Eastfist

Just like some fans of Superman can’t wait for the new incarnation, there are those of us who can’t wait for the next Batman film from Nolan. Here’s what we know:

• Directed by Christopher Nolan
• Written by Johnathan Nolan, Chris Nolan, David Goyer
• To premiere July 20, 2012 in USA
• Official run time is 2 hours 45 minutes, includes epic Gungan field battle scene
• Tom Hardy is confirmed to be in cast; Tom Hardy is Bane, possible composites of Deadshot, Hugo Strange, Riddler
• Anne Hathaway is playing Selina Kyle; but no confirmation whether she will be a fully-costumed Catwoman
• Title is Dark Knight Rises
• No Riddler
• Nolan hints that unlike other Batman anthologies, his trilogy’s story comes to an end.
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt has officially joined the cast as Alberto Falcone . Falcone was revealed to be the Holiday Killer in The Long Halloween story arc. However, my belief is that he will only exist in Dark Knight Rises as a red herring as Black Mask, leader of the cult society. He will be killed later in the movie after his identity is revealed, which will leave viewers wondering who the “real” man pulling the strings is. And that’s when Aaron Echkardt shows up as Harvey Dent, wink (read my previous entry below). Of course, that’s just my half of the speculation.
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt is officially announced as John Blake, a cop assigned to work with Commissioner Gordon. Looks like the mole that’s going dig into the Gordon/Batman dynamic.
• Marion Cotillard is officially announced as Miranda Tate, a Wayne Enterprises board member. Obviously a cover for Talia Al Ghul.
• Josh Pence has been cast as a younger Ras Al Ghul

July 16, 2012 The embargo has been lifted! Here’s my review:

July 9, 2012 I’m surprised after watching a new MTV clip interview with Anne Hathaway that she thought she would be playing Harley Quinn. She wanted to do that Winona Ryder Girl, Interrupted thing. Ha! Anne Hathaway should seriously consider doing a sequel to Showgirls. She really has a nice body and the actual acting chops to pull off the ultimate dark comedy.

July 7, 2012 If you just can’t resist for 2 more weeks, IGN has one of the first “Making Of” featurettes up:

http://www.ign.com/videos/2012/07/07/the-dark-knight-rises-making-of-featurette

Towards the end of the featurette, you’ll get some new clips, dialogue, and context.

Catwoman finds a shaved head girl in a cell. John Blake and Gordon doing the master/apprentice thing. And Batman waging war. Can you guys wait until July 20, 2012?

July 7, 2012 Apparently, there has been a screening for press and Hollywood insiders. One-sentence reviews are showing up on select websites and Twitter. Could be plants. Could be fake. They’ve left out a lot of details and seem to be generalizing. I’m just waiting for confirmation that Eddie Murphy is indeed showing up as Riddler!

July 7, 2012 It’s interesting to see these ads for Kaspersky Anti-Virus software claiming Bane has unleased a computer virus throughout Gotham City. Don’t know if that’s been worked into the storyline. If it is, it’s likely Batman will have Lucius magically write a program to fix it. Hand to forehead slap.

July 4, 2012 With literally 3 weeks from premiere, here’s an in-depth press release from the official website:
http://www.thedarkknightrises.com/downloads/TDKR_productionNotes.pdf

Looks like John Blake will die as the Jason Todd sacrificial lamb. The Apollo Creed to the Rocky, so Rocky has a reason to make fighting Drago personal.

Now I wonder if Catwoman ends up shooting Bane right before Bane kills Batman. She serves as the deus ex machina.

Miranda Tate seems to be set up to be Bruce’s wife, so they can run off and be happy. That is, if she doesn’t turn out to be Talia Al Ghul and wants to kill Bruce. Maybe Batman does die… holy crap. Bruce finds happiness. That would be a hell of a way to end it. Maybe he lets Batman, Inc. take care of Gotham?

June 24, 2012 Just watched a quick Spanish clip of behind-the-scenes, but couldn’t make out what the visual effects director was saying about the “spectacular special ending” (I’m sure that’s on purpose because the most excited fans are Americans who only speak American) under the Spanish-speaking reporter’s voice-over. If anyone can read lips or understand Spanish, do a quick Google search and it’ll be there before it’s taken down. If I misinterpret it, I think he’s saying something about “going throughout the city into dark places”.

Is it like how the Dolph Lungdren Punisher ended? Is it a montage of Gotham City getting rebuilt? With the “death” of Batman or Bruce Wayne and the theme of escalation, now do we see a huge uprising of masked vigilantes and psychopath criminals? If the last one, my theory, is the case, then it would be as though Nolan is saying Batman gave birth to what we know as the modern masked superhero vigilante and the entire superhero “universe”. That would be ballsy. But that would also leave the way for Batman Beyond in a devastated Gotham due to exponential escalation.

Watch it as entertainment, don’t get programmed by it’s subliminality and overt American propaganda. It’s appealing now because some of you readers are just coming of age as adolescents and don’t know jack about morals, but make sure you get your life lessons from other sources around you. Batman isn’t real. There is no Batman in real life to save you from paying your bills or getting you laid. That kinda shit is all up to you.

June 14, 2012 The Dark Knight Rises soundtrack samples are up at:

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=91517

Can’t see why Warner Bros. would be removing these, but catch the somber-ass tracks before they are taken down again. Methinks Alfred dies at the end, track “Rise”, because it’s similar to the theme when Bruce’s parents gets killed and he has that memory.

