Jul 23
'12
‘The Dark Knight Rises’ made about $165 million for its opening weekend

Immediately following Thursday night/Friday morning’s tragic events in Colorado, Warner Bros. made a series of steps to ensure that they were being respectful to the victims of a POS bastard. Warner Bros. canceled Friday’s premiere in Paris, and then pulled the cast of The Dark Knight Rises out of Europe, effectively canceling the European promotion for TDKR. Warner also announced that they would not be announcing or releasing their box office numbers throughout the weekend. Well, it’s Monday and Warner still hasn’t released any official numbers, although other media outlets are doing their own estimations. By the way, I’m covering this now because it’s legitimate industry news and we’re not just a few hours from the tragedy (cough, Nikki Finke). So, how did TDKR do at the box office? It didn’t break any records, which is what the studio hoped for before the tragedy. Still, TDKR is on track to become one of the biggest films of the year:

While steeped in tragedy, “The Dark Knight Rises” continued to bring in big bucks at the box office this weekend.

Out of respect for the victims of the Aurora shooting, Warner Bros. — as well as other studios — would not release their debut numbers this weekend. (This past Friday, 24-year-old James Holmes shot 12 people during a midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colorado.)

However, various media outlets have reported that Christopher Nolan’s finale brought in $160 million to $162 million. That sum would make “TDKR” the highest 2-D opening ever, besting its brethren “The Dark Knight,” which earned $158.4 million its first weekend. The film comes in third overall, behind this year’s gangbusters “The Avengers” ($207.4 million) and “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2″ ($169.2 million).

The Batman flick benefited from its overseas release, as well. Reportedly, the film earned $70 million from various countries all over the world. This weekend’s official numbers will be released later today.

[From Moviefone]

The AP and Reuters say the figure might end up coming in around $173 million. Before the tragedy, Warner really hoped to set a new record and pull ahead of The Avengers’ opening of $207 million, but my guess is that Warner is simply trying to be as respectful as possible. $160-170 million for an opening weekend is nothing to scoff at, and Warner probably thinks that the film will dominate the box office for the next month anyway, regardless of the tragedy. Reuters has an interesting piece (here) about the changes various studios and theater chains are making in the wake of the tragedy, including re-editing several violent trailers.

Meanwhile, Catwoman finally issued a statement. Anne Hathaway (who was great at Catwoman!) told ET online, “My heart aches and breaks for the lives taken and altered by this unfathomably senseless act. I am at a loss for words how to express my sorrow. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.”

Photos courtesy of WENN.

Written by Kaiser

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Posted in Anne Hathaway, Box Office, Tragedy


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98 Responses to “‘The Dark Knight Rises’ made about $165 million for its opening weekend”

  1. Chicagogurl17 says:

    I’m going tonight and am excited! It didn’t feel right to race and go this weekend but I have always been a die-hard Batman fan!

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    • Bruce says:

      On the other hand I’m glad that all this hype disappeared. I was so tired of it. It lasted for months. But it’s over now. I’m not fan of Nolan’s Batmans anyway. My fav Batmans come from Burton. I think Nolan took it too seriously and lost black humor and cartoon vibe.

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      • Chicagogurl17 says:

        I definately prefer the way the parents death and the joker played out better in the Michael Keaton version and Keaton himself was perfection, but I do prefer Nolans supporting cast and his ability to spider-web a story without leaving everything open ended.

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      • phoenix says:

        I enjoyed Tim Burton’s two Batman films, and I also even enjoyed Batman Forever because Jim Carey is great and Val Kilmer is too. I didn’t actually like The Dark Knight. The plots aren’t very interesting. But I did really like Inception.

        1. Batman Returns
        2. Batman
        3. Batman Forever
        4. Batman Begins

        I didn’t like B&R or The Dark Knight.

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  2. marie says:

    I won’t have time to check it out until this weekend, but I’ll be there Saturday night..

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  3. Mia 4S says:

    I’m just pleased to see so many people went to the movies.

    Oh and every other site I’ve been on today box office reports deteriorated into a war between Batman and Avengers trolls fighting about “excuses” and apparently upset that their films never got to face off in a fair fight. Anyone that obsessed with box office of films they had NO part in…well to call them all pathetic is being kind. So gross.

