I don’t know if there are people who have issues with the ending of “The Dark Knight Rises,” but I thought the conclusion to Christopher Nolan‘s The Dark Knight trilogy was generally considered to be great. Sure, are are probably some fair criticisms to be made of the movie itself, but the over-arching theme of the symbol of a superhero being stronger than the hero itself is pretty potent stuff. Also, that scene where Michael Caine‘s Alfred leaves Bruce Wayne is more emotional than anything in a Marvel movie ever. But in case you thought the the finale was perhaps less than exceptional, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (aka Robin) explains why it works so well, particularly in an era when Marvel stories just keep going and going and going…
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“I know we’re all used to the sort of Marvel movies, which are just kind of endless series. They don’t really have a beginning, middle, and end. But I think Nolan very much thought of that movie as a conclusion, and there’s a theme that runs through all three of those movies that begins in the first movie, runs through the second movie and it concludes in that moment where he says that Batman is more than a man, Batman is a symbol,” the actor told CinemaBlend. “And so to have another man other than Bruce Wayne kind of becoming Batman at the end of that trilogy, I think that’s the perfect ending to that story.”
And I tend to agree with that assessment, and in an era where every studio (including Warner Bros.) is chasing expanding movie universes, it makes Nolan’s self-contained Batman world all the more special for being tightly knit, and wholly its own.
Agree or disagree? Take the debate to the comments section.