June 11, 2012 Here’s the official track listing for Hans Zimmer’s The Dark Knight Rises movie soundtrack:

01. A Storm Is Coming (0:37)
02. On Thin Ice (2:55)
03. Gotham’s Reckoning (4:08)
04. Mind If I Cut In? (3:27)
05. Underground Army (3:12)
06. Born In Darkness (1:57)
07. The Fire Rises (5:33)
08. Nothing Out There (2:51)
09. Despair (3:14)
10. Fear Will Find You (3:08)
11. Why Do We Fall? (2:03)
12. Death By Exile (0:23)
13. Imagine The Fire (7:25)
14. Necessary Evil (3:16)
15. Rise (7:11)

Read into the track titles if you must. But I’m getting the feeling Bruce Wayne fakes his death. John Blake might “die” too so that he can become the permanent replacement for Batman. Wayne can then “move on”.

June 5, 2012 From what I can deduce from the released TV spots and trailer, Dark Knight Rises is essentially Bane Begins. He will have his own Bane Cave, a Bane Suit, and Bane gadgetry. There might be flashbacks of his training with Ras Al Ghul. If Nolan wants to build up the epic confrontation, then it shows how formidable the two pupils actually are.

I think, like the plot of Knightfall, Bane tracks down Batman and finds the batcave via the underground tunnels. The final fight would just be more epic if it was at the Batcave, having everything compromised. Jonah Nolan’s throwing out possible hints that in order to beat the unstoppable Bane, Batman might actually blow up and collapse the entire batcave and Wayne manor (no amount of anesthetic could save Bane from that). I think Bane drowns in the batcave when it is flooded. In that, Wayne can fake his death and run off with Miranda Tate to become the new Ras Al Ghul and have their baby girl Talia.

Of course, in movie tradition, Alfred, the old man archetype, would have to die before the baby is born. I’m assuming this will be very emotional.

Selina Kyle is arrested, but then breaks loose to have another adventure.

And the last however many minutes will be showing John Blake taking over as the new Batman with Ras Al Wayne watching over, sitting all Conan The Barbarian like in darkness.

Of course, just my speculation. As for WB marketing, they’re churning out a new piece of material everyday now with only 40-some days until premiere. That’s 40-some pieces of deceptive marketing and the movie could turn out entirely different. It was like Metal Gear Solid 2. No one expected to be playing as Raiden not even halfway through the game.

May 30, 2012 More possible plot points have been “leaked” from the Dark Knight Rises children’s book adaptations.

-Bane builds an underground labryinth as his hideout and holds Gordon hostage there. That would explain why Gordon has a splint for his arm, as he may have been abducted from the hospital (a trap to lure Batman) as seen in the trailer.
-Batman’s batcave doesn’t seem to have been compromised as Alfred is helping him gear up for his final fight with Bane. So Bane never learns of Batman’s true identity?
-Selina Kyle is robbing rich Gothamites during the winter time. She poses as a maid to rob Wayne, but Wayne catches her in the act of stealing Wayne pearls. They probably start a short-lived romance.

Of course, these could be major changes just for the kids as to not spoil the true events of the final cut of the film for the big kids.

Why do I still have a hunch that John Blake is a mole, a bad guy? It doesn’t matter that they show him with the orphans. I think he’s trying to lure the Batman out, so maybe he kidnaps them?

But if he’s the good guy, then does he die as Batman? He gets unmasked as a hero cop after Bane’s defeat. Therefore Bruce doesn’t have to be Batman anymore. Oh, so exciting.

May 28, 2012 Whoooo! They’re rolling out. Can they keep up the momentum?

May 25, 2012 Pretty sexy stuff.

May 24, 2012 Whoo-hoo-hoo, they’re rolling out now!

Pay attention to the Batman on top of police car one. Some of these were already shot in The Dark Knight because Rises will take place right after. Crossover marketing.

IGN posted them first http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/05/24/dark-knight-rises-set-visit-preview-and-new-character-banners

May 22, 2012 New official mediocre posters

Bane looks small in this because he should actually be taking up more of the composition, maybe even cropped off on the sides, but he’s framed dead center. Like I said before, at this point, these marketing materials don’t even matter anymore. Tickets are sold.

May 11, 2012 FIRST LOOK: JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT AS THE NEW BATMAN:

If that’s not JGL, I don’t know. I think Bane breaks the Bat at the batcave. All those early released shots of Christian Bale fighting at the steps of city hall might just be a rouse. Don’t be surprised if it’s JGL in the final print who beats Bane at the city hall’s steps with all those cops cheering.

May 9, 2012 So Marion Cottilard is denying again that Miranda Tate is a cover for Talia Al Ghul. What if this is absolutely true. Even though kid actor Joey King claimed to be playing a “Talia Al Ghul”, that doesn’t necessarily mean Marion Cottilard is playing the same character. What if Miranda Tate and Bruce Wayne had a daughter, once Bruce becomes the new Ras, and names her “Talia”. That would be just as epic, no?

Apr. 30, 2012 Daaaaayum. Trailer 3 is looking epic. It has a strange tone, similar to that of “Patriot Games” or “Clear and Present Danger”. Never have I ever seen a superhero movie treated like this. Well, now the spoiler completists can piece it all together. C’mon, it’s going to play out exactly how you’ve seen it done before. Bane looks small compared to Batman, but I’m sure you’ll be in for a BIG surprise. This is going to be a Bat-Summer blockbuster. Hope you guys don’t talk trash about the visionary artists out there now. They keep your minds active.

Apr. 30, 2012 It’s only a handful of days until WB releases the official Dark Knight Rises trailer 3. But if you can’t wait, their kinda lame viral marketing team has unleashed a set of “unlocked” screenshots from the trailer. You can see the screenshots at their official website www.tdkr07202012.com.

I already noticed that it’s an automated beast. If you take a quick peek at the webpage’s source code you can deduce the running time of the trailer. I count 3447 frames. So if the webpage is pulling the frames from an existing Quicktime file on their server, you just divide the frame count by 29.97 frames per second.

