So what was your favorite part of The Dark Knight Rises?

Spoilers, obviously.

For me, this was such a fantastic film. I saw it today, and I'll be seeing it again tomorrow. Anyways, I want to put aside the "Which Batman film is the best?" talk, and simply discuss what your favorite scenes/moments were. I love the entire film to be honest, so even saying one or two things seems like I'm not giving enough credit to other aspects, but I will limit it to two for me.

The first part I believe, is the first time Batman comes back, you (or at least I) get this "Oh yes, he. Is. BACK!" sensation, and all the better 'cause it was just after Bane got away. My second was the first Batman vs. Bane fight, not only 'cause it was interesting to see Bane hardly get hurt and Batman get his ass kicked, but it really was the first moment in the film where I felt that not only was he getting tired over that individual battle, but it shows that it's not just Batman in this fight, but also Bruce Wayne, and I found it interesting how both their identities, which is often masked one way or the other, was truly blending here.

Maybe I'm looking too into it, but something that also made me feel that way was because every time he tried to punch Bane, it wasn't a Batman grunt, but a Bruce Wayne grunt. It wasn't gravely, it just sounded like a regular voice. I guess you can say it's just the acting, but I'd still like to think it was part of the story. I hope what I just described made sense, ha ha. Oh, and one other little one, I loved how as Batman was fighting beside Catwoman he swiftly knocked the gun out of her hand and told her no, 'cause that's not how he works.

The entire movie made me smile.

"So thats what it feels like"

The first fight with Bane. So brutal and perfectly executed. Oh yeah, and the opening scene was insane.

Bane reciting Gordon's speech, well pretty much anytime Bane hammed it up. He really ran with the theatricality part of the League of Shadows.

Also, I found the thought of all the dead fish washing ashore after the nuke went off pretty funny.

Bane absolutely decimating Batman.

I liked watching Bane punch Batman in the head and his helmet denting and cracking. That was pretty great, the movie as a whole was alright.

@the_OFFICIAL_jAPanese_teaBAG: Yeah, that was funny.

The part that comes to mind is: "The sentence is death. By exile."

That cracked mask bro

@FluxWaveZ that was my favorite line in the whole movie

When Batman tell Gordon that anyone can be a hero, even an office who gives a child his coat and tells him his world isn't ending.

My favourite part was when Batman was screaming "where is the detonator" at Bane. Christian Bale did it with the same delivery as "where are the other drugs going" from Batman Begins and "where are they" from The Dark Knight. Every time I hear one of those quotes, I can't help but laugh because Bale's Batman voice is so over the top. Other than that, I really did not like the film.

@rentfn: Why? I'm not asking that because I disagree, but I'm actually wondering. Is it because he then finally figures it out, along with a flashback showing a part that was a flashback in Batman Begins? Or were you being sarcastic? Also, I just thought of something, instead of dream within a dream, it's flashback within a flashback. Mwahahahahaaaa, yessss. Just kidding, that was dumb.

the parts where catwoman mounts the batpod

I thought the opening plane hi-jack was the best scene. It was a great way to introduce Bane as a criminal mastermind, and was just awesome all around. Really above and beyond your typical scene from an action movie.

Overall though, I have to say that the film was disappointing. I admit I don't know much about batman beyond what I've seen in the movies, but there was a lot that I didn't get. First, why was Bane always wearing a mask? I understand he suffered some injury, but it was never fully explained. They basically said that if he takes off his mask then he dies right? I was expecting them to go into this more because in the opening scene the CIA guy wants to know about his mask. In general, I feel like Bane didn't get as much attention as previous villains like Joker, Scarecrow and Ra's al Ghul. With those guys, we had a really good idea of why they were doing what they did and what their weaknesses were. With Bane, they just kind of off-handedly say at the end that he is working for another evil mastermind, and fail to explain her much at all. I just feel like we didn't get to know the villains this time around, and that had been something the other films did better.

