For the time time since the deadly Colorado shooting that took 12 lives, someone associated with The Dark Knight Rises has spoken out. And that someone is director Christopher Nolan. “Speaking on behalf of the cast and crew of The Dark Knight Rises , I would like to express our profound sorrow at the senseless tragedy that has befallen the entire Aurora community,” Nolan said, adding: “I would not presume to know anything about the victims of the shooting, but that they were there last night to watch a movie. “I believe movies are one of the great American art forms and the shared experience of watching a story unfold on screen is an important and joyful pastime. The movie theatre is my home, and the idea that someone would violate that innocent and hopeful place in such an unbearably savage way is devastating to me. Nothing any of us can say could ever adequately express our feelings for the innocent victims of this appalling crime, but our thoughts are with them and their families.” James Holmes is in custody for the crime, which tragically took place just miles from the 1999 school shooting incident in Columbine, Colorado.
Amid Colorado tragedy, our writer joins bloggers (and box-office numbers) showing support for Christopher Nolan’s final Batman film. By Josh Wigler Christian Bale in “The Dark Knight Rises” Photo: Warner Bros.
Experts stress that experiencing a range of emotions is not uncommon and that talking through your feelings can help. By Amy Wilkinson Investigators on the scene at the Century 16 movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado Photo: Thomas Cooper/ Getty Images
On Monday a shockwave rippled through the delicate ecosystem that is the internet, the place where fans, critics, commenters, bloggers, and lurkers live and breathe (and mouth-breathe), over the first reviews of The Dark Knight Rises . The Bat- and Christopher Nolan-faithful rose in arms against the first critics who dared break the news that the comic book movie threequel was maybe not the best movie of all time. Threats were made . Nasty comments were flung . Entire websites were overrun and taken out in retribution. So I ask you, Bat-fans: What Would Batman Do ? The fanboy (for lack of a better word) frenzy felt more akin to Bane’s terrorist assault on Gotham City in TDKR than any heroic pursuit of justice Batman himself would exact. Either due to blind faith (like that of Bane’s fanatical, extremist followers), or the outrage of the disadvantaged 99% (i.e. fans who have to wait until Thursday night at midnight to see TDKR for themselves), the worst of the irate fandom lashed out, ill-informed and vicious, at the mere suggestion that what they love wasn’t good. But, wait. Most TDKR fans haven’t even seen TDKR yet! How do they know the movie even deserves their love, or the self-debasement of their own humanity that comes with issuing hateful vitriol at strangers? Realistically, I’m guessing it will fall into the mid-70s-to-low-80s on Rotten Tomatoes – and yes, I’ve actually seen the film. And when fans finally see it for themselves, let’s be real, they’re not all going to be thrilled. That’s not to say I don’t sympathize with the downer that is hearing that the thing you’ve been looking forward to since The Dark Knight in 2008 isn’t as great as it looks (and those snippets and glimpses of TDKR we’ve seen pre-release were pretty fantastic). I get it. I’ve been a Christian Bale fan for longer than most Batman followers knew who he was. Unless you’ve accepted Newsies into your life, Bat-fans, you don’t know what real love is. Sometimes real love, real fandom, is embracing a thing that you connect to in spite of its flaws. If you still love it warts and all, then doesn’t that mean all the more? But let’s look at why so many folks embraced the Nolan Batman series, whether or not they’d self-identify as Batman fanboys (or Nolanazis , if you will ), or are plain old laypersons who just enjoy the hell out of the movies: Because Nolan & Co. translated these comic book superhero tales into compelling storytelling for grown-ups. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight already well legitimized comic book stories in the film art world and, certainly, the marketplace; we now get nothing but superheroes every summer blockbuster season. At this point, validity as a film genre has already been established, albeit with mixed results (though that’s more the fault of studio filmmaking than the source material). So why wouldn’t fans demand better films be made from the properties they love? Perhaps after Friday, fans will turn to the messages in TDKR to guide them. In the wake of the first wave of negative reviews and mixed-positive reactions, the Bat-faithful looked a lot like the 99% in TDKR – and in TDKR , said 99% is not exactly celebrated as a righteous movement of disenfranchised people, but that’s a conversation for another day. In the film, the villainous Bane preys on the hopes and feelings of injustice among Gotham’s underprivileged class, rousing them into misguided unrest and mindless mob violence. Amidst the chaos, Batman espouses a message of individual heroism, quietly leading by example while minimizing the carnage. He insists that anyone can become Batman, anyone can become a hero. So use your words, Bat-fans – but make sure you’re using the right ones, and for the right reasons. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
There’s no Bane without pain, and moviegoers will get plenty of both in ‘Dark Knight Rises,’ Nolan teases in a new interview with MTV News. By Josh Wigler, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Christopher Nolan Photo: MTV News
Los Angeles Times article offers insight into director’s mysterious world. By Kevin P. Sullivan Christopher Nolan behind the scenes of “Dark Knight Rises” Photo: Warner Bros.
