The Dark Knight Trilogy (Christopher Nolan, 2005-2012)

[SpiderBaby]

For the people who likes spoilers, there are now new set pics revealing a big twist in the film and anyone that knows about the comics prob saw it coming ever since casting of this person. This reveal only makes me think Catwoman is going to be forced into this storyline to sell tickets. Hopefully I'm wrong and see if Catwoman does fit, but I wouldn't mind the film going what is in the spoiler pics route and left Catwoman out of the film to have more time with this.

[matrixschmatrix]

Where are the pics? Are you talking about

Spoiler

Batman getting his back broken?

[SpiderBaby]

No these are about a character being spoiled. There are though pics today of Bane and Batman fighting in snow while a big riot breaks out (you can find those here). These next pics are the character spoiler and aftermath of the riot (read what I wrote in the spoiler before the pics for people who don't know the character):

Spoiler

say hello to Talia al Ghul played of course by Marion Cotillard. Getting revenge for the death of her father Ra's al Ghul (Liam Neeson) and she is working with Bane. Don't know how Catwoman plays into this:

[Peacock]

It's not really a spoiler, you could hear Liam Neeson's voice in the trailer right? Not exactly the most interesting character they could use again, but I guess it makes dramatic sense.

[Drucker]

I thought the Neeson lines, like some of the images, were just recycled from the previous movies? I was assuming there'd be flashbacks and the like

[SpiderBaby]

It's a spoiler because she is listed in the cast as being someone under Bruce Wayne's company (Tate being her character's name). So it sounds like a twist comes in the film with her "real" character, and it was obvious from the start that Nolan had her in this film and being a small character wasn't going to happen.

There is also another spoiler about

Spoiler

a death of a character.

[Anhedionisiac]

There is also another spoiler about

Spoiler

a death of a character.

Spoiler

Who? I saw the photos and haven't found any dead bodies...

[Peacock]

There is also another spoiler about

Spoiler

a death of a character.

Spoiler

Who? I saw the photos and haven't found any dead bodies...

Spoiler

Ra's al Ghul is mentioned in the text above the photos

[SpiderBaby]

There is also another spoiler about

Spoiler

a death of a character.

Spoiler

Who? I saw the photos and haven't found any dead bodies...

Spoiler

Rumor from the shoot yesterday is that Talia (Marion), who in the film is disguised as a worker for Bruce Wayne (named Miranda Tate), will reveal herself as Talia and kill Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman's character). Talia I guess shows herself to be the mastermind in whatever happens in this film and works with Bane and the League of Shadows to get revenge for her father's death in the first film. Rumor also has it Liam Neeson might show up as Ra's again, so he could still be alive and have a Ra's, Talia, Bane and the rest of the League of Shadows against Batman with somehow "Catwoman" (doubt she will be called Catwoman though) in the middle of it all.

[Anhedionisiac]

Wow, this is really turning out to be very spoiler-y. I wonder how much of it is true. It certainly sounds true.

[SpiderBaby]

I know. Somethings I didn't want to know, but if Nolan (being that he keeps things secret) shot all of this in daylight on the streets of Pittsburgh, the

Spoiler

Marion Cotillard turn into Talia

might not be a spoiler to us, but just something that surprises the characters in the film, with us already knowing about it (maybe a flashback to her childhood at the beginning of the film, which is also rumored).

[dx23]

Spoiler

Ra's Al Ghul coming back doesn't surprise me since that has been a staple of the character throughout its many incarnations. They'll do something with him and the Lazarus Pit that will explain his return from the dead/recovery from injuries

[Jeff]

[SpiderBaby]

Green Goblin 2 from Spider-man 3?


Edit: I'm sorry but I was never a fan of putting this character in this movie (I knew Nolan wouldn't use a cat suit, but could also not be the final look). We'll see how it goes. I still believe she is just called "Selina Kyle" and not "Catwoman".

[Anhedionisiac]

I think the suit's fine. It's the googles that I find ridiculous, design-wise.