Catwoman. Where to start. Well most of my complaints about Bane translate to Catwoman. Her motives are mysterious or inexplicable. On the one hand they imply that she is being blackmailed, that Bane will kill her buddy and her if she doesn't help. On the other hand she tries to tell Batman that she believes in what she is doing because she resents the corruption and materialism of Gotham's elites. I think it's great for a story to have conflicted characters but they don't show how this conflict plays out. She just bounces around, totally unaccountable. I would have liked to know more about her history, especially how she became a master thief in the first place. Also, her romance with Batman seems to just happen without any explanation. Why exactly does he like her? Why does she like him? They basically just exchange sarcastic one-liners the whole film and then run away together at the end. Without knowing more about Catwoman, this just doesn't make much sense.

I think they should have focused solely on Bane or Catwoman. In addition to the already large cast, the film was trying to introduce four major new characters (Bane, Catwoman, Blake/Robin, and Talia) and it felt like too much. Only Blake got all the time he needed and he was the least interesting of the batch. In The Dark Knight, they only had two new characters, Dent and Joker, and that worked perfectly. Finally, I thought there were too many kids. The film had lots of them all over in scenes that seemed intended to elicit our sympathy for the innocent side of Gotham but I thought those scenes fell flat. The part where the kid dramatically sings the national anthem before the stadium blows up was so cliche it bordered on hilarity.

The action was cool though.

@nywt: To me, saying you think Bale does a bad Batman (which you didn't necessarily say here) is like the person that walks in and thinks one thing is cool, but is too late to the party. I think Bale has to be the best Batman, at least in the respect of grounding him in reality and personality. I agree, those things were a little goofy, but that's an easy mark. You also didn't answer my question seriously, it seems you only came on here to say you disliked it.

@NTM said:

@rentfn: Why? I'm not asking that because I disagree, but I'm actually wondering. Is it because he then finally figures it out, along with a flashback showing a part that was a flashback in Batman Begins? Or were you being sarcastic? Also, I just thought of something, instead of dream within a dream, it's flashback within a flashback. Mwahahahahaaaa, yessss. Just kidding, that was dumb.

I think that would be my favorite moment, too. Because it's a powerful scene in the first film that comes full circle in this one. And it made me tear up a little.

Those 5 seconds where Batman actually does some Batman shit, and doesn't just participate in Car Chases.

@boj4ngles: He wears the mask because it feeds him medicine, it is explained when Bruce is in the prison-like place. Also, this is the end of the Nolan Bat films as we know it, if they would have gone off and explained more, which I don't believe they needed to, it'd be a much, much longer film, or a part two type deal. This was also a Bruce Wayne story. It all makes sense (to me at least) and doesn't take much thinking really. You have to know the characters already, and if you do, you'd kind of know their motivations, especially Catwoman.

@Tylea002: Five second huh? Seems to me you didn't understand the story of the film and how it backed the action up. Or you did, and just didn't care.

@NTM: You should really read my post again. First of all, I merely said that Bale's voice as Batman is ridiculous, completely irrelevant of his portrayal as either Bruce Wayne or Batman. Secondly, who cares if it's an easy mark, it's a fair criticism to make. To think that no one would recognize Bruce Wayne because he's chewing on a couple pebbles under his cowl is just as naive as thinking that Superman's identity can be hidden by a pair of glasses. When Christopher Nolan puts so much time and effort into making his Batman universe realistic and grounded, Bale's voice serves to show how ridiculous and cartoony the character of Batman really is and takes away all credibility. Finally, I did answer your question seriously. That was my favourite part of the film.

I loved the charge of the cop brigade.

Nonsensical when looked at logically? Certainly. But, honestly, if that sort of thing were to ever happen in real life (super villain and his criminal army conquering Sydney is admittedly unlikely), I could see my dad and the cops of his era donning his old uniform and standing up even knowing the result was probably not going to positive...

...of course, they probably would have taken cover and shot at the enemy, but hey, movies.

Still an awesome scene that gave the "normals" a moment of insane bravery contrasted against all the costumed larger than life characters.

