Ryan Lilienfield

This movie has everything you could ever ask for. It's reflective of the times but ultimately optimistic. That's difficult to achieve without coming off as condescending or dismissive towards those affected but PTA somehow pulls it off. The movie is hilarious, and Paul (my close personal friend) knows how to shoot an excellent action sequence. What ties everything together is the tremendous amount of heart and earnestness in the dynamic between bob and wila.   Top everything off with iconic supporting characters, stellar performances all around, gorgeous music, fantastic needle drops, etc, etc. Glad PTA finally got his awards.

Boringly predictable ending

Perfect adaptation of one of the most acclaimed pieces of literature to come out of the comics medium. You would be mistaken to write this off as just some aura-farming old Batman yelling at the clouds. While that alone fucks, if you want there is more to chew on here. Bruce is a husk, emptied out by the death of his adopted son Jason. His trauma has defeated him. He's grown complacent and without Batman, Gotham (and the world) has slid into the pits of hell. Limp and corrupt leadership has let the people down. News outlets flooding the zone with murders and global conflicts keeps the citizens in fear. The failings of the post-war neo-liberal order have come home to Gotham as the country nosedives towards fascism (more on this in pt2). Poverty has given the mutants room to flourish, lost teenagers look for a strong figure to guide them and only see a shark toothed pointy nippled hulking freak. Generals sell military weapons to street gangs because of a broken healthcare system. Fear and complacency rule the day. Bruce’s original wound is reopened when the violence surrounding him is finally too much to bare. Something awakens inside, long kept dormant. Keeping this long-dormant part of himself suppressed has only made it stronger. It speaks to him, its takes over his body. This compulsive struggle with identity is mirrored by Harvey Dents. The people need an example and no one else has stepped up. They need to see one man conquering fear and complacency. The bat isn't done with him yet. It's a totem, its the idea of fear itself. He's weaponized fear against those who spread fear amongst the innocent. However a powerful symbol invites challenge and the ending cliffhanger of pt 1 shows us the first face of that challenge. The cosmetic stuff in this is great too, the quotables, the music, the animation that faithfully adapts Millers style.