    People went to the movies, today that is the box office victory.

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  4. Danziger says:

    I went in excited and came out underwhelmed. Oh Nolan. Same old mistakes.
    1) human females do have personalities. Actually.
    2) Did not do the research
    3) A plot ruined by underdeveloped characters

    Bane was great. Gary Oldman is, well, Gary Oldman. Bale did what he could with the deteriorating Nolan Batman. The rest? Eh.

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  5. Cathy says:

    I can’t wait for her hair to grow back out. Anne looks so much better with longer hair.

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  6. Elle says:

    I went to the movie Saturday night. People were a bit on edge. When the shooting scene happened early on many people looked towards the entrances. At the end everyone stood up and clapped, not because the movie was so great, but because we were all happy to be safe. It was touching.

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  7. TheOriginalKitten says:

    I’m going tommorrow night. Can’t wait!

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    • TheOriginalKitten says:

      PS-Am I the only one that doesn’t get why The Avengers is even being compared to Batman? Is it because they’re both movies based on comic books? Hasn’t Hollywood churned out, like, 10,000 movies based on comic books or graphic novels in the past decade? I don’t get it..

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      • Ann Emmess says:

        It’s a huge deal for competitive fans who embraced The Dark Knight and its very dark-gritty-realistic tone. Which to their great pride set world records and “was more than just a silly comic book.” Batman, thus DC, owned the dark.

        For Avengers to come along and beat those records with a bright, colorful popcorn movie that was funny in the trademark Stan-Lee’s-Marvel wiseacre way was deeply upsetting to some of these fans who revere TDK. (Not all fans, just this kind of fan, who are very devoted and vocal.) Avengers’ success establishes that Marvel will not be pursuing the Nolan-gritty tone, unlike the new Spiderman and the upcoming Superman. For years TDK’s dark influence loomed large in comic movies. Marvel’s aiming for the light.

        So once Avengers set its mark, there was a legion of dark-style Batfans who had a huge emotional investment in the idea that TDKR would beat Avengers. They’re reacted with dread and outrage at every sign TDKR might not win. And Marvel/Avengers also have this sort of fan, who have always joined the debate.

        I guess that’s not “why must people pick sides” which doesn’t make a ton of sense to me, either, but it is part of “why DID some people pick sides so strongly?”

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      • TheOriginalKitten says:

        @ Ann-thanks so much for the thorough (and interesting!) explanation. I had no idea…I still think it’s a bit of an overreaction on both fanbase’s part but interesting to hear where the rivalry stems from.

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      • Eve says:

        Great post, Ann. I’ll only add that part of this started because TDK hardcore fans decided to troll and attack the fans of other movies — whether it was a comic book based one or not, as long as there was a chance of it outgrossing TDK — on every single board on (movie related) websites like IMDb, Collider, CBM, Screenrant and so on.

        The IMDb page for The Avengers, for instance, for a long time there were more posts started by TDK and Nolan fans than by Avengers/Marvel fans themselves. And they’re offensive (both original posts and comments) 99,9% of the time.

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  8. Tiffany27 says:

    I liked TDKR. A lot. But I really liked The Avengers more.

    (Runs and hides so no one will yell at me)

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    • Mia 4S says:

      See this is the problem; why should anyone yell at you? It’s a free country. Like what you like. I liked DKR better; I liked Thor better than Captain America. I loved Iron Man, I thought Iron Man 2 was an abomination. I hate Gone with the Wind. I mean who cares?

      Let’s at least move forward. So will DKR get an Oscar nom? And how scared are we that Whedon won’t come back for Avengers 2? (Probably, as a make up nomination; and terrified)

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    • Diana says:

      Dont think anyone can disagree.
      Stil’
      *hold your hand, run with you and hide together*

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    • Eve says:

      I’ll protect you! :)

      Now, seriously — it should be ok to like both or even one more than the other. What I find really annoying is the “my favourite” is better than “your favourite”. It’s the “me versus you” war on the internet that bothers me.

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      • the original bellaluna says:

        Eve – I LOVED TB’s Batman. Nicholson as the Joker was inspired. And the recorded laugh track was HAUNTING.

        Heath was an equally inspired Joker, but with a more psychotic, less campy edge. And his performance was equally haunting, as it was the last he completed.