3447 / 29.97 = 115 seconds/ 60 = approx. 1.90 minutes. It’s a teaser trailer.

And for all you dumb vigilantes crying hacking attempt, it’s not. It’s simple detective skills utilizing information that is freely provided. It’s amazing with all this technology that some don’t have the critical skills to utilize it. Rather, they literally hack into an encrypted network, intruding on people’s privacy and stealing their information, and they call themselves smart. You’re not smart. You just became a criminal. If you’re really a Batman believer, he shoulda taught you right from wrong. Ain’t that a bitch?

Apr. 25, 2012 I get the feeling Chris Nolan is going to pull a switcheroo and fake Wayne’s death. These sneaky filmmakers already give you clues right in the beginning of the film. They want to make all the character’s stories parallel. So for those who already watched the prologue, pay attention to the focus on Bane faking Pavlov’s death by using a corpse. Mayhaps Blake will end up as Wayne’s “dead” body double. What if Blake was going around Gotham impersonating Wayne? If that’s the case, as these kinds of cookie-cutter films play out, Bane ends up killing Blake during the “evil plot summary”, and everyone will think that Wayne was just killed. Or, it’s Blake that gets his back broken as Wayne.

Remember that supposedly “official” first however many minutes beginning of TDKR in Los Angelos Times? If that is true and Bane is giving a speech at the top steps of City Hall already, with a bound and masked Wayne, then it would be possible this is the scene Wayne dies. And lo and behold, Batman emerges from the shadows and the big brawl ensues. The rest of the movie is a flashback, the events leading up to that very moment. Full circle.

Apr. 25, 2012 New promo art released.

Haven’t seen art this dynamic since Raimi’s Spider-man. In the history of comic book film adaptations, it’s getting pretty bad-ass. James Cameron’s got Van Ling, wonder if Nolan needs a researcher. I’m free.

Apr. 4, 2012 A while back, there were some rumors floating around that Dark Knight Rises would have an all CG ending. Perhaps it’ll be something similar to how Revenge of the Sith ended:

Batman might get severely injured as a result of defeating Bane. He has to rip off and wear Bane’s mask before… wait for it… Ras shows up and swoops him up, takes him back to Chateau de League of Shadows and fixes him up with the same rig as Bane’s. That haunting chant is probably a ceremony while Batman rises (walks again) in a hybrid Batman/Bane suit. He essentially becomes Azreal. And the movie ends with an all CG shot of Azreal-Batman sitting in a throne all Conan-like as the chosen successor of Ras. Azreal-Batman in a throne was in fact in the comics, so my speculation might have some weight to it. Nolan is a confirmed image stealer.

And there is that theme of “living long enough to see yourself become the villain”. Harvey Dent was the “white knight” who became the evil Two-Face. So Batman will become the new Ras. And it’s possible, if John Blake isn’t a minor mole archetype, that he would have to don the batsuit in Bruce’s absence. But I doubt that. Then again, we’ve never seen 2 official Bat-men in a Batman film before, so the gimmick could definitely be exploited. Those bat-wannabes in Dark Knight might be a clue though. Man, these sequels could really be contrived, if I am correct in my speculations.

Mar. 28, 2012 It’s official: Bane’s theme song!

Theres. Something. On the. Wing. Some. Thing! Have we started the fire? It’s flaaaaaming!

Mar. 20, 2012 Seems Nolan’s finished with first cut of the film and has screened it for the WB execs. He’s also got a T-Shirt design contest going to fuel the hype machine with first prize being $3500. There’s also new confirmation that Gordon becomes the target of as-of-yet-unconfirmed villains and that he can only trust Batman. I think Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a mole, pure and simple. Just as we are to believe Selina Kyle is the villain from the start who turns good, there has to be a foil that in contrast shows JGL as a reliable, very honest cop who reveals his true colors by the end of the film. If that’s not the case, then there won’t be any heightened drama. I just don’t think Nolan will “ruin” his resume by putting a Nightwing or Robin into his “last” career film. He still has to obey the cookie-cutter rules and make his bosses money.

Dec. 24, 2011 My major spoilers and speculation analysis of the first full trailer for The Dark Knight Rises.

Dec. 18, 2011 POSSIBLE MAJOR SPOILER: It sure is fun to look up these “scoops”. Seems a lot of other Bat-fans are wondering who is the mystery man in the Dark Knight Rises teaser trailer whom I’ll refer to as “background Elvis”. Here’s my theory:

It’s John Blake, the mole. There’s a running theme that young men follow Bane’s command, so much so that they’re willing to go down with a hijacked plane. Blake will act as the storytelling device of the “mole”, a character that Bruce Wayne thinks he can trust but ultimately betrays him, reveals his identity and location to Bane leading to the confrontation at Wayne Manor. Would also explain how the Commissioner can be taken out of… commission. Remember that early leaked shot/video of Blake with a cannister of gasoline? Does he start a fire…? I know the Tumbler don’t run out of gas. What kind of exposition is that? Does he go joyriding the “Love Maching” like Chris O’Donnell did looking for street hos? Blake probably blows up a building, which means he’s a bad guy.

Then he’s also a Deadshot substitute. We already know Batman’s helmet/mask is made from “graphite” so it’s tough to break. Background Elvis looks like a sniper, who probably shoots the mask off.

But, I could be wrong. The sniper could just be some generic goon of Bania’s. Until we learn some more, join your local League of Shadows chapter. Support terrorism today! Remember, where there’s good, evil shall rise to combat those pansies! Deshay basara, peeps. Deshay. Basara.

