I caught up to The Dark Knight Rises (2012) last night, courtesy of Netflix. I really enjoyed it. I did not pause the DVD a single time, despite its two-and-a-half hour running time. It had a great villain, interesting story, a twist I did not anticipate (not the final one) and, of course, great effects. I don’t know why I was surprised that Anne Hathaway would make an excellent Cat Woman. She has been wonderful in every film in which I’ve seen her. I respect that Bane is never unmasked. Tom Hardy, who played the role, also did a great turn as one of literature’s great lowlifes, Bill Sykes, in the most recent adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist (2007), a PBS miniseries. I still chuckle at Gary Oldman, another Brit, a master of silver screen creeps, in the heroic role of Commissioner Gordon. I was disappointed in only one aspect of the viewing. These days I leave the close-captioning running all the times, as my hearing is not up to par. There was none on the DVD, and I had difficulty understanding a lot of the dialogue. I did not understand why Cat Woman allowed Joseph Gordon Levitt’s character to arrest her without a fight, when she violently resisted everyone else along the way, including Batman. I hope the film is one day broadcast on regular TV so that I can read what I missed. During it, Bruce Wayne, played by Christian Bale, the definitive Caped Crusader, declares that Batman is an idea, not an individual. Does this mean the next celluloid incarnation of the alter ego will be someone other than Wayne, perhaps Levitt’s character? How would diehards react to that? Maybe it's time to retire the series. It's hard to imagine topping the most recent trilogy. On a scale of five, I rate The Dark Knight Rises four. It is rated 8.6 of ten at IMDb.
Yankees haters like me have been encouraged by their difficulties this spring, but now that the great Mariano Rivera has announced his retirement I see another scenario - the final pitch of his storied career closing out yet another World Series title for the Bronx Bombers. Say it ain't so, Joe.
It was a gorgeous day, and a successful one for the floating books shop. Jack of Chase Bank was not working today, but the security guard bought a couple of paperbacks. A gentleman purchased three non-fictions, including Rudy Giuliani's Leadership. Another purchased Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley and Ron Powers, and Folly and Glory by Larry McMurtry. He was two years behind me at Lafayette H.S. and asked for advice for his daughter, 33, who writes. I told him to have her look me up on the web. I' ll answer any and all questions. Last but not least, Bad News Billy showed and bought the Ultimate Jazz CD I keep on file in Windows Media Player. He's treating a bad cold with streptomycin. Thanks, folks.
Visit Vic's sites:
Vic's Third Novel (Print or Kindle): http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
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