You mean to say you don't think TDK is the third best movie of all time as is proclaimed by the IMDb top 250??
Srsly tho, Nolan films are boring blockbusters that somehow fool people into finding them "smart" and deep or something. Can't wait until we can stop pretending his films are good.
Naw I was joking I like Nolan. But I can sympathize with people getting sick of hyoerbolic praise and overhype. Memento is still GOAT debut material imo.
I'll take a fun, but forgetable MCU popcorn flick any day of the week over "grounded", dull movies that want you to believe a guy dressing up in a bat costume is super srs "adult" drama when it's as shallow as your average blockbuster but a billion times more excruciating to sit through 'cause it takes itself so goddamn seriously.
Not that you can't do edgy Batman right, Frank Miller is sometimes good, and usually at least interesting, but Nolan and Snyder are like 13 year olds who think they are suddenly too "grown up" for silly superhero movies, and try to ape "adult" drama at its shallowest levels.
It’s rare to see a postmodernist perspective on the superhero film culture, a culture so deeply rooted in the traditions of a mindset rooted in escapism - a response to a world in the midsts of pre-nuclear wars. Comic book films have been so pre-occupied with capturing the essence of thematics contained within the source material that, while a substantial amount of the particulars are certainly relevant, there has been no attempt to transform our perceptions of such historically grandiose figures. Superman, as we know, is the manifestation of the glimmering patriotism in Western culture, while also embodying the spiritual prominence and dominance of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Batman, as has been publicly accepted by the majority of audiences, is a symbolic representation of uncorrupted justice, a vigilante striving to bring light to a ruined city. Both are the amalgamations of societal moralization. In Batman v Superman, this is not the case. Snyder reinterprets these beloved characters into something much more sinister, something reflective of a civilization that has fallen into a state of perpetuating hate. Snyder creates a new mythos.
Imagine: A young Bruce Wayne levitating as a cyclone of bats lifts him from the well. Next we see Superman, a terrorist, demolishing a city, ending thousands of lives. These are our first images. Immediately Snyder wants us to know that what we expect from the valiant crime fighters is not what we’ll receive. Instead we are offered an unadulterated brute force: a Batman fuelled by rage, so lost in his ways that he holds himself as a god. As well, there is Superman, lost in morality, becoming frighteningly unaware of his influence but despairingly aware of his image. He’s a figure the world simultaneously reaches out for and rejects, motivated by both individualism and fear (resulting from xenophobia, commenting on relevant fears), respectively. Their battle is one of judgement, so perfectly climaxing with a name enabling an understanding between the two. It’s a perfectly internal moment caught strikingly on the faces and in the demeanour of a stunning Ben Affleck and impressive Henry Cavill. The damaged characters suggest a past of corrupt idealism for the ultimate hero. Both these men had lost sight in the world they seek to protect and it’s with each other that they can find the light to guide their way. It’s an exploration into these characters never before seen.
As the comedic relief and reflective soul encapsulating the collective psyche of modernity in the context of the God complex, Jesse Eisenberg’s Alexander Luther is a man striving to truly become all powerful. His psychopathy and infatuation with the mythos surrounding all powerful entities establish an extremely well built character, a new take on the deadly sin of greed. This desire for power, along with the previously mentioned moment of compassion between our two ‘heroes,’ justify the eventual coming of Doomsday, a personification of the world’s hatred; an unstoppable force that, in Superman’s sacrifice, proves pure selflessness as a necessary action in the evolution of society. Snyder continues to throw substance atop our heads that our psyches were unprepared for. The representation of politics is utterly hilarious in its inability to go forth due to indecisiveness. With such a pigheaded mentality present in the government, Luther’s corrupt initiative grabs hold and rectifies, from his perspective, a justice mirroring our two heroes, bringing into question their place upon the earth. This moment of doom is where the film asks us: what is the difference between a hero and a villain if, in the end, both kill the supposedly guilty?
Apart from the incredible amount of depth this film has, the technological achievement it is in the context of the story it tells needs to be addressed. Throughout the picture, the image feels false, manipulated by computers, attempting to replicate an aesthetic somewhere in-between realism and the comic book art. This, much like the rest of the film, is very much purposeful. Allowing us to see the artificiality, an idea that comes up within the score and pacing as well, breaks a forth wall separating the movie from reality. Snyder’s intent is to clearly throw the superhero film into today’s world and with this appearance forces it onto us. It only feels forceful, however, because we can’t allow it to be true. We continue to want to be stuck in a past where black and white are the opposing sides of a battle that never gets interesting. The superhero film gets an update and it’s much more pessimistic than you’d want to believe.
