The ending was just perfect for me. Wrapped the series nicely. Too bad a reboot is inevitable.

i want a batman movie that isnt too realistic but that has a comic book feel, not really marvel-esque but i want batman to be able to use all his gadets i want to see a movie where there are more villains. something like arkham city video game.

i want the movie to start out where batman is already batman, no origin stories just him taking on gothams worst. and of course witty dialogue, batmans keen detective skills i want all of batmans supporting cast (alfred, fox, nightwing, Etc.)

after all these years since the 30's i think we need no introduction to gotham or batman. just get to the good stuff and have an original story where the characters all have the personality we have come to love in the comics.

Love seeing Norm again!!!

To me The Dark Knight Rises is not only a perfect ending for a wonderful trilogy, but it was also better than either of it's predecessors which were great movies. The trilogy only got better as it went along.

Anyone else think it would be awesome if John Blake the cop appeared in Batman comics now? Kind of like how Coulson integrated into the Marvel universe?

@InnerVenom123: i dont think it would work becuz blake ended up becoming robin...maybe in a serperate universe like Earth-2 or earth one. its possible...but definitley not the main DCnU 52

Glad to see you guys did a video discussion for this. There was a lot to talk about with this movie

@InnerVenom123: I would love to see that, but one thing I like DC doesn't do is use their movies to make more money. Marvel sometimes pushes their movie characters into comics just to make more money

@haydenclaireheroes: We almost didn't have one. I stopped by Norm's new Tested office yesterday. Since we hadn't done one and he had a lot to say (as you can see), he wanted to shoot one. I had to rush out of there afterwards to catch my ferry home.

NORM! Yay for talking to one of the honorary CV crew, despite the different owners now.

Anyway, I have to add my thoughts to this because I was one of the (apparently) few people who felt really let down by this movie.

First, I don't know how the movie was so long, and yet the pacing was so elastic. Despite the time-skip, you don't get a sense of how long, if at all, Batman kept operating after the night Harvey died, how he injured his leg (if his cartilage was gone in both legs, why did he only seem to have one bad leg?). I wasn't even sure how long had passed between the plane scene and Batman getting broken. Parts dragged on, yet the 5 months in the Pit, went by without even much of a montage. Even the week or so between Bruce climbing out, and the Battle of Gotham seemed rushed, yet the last 20 minutes before the bomb went off seemed to rush by whereas the last 5 minutes seemed to take forever.

I didn't think Tom Hardy made a good Bane. Not just because he's not being physically bigger than Batman, hell Kim Basinger was bigger than Michael Keaton, and he made a great Batman. With so much of his face covered all his emotions had to be displayed with his eyes, and his eyes weren't very emotive. I did like that the remastered voice was louder, but it sounded far louder than other characters in the same scene and his voice sounded disembodied. When Bane is talking to Batman in their first fight, he loudly calls him Mr. Wayne, but you can't tell if Catwoman was supposed to have overheard or not, despite the loudness of his voice, and the fact that she's like 6 feet away. I was put off by how the Batcave was supposed to be vastly improved since Batman Begins, but all I could see different was the platform where the Batsuit was stored/ vehicles were parked, and the small computer workstation. Maybe it was Nolan's intention, but Bane's sewer HQ seemed more Batcave-like than the Batcave, with his multiple montior setup and stuff.

I went with 2 friends who weren't comic book readers, and while they were surprised by the Talia twist, they weren't surprised that Bane wasn't "the child." The guy in the pit told Bruce that Bane wore his mask because of a pestilence that hit the prison, and the clips showed prisoners covered in facial bandages but the child never had a face covering. When Bruce and Talia hooked up, he saw a scar on her back, I guess from either where the rope snagged rubbed her back as she tried to climb out, or where she hit the stones while attempting the leap. It was pointless. It would've better foreshadowed the twist if Bruce had or saw the other prisoners have similar v-shaped scars in the same location.

It may be a moot point, but when Bane breaks out the prisoners from Blackgate, he says that because Harvey Dent was a killer, people convicted under the Dent Act should go free. Aside from being a bullshit argument, how come "being free" means they each get an assault rifle? I know it's because he's the bad-guy, but seriously, why bother propagandizing about how now the people can be free under your martial law, when you go around giving guns to convicts (wrongly imprisoned or not).

