Why The Dark Knight Rises Is So Good (What Batman Teaches Us!!)

00:05 - The Dark Knight Rises is foundationally built on these principles as the follow up to the brilliant Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.

00:13 - Arguably not recognised as much as it’s predecessors, I think there are many complex discussion points in The Dark Knight Rises, and for that reason, I wanted to discuss it in today’s video, but also what this means for us as we find meaning to our lives, and act in accordance to our values.

00:32 - Each of the Dark Knight films have a key theme that they’re built on, with Batman Begins being about Fear, The Dark Knight about Chaos and finally The Dark Knight Rises about Pain.

00:44 - Now while I may do videos on the other films in the trilogy, I chose The Dark Knight Rises after having rewatched it recently and coming to some conclusions on the film that I previously hadn’t done so, specifically relating the journey of the characters and Gotham city in the film to our journey in life, and how it puts out some critical points about living a life that has meaning to it.

01:06 - Now, I feel I ought to say from the outset that director Chris Nolan and his brother, Jonathan, who wrote the story, have both stated the film is heavily influenced by the Charles Dickens novel set during the French Revolution, called A Tale Of Two Cities.

01:21 - I’ve not read the book and only vaguely know the story, so may miss points that directly correlate with it and am interested in learning more if anyone has read the book and watched the film.

01:32 - If so, please do share in the comments. Ok, just in case anyone hasn’t seen the film, which I highly recommend, there are spoilers ahead.

01:42 - 1. Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle - Batman and Bruce Wayne, as well as Catwoman and Selina Kyle are almost distinct characters from each other in the course of the Dark Knight Rises - This is particularly evident in the way Christian Bale played his role, showing Bruce Wayne as a broken husk of a man who often hunches over and appears dishevelled and hurt, not moving on past the events of Rachel’s death in The Dark Knight.

02:08 - In contrast, Batman remains a physically imposing figure, even when he’s not in costume in the hospital visiting Jim Gordon, which is early on in the film and at a point where Bruce Wayne hasn’t yet done anything to cope with the pain in his leg - Going back to Bruce Wayne specifically, throughout the course of the film I feel he represents the worst of the aristrocacy in Gotham, having become detached from the rest of society and apathetic, stagnating just like his peers in the upper class - On the other hand, Selina Kyle is the other extreme of society, acting in desperation to survive in poverty, acting out in ways that are equally destructive by working for people that create deeper problems for her - One of the things we, as individuals, need to understand is that in order to maintain healthy growth in life, we need to take responsibility as we mature, both in caring for ourselves, as well as for others - We see this in the juxtaposition of the two characters, as both the lack of action from Bruce or the actions from Selina in their respective roles lead to severe problems, as Bruce’s inactivity has caused numerous issues to himself and others around him, while Selina’s actions are equally destructive in her own life - Many of us face a similar issue on a personal level, as we have base needs and desires, but the actions we take need to be in accordance with our responsibilities, both for ourselves and others, if we’re to stay in a healthy and productive state, one that’s of use to society rather than a burden 2.

03:46 - Batman and Catwoman - Both Batman and Catwoman are symbolic figures in the Dark Knight Rises, with Batman representing order in the face of chaos and Catwoman humanity - When a person descends into chaos, or a self destructive path in their lives, they often lose both of these qualities in their descent, acting more out of personal desire and gratification, than out of meaning based on their core values - In the case of the Dark Knight Rises, in the first half of the film Batman is mostly absent as Gotham is heading into chaos, and in the instance he does return, during a scene that’s breathtaking in scope and theatrics, it’s almost superficial, as his actions when trying to stop Bane during a heist serve to distract authorities rather than to support them, showing that at that moment, Batman isn’t truly Batman, as he’s lacking the belief and conviction that’s at the core of the character and taking actions that could be described as irresponsible, as pointed out by Alfred later on - The return of Batman, and all he represents, is something we only truly see when he descends into his personal hell as he’s sent to the Pit, the prison Bane places him in, to watch Gotham be destroyed, from which he literally needs to ascend to return to being the order that will save Gotham in the grips of chaos - Catwoman is equally complex, representing humanity, perhaps better explained as empathy for her fellow man, which again is absent in the first half of the film, but comes to prominence in the latter half during the redemption of Gotham in the fight against the revolutionists, represented as oppressive chaos by the League of Shadows, as she performs selfless acts of heroism - Our personal growth often comes from going through a similar journey that’s equally harrowing and difficult, as it’s when we’re confronted with difficult times that often we come out having seen true growth, one which makes us stronger and more capable 3.

05:50 - Gordon Represents Morality - Throughout the first two acts of The Dark Knight Rises, Jim Gordon is in a state of moral conflict throughout as he perpetuates the lie about Harvey Dent, leaving him incapable of performing his duties during that time, where he’s trying to do his job, but fails to believe in the very ideals he fights for - It’s only once he comes to terms with the truth, forcefully done when Bane reads his letter to the public, that a great weight and burden is lifted from his shoulders.

