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STOP! Carry on
The Fact: The very first words spoken in The Dark Knight Rises are in voiceover from Commissioner Gordon, who kicks things off by saying, “I knew Harvey Dent…”
The Glorious Implication: The story might be set eight years after The Dark Knight , but make no mistake, the two films are thoroughly connected. Watching the trilogy as a box-set is going to be the Christmas treat of 2012!
Robin Reliant
The Fact: Christian Bale famously stated that he would have refused to return for part three had the character of Robin been included anywhere in the trilogy. Come on Christian! Not even if Chris O’Donnell came back?
The Glorious Implication: We won’t have the Boy Wonder camping it up in part three. Huzzah!
You Tease
The Fact: However, Nolan does like to tease his audience doesn’t he? How else to explain the specific design of the “R” seen on a sign in the football crowd?
The Glorious Implication: It does look awfully like the Robin logo, although knowing that that frame would be in the trailer, surely this is just a red herring on Nolan’s part. The extras present surely brought their own signs and Nolan just homes in on this one as an in-joke. Right?
Brains And Brawn
The Fact: Bane is first and foremost a man mountain - a vast, terrifying presence, who according to Nolan is, “a classic movie monster.” However, he’s also a keen strategist, and a man with a very well thought out plan. “He has a terrific brain,” says Nolan, describing him as a character “to test Batman mentally as well as physically.”
The Glorious Implication: We won’t be getting a repeat of Bane’s bungling henchman routine from Batman And Robin .
Friends Reunited
The Fact: The film will reunite a significant number of Inception ’s primary cast, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy and Marion Cotillard all signing on to join existing cast member Michael Caine.
The Glorious Implication: This is now looking the strongest of all of Nolan’s ensembles. What price an appearance from Cillian Murphy to complete the set?
Time Marches On
The Fact: The action takes place eight years after the events depicted in The Dark Knight .
The Glorious Implication: Bruce Wayne has had plenty of time to gradually lose his marbles as his alter ego is painted as an amoral vigilante. Not only that, but Gotham’s new dawn appears to have favoured the rich, leaving the city’s underclass seething with resentment. Eight years down the track should see Batman languishing in a very lonely place…
Go Big Or Go Home
The Fact: Christopher Nolan is about to kick the action sequences up a gear.
The Glorious Implication: We knew from the multitude of leaked Wall Street photos that The Dark Knight Rises was going to boast some epic fight scenes. What we didn’t realise until watching the trailer, was on just how grand a scale Bane’s destruction would take place. The stadium sequence… in a word: wow.
The Female Of The Species
The Fact: In her own way, Selina Kyle is every bit as intimidating as Bane
The Glorious Implication: Our favourite moment of the new trailer has to be the venom with which Anne Hathaway’s Selina Kyle reprimands Bruce Wayne, and Gotham generally, for their complacency. “You and your friends better batten down the hatches,” she purrs, “because when it hits, you and your friends are going to wonder how you ever thought you could live so large, and leave so little for the rest of us.”
Class War
The Fact: Judging by Selina’s speech, Bane’s manipulation of Gotham’s disenfranchised underclass, and the fact that one of the film’s biggest battles takes place on the city’s Wall Street counterpart, we’d say there’s a pretty clear theme of social discontent running through this one.
The Glorious Implication: Whereas The Dark Knight had post-9/11 connotations, this time Nolan mirrors credit-crunch unrest. And they say superhero movies are dumb…
Dent Undamaged
The Fact: Harvey Dent’s murderous rampage has successfully been covered up by Jim Gordon, as witnessed by his glowing character reference at Dent’s eulogy.
The Glorious Implication: Batman is still in the frame for Two-Face’s murders, which would suggest that the Dark Knight will be a less than popular figure amongst the rank and file of Gotham. And given that several of the victims were cops, he should find himself with more than a few enemies in the GCPD.