I didn't like the Bruce and Alfred scene where Alfred leaves. I expected more from both the characters, I wanted Alfred to tell Bruce that HE was the one who raised him, when Bruce left Gotham, he was leaving HIM. I wanted Bruce to not be so hung up on a character that had so few redeeming qualities. I know Batman broods over dead people but damn.

I didn't like Blake. I thought he knew stuff that he knew because it was convenient to the plot. How he figured out Batman's identity years ago, but Gordon didn't until Bruce practically spelled it out for him was far fetched. He felt like a Mary-Sue. I loathed the "Robin" reveal.

Lastly, I thought it would've been better had they just showed Alfred in Florence with his Fernet Branca, and not revealed Bruce to be there. If they left it a little more open (which seems like its the Nolan thing to do) by not showing a body, dead or alive, it would be more fitting for a comic-book.

I still don't know if Batman is dead or alive. Because Alfred could of been imagining that Bruce was there like he did when he went to Venice years before. Also it is Christopher Nolan film so he likes to do things like that.

That ending was amazing with Blake rising up on the platform of the batcave. Wish I could see where that goes but that will probably never happen.

Couldn't stand that they Over-compensated with the voice - it took me out of the movie. It was like he was voiced-over instead of being IN the scene - I hope they fix it for the DVD.

@G-Man - Here is my question: When Bruce and Talia make love, they take a moment to focus on the half-moon scar on her back (between shoulder blades) ... as far as I remember they never went back to or touched on this?? Whats the deal? Is it going to be from a deleted scene or did I miss something?

Anne Hathaway was amazing, best Catwoman since Julie Newmar. As soon as she spoke AS catwoman, I was sold.

Amazing that Nolan or the screen writer combined Year One, Knight Fall, No Mans Land and Dark Knight Returns and it worked.

I had a discussion with my comic nerd friends about the "Robin" line and we agreed that most non-comic people, the lowest common denominator know 'Robin' but not 'Dick grayson' - though the way he discovered Bruce's identity as obvious to him, was Tim Drake

I was also 'somehow' surprised by Talia being the child, Obvious that Miranda Tate was Talia but didnt realize she was the child and Bane was the protector, Soooo obvious, how did I fall for that.

I missed that she was never called Catwoman ... :D

i think he needed the cane from when he fell stopping two-face in the dark knight

@Webjaker: I"m thinking it's gotta be something League of Shadows-ish.

@the3rdborn: I think I mentioned that in the video. I'm curious. Part of me wants to believe that there could have been some other Batman adventures even if he was on the run from the law. Back in the day, the police and populace never really knew if Batman was actually a person or just an urban myth. It's kinda hard to believe Bruce would just give it all up. Unless he was just really sad to have to be the bad guy.

@InnerVenom123: Yeah, he was my favorite new character! I hope the next person who does a Batman movie follows through with him being Robin -- I never thought of it before but he is PEFECT casting! The Batsuit looked better than ever before, good Scarecrow cameo, great hover Bat. Opening hijacking was good. Great final fight.

I think I shouldn't have watched the trailers for it because ALL THE BEST STUFF WAS REVEALED AHEAD OF TIME!

SPOILER ALERT -- SPOILERS FOLLOW-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I ha-ted Talia. A lot. Bad endings and female casting seem to be Nolan's Kryptonite -- hated the ending to the A+++ Dark Knight ("I'll pretend I killed them! Because I'm the hero Gotham needs, not that it deserves!" Wuh? How about framing one of the dead gangsters instead?) Anne Hathaway started out very well as Catwoman, but then got bogged down in acting annoyed all the time; she was more of a sullen villainess than a catburglar playing off her feminine wiles and hidden fighting skills. They did a bit with Anne playing that out, and she was game and didn't drag the film down. I just prefer Olivia Wilde as Catwoman.

