With God as my witness; Early this morning, while I was out in the front yard, a group of about five crows landed in my neighbor's tree. They made quite a ruckus for a few minutes and then flew away. They aren't common this deep into the city. I see them maybe once a year. I should have taken it as a sign. ;-)
(Mild spoilers)
Got back from The Dark Knight Rises about an hour ago. I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, very pleasantly surprised. All my concerns of bloated story, too many main characters, scene chewing, etc were all for nothing. Bane as a character and as an on-screen presence was pulled back, as was Selina Kyle. They're handled very well, particularly Selina. They add to the story, as opposed to smothering it the way the Joker did in Dark Knight.
Selina's character and story were interesting and nicely done. I found her engaging - and not just for her incredible physical beauty. *swoon* Her character was someone I wanted to know more about and see more of. Great stuff all the way around from Selina\Hathaway. The film left me wanting more of her, which I think is a sign of a great portrayal.
It's largely a Bruce Wayne story and I was fine with that. The action was fine, but I enjoyed the cerebral portions more. Some of the darkness was back, which was also a welcome change.
Really dug the tie-back to Batman Begins. It felt like part of the first film much more so than DK did. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was outstanding. I loved the nod that he was Robin the whole time, without actually being the traditional Robin. He was Bruce's partner, without a costume. Fucking genius.
I also loved the ending. Great on all counts. They leave it all up to your imagination and I thank them for that. I also dug how Selina is with Bruce, but nothing is made of it. Truthfully, if you're not paying close attention, you could miss her. I also loved how she was completely unaware of anything at the restaurant. Again - superbly handled.
Gentleman, and ladies of the board - I was wrong. And I'm quite happy about it. I'll see it again and I'll have the DVD as soon as it's available.