The Dark Knight Rises

I watched The Dark Knight Rises at Jusco Tebrau City for MYR 14 (SGD 5.65). It would have costed me SGD 11 in Singapore on a Sunday, almost twice the ticket price of JB's movies. Indeed, inflation has hit Singapore hard.

The Dark Knight Rises has a dense plot packed into a 2hr 45min show. I was glued to my seat for the entire duration. There were many scenes worth commenting. My focus will be on the part where Batman confronted Bane, but lost in the confrontation between the two. Bane broke Batman's back and sent him to a foreign prison where escape is virtually impossible. The inmates related the story of Ra's al Ghul's child who was born and raised in the prison and was the only person to escape.

For much of the time, Bruce Wayne couldn't walk, let alone save the city. But his determination enabled him to take a faster route to recovery as he focused to straighten his back, learn to walk and then proceeded to build up his muscle mass. However, escape was impossible - in a deep well that was 200 feet underground. For countless people tried before him and failed. He failed countless times. After numerous failed attempts with the safety rope, he learnt from another prisoner that Ducard's daughter escaped without any safety rope at all.  This fear of death, says the wise prisoner, rather than Bruce Wayne's absence of it, is the strongest driving force existent in man. His final attempt - in which he decided to try without a safety rope - on a path of 'succeed or die' - did he manage to succeed.

Maybe it was practice that got him across. Maybe it was his determination in wanting to save the city. Or maybe when he finally let go of his current safety ropes (and baggage), that enabled him to go further. The lesson is to go for broke - to do something as if it's a matter dying if you fail. The question here is - would we?