THE DARK KNIGHT RISES: BANE AND CATWOMAN IT IS

"..but this is just fuckin' stupid."

The problem with Anne Hathaway as Catwoman is that boners in a public theater make me awkward. The problem with Tom Hardy as a big muscle man is that boners in a public theater make me awkward. The title finally makes sense.

Bane can be a great character in the comics. When done right, he's as smart as Batman.

BANE!!!!!!!

But I fear Nolan will eliminate the best thing about the character: the Mexican Luchador outfit.

Bane's kind of a weird choice, but I'm sure his character is going to be heavily modified. My guess is he'll become some kind of drugged up, corrupt cop who has a personal vendetta against Batman.

I have nothing against Tom Hardy, but if this is genuine...Javier Bardem should have been Bane.  I'm sure Hardy's interpretation will be decent enough within Nolan's modified universe, but if that means my favorite background for the character will be eliminated, I'm just a little bit disappointed, especially since Christopher Nolan doesn't seem to mind globe-trotting with his villains.

Bane will fit right in with the realism that Nolan wants, and he's not some half wit. He's pretty intelligent. I expect some Bronson level acting and physicality from Hardy.

Anne Hathaway. She has the right "physique" for the Catwoman costume. She's also a great actress so yeah. Awesome.

Smells like Spiderman 3...

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Originally Posted by Cameron Hughes 

Bane can be a great character in the comics. When done right, he's as smart as Batman.

uh what?

Completely random news.  Very curious to see how Nolan can work these two into a universe that seems very ill-fit for them.  But then again who'd have thought Two Face would work in a Nolan Batman film...
 

At this point, I have total and complete faith in whatever Nolan has planned. That those plans involve Anne Hathaway in a skintight leather outfit only makes those plans even more awesome.

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Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cameron Hughes 

Bane can be a great character in the comics. When done right, he's as smart as Batman.

uh what?

 

 

Completely random news.  Very curious to see how Nolan can work these two into a universe that seems very ill-fit for them.  But then again who'd have thought Two Face would work in a Nolan Batman film...
 

It's true. After Knightfall(Where Bane was introduced as muscle-bound, but smart and calculating), Bane has been a pretty cool character and a good Batman villain and sometimes anti-hero. He's not the character from Schumacher's Batman and Robin. 

I haven't read Gail Simone's work, but from what I remember from Knightfall, Bane's cold, calculating plan was releasing all the inmates at Arkham and then dealing with Batman after he was tired from wiping them all up. The movie character wasn't much more lame and hokey than the comic character, but again, I'd be willing to bet Nolan changes the character quite a bit.

I'm expecting some really great fight scenes between Batman and Bane. Batman having a big throwdown with the major villain is something that hasn't been seen since Batman Begins.

I wouldn't hold my breath on that one Rene. This is, after all, a Christopher Nolan film.

If Talia Al Ghul and Bane are involved, that's a lot for Batman to triumph against, particularly with the cops on his trail at the close of the second film. Is it possible the series ends in tragedy? I don't think anyone's had this level of franchise freedom outside of George Lucas, might Nolan have the balls to have a not-so-rosy ending? Even if you tone down what Talia and Bane represent, I don't know if the Batman from The Dark Knight can handle that sort of thing. I am also being incredibly nerdy about seeing this movie in my mind right now.

Even money says Hathaway is never called Catwoman in the movie, nor does she wear a mask.

Personally, I'm thrilled to see both Bane and Catwoman in the third (and final) Batman movie in Nolan's trilogy. Both Tom Hardy and Anne Hathaway (drool) are terrific actors, and I believe they will bring alot to the roles that they play in this sequel. Although Bane is supposed to be a muscle-bound villain, I don't think Nolan will do it exactly like it in the comics, just like his interpretation of Joker and Two-Face. Bane may become an addict who gets superhuman strength from his drugs, and Catwoman can be a burglar who fell in love with Wayne and wanted to reform. Anyway, except for the title, I'm eagerly anticipating the third Batman movie and I hope it will avoid the pitfalls that X-Men 3, Spider-man 3, Superman 3, and Batman Forever fell under.

As long as they don't try to do for Catwoman what they did for Two-Face.

"You're sleek and sexy and always land on your feet. You're like a cat, and yet...a woman."

I willing to bet that Bane will either be a mob leader from another country, looking to take over Gotham, and destroy The Batman, or a Bounty Hunter coming to Gotham to take down The Batman.

I think we all knew Catwoman was a given since Nolan made Bruce's love interest, Rachel, a major part of the story in Batman Begins, and the Dark Knight.  Nolan seems to like to explore that aspect of Bruce Waynes character.  I do think, that they could do something rather interesting with Selina Kyle.  i coud see her as the flip side of the coin that Batman represents.  Where as Bruce is a spoiled rich man, taking up the mask to end crime but inspire morality and justice in the public, Selina Kyle will be a poor woman widowed by crime in gotham, who is more interested in vengence then justice. 

