whole prison well scene was the biggest offender for me. I'm not saying I wanted to see Bruce to go buy a ticket, jump a plan, twiddle his thumbs before arriving but I would be curious to know how in that short of space of time- his back mended, he became strong enough to defeat Bane, with no money was able to get a plane and was able to get into Gotham despite being closed off. Plot holes galore, some minor, some major but they're there and while didn't detract from the enjoyment it's hard to reconcile them in retrospect. Plus Gotham itself, it should have more personality,
Begins nailed it. Made it dark, atmospheric, creepy like Burton's films but different. Last two, it's a generic city, which is a shame in my opinion.
As I touched on just there, Bruce emerging from the prison which was at the same time obviously evocative of the cave from his youth but didn't quite show how he'd developed to a point to defeat Bane. Batman/Bruce just seem to be going through the motions without really developing. Batman doesn't fight crime to stop criminals, he fights it because of the darkness in himself. He's a far more complex character than the films give him credit for. Catwoman too, never really develops, despite enjoying her inclusion, I never saw the reason Batman would trust her moral compass. Wanting a clean slate doesn't imply she wants a clean start. Juno Temple's character, served no purpose in explaining Catwoman or even giving her Robin Hood ethos more justification, seemed lazy or over ambitious reference to
Year One. If that was an over ambitious squeezing in source material, John Blake: The Only Gotham Detective and his 'real' name was definitely lazy. Nolan's adamant statements this his last film kind of spoil any future hope plus the fact Robin's name isn't Robin! Of the pantheon of sidekicks/replacements, if Nolan wanted some fan service, he should have used one of them instead of going for a painful reference.
Geekdom aside, I enjoyed the **** out of the fact JGL was/becomes who he's implied. Like Tate being Talia, it was long suspected but both were held off longer enough in the film to be surprise so had massive grin for much of the epilogue. Well despite the
Sherlock 'twist' which I thought showed a complete lack of conviction from Nolan as the pieces were in place for that to be a fantastic send off, instead it was a cheat to get an emotional reaction without any particular purpose. There were a lot other fantastic moments that did happen; Michael Caine, Pfister and Zimmer i'm calling now as Oscar nominations because they did some great work that stood above a shaky script. Overall, that's what it's come down too. As much as I can overblow plot holes, MacGuffins, lapses in logic, undeveloped characters, police charging head first, a generally anti-climatic final battle and inherent themes missed- they were all still issues that prevented this being the film it could have been. Or even films they could have. It's a shame but at least it wasn't as bad as
Prometheus and something i'm definitely eager to see again.
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You mean the world's greatest detective isn't allowed to have the foresight of an escape plan when he is the most wanted man in the city? But you accepted the Joker's ridiculous plan in TDK? Do you often forget where you parked your Bat-wing when you go out for the night?
), but it's the way he constructs his narratives combined with amazing technical skills that makes him such an accomplished director.