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      • Eve says:

        I think Jack Nicholson’s Joker is the best one. His performance in that movie was indeed inspired — funny yet creepy (or creepy yet funny). And the line “Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight” is one of my favourites in the history of cinema.

        P.S.: I also think Michael Keaton is still the best Bruce Wayne/Batman to date.

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      • Tiffany27 says:

        Eve- Bless you for saying this!! I don’t know why people always forget about Michael Keaton. Decades later and he is still the best Batman!

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      • Diana says:

        Eve, you are totally a BADASS!!!

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      • Eve says:

        I’ll always give him the credit he deserves.

        Plus, his Batman voice sounds badass, not giggle-inducing like Bale’s.

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      • marie says:

        @ Eve..
        I thought I was one of the only ones who preferred Michael Keaton, all my friends give me the hairy eyeball when I bring him up..

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      • Eve says:

        @ Marie:

        That’s because Nolan fanatics do not accept anyone saying anything is better than (what is in) his take on Batman.

        Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne/Batman is better than every single actor that came after him.

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      • Mia 4S says:

        @Tiffany27, I hate to say it but there is an age gap. Every generation has their Batman. I prefer Bale, but Keaton was my childhood Batman and I loved him. When I have shown those movies to the teens and younger people in my life I get sooo much shade thrown my way. Not universally, but it seems like to many of them, Burton’s movies are too campy. When we were kids those movies were badass! Face it ladies, we’re getting old!

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      • the original bellaluna says:

        Eve – Agreed about Michael Keaton, as well. He was such an intense, pain-filled BW/Batman. And his voice was PERFECTION.

        We still use “Ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?” whenever someone’s treading on thin ice in our house. The “I like to ask that of all my prey” is implied. ;)

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      • Jill says:

        Another in agreement about Keaton. He is a great entertainer all around. His jaw and voice as Batman can’t be beat…and Bale has a superb jaw, too. But Bale’s voice just ruins it for me. I think the reason I like Keaton more is b/c the guy is a gifted comedic actor as well. But I’m not down on the Bale lovers. There is no doubt he is a fine dramatic actor.

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      • Jenna says:

        I’ve grown up with FOUR Batmans. Keaton, Kilmer, Clooney and Bale. And I’ll go in the boat with Keaton as a favorite. There’s something so classical and almost whimsical about TB’s Batman. I love it. And JN’s Joker is amazing.

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      • TheOriginalKitten says:

        I loved Burton’s Batman (loved the Prince soundtrack also) AND I loved Nolan’s version. Why do we have to chose? Burton and Nolan have very different directorial styles, one isn’t necessarily superior to the other, just different. TB’s was almost a literal, visual translation of a comic book onto the big screen-very colorful and stylized. Nolan’s version is a much more “realistic” adaptation-grittier and darker and a bit more modern.

        Is this some epic *nerd battle*? Like people are supposed to chose which director is better? They’re different artists with different interpretations, both with equal value imo.

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      • ZenB!tch says:

        I loved TB’s first Batman. I hated the second with the icky Penguin with be black bile spewing out of his mouth – literally. I’d rather stare at Harvey Two-Face’s bad side than that.

        I’ve liked all the Chris Nolan movies I’ve seen so far (all of them since Mememto). Shoot me but I am not much on high art.

        Someone on another thread said they preferred Wes Anderson which I found to be an Apples to Oranges comparison but since it was brought up. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…..

        I thought the Avengers was OK. I did shell out for the 3D but perhaps there were too many characters or perhaps the action scenes looked too Michael Bay.

        I liked Spiderman. I wasn’t expecting to since I am not a fan of Emma Stone and never saw the Facebook movie.

        I loved Iron Man and Captain America – which I expected to hate because I hate WW2 stuff. Thor was OK, Iron Man 2 was well, I could have done without Mickey Rourke.

        We all have our preferences. The Dark Knight was never going to eclipse Avengers at the box office (at least not first weekend) because it is not in 3D. I am not sure how many people are compelled to shell out the extra bucks for 2D IMAX. I’ve never seen 2D IMAX so I’m not sure what the difference is.

        I grew up with DC so for me Batman is more of an event than Marvel but for all I know; Marvel may have more fans than DC Comics. I had never heard of it until it was purchased by my former employer but obviously someone has.