@nywt: No, I meant that I don't think you even took the films seriously, so I doubt you'd take this question seriously. When I first saw Batman Begins, and The Dark Knight, I would have had to agree, but I got over that, and now I think he does the best Batman, and the voice is one of the reasons. It's not irrelevant. You think this would have been better if he would have always just gone with a Bruce Wayne or even Bale voice? It's supposed to be two different identities, and it doesn't matter whether someone else can tell who it is or not, and how that's believable, it's about Bruce Wayne and Batman and what they think. Going into his psyche.

Catwoman ;)

the last 5 minutes with the Robin hint and all of the Bane stuff. Really the whole movie was great.

@NTM: I understood it perfectly, thanks. That bit with Catwoman in the sewers, before the Bane fight, is the only time he did anything remotely Batman-like. The rest was broad daylight fist fights, or car/bike/jet chases.

But if we're going to get into it, my favourite part was Alfred at the funeral, one of the best scenes in the trilogy. Before they gave the world's biggest fuck you and made him actually be alive. Seriously, that was the stupidest decision ever. The more I think about it, the more disappointed I am at the film. Everything in the Pit was super cliche for a sequel to The Dark Knight, Bane was poorly used as a Villain, Tate only existed to betray Bruce, the film was far too long and a mess, plot-wise. It's still got that Nolan epicness and scale, but it's nowhere near as good as it feels it could have been. It's 164 minutes. I could watch 9 twice in that time, a film I feel is actually superior!

So yeah, there were good parts don't get me wrong, but it wasn't good enough to fill the shoes. It was always going to be called a masterpiece though, it's a self fulfilling prophecy.

I find it weird how they just "kill off" Bane. That was one of the things I didn't really like about the film, some of the stuff that revolves around Bane in general. At the end it seemed like he got the short end of the stick when throughout he was the worst of the worst bad guys, and also, the whole Batman fighting him thing... In the first battle (the one I said I liked, and I still do), Batman could have just punched his face there and broke the mask, but no, punch everywhere else. He could have ended it there. Also, I couldn't understand everything he said, you'd get lucky understanding the majority of what he said because only a few words in all of the sentences were understandable so you'd have to feel in the blanks which was at least pretty easy.

@Tylea002: It was less about what would Batman specifically do, and more so Bruce Wayne, and plus, Gotham was in dire times, it's not like Bruce Wayne/Batman would just be like "Well I gotta wait for night time... *looks at watch* Alright! Time to go kick some ass or stealthily get my way through a place. Oh wait... there was a bomb wasn't there? Oh fuck. *BOOM*" Then the city would be gone. The whole ending I think was made in a way as to not make another Inception ending, where it just makes you think. I think by now, that's pretty cliche. "Did he die, or did he survive? I guess we'll never know and we'll have to speculate and theorize!" I don't care for that here. Also, how was the pit cliche? If you're going to say that, than a lot of things in a lot of series is cliche. Whatever though, your opinions are fine. I keep feeling like I'm about to get into an argument with someone, when that's not even my intentions.

When it ended...

@NTM: Oh yes, I'm totally one of those guys who loves to spend his money on films, going in already hating them, just so I can go online and complain on some message board (major sarcasm if you couldn't tell). You seem to think that just because I am critical of a film, I hate it and everything that came before it. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight are good movies but I believe that one major fault of all three Batman films is Batmans voice. Having an issue with an arguably small part of the series doesn't mean that I'm not taking the films seriously. It means that regardless of whatever else the films contain, that one aspect takes me out of the reality of the film and certainly makes it less enjoyable.

And once again, you have been unable to read my criticism through your rose tinted glasses. I stated my issue with Batman purely with regards to his voice yet you insist on defending the character on every aspect. I'm not attacking him, his motivations, his physical presence, or anything else other than his voice. To continue this discussion without you understanding my position is a waste of everyone's time.