In terms of the remaining floating aspects of the film, I feel everything is pulled off with a disorderly precision that feels natural to such a chaotic experience. The introduction of the Justice League characters are established nicely, having a well built lead up into the reveal. Wonder Woman is an absolute treasure, the power she holds on screen being a testament to how well cast this film is. Her theme is ludicrous and completely fitting, being nothing short of extraordinary. Amy Adams has a much cleaner and relevant role in the grand tale, acting not as a girlfriend but as superman’s eyes to the human world. She’s completely necessary and her actions are just. The fight sequences are composed of sheer brutality. It’s emotionally stimulating to watch these characters who need each other pummel one another to the ground. Superhero films rarely elicit any emotional connection from me but with what these characters stand for and how important this film is as the zeitgeist of today’s society, I couldn't help but widen my eyes as connections, both peaceful and violent, were made.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a magnified image of contemporary humanity set on the stage of an opera. Its overtly imposing, yet always exhilarating score, constantly aware of the melodrama it creates, highlights every single moment as they fly by at an intentionally near incomprehensible pace. It thrives off of its emotionally exhaustive output, paralleling the motivations behind each character’s decisions, the decisions of gods. It’s their decisions that bring us to our final image of hope. That’s what this film is essentially about: gods and hope. It dethrones the deity, bringing them to our level through previously mentioned empathetic sentiments of kinless loss and love. It’s a beautifully powerful gesture, one that films such as this never attempt to offer. Though its hope is established as rather grim, it is in the end where sacrifice and humanistic idealism elevate the dire collective perception towards something to strive for. “Men are still good.” Bruce Wayne says. Yes, they still are and it is imperative for us to keep this notion in our minds. Batman v Superman is a film that personifies modern culture and explores it. Thoroughly, thoughtfully; the film sees what we believe is true and tells us it’s not. It shows us the ugliness rotting behind the pristine paintings of heroic idealism. This is the superhero film we’ve desperately needed, something to awaken us from such a mundane onslaught of derivative pictures and escapism jest. I honestly believe that one day we’ll look back on this film and see Snyder’s masterpiece as a film ahead of its time, a film we weren’t, in the slightest, ready for.
The bad harry potter fanfiction fanbase has a phrase: "reverse stupidity is not intelligence". Just because Nolan is an overrated hack, it doesn't mean this smarmy fake brit's criticism is the correct one.
thebaffler.com is great reading for horrible takes like this. I’m waiting anxiously for when it gets revealed/retconned into some kind of cringey satire or performance art. Like when Joaquin Phoenix became an alcoholic junkie but then it was all method acting and he cleaned up before he spiraled into a full Shia.
The author is American, he just likes pretending he’s a British intellectual. You can tell it’s a burger because he says “pants” instead of “trousers”.
I walked out of that, I was disgusted by the glorification of needless violence. It was also manipulation through imagery, I came back in at the end and for some reason started crying even though I had no idea what the movie was about.
There is no notion, in the films of Nolan, that people may surprise you, perhaps with their intelligence or solidarity, and so no hope for chance. It’s not a matter of ideology: Nolan insistently casts his work against art, chance, and therefore any idea of “the people.” This renders each of his films a manifesto, an ars technica, because he wants nothing more than to choke out art and control his audience.
25 comments
1 v_is_one_person 2018-03-23
GOOD post. Fuck Nolan tbh.
1 allwordsaredust 2018-03-23
You mean to say you don't think TDK is the third best movie of all time as is proclaimed by the IMDb top 250??
Srsly tho, Nolan films are boring blockbusters that somehow fool people into finding them "smart" and deep or something. Can't wait until we can stop pretending his films are good.
1 v_is_one_person 2018-03-23
Naw I was joking I like Nolan. But I can sympathize with people getting sick of hyoerbolic praise and overhype. Memento is still GOAT debut material imo.
1 incineratechicken 2018-03-23
If I take off that mask, will you die?
1 subliiime4668 2018-03-23
You’re a big guy
1 incineratechicken 2018-03-23
I’m CIA.