Bane was punching concrete off the City Hall columns -- when it hasn't been established at all that he is a) superpowered or b) Venom-powered (the other kind, InnerVenom...). Batman just sat there while Miranda Tate (refuse to call her Talia) lectures him on wanting revenge for the father who abandoned her and her mom (?!?) while slowly piecing Bane's mask back together and then having Bane wrap him in ropes. NO. Just, no. Also, turning Wayne Manor into a boys home means the next movie will be a reboot. 'Cause where's Brucie supposed to live?

Loved Robin getting to the Bat Cave, idea of the cops trapped underground, burial scene not so much, him showing up with Selina where Alfred was having a drink -- priceless.

Here are my blogs -- which is right on Catwoman?

Anne Hathaway: I Should Be Catwoman!

Olivia Wilde's Catwoman Qualifications

@G-Man said:

@Webjaker: I"m thinking it's gotta be something League of Shadows-ish.

@the3rdborn: I think I mentioned that in the video. I'm curious. Part of me wants to believe that there could have been some other Batman adventures even if he was on the run from the law. Back in the day, the police and populace never really knew if Batman was actually a person or just an urban myth. It's kinda hard to believe Bruce would just give it all up. Unless he was just really sad to have to be the bad guy.

What I took from the cane was that, He did SO much damage to his body during the timeframe of the first 2 movies, and then he just let himself go for eight years. Hence all the stuff from the Dr about him having No cartilage in his knees and all these other issues. But i can also see how it almost makes you think there was a 'one last mission' that went bad - or something in the police hunt

@haydenclaireheroes said:

I still don't know if Batman is dead or alive. Because Alfred could of been imagining that Bruce was there like he did when he went to Venice years before. Also it is Christopher Nolan film so he likes to do things like that.

O_O Fox discovered bruce fixed the autopilot, they basically confirmed that bruce survived

@Cervantes: The next movie is of course a reboot, don't let someone tread on this self-contained trilogy

besides the next one needs to be less tied down in reality and more of a compromise

I only have 1 question before i see this movie and i dont wanna spoil it by watching this. Does Bane still have the use of his venom and the slight changes in his physical feature.

@EnSabahNurX said:

@haydenclaireheroes said:

I still don't know if Batman is dead or alive. Because Alfred could of been imagining that Bruce was there like he did when he went to Venice years before. Also it is Christopher Nolan film so he likes to do things like that.

O_O Fox discovered bruce fixed the autopilot, they basically confirmed that bruce survived

@Cervantes: The next movie is of course a reboot, don't let someone tread on this self-contained trilogy

besides the next one needs to be less tied down in reality and more of a compromise

I wondered if the ending was all a dream, but yeah the auto-pilot scene with Fox confirmed it - though when did he jump out since they stated the bomb had a 6 mile blast radius and we watched him pilot it most of the way out.

Other convo I had with friends was whether Bruce would come back as Batman to Robin John Blake's Robin/Nightwing - I personally felt that he had accomplished his mission, passed the mantle and the cowl on and was finally living his life.

@barnabae70 said:

I only have 1 question before i see this movie and i dont wanna spoil it by watching this. Does Bane still have the use of his venom and the slight changes in his physical feature.

No, no he doesn't - and if you havent seen the movie get out of this thread NOW! dont read anything on this page!!!! Goooo!!!

The movie was amazing better than avengers (mostly cause it was the last of 2 other beautifully done movies) The only thing that disappointed me was that i wish that they made some sort of joker reference (like they did with harvey dent)

I am probably in the minority, but I kind of felt bad for Bane when Talia explained their connection and his love for her. Here is a dude that has given up everything for her without question and he's scared for life because of it. But maybe that's just me. Also new Batman reboot, do it as Batman Beyond with Joseph Gordon Levit as Terry Mcginnis.

@Joshing01 said:

The movie was amazing better than avengers (mostly cause it was the last of 2 other beautifully done movies) The only thing that disappointed me was that i wish that they made some sort of joker reference (like they did with harvey dent)

I think Nolan wanted to honor Heath's memory and performance by not touching it. No unused footage, clips, mentions. And Tony asked how he hadnt escaped, but in Nolan's realistic Bat-verse it could have been explained away that they did what you do with mass-murdering terrorists - you put them to death, not throw them in an easily escapable asylum.

Question is: What would this movie have been about if Heath Ledger had lived?