However, for the sake of argument and because internet squabbles are fun, I really do think it would have been better if Bruce Wayne and Batman had the same voice. It would allow for more credibility to his character, because I very much doubt that hiding his voice from other people who have very little to no contact with Bruce Wayne is a priority for Batman. I'm sure he has more important things on his mind like not letting the Joker kill Rachel and Harvey or you know, having Gotham become a crater. Bruce Wayne has two different identities, symbolized by the cowl. How many times in the film did they mention that a hero needs to change his voice to be a symbol or protect those he cares for? Never, because that's what his mask does. It gives him the two identities needed to make Bruce Wayne/Batman such a compelling character.

You then say that it's not important if his voice or how people recognize it is believable or not, but again, when so much effort is put into making every aspect of the film believable, giving his character this ridiculous quark starts to shatter the illusion.

Now if you wish to continue this debate, learn how to understand the perspective of another person instead of shooting down every idea. An idea is not wrong simply because you differ, and that's what makes debate so great. It allows us to share intelligent ideas from different positions without resorting to throwing fists or name calling.

@NTM: Bane definitely deserved a better death. He deserved more attention in general. They should have gone into detail about how exactly he can inspire fanatical loyalty in his henchmen, and they should have given him more scenes like the plane hi-jack and the stock market heist where he pulls off a crazy plan. The third act where he just lords it over a chaotic Gotham seemed like a little bit of a waste of his talents. He wasn't doing much there.

And you mention that Batman should have just smashed his mask. That is exactly what I was thinking and it was one of the reasons I was confused about what exactly the mask's purpose was. I know from the Arkham Asylum video game that Bane sometimes has chemicals that enhance him so at first I thought that's what was going on there.

@nywt: Actually, you're just saying I don't understand, when I do. I'm telling you that your complaint goes hand in hand with what you're telling me is OK. I don't need to argue with you about anything. I never called you names, and never planned to, and you're the one being somewhat disrespectful by assuming I don't understand, when it's you not understanding what I was saying, then again, I guess my fault is that I'm not being clear enough. That doesn't matter now though. You think the voice is ridiculous and that's that. Fine. I like it. That's all.

@NTM: This really is going no where but I have time. I really have no idea what you are saying at this point, especially with a statement like this.

@NTM said:

@nywt: I'm telling you that your complaint goes hand in hand with what you're telling me is OK.

What does this even mean? Please, be more clear. Tell me exactly what it is you want to say instead of giving up.

@boj4ngles: The only excuse to be had with Batman not hitting his mask is ignorance, but that's kind of dumb. Still though, I have no major problem with it. I simply noticed it, but it wasn't something that made me hate it. The whole thing with Bane, or actually Nolan's Batman films in general, is that you can't go based off any pre-exposed Batman titles. What happens in Nolan's Batman films, stays in his films, and nothing gets in either. You know what I mean? Kind of like how some people can die, but they don't die in other things like comics or the games. So you can't question it. That's my response to your thinking that what was going on in Arkham City to Bane, was happening to him in this, which isn't the case.

I don't see a problem with the voice, it never felt unrealistic or cartoony to me. And I think having the same voice for Wayne and Batman would be pretty horrible.

@nywt: I was saying that he has to be voiced like that, or... whatever way (which I'm sure it'd then be worse than it currently is) that'd not sound like Bruce Wayne. The fact that you're saying his voice is ridiculous, is in a sense, making fun of his character in general. I never really mentioned his physical appearance, or his apparent actions. By choosing to give him a separate voice than his alter ego, makes a lot more sense, and I find it more interesting. It's funny how you mentioned before that it wouldn't help him and people would notice it, but it's more to the contrary compared to the other versions of Batman. Anyways, sorry, I have to give up here, you win. I'm tired and it's my B-day, so I'll be busy today whether I'd like it or not. And I'm also going to see this film again, ha ha!

@SirPsychoSexy said:

I don't see a problem with the voice, it never felt unrealistic or cartoony to me. And I think having the same voice for Wayne and Batman would be pretty horrible.

Thanks for agreeing. Good night!

@NTM: Let me show you one thing.

@nywt said:

@NTM: I stated my issue with Batman purely with regards to his voice yet you insist on defending the character on every aspect. I'm not attacking him, his motivations, his physical presence, or anything else other than his voice.