1 westofthetracks 2018-03-23
nolan generally sucks but tdk is one of the only actually good superhero movies, same as with snyder and bvs
1 allwordsaredust 2018-03-23
Is this bait? Because I'll take it.
I'll take a fun, but forgetable MCU popcorn flick any day of the week over "grounded", dull movies that want you to believe a guy dressing up in a bat costume is super srs "adult" drama when it's as shallow as your average blockbuster but a billion times more excruciating to sit through 'cause it takes itself so goddamn seriously.
Not that you can't do edgy Batman right, Frank Miller is sometimes good, and usually at least interesting, but Nolan and Snyder are like 13 year olds who think they are suddenly too "grown up" for silly superhero movies, and try to ape "adult" drama at its shallowest levels.
1 westofthetracks 2018-03-23
It’s rare to see a postmodernist perspective on the superhero film culture, a culture so deeply rooted in the traditions of a mindset rooted in escapism - a response to a world in the midsts of pre-nuclear wars. Comic book films have been so pre-occupied with capturing the essence of thematics contained within the source material that, while a substantial amount of the particulars are certainly relevant, there has been no attempt to transform our perceptions of such historically grandiose figures. Superman, as we know, is the manifestation of the glimmering patriotism in Western culture, while also embodying the spiritual prominence and dominance of the second coming of Jesus Christ. Batman, as has been publicly accepted by the majority of audiences, is a symbolic representation of uncorrupted justice, a vigilante striving to bring light to a ruined city. Both are the amalgamations of societal moralization. In Batman v Superman, this is not the case. Snyder reinterprets these beloved characters into something much more sinister, something reflective of a civilization that has fallen into a state of perpetuating hate. Snyder creates a new mythos.
Imagine: A young Bruce Wayne levitating as a cyclone of bats lifts him from the well. Next we see Superman, a terrorist, demolishing a city, ending thousands of lives. These are our first images. Immediately Snyder wants us to know that what we expect from the valiant crime fighters is not what we’ll receive. Instead we are offered an unadulterated brute force: a Batman fuelled by rage, so lost in his ways that he holds himself as a god. As well, there is Superman, lost in morality, becoming frighteningly unaware of his influence but despairingly aware of his image. He’s a figure the world simultaneously reaches out for and rejects, motivated by both individualism and fear (resulting from xenophobia, commenting on relevant fears), respectively. Their battle is one of judgement, so perfectly climaxing with a name enabling an understanding between the two. It’s a perfectly internal moment caught strikingly on the faces and in the demeanour of a stunning Ben Affleck and impressive Henry Cavill. The damaged characters suggest a past of corrupt idealism for the ultimate hero. Both these men had lost sight in the world they seek to protect and it’s with each other that they can find the light to guide their way. It’s an exploration into these characters never before seen.
As the comedic relief and reflective soul encapsulating the collective psyche of modernity in the context of the God complex, Jesse Eisenberg’s Alexander Luther is a man striving to truly become all powerful. His psychopathy and infatuation with the mythos surrounding all powerful entities establish an extremely well built character, a new take on the deadly sin of greed. This desire for power, along with the previously mentioned moment of compassion between our two ‘heroes,’ justify the eventual coming of Doomsday, a personification of the world’s hatred; an unstoppable force that, in Superman’s sacrifice, proves pure selflessness as a necessary action in the evolution of society. Snyder continues to throw substance atop our heads that our psyches were unprepared for. The representation of politics is utterly hilarious in its inability to go forth due to indecisiveness. With such a pigheaded mentality present in the government, Luther’s corrupt initiative grabs hold and rectifies, from his perspective, a justice mirroring our two heroes, bringing into question their place upon the earth. This moment of doom is where the film asks us: what is the difference between a hero and a villain if, in the end, both kill the supposedly guilty?
Apart from the incredible amount of depth this film has, the technological achievement it is in the context of the story it tells needs to be addressed. Throughout the picture, the image feels false, manipulated by computers, attempting to replicate an aesthetic somewhere in-between realism and the comic book art. This, much like the rest of the film, is very much purposeful. Allowing us to see the artificiality, an idea that comes up within the score and pacing as well, breaks a forth wall separating the movie from reality. Snyder’s intent is to clearly throw the superhero film into today’s world and with this appearance forces it onto us. It only feels forceful, however, because we can’t allow it to be true. We continue to want to be stuck in a past where black and white are the opposing sides of a battle that never gets interesting. The superhero film gets an update and it’s much more pessimistic than you’d want to believe.