Dec. 18, 2011 With the full trailer of Dark Knight Rises being attached to Sherlock Holmes 2 in select theaters, some bootlegs are popping up. It’d be hypocritical for me to say not to watch the bootlegs when I, myself, couldn’t resist. I don’t think Warner Bros. cares at this point, since they’re getting free viral marketing by Bat-fans. Had anyone posted it even 2 days ago before the release of Sherlock Holmes 2, they’d gotten a take-down notice. But now that the trailer is set to be officially released in maybe a few days, WB don’t care. They got you on the fishing hook and you already swallowed.

So. I could do an early frame-by-frame analysis of the trailer, but that might lead into some major spoilerage. And some media outlets (who might be in cahoots with WB) don’t seem to like it. Which is surprising really because most of my “expert” speculation comes from the source: the comic books. Batman films still haven’t captured the true feel of the comics. I’m still waiting for the Sandman Mystery Theatre film noir adaptation.

Dec. 11, 2011 Ah, the very reliable gossip blogger Perez Hilton has posted a full description of the prologue. Noice.

Dec. 10, 2011 Bane’s theme sounds like the Crysis 2 theme? I heard it sounded more like “King of Pride Rock”.

Dec. 8, 2011 Seems ze Verner Bruddahs have started their viral marketing of Dark Knight Rises with “leaked” CIA documents containing a scientist’s mugshot and a transcript of his convo with a CIA chief. If this is true, then it will most likely be that rumors of the prologue being of Bane hijacking a plane all bad-ass might be true. Then, here’s where I start speculating, the rumored event that leaves Bane laced up is that his parachute doesn’t open up. He does a Terminal Velocity all the way to the ground, breaks all his bones. His homies rush him to this doc and the only way to fix the pain is to do some nerve surgery on his spine and rig him up to fear toxin via mask. So there it is again, possible parallel of “falling and rising”. Bane looks like he’s wearing a parachute. I don’t know. I still think he looks like an agent of C.O.B.R.A. and Channing Tatum’s going to bust him in a body-hugging latex Robin suit with a pulsating cod piece (cue techno dance music). So Bane fears falling. To him, it’s always been about falling. Falling back into his prison well. Falling from that plane and parachute not opening. Something to that poetic extent. Does that mean he will fall to this death like King Kong, just like I speculated? Wouldn’t that make for a poignant ending… Bane “climbs” to the top only to fall back to nothing? Then Ras Al Ghul’s face appears in the clouds and preaches, “You failed me, Simba. Er, I mean, Bania.” Man, I should be writing comedies for money, dig?

Dec. 4, 2011 – Meh. I just read a few more pages of Dennis O’Neil’s Knightfall. I’m at the part when we learn Shondra Kinsolving (who I MUST mention is black for the sake of a supposed minor plot device to build her character motive) and her “white” Russian spy brother (oops, was that a spoiler?) are telephathics that can amplify their psionic powers to target and kill people. Seems like the X-Men 2 storyline “borrowed” it. I also want to point out how cheesy comic book writing is. Kinsolving’s foster parents read like Larry The Cable Guy was Ned Flanders. Bane reads like Razor Ramon from WWF. Bruce Wayne plays an undercover geezer like Monty Python on crack. All in all, I suppose it’s easier to visualize when the artists already have it drawn out.

Compare reading a novel to a graphic novel. I just finished James O’Barr’s The Crow. Now that one is superb. I’m surprised at how different the source book was from the film adaptation. Proyas gave it a more “commercial” look than how I think it was suppose to be. No doubt, James Cameron might have been influenced by the book with Terminator. I think The Crow is supposed to feel like that, where the Terminator’s outright walking in suburbia knocking on doors looking for Sarah Connor. It’s like, “Who’s this clown in makeup?” Straight up B-movie vibe.

But what do these have anything to do with Dark Knight Rises? They don’t. Well, Knightfall might.

I’ve always wondered how comic book writers come up with new gimmicks. The name Bane could be an combination of Bruce + Wayne, and it also looks typographically like Batman. The only thing that was a little lackluster was the design. Usually, arch-villians have to mirror the protagonist hero’s design. Look at all the Megaman characters. Bane’s just a wrassler. But he’s no Joker.

Kane thought bats and clowns were scary stuff. Siegel and Shuster thought a man in red underoos was awe-inspiring. O’Barr thought a rocker in makeup represented vengeance. What’s next… a cyborg with an Olympian’s physicque sent from the future to protect a child who is destined to be a war leader? Remind people why they love to be entertained and fooled. Escapism is what tit is.

Nov. 30, 2011 – If Nolan’s playing the story realistically, Bruce might be permanently handicapped. This would be straight from the Batman Beyond plot, where Bane indeed puts that limp into the Bat. The movie takes place “eight” years because, I’m speculating, the big twist might be that John Blake is the new Batman. Nolan’s pretty clever at editing, so anytime you see Christian Bale as Batman, it’s probably before the epic fight with Bane. Oldman has also said that after “cleaning up Gotham, Gordon is world-weary again” and back to how Gordon was in Begins. To me, that means Bruce has become the new leader of the League of Shadows or he’s started up Batman, Inc. Remember that clip of Gordon and a handful of cops approaching a sewage drain cautiously? Notice that that “leaked” footage wasn’t close enough to tell whether or not that’s Christian Bale. Could have been Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the bat-suit (possible ending). Just my thoughts. That would mean, in cinema-wise type storytelling, that John Blake stumbles onto Batman right after Bane breaks him. He learns of Bruce’s identity and reluctantly has to assume the mantle (same theme, carrying on Dent’s image in DK). This is like those movies where some average Joe is clutching a dying man only to learn that the dying man is a secret agent. Average Joe eludes the baddies so well he becomes a super agent by the end of the movie. Very Tom Hankish. Nolan loves his James Bond, so Bruce is Bond, and Blake is Tom Hanks.

