kgrogers1979

I predict that

RocShemp

Don't forget Zsasz. He was also in the first movie. I found it weird that they technically gave him Great White Shark's origin (pretends to be nuts so he can be sent to Arkham and ends up going nuts for real) but did nothing else with him ever again. Even Scarecrow got marginalized (although he's rumoured to cameo in TDKR as well).

fumanstan

Or he picked the ones most interesting to him

Mike86

And this is going to be exactly the problem this movie will have I already get the feeling. People are going to be nonstop comparing it to The Dark Knight, which is understandable I suppose but, I think a little unfair to this film. The Dark Knight was a phenomenon and I think it's going to be hard for this film to live up to that high of expectations. I've got all the faith in the world that Nolan will deliver a great film but I have a feeling it will get panned by some people due to having to compete with their expectations of what it should be that The Dark Knight set.

Dan

Yeah, I want to be excited about this film, but I'm just not feeling it yet, even after watching a trailer or two. Maybe after Prometheus comes out, I'll focus on this a bit more before release... but so far...

Shannon Nutt

Everything I've seen/read about this movie is giving me a bad vibe, including the underwhelming prologue sequence and trailers we've seen. It's guaranteed to make a mint at the box office, but I have the feeling this is going to be the least of Nolan's three Batman flicks.

boogieman03

I'm still excited as hell for this movie. I'm trying to keep my expectations in check, to avoid disappointment (good advice for any movie you're anticipating), but I can't wait for this to come out.

Schloob1

For those that have played this game, how the heck did he die there? He has Scorpion basically all the way down, and then gets kicked? once and dies with over half his energy left it seems.

Josh-da-man

Agreed. There are just a lot of things that I'm not feeling. I don't like Bane, who was a one-note villain in the comics, is the central antagonist. Not really liking what I've seen of Catwoman.

georgec

This is the best theory I've ever read about a movie. Honestly.

My Other Self

I was the only person I knew who saw Batman Begins until well after it had come to DVD. I still remember being in a half-empty theater on opening day. I felt bad for Heath Ledger's passing but that didn't do anything to my anticipation for TDK. The trailers and marketing was just absolutely phenomenal. You couldn't have asked for a better marketing campaign.

I'm not a big Catwoman fan (but I am an Anne Hathaway fan ), and I share most of the same sentiments other people do about Bane. I'm not comparing it to the TDK alone -- I'm trying to hold it to precedent that Nolan himself has set with the series thus far. To me personally, he has two perfect films. Nothing I've seen so far has me as excited as I had been in the past. I'd like that to be different. Maybe a second trailer will help.

I'm one of the few who thought Inception was just brilliant so I have no doubt that Nolan can deliver another blockbuster but it's going to be impossible for people to view this film alone when coming off the coattails of The Dark Knight. It's an impossible act to follow.

Guru Askew

People can say what they want but the hype simply isn't there like it was for "The Dark Knight," and I don't think it takes a psychic to predict that you won't be seeing every unimaginative douchebag dressing as Bane for Halloween this year, nor will every emo/goth kid be storming Hot Topic for Catwoman t-shirts and posters. The tabloid morbidity of Ledger's death was a huge part of TDK's success too and unless there's a Hardy/Hathaway murder/suicide in the works that one's gonna be impossible to beat.

To say all that is a pretty safe bet. I am gonna go out on a limb here and say this thing shows signs of having all the audience-alienating elements from "Spider-Man 3" (lame 90's villain, too much stuff crammed into one movie) and "Superman Returns" (particularly wild deviations from the source material, specifically Batman's retirement and the rumored passing-of-the-torch to a new character) all rolled into one, and Nolan's fanbase has set themselves up for a huge fall by literally deifying him and expecting perfection from him. Granted, a substantial chunk of said fanbase has already decided to love this movie but that's easy. Nolan isn't going to get the free passes from the general public he got with TDK because TDKR is just another movie.

Dr. DVD

I've already resigned myself to the fact that this will not be at the level of TDK. I am simply hoping for something that is on the level of Begins and rounds out the story in a neat manner.

DthRdrX

The only difference for me is that this time WB is not putting much behind promotion, which I love. Don't want to walk in knowing more than I've already seen.

My Other Self

That's what I don't understand, though. Surely TDK's marketing campaign wasn't contingent on Heath Ledger's death. Where has been that push for TDKR? It's non-existent. We're a mere 3 months away and all we've seen is one trailer, some leaked photos and some shots from the EW summer movie issue.

It's nearly the complete opposite, which I just find kind of odd. The only thing I can think of is that WB plans on this making a boatload based off of the fact that it's another Nolan Batman film and they don't feel the need to market it like they did with TDK.

I honestly don't remember what the lead-up to Batman Begins was. I didn't have the internet during most of 2005 and only knew about BB from select articles I read in a newspaper's entertainment section.

E Unit

I'm wondering if we'll regret the lack of promotion in about a month or so. I can imagine WB bombarding us as it gets closer. Less is better right now.

bluetoast

Sure maybe the hype isn't as big as the last one. But any movie that sets up events to have people line up specifically to see the first six minutes is doing something right.

As for Batman Begins, I remember it was sort of restrained but only in some regards. In '04 the logo was revealed, and I think the Tumbler too (which people were pissed about). Teaser posters maybe early in '05. Hell the entire script itself was leaked a while before release. That aspect was pretty lax compared to the sequels.

bootsy

This is way way off. Everyone keeps talking about the hype not being there. The hype for this movie has been there for almost a year from the first shot of Bane to the teaser to all the leaked set photos every day for like a couple of months to the prologue and 2nd trailer. What the hell are you talking about. That hype will continue when the 3rd trailer hits in May and the TV spots all over especially during the NBA playoffs. This is not going to be Spiderman 3 or Superman Returns. You are really throwing stuff out there that simply isn't true right now.

My Other Self

Well, here's some marketing.

(credit to a poster on the BevNet message boards)

Tom Creo

MMMMMM, dark berry. Is that a current flavor?

Nick Martin

The biggest difference between the marketing for this film and the marketing for "The Dark Knight" is really simple:

"Batman Begins" was not a huge runaway success like "The Dark Knight" was. Not remotely. People were still skeptical about a Batman movie since it followed shitfest "Batman and Robin". Were people truly ready for a new Batman movie? Were people going to see it as "Batman 4" or a "Batman '89 prequel" or understand it's a whole new timeline and universe? Did "Batman and Robin" leave that bad a taste in audiences' mouths?

"The Dark Knight" needed to cater to the audience that found Begins after the fact, on DVD and TV airings and all of that, and the hype needed to be generated. They also had to make sure a new audience came into play.

Now look at this film, "The Dark Knight Rises". It's following one of the biggest movies of our era. The marketing doesn't NEED to be as strong. The audience is already in place for this film, unlike the case of the previous film following Begins. They don't need to do Comic-Con and craploads of press. Every time something of this film hits the news people scramble to see it. It doesn't need the added hype, because it's entirely built-in already.

My Other Self

No, it's an exclusive flavor promoting The Dark Knight Returns. Similar to the Sierra Mist Undercover Orange from Get Smart back in 2008 and the various Game Fuels they put out every Fall commemorating a game release.

Cellar Door

No, it's a currant flavor.

bootsy

This.



I wanted to add about Batman Begins. It amazes me how many don't know that film exists. I know people that post on here and know movies have heard of it obviously but most people either haven't seen it, never heard of it and probably don't remember seeing it. Which is a travesty because I still prefer it over TDK even though I love both films. I don't know if it is a lot of people but I know a few people that think TDK is the only movie in this current series.

MasterofDVD