@NTM said:

@nywt: The fact that you're saying his voice is ridiculous, is in a sense, making fun of his character in general.

Do you not see the disconnect here? Really, it's no fun having a debate with someone if they fail to listen to the relevant arguments.

@nywt: If it helps, I too find the Batman voice in these movies to be a bit silly. Mask his voice? Definitely. In that specific way, though?

The humanity of Batman. When Bane absolutely fucking destroyed him and then broke his back it made a mortal man out of an idol. After that probably Talia just because I like the Ra's al Ghul character and it was a whole "Waht a twist!" moment.

Other than that it did kind of seem to drag on a bit much. The main parts I found myself liking were the bits with Bane in total control and the complete anarchy around him. Great movie, but it could have cut some of the fat down a bit. Especially with the sappy Alfred shit or Detective Blake being in there just because Nolan likes casting the same actors in everything he does. I don't care if he's called Robin like in Frank Miller's graphic novel or anything else, the movie seemed more to revolve around him for some reason and he had some of the really snoozy parts.

Anne Hathaway. She was excellent. The rest of the movie was pretty boring. 
 
Oh, and the first fight with Batman and Bane. That was good too.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gary Oldman.

@the_OFFICIAL_jAPanese_teaBAG said:

"So thats what it feels like"

Yup. Despite all the great action bits, despite the plot twists, despite Bane sounding like Sean Connery (which I liked), that one little gag was my favorite bit as well.

I loved when Bane helped Talia out of the prison and he pulls his scarf down and says 'goodbye.' I was disappointed that Bane ended up being a lackey for Talia though, I was hoping he'd just be a villain on his own.

The first Bane fight was awesome. After reading all the comments so far in this thread, I do have a slightly different perspective than I did yesterday. For instance, the who deal with Batman barely attacking Bane's mask during the first fight. Sure, he didn't know, but Batman seems like the type of fighter who feels around for a weakness. During their last fight, it seems like the mask is hella flimsy; two punches, and Batman manages to open the mask and gain an advantage. Another thing that someone pointed out is that it seemed like Bane came off as this psychotic mastermind, but all of that went down the drain when Talia revealed herself. Also, someone mentioned that they should have shown how Banes followers were so disciplined and so happy to die. Even with these issues, I think the movie was great.

Citizens and cops celebrating at the end as nuclear fallout was about to settle in their city. 

When Alfred and Bruce were having that conversation about him moving on from Rachel, and Alfred tells him about the letter.

When Alfred was blubbering in front of the Wayne family graves.

@BraveToaster said:

The first Bane fight was awesome. After reading all the comments so far in this thread, I do have a slightly different perspective than I did yesterday. For instance, the who deal with Batman barely attacking Bane's mask during the first fight. Sure, he didn't know, but Batman seems like the type of fighter who feels around for a weakness. During their last fight, it seems like the mask is hella flimsy; two punches, and Batman manages to open the mask and gain an advantage. Another thing that someone pointed out is that it seemed like Bane came off as this psychotic mastermind, but all of that went down the drain when Talia revealed herself. Also, someone mentioned that they should have shown how Banes followers were so disciplined and so happy to die. Even with these issues, I think the movie was great.

I don't buy the "Bane as lackey" issue people have been throwing around at all. Via the opening scene, his speeches, the way his thugs take orders, his fights, etc, he's clearly shown as this super imposing, intelligent criminal (I think my favorite part of the movie might be when he puts his hand on Daggett's shoulder and says "Do you FEEL in charge?" or whatever). The Talia reveal, to me, implies a partnership where each one contributed part of what the other lacked: Talia the resources and ability to work form the inside and Bane the intelligence/plan and leadership. I think his followers being fanatical League guys is more than enough to explain the thugs willingness to die.

I don't want to seem spammy or anything, but I've been reading stuff over at the AV Club in their Spoiler Space, and there's a lot of intelligent conversation there that's made me actually like the film more after seeing it.

The Ending.

It wasn't my favorite part of the movie but I just want to give props to the ending. Way to end that Batman trilogy.