06:21 - It’s from here that we see he’s liberated and ready to take action to do what’s just and perform his responsibilities as the commissioner of Gotham - What’s fundamental to understand is that being truthful is key when discussing events that occurred, as building on false pretenses is eventually going to come to light, before which the burden of lies weighs heavily and will leave us incapacitated as we try to cope with a great sense of internal conflict within us - We have to take responsibility for the truth, own them and maintain our integrity in life, both to keep trust of others, but also maintain belief in ourselves and what we stand for 4.

07:03 - Alfred Is The Father - Alfred represents Bruce’s second father throughout the course of the Dark Knight trilogy, helping him grow into an adult and guide him in his journey to what he hopes is a fulfilling conclusion where he can move beyond the past and finally get closure - This relationship in particular is one of conflict throughout the Dark Knight Rises, with Alfred always seeking to reason and guide a despondent and broken Bruce Wayne, ultimately stepping away as he comes to the realisation he can’t guide him any longer.

07:38 - This moment is fuelled with emotion, as there’s a great sense of pain, with Alfred, Bruce’s father for most of his life, no longer able to support his son - Despite Bruce becoming lost and losing Alfred, it’s fundamental for his maturity in the film, as he no longer has Alfred to lean on and guide him through his life - Instead, he’s forced to take responsibility for himself, pursuing that which is important to him and gives his life meaning and purpose, to save Gotham, which is a reflection of himself - Despite the journey being one which almost sees him lose himself, the detachment from Alfred is necessary, as it’s the only way he comes to the self realisation that his life cannot remain as it is any longer, he needs to move on and enter the next phase, leaving behind Batman, embracing Bruce Wayne and settling down with Selina Kyle, who undergoes a similar journey herself 5.

08:37 - Hope and Sacrifice - We’ve already said that Batman symbolises order in the course of the Dark Knight Rises, and in the film order represents hope and sacrifice, which are necessary for the city to move forward with belief in itself - It’s not by coincidence that in a critical moment in the film when he returns to Gotham after escaping the Pit, that he chooses to use controlled fire to symbolise hope to restore justice and order, returning Gotham back into a state of harmony and growth, as it’s from the ashes of the fire, or war, that Gotham will be able to build anew - In the film, he also symbolises the act of sacrifice, the first of which is when the previous, shallow version of Batman, or order, is broken by Bane - Then he sacrifices himself again at end, this time through choice, as he represents the previous form of order in the city, and does so to save Gotham and allow the growth of something new - This is common thread in humanity as seen through historical events such as World War 2 and the Cold War, where we were at risk of nuclear disaster, as well as other horrific events from which we learn important lessons.

09:52 - It’s often from huge sacrifices that we learn our most important lessons - However, equally pertinent is that this applies at a personal level too, as it’s from events we face and work through in life that we grow and be stronger.

10:07 - At this point, we sacrifice our previous forms or beliefs, so that we can grow to be someone new 6.

10:17 - The Fire Rises - It’s from chaos we see a new form of order and construction breed and grow, wheter it be in the form of society in Gotham, or individual characters who have changed following the events - From this we see the death of the old form of order, represented by Batman who died in the nuclear explosion, and from the ashes we see the rise of a new form of order, represented by John Blake, revealed to be Robin who inherits the role of the Batman from Bruce Wayne - We also see that Gotham is reborn from the ashes of the fire, ready to return to order, structure and harmony, as Jim Gordon quotes A Tale Of Two Cities at the end from the perspective of Batman, saying “I see a beautiful city and a brilliant people rising from this abyss.

11:05 - I see the lives for which I lay down my life, peaceful, useful, prosperous and happy.

11:12 - I see that I hold a sanctuary in their hearts, and in the hearts of their descendants, generations hence.

11:20 - It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known. ” - We individually go through the same, as we’ll have moments of great difficulty in life that can be chaotic, scary and destructive, but from it we come out stronger, a new and stronger form of ourselves - This is understood from the philosophical principle known as the Hegelian Dialectic, whereby you start with a proposition, called the thesis, the negation to that proposition, called the antithesis, following which the conflict leads to synthesis, whereby the two conflicting ideas are reconciled to form a new proposition, as seen in The Dark Knight Rises There are more characters that deserve discussion, such as Bane and Miranda Tate, who I may cover in another video.

12:23 - In the meantime, what did you think of the Dark Knight Rises? Was it a satisfactory conclusion to what will go down as one of the great trilogies in cinema history? Let me know in the comments.

12:34 - Please Like, Share and Subscribe as we help you live life on your terms.

12:38 - Don’t forget to hit the bell icon to ensure YouTube notifies you of the latest uploads.

12:42 - Thanks for watching.