@Webjaker: I so agree with you on the Tim Drake part on "Robin" John Blake. I mean he did, Drake discover who Batman really was. but in a small part he did remind of Dick Grayson. He was a cop haha.

I'm glad I'm not alone on this. To me, Tim Drake was "Robin" John Blake

@SnakeEyes327 said:

I am probably in the minority, but I kind of felt bad for Bane when Talia explained their connection and his love for her. Here is a dude that has given up everything for her without question and he's scared for life because of it. But maybe that's just me. Also new Batman reboot, do it as Batman Beyond with Joseph Gordon Levit as Terry Mcginnis.

I did too - I was like .. I cant believe I feel bad for him.

And I also think they should/will do a Batman Beyond. Though by then itll be with someone who's like 10yrs old now. I mean who would've thought the 3rd Rock kid who sees angels in the outfield would be so good in this?

Anyone else??

Here is my question: When Bruce and Talia make love, they take a moment to focus on the half-moon scar on her back (between shoulder blades) ... as far as I remember they never went back to or touched on this?? Whats the deal? Is it going to be from a deleted scene or did I miss something?

@Cervantes said:

@InnerVenom123:

("I'll pretend I killed them! Because I'm the hero Gotham needs, not that it deserves!" Wuh? How about framing one of the dead gangsters instead?)

Anne Hathaway started out very well as Catwoman, but then got bogged down in acting annoyed all the time; she was more of a sullen villainess than a catburglar playing off her feminine wiles and hidden fighting skills. They did a bit with Anne playing that out, and she was game and didn't drag the film down. I just prefer Olivia Wilde as Catwoman.

Bane was punching concrete off the City Hall columns -- when it hasn't been established at all that he is a) superpowered or b) Venom-powered (the other kind, InnerVenom...).

Batman just sat there while Miranda Tate (refuse to call her Talia) lectures him on wanting revenge for the father who abandoned her and her mom (?!?) while slowly piecing Bane's mask back together and then having Bane wrap him in ropes. NO. Just, no. Also, turning Wayne Manor into a boys home means the next movie will be a reboot. 'Cause where's Brucie supposed to live?

Yes, because framing a dead gangster is so noble. Man, you should write all of the heroes. I'd love to see Spider-man kicking babies sometime.

She was one of the best parts of the movie.

Big f**king deal? "OMG, BANE IS STRONG. .... THIS IS SOMEHOW BAD. I'M TOTALLY NOT JUST NITPICKING."

I think you're forgetting that Talia is f**king insane. She's allowed to be a hypocrite. Because she's a villain. Duh?

• Batman supposed to die, cop out ending which is bullcrap
• bane's goons are idiots, so batman's vehicle disabled one tumbler but did his minions use their ak's to shoot the cops?noo
• did they use the tumblers that work t run ove the cops? noo
• Bane died an undignified death and that make me grade the movie 7/10
• Batman did not use anything from his utility belt against bane, even though those batarangs would damage his exposed biceps
• Wayne is an angsty whiney b!tch

@Webjaker: im pretty sure it was supposed to be a Riddler movie if heath didn't die, and it would introduce Harley Quinn as jokers psychologist who falls in love with him, and of course Riddler would be Bruce Waynes and his companies enemy and Joker would be batmans so batman would fight on two fronts, while catwoman would most likely be at odds with harley quinn... and then bane was going to be last movie. so itd be 4 movies i guess. wouldve been interesting bu i like it as a trilogy better :)

@haydenclaireheroes: At the end it was revealed that Bruce Wayne paid for an Auto Pilot to be but into the bat! He is alive! :)

@haydenclaireheroes: noo he lived, early in the movie alfred stated that he wishes one day that he can see bruce with a girl sitting a table next to him, he wouldnt say a word just smile.

later on when fox is at the R&D department the maintenence dude says bruce fixed it not to long ago after he died.

then at the wayne tower the board member scouldnt pick up the trace on catwomans necklace(martha waynes)

basically batman and catwoman used that FLashdrive thing that wipes your slate clean, and catwoman actually had saved up ALOTTA money so they lived a rich and happy life together happily ever after :p lol

does that explainn it??