Now the question I have, is Tom hardy just going to bulk up for this role, or are they going to use CGI to enhance his look?  I can't see them using Bane, and not going the muscle bound route.  I'm sure though, Nolan will keep the aspect of Bane being just as intelligent as Batman.

If Hardy gets as big as he was in Bronson there is no need to enhance his look for Bane.

Nobody has super-powers in Nolan's films anyway, so CGI muscles would be dumb.

Just add yellow paint. Don't forget the neck tubes! Or the turbo button. What's a Bane without his turbo button.

I'll be the one to say that while I like the actors, I can't help but feeling underwhelmed by the parts they will be playing.  Nolan has earned some trust, though, so I'm willing to see where he takes the characters.  

Has Tom Hardy ever portrayed ethnic characters?  Although there's plenty of room for variation, I was looking forward to seeing a Latino portray Bane -- and the possibility of filming in Mexico, although that was an even longer shot.  That would have at least remedied making Ras al Ghul more or less European, although his background in Begins was left ambiguous enough to justify that.

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Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

Nobody has super-powers in Nolan's films anyway, so CGI muscles would be dumb.

would a super steriod that instantly jacks someone up, be considered super powers?  I don't think that would be any more unbeleivable then cell phone sonar can be directed to batgoggles?

Take this with a grain of salt, but could this be early concept art for Bane's look in TDKR?

http://comicbookmovie.com/fansites/GulfCoastAvengers/news/?a=28326

I hope Hardy looks exactly like Bronson (save for the mustache) and has the same working class accent that he had in Bronson. I know Bane is supposed to be from South America, but Hardy's Bronson accent was so great that I think everyone can overlook that. Well except for the obsessed nerds.

I hope that even though it's a Nolan movie, Patrick, that he at least decides to finally go all out on the action front. I wasn't the biggest fan of The Dark Knight, but it's few action sequences were actually good, and I know that's one thing that Nolan has been working on, and Inception showed that he's getting better with it.

If Inception is any indication, Nolan's getting somewhat better and more ambitious with his action staging -- both of which were severely lacking in TDK, in my opinion (although many would beg to differ, I found the staging of the final confrontation a little bit wonky at best).  I hope Nolan takes advantage of a fierce character like Bane to design his sequences more intelligently.

[quote]Well except for the obsessed nerds.[/quote]

*shrug*  I personally think it's more interesting as a background.  We'll see what Nolan invents for comparison.

This news comes as a bit of a surprise, but I can't say I'm disappointed. I really loved Hardy in Inception (I don't think I've seen him in anything else yet, though), and Hathaway is a gutsy actress, so I am curious to see her take on the character. For some reason, though, I really can't picture Bale & Hathaway together romantically. Oh, well, guess that's why they call it "acting."

The final fight in The Dark Knight was pretty weak. That was why I mentioned that I'm expecting a big fight between Batman and Bane, since Bane is one of those rare Batman villains who's primary function is to be physically threatening, rather than just being all brains. Because even though in the comics a lot of the villains are drawn to look physically fit, most of the time they try to avoid confrontations or get taken down fairly easily.

Just like what happened with The Joker in The Dark Knight. He fights Batman with just a pipe and the guard dogs. I was expecting more.

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Originally Posted by NickP 

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Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

Nobody has super-powers in Nolan's films anyway, so CGI muscles would be dumb.

would a super steriod that instantly jacks someone up, be considered super powers?  I don't think that would be any more unbeleivable then cell phone sonar can be directed to batgoggles?

If it causes them to have muscles so big they need to be CGI, yes.
 

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Originally Posted by Gabe T 

Even money says Hathaway is never called Catwoman in the movie, nor does she wear a mask.

My thoughts exactly. Is the name "Catwoman" even mentioned in the original press release?
 

If you are going to put Hathaway in the Batman universe, have her play Harley Quinn, dammit!!

There's no reason to name the character Selina Kyle unless there's going to be some Catwoman'ing going on.  She may not wear a mask or be called "Catwoman" but it would be pretty useless to not have her be a cat burglar or whatever.

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Originally Posted by Phil 

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Originally Posted by Gabe T 

Even money says Hathaway is never called Catwoman in the movie, nor does she wear a mask.

 

My thoughts exactly. Is the name "Catwoman" even mentioned in the original press release?
 

I noticed that, too. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if she's never called "Catwoman" in the film.

I still think Catwoman is lame, but I'm fucking excited about this news.

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Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

There's no reason to name the character Selina Kyle unless there's going to be some Catwoman'ing going on.  She may not wear a mask or be called "Catwoman" but it would be pretty useless to not have her be a cat burglar or whatever.