        Again, we all have our preferences. I’m seeing TDKR sometime today. I’m unemployed (can’t afford it) but I found some Gold AMC passes from said former employer. Woo Hoo!

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      • Tiffany27 says:

        @Mia So true!!! I guess this means I’m an old lady now :) .
        Honestly if I had to rank the top 3 Batman films it would be.

        1. The Dark Knight
        2. Batman
        3. Batman Returns (Idgaf I loved the Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman cannot be touched!!)

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    • ZenB!tch says:

      Just got back from TDKR – I’m going to go hide behind you. No, I didn’t think Avengers better. It’s much worse and more blasphemous. I liked TDKR more than TDK. TDK was very good and I was entertained but THE JOKER! I liked TDKR better just because it (gasp) had no Joker.

      The Joker was way to psycho-insane-intense-dark-twisted for me(see post above or below). I could at least see the human beings behind Bane and the others. The Joker was too much.

      As an aside did Tom Hardy take steroids because he had major Backne.

      I would have to watch them again to rank them but since I grew up with reruns of the Batman Sitcom (Bam! Pow!), I am partial to Batman. The only ones I truly did not like were Batman Returns and the even more dreadful Batman and Robin (not Robin’s fault).

      I don’t think Burton was too campy at all. I had trouble with Keaton as Bruce Wayne. The mask hid the bug eyes and focused on his lips. It worked for him. I loved Val Kilmer but that may be because I loved Val Kilmer – he was hot and had the lips for the mask. Clooney was awful on all levels. I like Bale better as Bruce Wayne than I do as Batman. Bale’s pretty is more about the eyes than the lips.

      Yeah yeah no one said Batman had to be hot but it IS a fantasy.

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  9. Ainsley says:

    I saw the movie on Friday like I was planning to because I didn’t want to let some nutjob have any control over my life. I really enjoyed it! We all clapped at the end and thought it was a fitting ending to the trilogy. I was a little sad when I saw The Dark Knight because Heath Ledger had died, and I was a little sad during this one too. The character that surprised me was the butler. Michael Caine didn’t have much screen time, but he squeezed every bit of emotion out of his part. Jeez, I got teary. Anyway, I recommend it!

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  10. Christian says:

    Am I the only one who thinks the massacre had nothing to do with the actual movie? He just knew the midnight premiere of TDKR would be a theater full of people. Regardless, f*ck that guy. I’m disappointed the media will give him the fame he seems to want. Gross.

    I saw the movie and enjoyed it, but it was strange/sad to watch the first 20 minutes and think about how the footage was the last thing those people saw.

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  11. JustaGirl says:

    We saw it on Saturday because of what happened. It was sad watching the movie knowing what had occurred the day before, but we didn’t want to show that POS the fear took over.

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  12. Marianne says:

    TDKR was great!!!! I totally want to go out and see it again!

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  13. Diana says:

    Sorry for the double post!!

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  14. Lbeees says:

    I loved every minute of it!

    Loved the Avengers too, but that was campy Whedon fun. DKR was brooding, moody, and amazing. Both very different films.

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  15. Diana says:

    I condemn that psychopath POS to the depths of hell.
    But I have a guilty secret – when I watched TDK, I was disturbed with the Joker portrayal for about a day. I actually had him haunting my dreams. He was the worst sociopath portrayed ever on screen.
    And I m NOT blaming the movie or Heath Ledger for this POS’ actions.(the nutcase could have cracked anyway).

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    • ZenB!tch says:

      I totally agree, I watched TDK last night in preparation for TDKR. Heath was creepy and realistic (as far as a psycho vs. a “bat villain). He was disturbing and I tend to like the darker side (on film). I did not like the Joker.

      I also don’t want to blame Christopher Nolan. either but that role kind of sent Heath to a darker place mentally. I read some accounts of his last days and the pills he was taking and how they didn’t work and he kept trying more. I’ve been in that place but without too many doctors (which is why I’m still here, IMHO). I understand that breakdown and I felt horrible reading about it. It was like going through it again.

      Regardless, had there been no Batman movie (assuming a Bat obsession for the POS) – that POS would have shot up his campus instead. He was primed for something.

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  16. K says:

    Saw it last night and loved it! Would see it again.