In terms of the remaining floating aspects of the film, I feel everything is pulled off with a disorderly precision that feels natural to such a chaotic experience. The introduction of the Justice League characters are established nicely, having a well built lead up into the reveal. Wonder Woman is an absolute treasure, the power she holds on screen being a testament to how well cast this film is. Her theme is ludicrous and completely fitting, being nothing short of extraordinary. Amy Adams has a much cleaner and relevant role in the grand tale, acting not as a girlfriend but as superman’s eyes to the human world. She’s completely necessary and her actions are just. The fight sequences are composed of sheer brutality. It’s emotionally stimulating to watch these characters who need each other pummel one another to the ground. Superhero films rarely elicit any emotional connection from me but with what these characters stand for and how important this film is as the zeitgeist of today’s society, I couldn't help but widen my eyes as connections, both peaceful and violent, were made.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a magnified image of contemporary humanity set on the stage of an opera. Its overtly imposing, yet always exhilarating score, constantly aware of the melodrama it creates, highlights every single moment as they fly by at an intentionally near incomprehensible pace. It thrives off of its emotionally exhaustive output, paralleling the motivations behind each character’s decisions, the decisions of gods. It’s their decisions that bring us to our final image of hope. That’s what this film is essentially about: gods and hope. It dethrones the deity, bringing them to our level through previously mentioned empathetic sentiments of kinless loss and love. It’s a beautifully powerful gesture, one that films such as this never attempt to offer. Though its hope is established as rather grim, it is in the end where sacrifice and humanistic idealism elevate the dire collective perception towards something to strive for. “Men are still good.” Bruce Wayne says. Yes, they still are and it is imperative for us to keep this notion in our minds. Batman v Superman is a film that personifies modern culture and explores it. Thoroughly, thoughtfully; the film sees what we believe is true and tells us it’s not. It shows us the ugliness rotting behind the pristine paintings of heroic idealism. This is the superhero film we’ve desperately needed, something to awaken us from such a mundane onslaught of derivative pictures and escapism jest. I honestly believe that one day we’ll look back on this film and see Snyder’s masterpiece as a film ahead of its time, a film we weren’t, in the slightest, ready for.
1 allwordsaredust 2018-03-23
8/10 no mention of German Expressionist Cinema.
1 PM_ME_HAIRLESS_CATS 2018-03-23
Tl;dr
1 NormanImmanuel 2018-03-23
The bad harry potter fanfiction fanbase has a phrase: "reverse stupidity is not intelligence". Just because Nolan is an overrated hack, it doesn't mean this smarmy fake brit's criticism is the correct one.
1 v_is_one_person 2018-03-23
thebaffler.com is great reading for horrible takes like this. I’m waiting anxiously for when it gets revealed/retconned into some kind of cringey satire or performance art. Like when Joaquin Phoenix became an alcoholic junkie but then it was all method acting and he cleaned up before he spiraled into a full Shia.
1 SocialistEphebophile 2018-03-23
Downvoted only because you got retards talking about superhero
1 v_is_one_person 2018-03-23
The thread is about Nolan...
1 niexx 2018-03-23
this seems gay af why should i read it
1 MrAlphonzo 2018-03-23
I don't speak redcoat.
Someone translate.
1 cimarafa 2018-03-23
The author is American, he just likes pretending he’s a British intellectual. You can tell it’s a burger because he says “pants” instead of “trousers”.
1 GRABOS 2018-03-23
that's a northern thing too
1 Mephistopholees 2018-03-23
so still pretending to be intellectual
1 FreakyStories 2018-03-23
I walked out of that, I was disgusted by the glorification of needless violence. It was also manipulation through imagery, I came back in at the end and for some reason started crying even though I had no idea what the movie was about.
1 westofthetracks 2018-03-23
aka "cinema"
1 myshl0ng 2018-03-23
It's popular to hate Nolan again?
1 PM_ME_HAIRLESS_CATS 2018-03-23
You're a pretty big guy
1 XhotwheelsloverX 2018-03-23
For you🍆
1 SocialistEphebophile 2018-03-23
WWII is tory propaganda
(didn't read, that's what I'm going to assume it says)
1 SocialistEphebophile 2018-03-23
Yep. It's a fag.
1 grungebot5000 2018-03-23
well fucking obviously, it’s a Chris Nolan movie