Bruce: “What you did was stupid!”
Blake: “You know what, Bruce, you have a real gratitude problem.”
Bruce: “You could have gotten us both killed.”
Blake: “I need a name. Bat-boy, Nightwing, what’s a good sidekick name?”
Bruce: “How about John Blake? Beat cop.”
Blake: “I’m a part of this whether you like it or not. I mean, how are you going to stop me?”
Bruce: “I can stop you.”
Blake (to Alfred): “Hang this male stripper’s uniform next to the Batsuit, where it belongs.”

Nov. 26, 2011 – Chris, Jonah, and Christian spotted in Times Square for reshoots of Dark Knight Rises:

Early look at Bane and Talia Al Ghul:

Now, now, children, it’s funny. Lighten up. You’re gonna buy those tickets anyway.

Nov. 25, 2011 – The 6-minute preview of TDKR probably won’t be like the “leaked” description (could be, couldn’t be, I simply don’t know). But expect TDKR to be Bane Begins. Recall how Batman Begins began. It opens with a young Rachel and Bruce playing and Bruce falls into a well. However, if TDKR is to parallel Batman Begins, but to tell Bane’s origin, then it will be a young Talia and Bane in the opening sequence. And we know Bane is held captive in a pit. Maybe there’s somekind of kidnapping going on: mad scientists snatching up children from villages for their mad experiments. They take Talia and Bane, drop them into those pits. So Young Ras comes along to rescue his daughter, but they’ve already taken her, and finds a new adoptive son in Bane in a pit. So like how Thomas Wayne drops down the hole to save Bruce, Ras drops a rope down to the boy Bane. But Bane is already climbing his way out of the hole, which highly impresses the young Ras that he decides to take him as his padawan learner. Then Thomas Wayne gives his famous tagline to Bruce, “Why do we fall…” Expect Ras to give a similar one to Bane. Heck, it might even be the exact same, so that Nolan can play on the irony when Bane “falls from grace.”

Nov. 25, 2011 – So when Warner Bros. starts rolling out the viral marketing (since when isn’t anything a marketing ploy about TDKR for WB?), it’ll be so subtle, Bat-fans probably won’t notice it. Such is with some sneaky “fan-made” posters that just got posted, right down to the schlocky Photoshopping. I bet there will probably be some WWE tie-ins too. And watch for those Rocky 3 and 4 references. I know I’ll be getting Rocky 4 on DVD, at least.

Nov. 24, 2011 – Let’s talk about this rumored all-cg ending. What’s my speculation? If you’ve seen the Guy Pearce “Time Machine”, I think it’ll be a montage of Gotham City getting rebuilt. Nolan’s got that fancy Inception building construction/deconstruction software, so he’ll utilize that. As you watch the city getting rebuilt, you’ll also notice a huge passage in time. This is when you notice a jump to the future, and leaves the possibility open for Batman Beyond (which is an official possibility since Nolan has claimed to take any future Batman projects under his bat wing). BTW, does anyone love American Ninja (aka American Warrior)? Look familiar?

Nov. 22, 2011 – Updated “limited” edition Empire cover of Bane. Yup. Batman’s toast.

Nov. 21, 2011 – Since Empire magazine has released it’s gimmicky Dark Knight Rises covers (featuring Batman with a gun or Bane), new info comes from the article inside saying that the movie takes place 8 years after Dark Knight Rises. And according to those reposting the article through third-party sites, Nolan has confirmed that the 7 minute preview for IMAX is the first 7 minutes of the movie. So perhaps the earlier leaked description of those 7 minutes are accurate? Will it be worth watching Sherlock Holmes 2 or just waiting till it hits the Interwebs?

Oct. 29, 2011 – Haven’t updated this post in a while, simply because there wasn’t anything worth “reporting”. However, I have been keeping up with it daily. I think Christopher Judge is playing the Venom Bane. You see, Bane doesn’t actually transform. Think back to when the script was in its initial stages, floating around Hollywood called “Batman: Intimidation Game”. A title like that seems to already have a story arc planned out. So this Nolan Batman thing revolves around Scarecrow and his fear toxin. Bane will use that on his victims, which will make him seem enormous. Remember how Scarecrow saw Batman as a black demon spewing oil? That means that Bane’s mask is actually an air-tight respirator. Bane’s death will be ripped right out of James Bond movie “World is not Enough” where he’s trapped underwater and drowns. That would make it a tragic death because in the comics, Bane was imprisoned in a prison cell that flooded with water whenever the tides came in. If not, then it involves Batman and Co. getting Bane’s mask off and dosing him with the same fear toxin. Otherwise, it could be a King Kong thing, like I’ve mentioned before, where Bane scales Wayne Tower to confront Batman for their epic fight only ultimately falling off the building to his death.

As for John Blake, I think he’s a mix of all the sidekick characters: Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Jean Paul Valley. John Blake sure sounds a lot like Jean Drake, doesn’t it? I wouldn’t be surprised if he did don the Batsuit at least once (as a decoy). It would be similar to Dark Knight with all those Batman wannabes.

As for the original script where Joker was on trial and the whole movie was a courtroom drama like “A Few Good Men”, that “trilogy” format seems to have made its way into the questionably hip Girl with the Dragon Tattoo films. Grounding Batman like that would be bad. Can you imagine a fully-rubber-suited grown-ass man inside a courtroom at the witness stand? It’d be akin to drunk Superman getting crunk at the bar (look it up, Superman 3).

Aug. 12, 2011 – MAJOR SPOILERS ALERT! DO NOT READ THIS ENTRY IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SPOIL TDKR FOR YOURSELF.

