 |
| This
undated film image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Christian
Bale as Batman in a scene from the action thriller “The Dark Knight
Rises.” A gunman in a gas mask barged into a crowded Denver-area theater
during a midnight premiere of the Batman movie on Friday, July 20,
2012, hurled a gas canister and then opened fire, killing 12 people and
injuring at least 50 others in one of the deadliest mass shootings in
recent U.S. history. (AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures, Ron Phillips) |
With expectations high and an emotionally charged atmosphere, I made my way to see a showing of
The Dark Knight Rises. I
had anticipated a jaw-dropping, heart-wrenching tear jerker but I came
out disappointed having instead received a predictable and
superficial Hollywood film.
There is no question that the first two
Batman movies in this famous
trilogy surpassed the quality of the third and final leg.
Extreme plot twists occurred too frequently, leaving the audience
feeling as if the plot of the movie was constantly changing. This also
gave the movie a corny or cheesy feel even though it was evidently
attempting a dark and somber atmosphere.
The cast did not disappoint as
Tom Hardy,
Christian Bale,
Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and
Gary Oldman gave stellar performances. It was most certainly an entertaining and interesting movie but it definitely lacked something.
The villain was one only known by die-hard Batman fans. Even someone who hasn’t read any of the comics has heard of the
Joker,
Cat Woman or even
Two Face. But the masked villain
Bane proved to be a simple yet terrifying and truly evil character.
Moviegoers should expect an intriguing two and a half hours. I
recommend seeing the film as it is definitely worth the time and money
but keep in mind to expect nothing like the first two movies.
The
City of Gotham experienced a societal downfall
similar to the state of the world today. An utter feeling of despair and
lack of optimism was prevalent in most characters of the movie except
the heroes who always had to hope for and work towards a happy ending.
I had anticipated that in the light of the
Aurora shootings,
this movie would convey a truly meaningful message and lesson about the
evils and corruption of society so that these deaths and injuries would
not be in vain.
Read related: “Dark Knight Rises” shooter James Holmes: A matter of mental health?
If 12 people were to die because of a movie, I expect that film would
do something to change society for the better and make it impossible
for incidents like this to happen again. Whether this movie can make a
difference in such a way has yet to be determined.
Police officers and security patrol were placed throughout the theater I attended (Coconut
Grove Paragon Theater),
which only served to remind the audience of the tragedy that had
occurred because of this movie. I did feel safer knowing that some
measures of safety were being taken to prevent another similar tragedy.
I can only hope that every theater playing this movie did the same in an attempt to protect innocent lives.
Read more:
http://www.voxxi.com/dark-knight-rises-colorado-shooting/
