2021 is here and old incomplete edits need a review. At first, I felt this was one of my edits destined for the bin. Looking back on my TDKR edit again, I forgot how many problems are in this movie. Slow fights, silly motivations, and exposition galore. I never thought this was improved enough to warrant a release.
Until now. Possibly. If this works.
Reading a review recently about how "Bruce healing twice" is bad storytelling, I got inspired to experiment a little more, removing the "old" aspect of Bruce so he only has to heal from his fight with Bane. Playing around with this let me down a new rabbit hole. Big changes abound, but the main ones are the removal of all scenes with "old Bruce" and the discussions about him being a recluse. He may not be Batman anymore, but he's not decrepit.
One big effect of this is that we lose Bruce and Selina's first meeting, and so we must turn the ballroom dance scene into their first face to face. This is also the first time the audience actually sees Bruce as well.
We also lose Blake telling Bruce how he knows him. Now he shows up to the mansion, and Alfred looks annoyed. Blake and Bruce's relationship is implied but mysterious (I hope.) Bruce just is friends with an up an coming cop on the force, perhaps trying to lighten the load from Gordon after the stuff with his kid. Gordon effectively is traumatized. My original edit was called "Long Live the Batman" but this newer version doesn't suit the title anymore. Blake doesn't become another Batman. (Batman beyond maybe?)
This also means we lose Alfred and Bruce's first discussion in the cave. Alfred is EXTREMELY sidelined in this edit, showing up only to be annoyed that Blake is encouraging Bruce to be batman again, to get the drive to Fox and resign from Bruce, and to mourn at Bruce's grave and for the will.
Since we lose Alfred warning Bruce about Bane, this is where the REAL rabbit hole began- making Bane more of a menacing mystery. ("Show Don't Tell" mantra in full effect!) I leaned into things like showing Bane enter and exit the stock exchange, but not waiting inside. I removed Bane explicitly mentioning "the League of shadows" in his sewer fight with Bruce. We don't find out about the pit until Bruce is taken there. And little things, like he doesn't grasp at his mask as Bruce breaks it - he keeps fighting like a badass, but its just enough for Bruce to start getting the advantage again.
Here are some clips of new major changes:
New opening sequence:
"Show Don't Tell" tightening, and now the CIA guy actually kills the first guy out the window. No blood transfusion, and Bane says less to the sacrificial guy.
New Ballroom Dance Sequence:
Now the first face to face meeting between Bruce and Kyle, after she robbed his place. No mention of a coming populous movement.
New Bane Sewer Fight:
Now no explicit mention of the League of Shadows, new tension-building score added.
New Bane Stadium Speech:
Now less populous focus, more terror-based
New Cops meet Bane's Men Scene:
Now the Cops stand hesitantly, until Foley silently leads the way.
Other fixes from my original edit include:
- Format is full HD all the time, no IMAX format changes.
- Remove Gordon's opening speech - A lot is explained well enough already, this being one as the mayor says it all soon after
- Plane takeover is faster.
- No blood transfusion.
- Alfred's dream vacation story is scrubbed.
- All mentions of autopilot are scrubbed.
- Bane's attack on the stock exchange seems more methodical.
- Exterior Stock Exchange shots color-corrected to seem like sunset, to better fit with the nighttime chase scene.
- The history eraser program is minimized to a 'gangland myth' and not a motivation for Selina after Batman saves her from the thugs.
- Removed Selina looking back at Bane while being shot at on the rooftop.
- In Selina's apartment, the history eraser program subject is again removed.
- Bruce is not locked out of his house so he doesn't need to sleep with Talia out of nowhere.
- Background tension builder added to Bane/Batman sewer fight.
- Bane does not say he was born in the darkness, but he still says he was a man when he first saw the light.
- Beginning with the prison breakout, Countdown to Core Meltdown Captions spread out the timing of Bruce's recovery beginning at 150 days, with some scenes re-ordered to accommodate.
- Any verbal mention of time outside of a more evenly paced decent into chaos are removed.
- Timecodes added to Bruce's scenes in the pit.
- Once Batman hits Bane's facemask and breaks it, Bane doesn't try to fix it during the fight.
- Removed Batman saying "where's the trigger" repeatedly.
- The Batwing chase scene is tightened up, Shots of solders inside the tanks are removed
- Talia doesn't actually do the full death scene, she talks and is done.
- Gordon doesn't discuss who Batman is.
- Bruce dies.
- No vacation scenes with Alfred, Bruce and Selina.
- Blake gets the bag without being called Robin.
- Gordon doesn't return to work. No new Batsignal. Blake will become SOMETHING, but not Batman. (Unless he spends years training to be better than having to shoot the two goons at the cement place) He's got potential. And he seems to have already known Bruce
Feedback welcome! Preview available, iand please chime in if anyone has a wishlist for changes to this movie! I thought it was beyond hope simply due to how great TDK is. I'm actually approaching this review with new perspective, and am very optimistic.
If any admins see this, can we move this thread back to ITW?