I shall entitle this particular entry, “The Christopher Nolan method of filmmaking: Re-introducing stuff you’ve probably already seen before in cinema in a way you think it’s new”

Don’t be surprised if the following events happen in The Dark Knight Rises:

• Commissioner Gordon is permanently paralyzed. John Blake, being the honest cop he is, works closely with Gordon to track down Batman. Blake has no idea that Gordon and Batman are in cahoots. So when Gordon gets hurt, Blake makes the wrong association that Batman did that to Gordon, therefore blaming Batman. There’s a possibility that Blake walks in on Bruce (with makeshift black mask, wink wink) while he’s talking to a hospitalized Gordon. Blake chases him out the window. Just my deduction/speculation from the trailer. It goes back to publicly announced theme by Goyer and Nolan about escalation, which we saw in Dark Knight where cops turned vigilante. You don’t cast someone like Joseph Gordon-Levitt who is fresh from Inception to play an incredibly small role. Blake will turn into a revenge-driven cop and will try to kill Batman (and/or Bane). These types of archetypes will ultimately die by the end of the movie, having wronged the protagonist, returns their debt by sacrificing themselves to save the protagonist. Blake could ultimately pull the trigger on Bane, saving Batman’s life, but be gunned down “realistically” by the surrounding SWAT who mistaken him as another random vigilante. He is a “self-redemption, deus ex machina” archetype.
• Continuing on that point, Bane plummets to his death ala King Kong. Nolan won’t think too hard on this one. In the comic books, Bane can scale the side of buildings. Why wouldn’t that be an epic lead-up to his final match with Batman? Bane will likely be a sympathetic villain, having climbed out literally from a hole and making his way “up the ladder” in Gotham and as new leader of League of Shadows. The crumbling buildings motif could possibly be played backwards in an ironic and poetic sense as Bane falls to his death. In contrast, Batman might get sniped by Blake, too, and fall. BUT, he will be caught on a cloaked Bat-Wing. Any Bat-fan who has seen his share of Bat lore shouldn’t be surprised. I’m not an insider, but this imagery is NOT new. Who’s piloting the Bat Wing? Who else? Selina Kyle.
• What’s Selina Kyle’s motive? She seduces Wayne to clean him out. While Wayne is out masquerading as Batman and getting his ass handed to him, Selina Kyle will be robbing Wayne Manor dry. Of course, she will be presented in a shady way while the audience scratches their heads wondering if she is good or bad. Ultimately, she will pull a Han Solo and realize that she must do her part and help Batman save Gotham, so she hops into the BatWing and helps Batman. Either that, or Batman planned the “fall” all along. Possible full-circle on the established theme of Batman “rising from a fall, better picking himself up”. Selina Kyle could possibly be the one who is paralyzed, too. She could be Oracle, aka Bat-girl archetype. Bruce takes care of her, becomes his “wife”, and exists so Bruce isn’t “alone” anymore. If Bruce and Selina are destined lovers, then Alfred has to die (just like in Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns) to symbolize Bruce’s final growth into adulthood, no more reliance on Alfred, his last semblance of a parent. Again, don’t be surprised. Goyer set the storytelling structure, killing off Whistler in Blade trinity. Same gimmick.
• Gotham is on complete lock-down. Expect a lot of terrorism imagery (Bane giving a riling speech, noirish snow-covered Gotham (to show a passage of time where Batman has been missing), tanks patrolling the streets, scurrying citizens, mob fights/riots, etc.)
• Ultimate theme is about Gotham having to fight for themselves if they want to save themselves.
• Batman might have to fake his own death, similar to the ending of the Dolph Lundgren Punisher. BUT, he’ll be running his vigilante operations incognito, and with a lot of new allies and help this time. Leaves it open for sequels, Batman Beyond, etc.
• Anyone from Gotham is good. Anyone with League of Shadows (besides Batman) is bad. It keeps it clear-cut and doesn’t complicate the story-telling.
• Again, don’t let ANY of this surprise you. It’s all been done before, and WB won’t risk anything new. You want to see the same thing and will pay for it. Customer satisfaction. You want to be fooled.

July 16, 2011 – Possible spoiler. If you haven’t caught sight of the teaser trailer and don’t want any spoilers, then stop reading. Otherwise, here’s a tidbit that could reveal something about the final events of The Dark Knight Rises. In the teaser trailer, Commissioner Gordon is bed-ridden from a possible assault by Bane. It’s cut together as though he’s speaking to Bruce Wayne (or Batman) which could mean that Wayne has revealed his identity to Gordon. But you do know that whoever Gordon is talking to, this person isn’t costumed. You can see the hand Gordon is holding is not gloved. The likely person is Wayne or John Blake, the “honest beat cop” who helps Gordon hunt down the Bat. John Blake would have to find Bruce obviously once Gotham is in ruins, which would really make him a Jean Paul Valley/Dick Grayson kind of archetype, and might not be a mole after all.

I’ve also been thinking about the recurring motif, “Why do we fall, Master Bruce? So we can learn to better pick ourselves up.” If the Dark Knight Rises title card suggest anything, someone’s going to fall off a building. If it’s as lame as Bats and Bane fighting on top of Wayne Tower and both of them go over the edge (literally), only to have Bane plummet to his doom, while Batman “picks himself up”, then dayum, I can see how the convolution of themes is there. And I’m pretty sure Bane is going to have some allusions to King Kong where he climbs up the side of buildings and stuff, just like in the comics.

Hopefully, it’s not as lackluster as Transformers 3 where Optimus simply and literally rips Megatron in two.. and, uh, that’s that. No emotion resonance. Nothing. And having seen most if not all of Nolan’s movies, he doesn’t do anything daring or exciting. The best execution of a thriller was Inception, and it still seemed incredibly repressed.

