Every once in awhile I need to get serious on my blog because something just irks me. I hate the word 'irk' but I'm using it anyway because I'm so irked. The recent release of The Dark Knight Rises and people's subsequent reaction to it has caused me to start thinking. We are such movie snobs nowadays. (I also hate the word 'nowadays').
I've seen SO many people negatively review this movie just because it wasn't as good as the last one. First of all, WHAT?! What do you want people? How could Christopher Nolan have made this movie any better? What would have satisfied you? Please submit your suggestions. I'd love to hear them.
If you had wet yourself in the theater would you have been satisfied? This movie was still the best movie I've seen all year. And I refuse to pan it just because it wasn't "as good as the last one."
Which brings me to my next point. You can't compare these two movies. Yes, they were both Batman films, but that's about all they share in common. If Heath Ledger hadn't died, and Joker had made a return, and the plot had been boring, and the acting not as good, THEN I could see people saying, "This isn't as good as the last one." But again, other than having some of the same characters, they are completely different movies. Chris has managed to capture the nation's zeitgeist three times in a row. Each film in this series has a different and potent message about our society. I'm nerdy enough to admit the movie gave me chills 3 or 4 times.
So comparing the two movies is like... I feel like I'm already losing you, so I'll use an example that even the most... simple... can understand. Comparing these two movies is like comparing a Granny Smith apple with a Red Delicious. Both are apples, but they taste completely different, and when subjective preferences are cast aside, the two apples have different functions. Who can say which is better? Granny Smith are better for pies because of their tartness, and Red Delicious are preferred by most to pack in lunches. Get it? Stop comparing them, it makes you look ignorant because you've missed the deeper messages the films have been trying to deliver.
And finally, we are such snobs today. I would go so far as to say these three films are the Godfather Trilogy of our time. These films are fantastic. I can't stop thinking about TDKR. Yes, it had minor flaws like Bane's voice and a slightly over-complicated plot, but other than that it was superb. I want to see it again because I know I'll get deeper meanings out of it. Which I can't say for almost any movie I see. What do most people think when they walk out of a movie like Transformers? "Hmm, it had awesome visual effects." And then they forget it. It's throwaway entertainment. This is not the case for any of the Batman movies.
Stop being movie snobs. Even if you were to show our worst movies to people fifty years ago they would have brain aneurysms. Stop being so negative, and think for yourselves. Lighten up. After all, it is just a movie, isn't it?
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