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  17. Divorcee says:

    Michael Keaton will always be the best Batman for me, he had a sexy voice, sexy lips, and he had incredible sex appeal. Not like Christian Bale’s annoying as Batman voice.

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  18. Mia 4S says:

    Just to inject some more positivity in this thread apparently RDJ and his wife hosted a screening of Dark Knights Rises for the Iron Man cast and crew yesterday (sorry, still searching for the original link). So cute! Also further proof that obssessive competition between Marvel and DC fans is idiotic! I always thought RDJ’s statement that he wasn’t smart enough for the Dark Knight so screw’em, was adorable and hilarious: he is such a Marvel corporate whore ;-) . Hopefully he found this one easier to grasp, LOL. I thought it was.

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  19. neelyo says:

    Can we stop pretending that Anne Hathaway is beautfiul? She’s attractive enough, but come on.

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  20. rachel says:

    a significant portion of these astronomical proceeds should go to the victim’s families of the Colorado shooting.

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  21. A Girl Named Mikki says:

    Saw the movie yesterday with my two college kids and future son-in-law and we all LOVED IT!! Now THAT was a movie experience. When it ended, people actually CLAPPED!! (my party included) I just love Nolan!! It was a perfect wrap up of the trilogy!

    This was one of the few times I felt that I didn’t waste money going to the theater…

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  22. annaloo. says:

    Anne Hathaway created a memorable catwoman. Michele Pfieffer finally has someone wothy of handing the baton to. Loved her, one of the best parts of the film.

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  23. Feebee says:

    I think TDK will be alright. Maybe it won’t reach expectations but it’ll still be a huge $$ maker.

    I’m more concerned about the effect on the Gangster movie that’s had it’s trailer pulled because it has a scene of a mass shooting in a movie theater. Movies have disappeared with lesser kisses of death. It actually looks like a good movie :/

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  24. natalina says:

    Anne Hathoway looks God awful in that first pic…eeeks

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  25. Vera says:

    I had wanted to go to the midnight, but my friend wanted to wait until morning. I had been online during the night anyways (working on a project to get it out of the way for this week) so about an hour after the shootings I saw the early reports (which were horrible, not to downplay the event, but there was stuff about a baby being shot at point blank when there was all the panic and confusion with reports coming out). I still ended up going on Friday, but in the back of my mind I couldn’t help thinking about the shooting during some of the louder parts at the beginning.

    Overall, I think it was a great conclusion to the franchise (although I question the naming choice of John Blake merely because Zinda Blake operates out of Gotham in the comics as well, so at first it was a bit confusing, though the characters appear to be completely unrelated). All the characters performed amazingly and there was no weak link.

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  26. lily says:

    I have to wait until this Friday. Judging from the reviews, it does seem like a good film, but not great, and doesn’t surpass the TDK.
    I dislike Anne Hathaway so I doubt I’m going to enjoy her Catwoman. She annoyed the hell out of me.

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  27. Helen says:

    Kaiser, how is being the biggest 2D digital opening ever “not breaking any records”?

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  28. dahlianoir says:

    I didn’t buy any of the dvds because I’m waiting for the trilogy set, which is gonna be awesome IT HAS TO BE !
    And I’m Team Keaton too, I grew up with him and his Bruce Wayne persona was great.

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  29. Phil says:

    I’m tired of people complaining about Nolan’s batman movies…of course everyone has an opinion and I respect that, but why did you go see the THIRD Nolan batman when you already hate the first two (some of you hated inception too), and then complain about it on here? I also don’t get the avengers/dkr comparisons. They are two different movies with two different tones and I enjoyed both. I mean heck, if you want to get all comparitive, why not compare every superhero movie with spiderman 2? That one’s personally my favorite, but I’m not whining and comparing every movie to it. I’m also not getting on every avengers discussion and commenting on how I didn’t think it was the best thing ever, I let the fans dig it.
    Why are we so hateful toward people who actually liked and enjoyed a movie that we’re not too wild about? We don’t know how a certain movie touched a person, we don’t know what that person is going through. So seriously, stop the complaining and just celebrate cinema.

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  30. LucyOriginal says:

    I don’t know if anybody posted here, but Christian Bale went to visit the victims in Colorado, :) . It’s on the tmz website.

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