But, lest any fans expect disappointment, it’s merely a trend. You go from campy Adam West Batman to a Tim Burton thing to a Shumacher extravaganza and now a classy Nolan shindig. The only other direction is somewhere backwards and in between. 80s style ninja Batman ala Batman Beyond like them old Sho Kosugi flicks… yeah, that’s the ticket!

July 13, 2011 – Bootleg of the teaser trailer has been “leaked”. Wow! Looks like Bane put a world of hurt on the commissioner (possibly broke Jim’s back instead of Batman’s because there can’t be a deus ex machina to stop Bane). Interesting. And if Nolan and gang follow the lore, Alfred has to die, too, just like Mickey did in Rocky III to make things personal. Teaser looks epic nonetheless. Again, wow!

July 12, 2011 – The official teaser poster has been released:

Also, rumor has it that the first teaser trailer will be attached to Harry Potter.

June 23, 2011 While I’m halfway through Dennis O’Neill’s Batman: Knightfall novel, I think I know how Dark Knight Rises is going to play out. Nolan likes to make sure you know it’s a Nolan flick so he’s going to draw from all the tricks in his trick bag: his filmography. Starting with Memento, the gimmick being the editing playing the chronology backwards, we’ll see the actual ending of DKR presented first. That means we’ll see Batman get his back broken ala some religious cult ceremony by Bah-nia (Bane). They could even be surrounded by fire! How original! The rest of the movie is a flashback, no doubt, and would give good excuse to why you would think Ras Al Ghul could possibly be resurrected as his youth in a Lazarus Pit. Of course, my inclination is that Bruce Wayne, once paralyzed and wheelchair-bound, will ultimately take his place as the new Ras anyway. It seems Nolan and Goyer have probably mixed a lot of the characters, Ras seems more like Jean Paul Valley’s cult nut father now, who trains him to become a silent assassin called Azreal. Bane will probably be a mix of Ubu, Ras servant from the comics, and Jean Paul Valley. But Bane was already Ubu in the Legacy story arc. This still leads me to question how Bane ultimately gets defeated if Bruce is paralyzed… who’s the Jean Paul Valley or Tim Drake, the auxiliary Batman? Will someone else get their back broken instead and Bane thinks he did Batman in (he doesn’t take off the cowl for dramatic effect)?

June 16, 2011 Liam was spotted filming scenes in London. So… we get two versions of Ras. Interesting. I wonder if the movie starts actually at the end and the rest is a flashback. I wonder if, in a “realistic” Nolan telling, Bruce actually manages to walk again after getting his back broken by Bane (which isn’t a spoiler at this point; it’s such an iconic action in the mythos). Bruce being paralyzed really can’t be Batman anymore, so he becomes the new leader of the League of Shadows, a general bound to a wheelchair. Or, he starts the Sons of Batman, or Batman Incorporated counter-terrorism thing to combat the League. Fullout escalation. Now, the question is, if Bane ultimately paralyzes Batman, how does Batman “rise”? Movies have happy endings, relatively speaking, so although Batman won’t be able to fight, someone still has to stop Bane. Does that Joseph Gordon Levitt cop character become some form of Jean Paul Valley Batman? Does someone simply rip Bane’s respirator facemask off and Bane shrivels up into Jack Skellington? Interested in seeing how it plays out.

June 2, 2011 Newly released viral clips of Gotham City burning and that creepy chanting looping throughout. That’s going to be some kind of sight. Does Bane actually manage to semi-purge Gotham? I say semi because, logically, Batman will save the day at the end. I get the feeling we might see Bane pick up a car and hurl it. Nolan doesn’t like supernatural, but it’s possible Bane could have a “supersuit” too. Those men in orange jumpsuits are captured Arkham escapees. I don’t think Nolan will show explicitly how Batman stops them. It could very well just be a montage.

May 20, 2011 – FIRST OFFICIAL LOOK AT TOM HARDY AS BANE (pronounced mockingly as Bah-nia to sound ethnic).

Warner Bros. has started up their viral marketing for this film, similar to The Dark Knight. You can visit the official website at http://www.thedarkknightrises.com/image.html to join the bandwagon. Yeah, like you ain’t gone watch this film if you’re already reading this.

Jan. 20, 2011 – I read somewhere that Bane is going to be the bad-guy you’re going to love to hate, like Darth Vader. He’ll beat the snot out of Batman, and when the Society turns on him, he decides to help Batman out, and possibly take a bullet for him. It’s possible Nolan also merged some Azreal into the Bane character, as Azreal was also part of a religious cult. I wouldn’t be surprised because of “who” Nolan has cast to play Bane, simply because Hardy was so heroic in Inception as Eames. And I’ve watched some clips of “Bronson” and rather than playing it all dark and murder and guts, it’s treated with a sense of whimsical theatrics. And that was a movie about a real-life bad guy. So Bane is going to be an interesting character on screen, at least I hope so.

Jan. 4, 2011 – Warner Bros. is distributing a horror film called “The Rite” starring Anthony Hopkins. If the Hugo Strange rumors do indeed turn out to be true, I wouldn’t be surprised if Anthony Hopkins was cast as him. Strange would be like a Pope figure, pulling all sorts of strings around Gotham City to capture and torment Batman. It’ll be something like the DaVinci Code films. Tom Hardy would play Jean Paul Valley, a religious nut under Strange’s control, who has similar training like Bruce Wayne. As Bat fans know, Valley becomes Azreal. Dark Knight Rises could be like a thriller where Bruce runs from country to country, but of course, Dr. Strange’s religious minions are everywhere. Bruce turns to the League of Shadows for help. Would Nolan pull a cheap trick like this? Hells yeah. He’s done so before.

And since Nolan loves his 80’s references (Knight Rider, Magnum, P.I., James Bond), I have a feeling he’s going to kill off Bruce Wayne/Batman, just to get an emotional response from the viewers. That way, when Bruce is resurrected via a Lazarus Pit, the fans will be cheering. Then he kicks Azreal’s butt. Remember how cool the Blade 2 fight scene was?