[SpiderBaby]

I think this might be a thing where her appearance will change (hopefully). But no I agree, the suit looks ok (well how bad can you mess up a tight black suit). But in no way does those goggles say "Hey, I'm Catwoman!". She can be a dog person for all we know.

[jbeall]

I came across this dissection of the convoy sequence in The Dark Knight, which reminded me of zedz's comment in the Inception thread about Nolan's inability to shoot an action scene: When An Action Sequence Goes Bad

[matrixschmatrix]

I bow before Emerson's actual knowledge of film grammar- the thing about flipping into a two-dimensional space was something I would never have caught- but I take exception to his insistence that in effect, if the scene works for you, it's because you're not paying attention. That presumes that traditional spacial continuity was Nolan's aim, of which I am not convinced. I didn't find the chase incoherent in the least- the general progress of the action, the goals of the characters, and the rough positions of the major players were all well established, and the 'violations' within that frame seem deliberate- an attempt to create chaos without using ultra-fast cuts or any stylistic cues that call attention to themselves. I think part of Nolan's strategy, both in editing and in writing, is to leave enough loose ends and contradictions hanging around that the overall effect of the film is a slightly unsettled feeling, a sense that things have not properly slotted into place.

I mean, several action directors- I'm thinking Tony Scott and Michael Bay, among others- have fairly well established that violating planes and creating confusing shot juxtapositions can create a feeling of kineticism. Nolan doesn't push his chase to those extremes, but I do think he has similar goals. In The Dark Knight and Inception, I think the action scenes achieved them.

(Batman Begins' action, on the other hand, was just a mess.)

[mfunk9786]

Continuity is a cinematic pseudoscience that, in a great film, has no bearing on the quality of the result. Although, because this is far from a great film... carry on, Jim Emerson.

[Roger Ryan]

I smiled when Emerson included a clip from Keaton's THE GENERAL over the end credits of his piece as that film, like most of Keaton' silent work, is a superb example of classic film continuity.

Technically I agree with much of what Emerson says regarding that DARK KNIGHT sequence, but I would also add that most of it is inconsequential to how the scene plays. Personally, I had no problem understanding that the semi that takes out the SWAT van had moved into the on-coming lanes; visually that was what the scene was telling me even if it wasn't logical in the real world. The cutting back-and-forth between the semi and the police truck is classic film cutting - you wouldn't want both vehicles moving screen left to screen right as that would look terrible. Much of the discontinuous cutting is intended for shock effect and to create a brief parallel structure (Batmobile taking out garbage truck, for example - Emerson's re-edit has better continuity, but loses the Joker's reaction and the surprise of what Batman is trying to accomplish). Other lapses are found in most stunt-oriented scenes where it's just not practical to have too many other vehicles and drivers near the vehicle that is currently on fire and being propelled through the air.

I don't want to be a Nolan apologist - personally, I don't think his strength is in directing scenes like this; he's much better at establishing a disconcerting mood and examining the psychology of his characters. But after watching Tony Scott's wholly unacceptable UNSTOPPABLE last week, THE DARK KNIGHT seems like a pretty good action movie to me right now.

[Zot!]

He should have cut away to footage from The Island.

[flyonthewall2983]

OWS might have a new ally.

[Alan Smithee]

...Or enemy. It sounds like Nolan might be using them as background for Gotham descending into chaos, which would kindof paint them negatively no?

[matrixschmatrix]

Haha, this is going to head to the politics thread quickly, but I would argue that using OWS as an indicator that people are unhappy (i.e., that the city is descending into chaos) isn't inherently negative.

[Alan Smithee]

True as long as they aren't perceived as rioters. Have to say I doubt this thing will happen at all. I've spent a lot of time there. Everything has to be voted on by consensus. Nolan would be welcome to shoot but he's not going to get anyone to let him change out the signs to gotham city protest signs or anything like that. They could digitally remove all the end the fed and 99% signs but it doesn't seem worth it. Though he missed a golden opportunity in Times Square Saturday night. Cops on horses and riot gear and everything.