1) First off, see it in IMAX if you can. Christopher Nolan filmed half of it for IMAX and refused to go 3D on it because he feels that 3D is just a way to jack up ticket prices and not add anything to a film.
2) There's not as much C.G.I. as you might think. Nolan wanted this installment to be an epic. That meant having thousands of extras. All of those people you see clashing in the streets are not computer rendered. They really did close down entire streets in Manhattan to film this thing. The men hanging from the plane are also not computer generated. Just think about that when you go and see this movie.
3) The writing is excellent. I didn't feel wanting in any form at any point in the plot. I didn't walk out of the theater thinking..."hey this didn't make sense..." because it all made sense. Everything down to the last cut that you see.
4) Expect the unexpected. There's twists and turns that you never saw coming unless you try to meta-think the film and read online reviews. I found the unexpected to be delightful.
5) The villain is better than Heath Ledger in the Dark Knight. I never thought I'd say that, but Hardy's Bane is a masterpiece.
You can find her blog HERE.
Beginning Thursday, July 26, at 9 PM EST, E.J. will be hosting an all new regular Twitter chat focusing on New Adult literature. Please check out the details at the link above. It honestly sounds like a great experience to learn more about New Adult literature.
Have a great weekend.
Better than Heath Ledger you say? Well, that's yet another reason why I need to see this movie. Pronto!.
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday.
ReplyDeleteNolan's refusal to give in to 3D is another reason why he's the greatest director of this generation.
ReplyDeleteI CAN'T WAIT to see this movie. Saying Hardy is better than Ledger is controversial - I like it. With a recommendation like that I'm doubly excited to see it!
Jamie @ Mithril Wisdom
Sounds like you loved the movie. I'm always afraid to check out a review. I am smack dab in the middle of your book. I read more while on the treadmill last night. It's AWESOME. I won't say more because it deserves to be said outside of a comments box. I'm excited about a New Adult chat.
ReplyDeleteSeeing The Dark Knight Rises before noon today. Not driving over an hour to see it in IMAX though. Congratulations on the review and it's great how many have spread the word for EJ.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing DKR. Hopefully they've fixed Bane's mumbling.
ReplyDeletemood
Great reviews, on The Dark Knight rises...AND your book. I'm excited about 'new adult' because I have a manuscript that fits, but wasn't sure to call it that in a query.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to see the movie tonight after work. I would have gone to the fake IMAX there but it was sold out for the evening show. And I totally agree with him that for the most part 3D is just a way to boost ticket prices without adding much of value. For a movie like "Avatar" that was crafted with 3D in mind it's a bit different but most other movies are either converted after the fact or just use that philosophy of "let's throw stuff at the screen!"
ReplyDeleteBTW, did you hear that shit Rush Limbaugh was saying the other day about how Bane is a "liberal conspiracy" against Mitt Romney and Bain Campital? It's like, really dude he's been around for 20 freaking years in comics and already featured in one movie. Does that guy have even a shred of credibility left?
I also love Yaoi. Or at least some of it.
ReplyDeleteAnd better than Heath Ledger? Pshaa, we'll see my friend. We'll see...
I'm super excited to see the new Batman movie, though a bit bummed that my hometown Chicago got replaced for other locales (they just had to go and get rid of the scary tunnels where all the C.H.U.D.s live).
ReplyDeleteI'm keeping an open mind about Bane as a villain, because all I can picture about him is the animated "roided-up Mexican wrestler" version of the character.
I'm looking forward to seeing Batman tonight. Although, my heart goes out to those suffering in Aurora, CO.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't take much to out do Ledger's Joker. It was a lesser copy of Nicholson's and Ledger didn't even do the laugh.
ReplyDeleteNo way is he better than Heath Ledger. I don't believe you anymore Michael! (; But I do really want to watch DKR. Jealous of all you living in the States. And the review of Slipstream was awesome. I'm a little over halfway through your book and so far I'm really liking it.
ReplyDeletepffft, I thought taking me out on a Friday night would be your fave Friday thing.... /hissesthreetimes/
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to seeing the Dark Knight when it comes to DVD and I can watch it on my own TV. I don't do the theater experience anymore--haven't for many years.
ReplyDeleteLee
Tossing It Out
Wow, I really like the art work there. I wasn't all that crazy about the Heath Ledger version of the Joker...so I believe you. Anyway, knowing me I'll see it when it's stream-able.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad Kimi-chan sings high praise for Slipstream, because your book really deserves it.