But that'd be pretty Nolanacious to make her a cat burglar without a costume or the name Catwoman, wouldn't it? I can imagine just such shenolangins. How many films does it take before we realize Nolan doesn't give a good goddamn about the source material, and that his main strength is the way he turns it on its ear?
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by NickP 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

Nobody has super-powers in Nolan's films anyway, so CGI muscles would be dumb.

would a super steriod that instantly jacks someone up, be considered super powers?  I don't think that would be any more unbeleivable then cell phone sonar can be directed to batgoggles?

If it causes them to have muscles so big they need to be CGI, yes.
 

I'm talking muslces that are noticably different.  I guess you could have Hardy bulk up, and hide his mass with baggy clothing and camera tricks.  But if they included venom, I would assume they would include Bane sort of hulking out to a degree.

Wooo, called it! Gotta say, pumped they went with Bane, and as others have pointed out he's less of asteroid-freak and more of an evil (or semi-evil) Batman, with his own twisted code of ethics. Sort of what might have happened to Bruce Wayne if he'd been poor and orphaned in a prison instead of being raised by a loving father figure. Honestly, the whole "Venom" thing really doesn't have to enter into it, just having a character who is as ruthlessly dedicated to crime as Batman is to crimefighting could make for a great chemistry. Can't wait to see how Nolan pulls it off.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gabe T 

Even money says Hathaway is never called Catwoman in the movie, nor does she wear a mask.

 

My thoughts exactly. Is the name "Catwoman" even mentioned in the original press release?
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

There's no reason to name the character Selina Kyle unless there's going to be some Catwoman'ing going on.  She may not wear a mask or be called "Catwoman" but it would be pretty useless to not have her be a cat burglar or whatever.

 

But that'd be pretty Nolanacious to make her a cat burglar without a costume or the name Catwoman, wouldn't it? I can imagine just such shenolangins. How many films does it take before we realize Nolan doesn't give a good goddamn about the source material, and that his main strength is the way he turns it on its ear?
 

I was thinking this as well. I could see it playing out a similar arc to Harvey Dent in TDK. She stays as Selina all the way through to the 3rd act (playing Bruce's new love interest or whatever), and then turns into Catwoman (not really named or call that though) to throw some drama into the last bit of the film...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

There's no reason to name the character Selina Kyle unless there's going to be some Catwoman'ing going on.  She may not wear a mask or be called "Catwoman" but it would be pretty useless to not have her be a cat burglar or whatever.

 

But that'd be pretty Nolanacious to make her a cat burglar without a costume or the name Catwoman, wouldn't it? I can imagine just such shenolangins. How many films does it take before we realize Nolan doesn't give a good goddamn about the source material, and that his main strength is the way he turns it on its ear?
 

Oh totally, I just got the impression that some here thought she'd just be Standard Love Interest with no relation to Catwoman whatsoever beyond the name. 
 

hehe "shenolangins" Beautiful, Phil.

The role should've gone to Rachel Weisz. But Hathaway can act so I don't really care. 

Bet you they're just renaming this guy Bane.

http://www.comicvine.com/night-scourge/29-28433/

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ryan C.B. 

There's no reason to name the character Selina Kyle unless there's going to be some Catwoman'ing going on.  She may not wear a mask or be called "Catwoman" but it would be pretty useless to not have her be a cat burglar or whatever.

 

But that'd be pretty Nolanacious to make her a cat burglar without a costume or the name Catwoman, wouldn't it? I can imagine just such shenolangins. How many films does it take before we realize Nolan doesn't give a good goddamn about the source material, and that his main strength is the way he turns it on its ear?
 

Cat burglars usually wear something black and formfitting in most films so I think a "costume" would actually come naturally for the character. I just wouldn't expect to see any cat ears. And someone will say "catwoman" even if she never actually refers to herself as such.

The casting of Hathaway reminds me of the old anecdote regarding Lois Maxwell asking Terence Young (or Cubby) why she was cast as Moneypenny & not Honey Ryder, as she was hoping, "It's because Ursulla Andress looks as if she smells of sex, YOU look as if you smelled of soap"

I trust Nolan but Hathaway's an odd choice because, like Maxwell, "she looks like she smells of soap".

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Originally Posted by Art Decade 

 

 

I trust Nolan but Hathaway's an odd choice because, like Maxwell, "she looks like she smells of soap".

You sure?

Well....that's just...hmm.  Interesting.

Is Nolan trying to prove that he can take anything that Schumacher/Burton got shit for and make people eat it up?

Even sultry Hathaway still looks pure as the driven snow. It's the giant eyes.


I'm pretty blah on Catwoman in general, since she's one of the more overexposed Batman characters in both film and print. I'm actually pretty excited for Bane, though. If they're really going for the version of Bane who is an "anti-Batman" as opposed to a thug, Hardy fits well. It's consistently overlooked that Bane is generally written to be not only Batman's physical superior but also his intellectual equal, with even such great adaptations as the Arkham Asylum game casting Bane as a goon.