Voice Recognition
A League Of Their Own
The Fact: All the clues appear to be pointing to a return by the League Of Shadows. Bane is obsessed with wiping out Gotham, Liam Neeson was reportedly spotted on set, and the above image shows what looks like a squad of ninjas descending the well at Wayne Manor… or could that be the prison / dungeon we see Bruce visiting later?
The Glorious Implication: Is Bane carrying out the wishes of the late Ra’s al Ghul. And is the man himself actually dead?
Prisoner Of War
The Fact: When it was leaked that part of the film would take place in a Siberian prison camp, fans first assumed it would be Bane who was locked up. However, is the trailer’s odd, stair-filled prison home to Bruce Wayne at some point in the story?
The Glorious Implication: Perhaps Bruce has returned to prison to hone his fighting skills as he did at the beginning of Batman Begins ? One thing we know for sure though: Tom Conti delivers a hell of a good “RISE”!
Is It A Bird?
The Fact: The Batwing (or whatever Chris Nolan decides to call it) finally takes flight in The Dark Knight Rises . Looks pretty badass, doesn’t it?
The Glorious Implication: Lucius Fox has clearly been a busy boy in the last eight years. Bane might have the technology to eviscerate a football field, but Batman can now fly!
Fear Factor
The Fact: The Dark Knight Rises will show that Bruce’s fears have never fully been conquered. “How long will [ he ] let the pain and loss define [ his ] life?” asked Christian Bale recently. “Walking around chasing bad guys is very heroic and attracts attention, but at the end it all accounts for a means to deal with the pain of a huge loss. It's time for Bruce Wayne to face the pain that has always stirred his life.”
The Glorious Implication: It was naïve to think that conquering his fear of bats would be the end of Bruce’s childhood nightmare…
Tell Noone
The Fact: Gary Oldman recently revealed that Chris Nolan told his primary cast how the film ends in person, rather than having it written down. He didn’t want it getting leaked, you see…
The Glorious Implication: Such secrecy would suggest a fairly weighty payoff to the series. Or alternatively, it could just demonstrate Nolan’s caution at having anything leaked to a fact-hungry online audience. Either way, one thing’s for sure – we won’t know how it ends until we leave the cinema!
Military Man
The Fact: Michael Caine has his own back-story worked out for Alfred. “I wanted him to be a tough butler, and I wanted him to be an ex-soldier,” says Caine. “The voice is the first Sergeant I ever had. I always imagined Alfred to be SAS — he was wounded, and didn’t want to leave the army, and went to work in the officer’s mess behind the bar. Batman’s father came in and he saw him and said, ‘Would you like to be trained as a butler?’ And he said yes, and he went with him to America and was trained as a butler and that’s his back-story.”
The Glorious Implication: Not a direct influence on the third film perhaps, but we like this interpretation so much we had to include it! Particularly as it would provides a little context for our next fact…
Pass The Kleenex
The Fact: Whatever has happened to Bruce over the last eight years has taken its toll on Alfred too. “You are as precious to me as you were to your own mother and father,” trembles the old butler. “I swore to them that I would protect you… and I haven’t.”
The Glorious Implication: If even redoubtable old Alfred is starting to crack, things truly must be grim at the Wayne household…
Lady In Red
The Fact: Marion Cotillard looks resplendent in a flowing red dress as Wayne Enterprises board member Miranda Tate. However, on-set photos taken earlier this year showed her climbing atop a camouflaged tumbler. Doesn’t seem like the sort of thing your average executive would do, does it?
The Glorious Implication: Cotillard’s character is on the board of Wayne Enterprises. The weaponry at Bane’s disposal appears to be of the calibre produced by Wayne Enterprises. How is he getting his hands on it? Could it be he has a man on the inside? Or rather a woman? And could that woman be none other than Talia al Ghul? Questions, questions…
What's The Score?
The Fact: Hans Zimmer’s score will plunge us straight back into the Gotham we know and love.
The Glorious Implication: The trailer’s visuals are mighty impressive, but the use of sound is equally involving, from the little boy’s delivery of The Star Spangled Banner , to the rhythmic chanting of Bane’s supporters. However, the masterstroke comes in the final few seconds, when Hans Zimmer’s memorable score comes booming through. Genuine goosebumps…
