Dark Knight Rises Opening Sequence

By Emma King-Lewis

The Broken Bat

• The opening sequence seems to come from the

point of view of the antagonist, or that of

somebody trying to piece together the events that

led to the fall of Batman. This premise is similar to

that of Skyfall with the fundamental difference that

we never see Batman himself. Both of which

however do seem to be illustrating some kind of

revenge plot against our hero.

• The main theme that stands out is the constant ice.

We see the ‘Bat Sign’ in the middle of a block of ice

that gets chipped at throughout the sequence, until

eventually the sign is broken itself, eluding to the

idea that Batman will be chipped away at until he

breaks.

The Broken Bat 2

• We see photos of Batman, Commissioner Gordon and

Cat woman, all being placed into water, as if we are in

the dark room of a photo lab, making us believe that a

plan is unfolding before our eyes and creating intrigue as

to what will unfold.

• Blue prints of Buildings and Newspaper cut outs are also

used, giving the audience a chance to piece together the

unfolding storyline.

• Eventually we end on the image of Batman’s mask,

shattered against a snowy landscape, signifying that

the end is nigh for Bruce Wayne.

Soundtrack • The music in the opening sequence is called

Aggressive Expansion, composed by Hans

Zimmer specifically for this film. The soundtrack

for the whole film is made in this way, giving it a

bespoke and original feel.

• The track begins energetically, with a visceral,

tribal beat, projecting thoughts of war onto the

audience. It has a low pitch, creating a dark and

gothic feel, which aids the feeling of suspense

and tension for the audience.

• The epic nature of the track is thrilling and it

continues to build until the reveal of Batman’s

mask which ends the sequence.

Mise-en-Scene• The main visual theme throughout the sequence is cold.

All of the shots seem to have been filmed through a blue

filter or specifically graded in this way during post-

production. This alongside the mainly black and white

images gives an otherworldly or post-apocalyptic feel.

• The dark colored photographs and old fashioned

developing technique reinforce this notion.

• Towards the end of the sequence we see the antagonist's

hand which is half covered in a black glove. We only see

these gloved hands and nothing else, which holds the

identity back for longer, additionally giving the

impression of secrecy and mystery.

• Finally, ice is such an important recurring visual theme.

The credits are written in it. Ice melts which means that

no evidence will be left behind

Location

The typical audience that would watch a Batman film would already be aware that it is set in the

fictional city of Gotham. The opening sequence itself however, does not give any of this away, other

than the one short clip where we see it written behind the ice. The location of the sequence seems to

shift throughout. The most recurring location seems to be in a laboratory of some kind, but there are

times when we see photos seemingly being processed, ice melting or being chipped away at,

blueprints of buildings and newspaper articles being circled and crossed out. This leads me to believe

that either the antagonist is operating in multiple locations, or there is a group of people who want to

bring Batman down. The final location is outdoors, where we are left with the disturbing image of

Batman’s shattered mask, deserted in the snow.

Credit Sequence• The title sequence opens with the production companies and DC comics.

• At the time of 0.58 minutes the first credit ‘a film by Christopher Nolan’

appears, this is because he is the most important person to this production.

During this opening scene his name comes up four times as he has such a

huge role in the piece. Not only did he write the story, he directed it and wrote

the screenplay too, showing that this is really his project. His name is also

appears last, showing that he is the one person that should be remembered as

he has such a huge role in the film industry.

• Following on from that, at 1.06 minutes is the title ‘ Dark Knight Rises’ giving

audience the name of the film, which is also seen to be very important as that

is what the audience will remember the movie by, a high chance they will

remember it by the name of the movie and not by the director.

Credit Sequence 2• Then during the period of time between 1.10 minutes and 1.32 minutes,

the main actors and actresses names appear. The order of names are

Christian Bale, Michael Cain, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy,

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard and finally Morgan Freeman. It is

understandable that the first name of the actors is Christian Bale as he

plays the main character.

• At the time of 1.52 the sentence ‘ Based upon Batman Characters created

by Bob Kane’ appears, which is presenting the true origins of the

characters, and giving historical context.

• At 1.56 minutes ‘screen play by Jonathon Nolan and Christopher Nolan’,

this shows the development of the story to the screen.

Credit Sequence 3

• At 2.02 minutes the a list of

executive producers are

shown followed by the most

important at 2.20 when it

finally credits Christopher

Nolan's direction.