Monday Muse: The Dark Knight Rises

     It's Monday again, and today I decided to do something a little different. Many films today are adaptations, as is The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan's recent finale to his Batman franchise. With many of these films, it's difficult to retain a good balance between being faithful to the source material, while breaking new ground and making the film wholly original. Today I thought I'd look at what makes The Dark Knight Rises a shining example of how adaptations can be done, as it succeeds in honoring both the comics as well as the new lore crafted by Nolan himself. I will warn those of you who haven't seen the film yet, I will be discussing content that spoils many plot points, so be wary, otherwise, read on!
     Nolan's desire to have the Dark Knight films remain grounded in reality while taking place in a setting that is far from it has made the films rather successful, broadening the scope and showing unique vision. He has displayed an uncanny ability to convert outlandish comic mythology to events taking place in a rather realistic world. This makes the impressiveness of the The Dark Knight franchise as a whole even more paramount, and marks another reason why I believe they will soon be celebrated as another great addition to the great trilogies in film.
     For those of you not familiar with the comics, knowledge of such makes the scope of the film even more impressive, so I will do my best to touch on the few inspirations that play into the film, which Nolan incorporates rather impressively. The most well known comic inspiration present in the film is of course Bane, and his subsequent 'breaking of the Bat'. In the comics, Bane is a physically massive super-villain, juiced on a steroid called 'Venom'. With his supreme strength, he snaps The Dark Knight's back, leaving him paralyzed for a long extent of time. This is also true in the film of course, when Bane overwhelms Batman in the sewer brawl, leaving him broken and battered. You may wonder how this 'Venom' aspect was present in the movie, but if you pay close attention, we learn that Bane was beaten down in helping Talia escape the prison, which resulted in his addiction to morphine, or a similar painkiller. This is what makes the apparatus necessary, as it constantly pumps his body full of the drug. 
     For those of you not familiar, the 'Pit' itself is representative of something in the comics, and actually explains well some of the more unbelievable portions of the film. Ra's Al Ghul, Batman's mentor and head of The League of Shadows, has actually died multiple times over, having been resurected in the comics by a chemical bath with mystical properties, known as Lazarus Pits. In the film, the prison is certainly a reference to this, as it is where  Bruce Wayne heals rather speedily, almost magically, from what is usually a permanent state, paralysis. 
     Another smaller nod to the comics is the pearls stolen by Catwoman. Since the beginning of the Batman comics, they have always been iconically portrayed as being worn by Martha Wayne (Bruce's mother) on the night his parents were both murdered. This is why they hold such importance to him, and inspire him to leave his state of hermit-ism, and chase down the elusive Selina Kyle. 
     Of course probably the most interesting and well executed comic-nod is that of Robin, in the film known as John Blake, and portrayed by Joseph Gordon Levitt. Nolan had made known early on that the Dick Grayson (the first and original Robin) would not be present in his trilogy. This makes sense, as a sidekick swooping around in bright tights would debase some of the realistic foundations of the film. Instead, Nolan introduced John Blake, who is actually a synthesis of the 'Robins' present in the comics. Blake is an orphan turned cop, who finds himself upset and frustrated with the system, who ultimately becomes Robin through his discovery of Batman's secret identity, and subsequent location of the Batcave beneath Wayne Manor. This is a meld of all three Robin's present in the comics, Dick Grayson was an orphan turned cop, Jason Todd another Robin, often had anger issues and frustration with the clunkiness of justice, and finally Tim Drake, who bears the most semblance to Blake, became Robin simply because he uncovered Batman's identity for himself.
     While these are only the most obvious and important comic nods present in the film, there are certainly more hidden and cleverly incorporated. Nolan has displayed a fantastic knack for adaption in the entire trilogy, and has shown he is one of the few directors that can keep both audiences happy.