Pro tip: The ending of 'The Dark Knight Rises' should have been a dream

I had to pick between writing a fan theory where Bruce Wayne actually died in the pit or where the whole cafe scene was his dying dream. I went with the dream angle, arguing Alfred's wish was just a final fantasy as Bruce bled out in the Bat. It makes the sacrifice real, not a cop-out retirement. Anyone else think a bleaker ending would have fit Nolan's tone better?

3 comments

3 Comments

finleythomas28d ago

My version got a few comments saying it made the pit escape feel pointless, which I get.

cameron31828d ago

Totally get where you're coming from. I wrote a whole post last year about how Bruce definitely died in the pit and the rest was a hallucination. That happy ending always felt too clean for a Nolan film, like you said. A darker finish would have stuck with me way more. Did you get much pushback on your theory?

ivang9827d ago

Wait, you guys are saying the pit escape was pointless? That's the whole point though. He claws his way back from actual death, finds that last bit of hope, just to have it all ripped away. Makes the fake-out ending hit even harder. Like, he got so close only to lose everything. That's way more brutal than just dying down there.