ReplyDeleteThe poster for Dark Knight is gorgeous, but because of the news I woke up to this morning here in Denver, I doubt that I could bring myself to see the movie any time soon.
Interesting stuff to check out. Congrats on a great review. Means you done good on the writing.
ReplyDeleteI'm hearing good things about this movie. I guess I need to check it out.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the review!
ReplyDeleteEntire streets? Wow--that must have been something to see. It sounds like a great movie.
I can't wait to see The Dark Knight Rises. Loved The Dark Knight.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the good review. :-)
Congrats on the book review, Michael. That is always such a great feeling!
ReplyDeleteI downloaded the sample of your book. It's my way of putting it in line on my TBR list. Plan to read the sample this weekend and buy it after I get through some of the other reads I haven't made time for.
a gooder, mike :)
ReplyDeleteThe Dark night rises is showing in the theater next door, too bad it is not doing good at all after the shooting in Colorado.
ReplyDeletePST. I finally got your book, but my daughter is going to read it first as I take forever to read.
Five awesome reasons to see The Dark Knight Rises... though I wanted to watch it anyway:) It sounds great.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the latest Batman, even with the overly l-o-n-g Bane scenes. Catwoman was awesome -- I could have easily watched three hours of her and the Dark Knight saving the day.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the awesome review.
ReplyDeleteI don't love the new Batman movies. The first one made me sleepy, and the second was too violent for me. I'll pass on the third.
That's a pretty big statement saying that Hardy's Bane is a better villain than Ledger's Joker. But that's exciting because i was afraid I'd be let down with Bane. I wish I could have dropped everything to see TDKR this weekend, but I'll have to see it soon. And congrats on the review! Always exciting.
ReplyDeleteYep. It's definitely a movie you want to see in the theaters. Excellent.
ReplyDeleteI didn't see this post until a week late but I had to respond.
ReplyDeleteBane is not better than the Joker. He doesn't actually talk to anyone and his only interaction is hard to understand monologues to large groups. That's ok because there wasn't much character development or a true show of why we should fear him with the exception of one scene. By the end, any credibility he had as a villian was destroyed and I actually felt sorry for him.
There were a lot of things in the movie that didn't make sense but it felt like he had to take some shortcuts because the studio felt the movie was too long already. I would have loved to get more screen time from Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anne Hathaway as both are great actors and their characters could have used more development. I would have been ok if the whole movie was just about Bane, Blake, Batman, Catwoman, and 'Miranda Tate' and cut out the rest. As odd as it seems given past movies, scenes with Gordon, Alfred, and Fox don't add much. Then there's the whole ineffective cops and Matthew Modine's Foley (what a waste of a name). It was just too much and I would have preferred a 4 hour movie that better tied it all together.
Saying all that, I still loved the movie. It's not as good as the first two but it is still better than 95% of everything out there. The biggest issue was Nolan tried to do too much which is understandable as it was his last chance to play in that world. It's much better to try to tell a massively complex story with only a few holes than do what Michael Bay does with no story and just rely on Giant Robots to pull people into the theater.
FWIW, I remember I felt the same way as you did as I left the theater. The ending was really good and gives an emotional sense that the movie was better than it was in reality. I can't wait to watch it again though.
The actor that played Bane, Tom Hardy, had to put on a lot of muscle for this role. Nolan also portrayed Bane correctly in that he was a villain with a tremendous amount of intelligence behind him which I find to be more terrifying than the absolute random chaos of the Joker. Everything that Bane did had a purpose. The fact that he ended up being a servant of Talia was something that I hadn't foreseen, but I still thought was awesome. Talia was one of my favorite characters in the Son of the Demon graphic novels and to see her as the ultimate mastermind brought a smile to my face.
ReplyDeleteThe only part of this film that I did not like was how they reset the Batman's back by punching him in the vertebra. I thought that was really hokey.
There were a lot of magnificent scenes in this movie and tons of clever writing. It was a fitting cap to a comic book trilogy that sets the bar for excellence. I enjoyed Hardy's Bane more than Ledger's Joker, but that may be personal taste on what kind of villain I prefer.
Bane died like a pussy in the movie..and somebody said Ledger copied Nicholson..Nicholson was a chilčdish clown who was dancing to Prince as The Joker..
ReplyDelete