The Dark Knight Rises

Four years ago, I wrote a post called "A few thoughts on The Dark Knight". It wasn't a review, it was just a couple of thoughts that I wanted to write down because I felt like nothing I could say would be outside of all of the stuff that so many others have said. Having seen The Dark Knight Rises three times now, I would like to do the same thing -

1. This is probably the most perfect ending to this trilogy I could ask for. A lot of other people have denounced it, but, I think it's amazing and I love it.

2. It is one of the only movies I can think of that, while I don't agree with the ending, every time I watch it, any problems I may have with it wash away. When I'm separated from it, I can think clearly and identify the, relatively, few things I have a problem with, but when I'm watching it, I'm purely in love with it.

3. This is the only movie I can think of that has a significant "twist" in it, that has never lessened my enjoyment of watching the film on repeat viewings.

4. While I do LOVE this film, at the same time I feel like it was cut really tight to keep it from being too long. It feels like it should have been two films. At almost three hours long, and with the revelation that, potentially, noteworthy scenes were cut out to slim down run time, I'm wondering if we will see a three hour, or more, directors cut of this film? I'm assuming not, as Nolan has never done a director's cut of anything.

5. As much as I love Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I feel like the addition of Blake, as a primary character, was a lot. There's SO MANY characters in this film, it's kind of crazy sometimes. One of the things I think Batman Begins and The Dark Knight share, and do better than The Dark Knight Rises, is keeping a simplicity and economy to how many stories are being told. I feel the same way about Matthew Modine's character. He rarely feels necessary.

6. I have yet to see this in the normal theater. All three times have been in IMAX, so far. This is, truly, the way to see it, as over 60 minutes of footage in the final film was shot in the IMAX format. I do want to see it once in the regular theater, though, just for that experience.

7. Michael Caine's Alfred finally gets his day in this film. I feel like that character finally graduates to having some real evolution in this script.

8. Bane was the perfect villain for this one, and Tom Hardy was the perfect person to play him.

9. I don't understand what the big deal was about Anne Hathaway as Catwoman. I have no reverence or nostalgia for Michelle Pfeiffer's performance, and it was 20 years ago. Someone's going to play that character again, eventually, and thank goodness it was done better than Halle Berry's Catwoman. I think Hathaway was perfectly cast for the role and she did the best job I could have hoped for.

10. In summation - I loved, couldn't ask for more.

Top 5 of 2010

My picks for Top 5 of 2010 -

1. Inception - Christopher Nolan's post Dark Knight follow up was, from the moment it was even announced, in danger of not being able to come close to living up to its predecessor. And, while Inception is a different beast than The Dark Knight, it not only met those expectations but exceeded them (at least for me). Nolan creates a new and unbelievably amazing world, with mystery and intrigue covering every square inch of the story. Watching the film felt like you were seeing something you had never seen before, and with some of the best actors of this generation, along with a story that feels tighter than a steel trap, Inception just couldn't be beat.

2. Somewhere - Sofia Coppola holds an incredibly special place in my heart. I saw The Virgin Suicides when I was on the fence about going to film school, and it was one of the films that pushed me into going. Somewhere continues Coppola's fascination with watching her characters, giving the audience the sense of being a third person, but very present, observer into the lives of characters that transcend the reputations and any "it" factor her actors may have. Her films have become, increasingly, like fashion shoots and obviously are heavily influenced by the commercial world. No matter her push for "realism", her shots are very tightly composed and thought out for maximum effect. It's as though Coppola is trying to sell you the lives her characters are living, and no matter how much pain they may be going through (real or imagined), as an audience member, you're buying it.

3. Scott Pilgrim vs The World - Edgar Wright has been hitting them out of the park for a while now. After his hit BBC show Spaced, he broke into the feature world with Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. All three projects centered around Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, and the three seemed to be unstoppable. Wright took a detour, though, in making the film adaptation of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novel series. Wright uses actors of uncanny resemblance to their pen and ink counter parts, and brings balls to the wall effects to the forefront, creating the closest thing to a true "comic book" movie that has ever been made - Not cheesy, but still faithful to the concepts and artistry of its creator, Bryan Lee O'Malley. While Wright excised some of the story from the 6 volumes of graphic novels, he brings the story of Scott Pilgrim to life in a lean and mean (and fun) way that, honestly, I'm not sure very many other filmmakers could do.

4. The Social Network - When David Fincher announced he was going to make a film about Facebook, there was a collective groan from the film loving community. Wait, this is the guy who made Fight Club? Se7en? The Game? And he's going to make a film about Facebook? Yep. And leave it to Fincher to take all that doubted him, put us in a collective headlock, and give us a noogie for not believing in him. The Social Network is tight, funny, and Eisenberg's performance as Mark Zuckerberg is both intriguing, cold, and funny. He proves himself a force to be reckoned with, and criminally underused. Aaron Sorkin's script is one of the most well written pieces I've seen brought to the screen. Leave it to Fincher to prove everyone who doubted him wrong. Again. When will we learn to stop?