I've been called crazy by my friends, but I think this is a better movie than the last one. The story felt much more focused and didn't drag nearly as much. I was disappointed with Bane a little bit though. Tom Hardy is such a phenomenal actor and his performance was limited so much by the muzzle and voice modulation. Overall though it was fantastic and Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the surprise X factor of the movie for me.

@barnabae70: He doesn't have the use of Venom and he doesn't physically change. I had a problem with this, but a lot of people just rolled with it.

@EnSabahNurX: You're right, I think the next needs to be less tied into reality - Bane without his Venom is just less imposing.

@InnerVenom123:

Lol -- no, that's my point! They want to frame BATMAN for the murder of gangsters and cops, so the ACTUAL MURDERER can go free and they can LIE AND TURN HIM INTO A PILLAR OF THE COMMUNITY. So, if this ridiculously vile thing can be done FOR GOTHAM, wouldn't the GANSTER FRAME-UP be a better bad thing? BTW, next issue Spider-Man punches a baby just like in the trailer before the DKR movie! (the Will Ferrell movie, The Candidate)

I agree that Anne was one of the best parts, which surprised me, just would've been better with Olivia, don't lie.

Talia. Was. Mis-cast. So. Badly. True, she's crazy. Not as crazy as the casting agent who shoe-horned her in where another actress belonged. It's Talia! She's supposed to be a match for nearly any woman one on one. Ahhhh... I really enjoyed the movie, those parts just bugged me.

Finally, admit it, you're biased towards Bane because the Venom drug is HIS SYMBIOTE! I'm so brilliant, it hurts my eyes when I look in a mirror...

Alright, so my thoughts on the whole leg thing, was from the jump/fall Batman did at the end of Dark Knight. He seemed to be hobbling to the bike in the last moments, so I assumed he received the injury there. Just Saying.

@Webjaker:

"Better than me...?"

@Cervantes: She's a close third.

@Webjaker: I didn't bother to check if your question about Talia's scar was answered, but I think it shows that she's been in battle before. How she got that scar in particular wasn't important, but it foreshadowed the fact that she could kick-ass. You have to remember that she was essentially a part of the league of shadows.

Honestly, the best word to describe this ending is "biblical." It was so well done, and it was perfect for the already excellent trilogy.

When I saw Bruce's tombstone next to his parents', it was eerily comforting to me. Sure, Batman may have been nuts to do what he did, but the way he sacrificed himself for the city was so epic, and you knew that his parents (his father especially) would be so proud of him. To even think of them reunited in some sort of afterlife just brings a huge smile to my face.

Again, an excellent ending to a superb franchise. Nolan's Batman trilogy as a whole, to me, is one of the best Batman stories ever told. Right up there with The Killing Joke, Long Halloween, and The Dark Knight Returns.

Also, Robin was my absolute favorite character in this movie, right next to Alfred. Robin was played so damn well in the tone of the trilogy, and I love Nolan for at least attempting to bring the spirit of the character onto the film. He nailed it. Even though he wasn't in it as much as I would've liked him to be, Alfred totally knocked it out of the park again. His lines at Bruce's funeral were some of the best lines in the film. Beautiful stuff.

I love this video of you guys. Because we're all doing this right now! Geeking/gushing about this big beautiful movie and all it contained=]

Also, I just gotta say...I legitimately thought that Batman died at the end before the epilogue. Nolan totally had me blinded by how freaking invested I was at that point=P

@Gambit1024: I'm not sure you saw this movie. Bruce isn't in any afterlife, he's in Italy (Florence specifically) Alfred didn't say ANYTHING at Bruce's funeral. Gordon read a passage from A Tale of Two Cities ("I see a beautiful city and a brilliant people rising from this abyss. I see the lives for which I lay down my life, peaceful, useful, prosperous, and happy. I see that I hold a sanctuary in their hearts, and in the hearts of their descendents, generations hence. It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever know.")

I didn't say it in my previous post, but the idea that Batman had to fly the bomb into the ocean seemed kinda far fetched, what since it was being dragged by a cable and they can make quick release cables. They had it initially set up in a reactor that was in a room that could be flooded, so all he should have to do is get to where the water was as deep as that room and cut the cable.