Dec. 21, 2010 – Nolan handed his draft into Warner Bros. studio execs for approval. There was some stupidity about a script leak shortly thereafter. All I can say about Hugo Strange is if he was such an enduring villain, he’d be more known in the Batman fan base, naw sayen. Besides, Batman Forever already did the mind games thing, and Jim Carrey should have won an Oscar for his performance.

Also, apparently, Anne Hathaway is confirming that she has auditioned for one of the two female roles that was rumored a while ago. If Nolan though Deebo was an intimidating inmate in Dark Knight, he might think Anne Hathaway is one hell of a seductress, a possible Selina Kyle. I don’t know about that. She’s beautiful in a Cinderella kind of way, not Charlize Theron wiping the sweat from her thigh as Zack Galifianakis conjures dirty thoughts kind of way. If there is a Selina Kyle angle, she’s going to be a secondary character, just like in most Batman story arcs and she’s going to be in it for herself. She’ll work the mafia to get a piece of their payout, or she’ll work Bruce Wayne to steal his fortune. Something like that.

Nolan is apparently looking to shoot in Asia. There’s also rumors he wants to shoot all over the U.S. in major cities. Looks like he might want to do a Michael Bay type of montage showing Wayne’s escape vacation. Or it could be a hint at Batman, Inc. And it seems Christian Bale is growing out a helluva Jesus hair and beard, which makes me wonder if Nolan wants to shoot Bale like that first and have that be the end of Dark Knight Rises: Batman sitting at a throne as he overlooks his legion of Sons of Batman, the future of vigilance in Gotham City, an ending similar to Conan. Who knows?

Nov. 19, 2010 – After some more digging, I’m beginning to think the plot is simpler than anything. It will mirror Spider-man 3. In Dark Knight Rises, we will see the apparent return of Ra’s Al Ghul. The twist will be that it is actually his son, Dusan al Ghul, also known as the White Ghost. Dusan will be played by Tom Hardy and become Azreal. Being the unwanted son, he will have a campaign against his rival “brother” Bruce Wayne/Batman. We know that Bruce is Ra’s chosen successor to lead the League of Shadows. At first, the escalation will seem overwhelming for Bruce/Batman because everyone will be after him: the mafia, the police, the escaped Arkham Asylum inmates, the League of Shadows. Of course, we know Talia has a soft spot for Bruce, so by the end, with her influence, the League will help Batman “restore balance to Gotham” by fighting the mafia and other enemies, and therefore, Batman’s good name is restored and becomes the true and accepted protector of Gotham. There will undoubtedly be a climatic fist fight between Batman and Azreal on a rooftop, waterfall cavern, mountainside, etc. All speculation from me. Just throwing it out there.

Storywise, there’s nothing we can derive that already out there in the cyber cesspool. Leaked early drafts from Goyer and Nolan suggested that the third film would be a courtroom drama sentencing Joker and introducing Two-Face ala “A Few Good Men”. However, since Heath Ledger’s passing, Nolan has decided to remove Joker’s story arc out of it completely. So what direction will this piece of entertainment go?

Version #1
It could go back to Ra’s Al Ghul. Nolan fooled those of us who enjoyed “The Prestige” with it’s unexplained supernatural elements yet grounded the rest of the plot devices. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ra’s did have access to those Lazarus pits after all. Otherwise, if Ras is really dead, then there could always be a Talia revenge thing. And we know in the comic book lore that Bruce ultimately marries her and becomes the new Ras, the new leader of the League of Shadows. Heck, their son becomes the new Batman.

Version #2
It’s the Hush story arc. Two-Face isn’t dead, but he got plastic surgery. Nolan could easily just merge the two ideas. I thought Hardy could be Bane, a hired goon by Two-Face sent to break Batman. But Hardy could also be the new Two-Face/Hush. Two-Face would be sending goons after Batman, until eventually they beat him. And finally, a bandaged-face guy emerges from the shadow, pulls off the bandages and it’s Harvey Dent.

Version #3
Hardy plays Jean Paul Valley, the new Batman who is brutal dispensing justice. Bruce doesn’t face a new “enemy”, rather he faces another “hero”. So he schools old boy and “rises” as the true Dark Knight. Just throwing it out there.

Version #4
If not that, then I think it could even be a recycled pitch that Goyer did a couple of years back about Green Arrow called “Supermax”. It was a prison caper story revolving around Green Arrow who is a costumed vigilante only in the first 10-15 minutes. Then he is captured, unmasked, identity revealed to the world, thrown into a prison, and now faces all the cons he put in there. If Warner Bros. didn’t put Goyer’s treatment into production, then I bet they’ll recycle elements of that into the new Batman movie.

Put it like this: Batman is on the run at the end of Dark Knight for “murder”, so Gotham is going to be all over his bat-ass. Eventually, they capture him, unmask him, throw him into Arkham, where lo and behold, all the rogue’s gallery is at. Heck, even Cillian Murphy returns with a cameo as Scarecrow. Then, that would indeed make Tom Hardy Zsasz. The first third of the movie is Bruce on trial, the second third is Bruce surviving in Arkham, the third is him escaping and becoming the new Al Ghul or re-donning the cape and cowl. And, if this prediction is correct, then the movie comes out right on time for Arkham Asylum 2 video game tie-in. Isn’t Warner Bros. trendy?

Tags: anne hathaway, azreal, batman, batman 3, batman begins, chris, dark knight, dark knight rises, david, film, goyer, hd, imax, john blake, movie, news, nightwing, nolan, plot twist, prologue, real, rises, robin, rumors, sequel, spoilers, tom hardy

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