Here’s a YouTube mashup that is a little too much fun to ignore: Michael Fassbender as secret agent 007 in Christopher Nolan ‘s James Bond (as edited together by one inspired internet film enthusiast). Industry prognosticators have suggested that Skyfall will be Daniel Craig’s final go as 007, so speculation has already begun as to who’ll replace him. There ain’t a person alive who isn’t delighted to have Fassbender taking more prominent roles in Hollywood, and the time is nigh for him to land a major franchise where he’s the star. (Magneto doesn’t count; he may be the best performer in those films, but when January Jones is in a white fur hat and go-go boots it’s hard to determine who’s the real star.) While Fassbender claiming a license to kill (right now he just has a learner’s permit) isn’t that far-fetched, the chances of Nolan directing someone else’s intellectual properties post-Batman are pretty slim. Still, we can dream. Mr88668866 (we’ve only met causally once or twice, so I don’t quite feel comfortable calling him 8866 just yet) thinks it is such a good idea he’s trying to “incept” it on all of us. With the Hans Zimmer score and clips from most of Nolan’s best known work in the mix, he’s intercut various shots of M-Fass brooding, glancing and scowling in a way that says “Britain’s secrets are safe with me.” Do yourself a favor and watch this video twice. The first time, obviously, to see if you can catch where all the movie clips come from. The second time to say, you know, this really would be pretty sweet. [via Hollywood.com ]
With Christopher Nolan ruling out making another ‘Dark Knight’ film, MTV News lists possible directors to take the reins. By Kevin P. Sullivan Christian Bale in “The Dark Knight Rises” Photo: Warner Bros. There have been conflicting reports about the future of the current Batman series. This past weekend, director Christopher Nolan told the Produced by Conference that he definitively does not plan on making a fourth Batman movie . This news comes just a week after Christian Bale said that he would be open to a fourth movie if the conditions were right. Could there be a “Dark Knight” movie without the series’ original mastermind? Even if Bale stayed on, losing Nolan would leave an impossible gap in the film, one we don’t necessarily think should be filled. But if there had to be a replacement, who could possibly take the reins from Nolan? Here are our picks for directors to take over the “Dark Knight” series. Duncan Jones With two ambitious sci-fi films under his belt, Duncan Jones has quickly established himself as a genre director worth paying attention to. His first film, “Moon,” is one of the best films in the genre from the last few years, and “Source Code” showed that he can handle a bigger budget and high concept in a smart and entertaining way. Jones recently signed on to direct a biopic based on the life of James Bond author Ian Flemming, so he’ll be busy for a while, but his sensibilities combine the right elements so that a superhero film would seem natural to him. Joe Carnahan Carnahan has been directing for a while now, but it wasn’t until this year’s “The Grey” that he showed he could handle more serious material with style. Starring Ra’s Al Ghul himself, Liam Neeson, “The Grey” took a rather absurd concept and grounded it in human drama. What really makes Batman resonate is the man beneath the mask, and, like Ottway in “The Grey,” Bruce Wayne keeps much of his pain to himself and speaks through his acts of justice. Darren Aronofsky The man is just itching to make a superhero movie. His take on the Dark Knight petered out, allowing Nolan to take over and make what eventually became “Batman Begins.” Aronofsky then signed on to direct Hugh Jackman in the follow-up to “X-Men Legends: Wolverine,” but he dropped out, claiming he couldn’t be away from his family while shooting in Japan. One of the most stylistically exciting directors working today, he seems dead-set on eventually directing a superhero flick. Just let him already! Rian Johnson Johnson is set to make waves with his next film, “Looper,” which opens in theaters in September. That film’s mashup of crime film and time travel movie, considered next to Johnson’s first movie, “Brick,” prove that Rian is a director that takes genre seriously and would be able to handle the multiple dimensions of directing a film like Batman. We previously suggested that he could reboot the series with “Batman Beyond.” Wally Pfister Perhaps the man best suited to take over for Nolan is his long-time collaborator and director of photography Wally Pfister. The Academy Award-winning cinematographer got his big break shooting “Memento” for Nolan all those years ago, and he’s now set to shift his focus to primarily directing films. Pfister is the least experienced of the directors on this list, but he also has the most intimate knowledge about what worked so well throughout the current series. Who do you think should direct a fourth “Batman” flick? Leave your pick below! Check out everything we’ve got on “The Dark Knight Rises.” For breaking news and previews of the latest comic book movies — updated around the clock — visit SplashPage.MTV.com . Related Videos Get Psyched For ‘Dark Knight Rises’ Related Photos On The Set Of ‘The Dark Knight Rises’
Director Christopher Nolan and stars Christian Bale, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gary Oldman will present the footage on Sunday, June 3. By Kara Warner Christian Bale in “The Dark Knight Rises” Photo: Warner Bros. Not to toot our own horn, but since their inception in 1991 the MTV Movie Awards have proven to be one of the hippest parties in town. Not only is the annual event a major draw for the who’s who in Hollywood, via the A-list nominees , presenters and performers, but there are always a few unexpected surprises and special sneak peeks from Hollywood’s most anticipated upcoming releases. We are proud to announce that this year’s live broadcast will feature the debut of exclusive new footage from one of the summer’s most highly anticipated movies, “The Dark Knight Rises.” And if that’s not exciting enough, the film’s writer/director Christopher Nolan and stars Christian Bale, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gary Oldman will be on hand to introduce the never-before-seen footage. If you’ve been following the news surrounding Nolan’s third and very likely final Batman film, you know that plot details have been kept under lock and key, so any chance to see anything new from the film ahead of its July 20 release is definitely cause for celebration. MTV also announced Thursday (May 24) that “Magic Mike” stars Channing Tatum and Matthew McConaughey have been added to the impressive lineup of presenters, which also includes: Adam Sandler, Emma Watson, Andy Samberg, Leighton Meester, Emma Watson, Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller, Emma Stone, Andrew Garfield, Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Mila Kunis and Mark Wahlberg. In addition, chart-topping indie-pop group fun. and rapper Wiz Khalifa are set to perform. MTV fans hold the “Power of the Popcorn” in their hands, with voting available online via MovieAwards.MTV.com through Saturday, June 2. As always, voting for Movie of the Year will remain open throughout the live show Sunday, June 3. Head over to MovieAwards.MTV.com to vote for your favorite flicks now! The 21st annual MTV Movie Awards air live Sunday, June 3, at 9 p.m. ET. Related Videos Get Psyched For ‘Dark Knight Rises’ Related Photos ‘Dark Knight Rises’ Final Trailer’s Key Scenes