@Fantasgasmic: Damn dude, you must be pretty dull, you clearly missed a shitload of things that were clearly explained in the film in both dialog and actions. First of all, Hardy portrayed Bane exactly how he is meant to be portrayed, a ruthless and merciless thug who also is a master strategist. Even Chuck Dixon, the original creator of the character said Nolan and Hardy did a wonderful job is in his portrayal. I'm sorry you are unable read a persons reactions and that you need to have constant explosions to remain entertained but fact is Chris Nolan had to cover a lot of ground to make sure the plot did not seem empty due to the lack of Ledger's Joker (if you say they should have recast him I will only rebuttal with saying that you should be dick slapped in the face). Chris Nolan wanted to finish his story, which all began with the league of shadows attempt to destroy Gotham and it is only right that it ended with a last final attempt to destroy it.

First of all, clearly Catwoman overheard Bane call Bats Mr. Wayne (hence why she understood what Blake meant when he asked what happened to Wayne). Second, the say in the scene where Miranda/Tahlia's first shown the reactor that Dr. Pavel died in a plane crash SIX MONTHS PRIOR & lastly, they tell you in the beginning the last time the batman was sighted was the day Harvey Dent died. It shocks me to see that you are too retarded to decipher that he developed a limp from what happened with Dent, who clearly shot him and caused him (batman) to fall several stories and land on his feet/back. Clearly you are one of the "fans" that would have prefered to see a johnny depp as the Riddler rumor be true or prefer to see Angelina Jolie as catwoman because you are most likely all surface and no depth (this conclusion is derived from the fact that you can't decipher things on your own). But it's okay, I guess I have no choice but to respect your opinion on the matter, but I hold onto my right to loathe the fact that many of your argument/complaints are about things you just failed to see. Maybe one day you can film your own Batman film where you can do a way better job, just make sure you cast Meghan Fox as Poison Ivy and Channing Tatum as Blackmask.

I enjoyed it. Quite a bit. I agree that Bane's booming 'Sean Connery' voice-over was mildly distracting at first. However, at the same time it gave it an almost omnipotent quality to it. Like it was EVERY-where. Surrounding you. Completely inescapable. Pretty much how Bane was in the first two acts. I ran with that and it kind of worked.

Loved that Talia was revealed. Sucked that she bought it in the end. I would have rather they showed that the truck cab was empty and left it at that.

Robin John Blake assuming the 'mantle' just works well for me. Great job there Nolan brothers, David Goyer and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Of course, I'll now never know if the John Blake character assumes the identity of 'The Batman' or changes the costume into a 'symbol' of his own making. With a giant frickin' statue in city hall, I get the feeling Nolan's alluding to a 'Nightwing' like character, but I'll obviously never know. And as much as I would like to, I kind of like having the answer left up in the air.

Looking forward to the second viewing. I'm going to try to make it IMAX.

dont tell the dick grayson fanatics that the character reminds you more of tim than dick because theyll take you to the ends of the earth

How come no one has thought that Blake might become Red Robin?

It wasn't shot in Chicago this time around. Mostly New York and Pittsburgh. Either way, we don't have any bridges like that over here. Chicago isn't an island.

I really liked the realism of showing how many injuries Bruce had obtained over the years by being batman. Also next batman movie NEEDS to be Batman Beyond!

Loved the movie - just a couple of minor complaints.

1. Bane was scary - but I wasn't thrilled with his voice. he sounded a little too polite for me.

2. Wished there were more night scenes/fights. Most of the second half took place during the day, but it's understandable.

Overall, the movie was pretty awesome - still like The Dark Knight better though. The ending was perfect and I almost feel sorry for the people that have to reboot the franchise next - they have alot to live up to.

@SnakeEyes327: So instead of having Joseph Gordon-Levitt play Robin John Blake/regular Batman, you would want him to play a completely different character?

I actually liked the fight scenes from the from Begins over Dark Knight. Batman was to weighed down in DK and anyone moving that slow would get his ass kicked if he's fighting multiple people. Plain and simple. If he moved a little quicker the fight scenes would have been better.