5. Exit Through The Giftshop - In a true to form fashion, a documentary that was sold as being about Banksy turned out to be a documentary hijacked by Banksy, and would tell the story of the man who was trying to make a documentary about him - Thierry Guetta. Using Guetta's own footage to tell the story of the film he was trying to make, and how his own ignorance and stupidity brought about the camera being turned on him, Banksy and crew create the film that Thierry was SUPPOSED to be making - a document about the "Street Art" movement, but also tell the story of what happens when someone who really doesn't know what they're doing has too much time and money on their hands, and a whole bunch of "friends", who have spent years perfecting their craft and building their identity, to copy off of. The film is thoroughly entertaining and fascinating, especially for those interested in art and, specifically, the "Street Art" movement.

Inception

I don't hesitate to say that Christopher Nolan is easily the rightful successor to, and our generation's, Steven Spielberg. His mastery of storytelling is top notch, and while Spielberg often seems to make sacrifices and compromises to sell every bit of his films to as broad an audience as possible, Nolan seems to have gotten away with being able to avoid that. Movies like The Dark Knight, Insomnia, and Memento are uncompromisingly dark, even in their sheer genius. While Inception shouldn't strike anyone as dark, it is, without a doubt, uncompromising.

The film follows a band of, well, let's call them agents (it's never defined in the film exactly what they are). Their job is to use a complex system of gadgetry, chemicals, and their own minds to inhabit someone's dream and steal their secrets. The group is led by Cobb (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), who, of course, has a complex history which most of the film hinges on. His objective is to find a legal way home so that he can visit his kids in America without being arrested upon entry for the murder of his wife (which she framed him for). He is offered a job by a mysterious Asian man (who's mind he had broken into earlier), with the promise that, upon the jobs successful completion, strings would be pulled and Cobb would get to return home legally. Cobb rallies a group of top experts to invade the mind of the heir of one of the worlds largest companies, and sets forth to do the job that will take him home.

Inception is amazing. In fact, it's beyond amazing, though I don't know what other word I could use that would really qualify just how awesome it truly is. The story is the key to it, and it's so solid, and so labyrinthine, that one barely has a chance to catch it all on the first go (the film definitely demands multiple viewings). The acting is top notch, and the effects are truly amazing. Nolan sets the bar so high with Inception, one is left to wonder if anyone will be able to top it, and if so, when will it happen?

A few thoughts on The Dark Knight

I'm not going to write a review about The Dark Knight. There's no point. It would just be a really long gush fest, with words like magnificent, amazing, and transcendent. It would include phrases like "easily one of, if not THE best of the year", "pitch perfect", and "everything that is amazing about filmmaking". But you can read all of that elsewhere. There's no point in me repeating it. I also don't want to go into the plot, because I am so afraid I might give out a spoiler (though I'm thoroughly convinced that I was, probably, one of the last people to actually see it). So, just a few thoughts, and we'll leave it at that.

- Easily the best Batman ever.

- I'm not actually sure they have a word to describe how amazing the film was. I'm still on the high of seeing it.

- I thought it was interesting that I liked the portrayal of Two-Face by Tommy Lee Jones in Batman Forever when I was a kid, but as I grew up, enjoyed its cartoonishness less and less. Now, as an adult, Aaron Eckhart's Two-Face is perfect - Bitter, Insane with rage and jealousy, and completely broken.

- Although Maggie Gyllenhaal is a better actress than Katie Holmes, I'm not sure she made a better Rachel Dawes. Gyllenhaal's  natural personal attributes bleed heavily into the character, and, while Katie Holmes is not the best actress, I will say that I think she was able to fill the role better. I wasn't able to see Rachel Dawes as well as I did with Holmes. I kept seeing Maggie Gyllenhaal AS Rachel Dawes.

- I'm glad the filmmakers followed the path they did. Yes, it was much darker than people expected, but the darkness serves the character of Batman a lot better. Nolan pushed the limits of all of these characters, made you fall in love with them (even the psychotic Joker), and when you fall in love with a character, the film suddenly becomes something bigger than everyone. That's what film is supposed to do - invite you into its world, stir up emotions and passions, and make you FEEL something. The Dark Knight accomplishes every bit of that.

- Heath Ledger, hands down, may be the best Joker there will ever be. I feel sorry for whoever else may have to step into his shoes in the future.

- Nolan had already proved his worth with films like Memento and Insomnia, but, with The Dark Knight, he shows that he is a master.

So, all in all, in the words of my friend Wes - It rocked my BALLS off!