Liam Neeson “confirmed” in The Dark Knight Rises – kinda

Officially Confirmed? Or is he?

The enthusiasm to be found on fan sites is a joy of this business, but it can create all kinds of confusion because fans and bloggers love to use journalist words when they “break a story” but they don’t really know how to use them the way journalists do.  Consider the news that Liam Neeson has been “officially confirmed” as returning as Ra’s al Ghul in The Dark  Knight Rises.

In June of 2011, Variety reported that he was would be: Liam Neeson back for ‘Dark Knight Rises’  but Warner Bros. wouldn’t comment.  It was enough to put him on the Internet Movie Database page as “rumored.”  When he was spotted near the location shooting in England, the rumors got a little more interesting, since it was at a location where, let’s say, Ra’s al Ghul should not be.  We began to suspect maybe Mr. Nolan was playing a deeper game than the fans are giving him credit for.  (Considering the number of them that still haven’t figured out Inception, we hold to our belief that none of the leaked facts and images fit together in the way they think.)

In January, it got interesting.  Neeson Liam told something called “showbizspy.com”

“I can tell you nothing about Dark Knight Rises, seriously. I was on set for maybe an hour-and-a-half and the director didn’t tell me anything of what it’s about. So, I’m being very honest when I say I have no idea what’s going to happen.”

Now, translating that, he confirmed it was him on the set, which considering he was talking to some outfit called “showbizspy.com” was very big of him.  At this point, we at Gotham Trending still wouldn’t discount the possibility that he was just invited to lunch by his old friend Nolan, just to mess with us.

But wait, now he is starring in Wrath of the Titans and the good chaps over at ComicBookMovies.com are all a-twitter because it says in the promotion materials:

“Neeson next appears in Peter Berg’s actioner Battleship, and he also will be seen in Christopher Nolan’s much-anticipated action thriller “The Dark Knight Rises.”

which they interpret as “official confirmation” that he “will be reprising his role as Ra’s al Ghul.”

We hate to throw cold water in anyone’s faces, but to a studio, the mere use of his voice in the first trailer covers that.  This is Hollywood, there’s a union, there are rules.  They use his voice from the first film, Warner Bros. cuts a check, and he’s in the credits, he’s in the film.  Alas, we know nothing more than we did before.  (Or, happily we know no more than we did before, because some of us really feel seeing the movie the first time is better that way.)

One thing is certain, we’ll only really find out in July.

The Dark Knight Rises is Christopher Nolan’s third and final installment of his Batman trilogy, starring Christian Bale (Batman/Bruce Wayne), Anne Hathaway (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), Tom Hardy (Bane), Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and other Nolan alums Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard, to be released by Warner Bros. July 2012

Related:
The Epic Conclusion to The Dark Knight Saga 
Liam Neeson Officially Confirmed For THE DARK KNIGHT RISES.

Batmobile Race: 89 v 66 which would win?

All serious Bat-fans know the eye-sore bat-tank introduced in Batman Begins is no proper Batmobile, so it didn’t even make the running for the Race of The Batmobiles.  The contenders were the 1989 version from the Tim Burton movie and the convertible of the 1966-67 Adam West movie and TV series.  If the new millenium Batman would like to take on the winner, we suggest Bruce Wayne lend Batman his Lamborghini.

The Dark Knight Rises in Lego Form

There have been a number of spoofs and parodies of The Dark Knight Rises trailer since it was released in December, some well done, some not.  Some putting a unique spin on the material, some… well, we never quite got the point of that thing with the cat-heads or all the footage from The Lion King.  Lego Batman, however, that we get.  Enjoy:

The Dark Knight Rises is Christopher Nolan’s third and final installment of his Batman trilogy, starring Christian Bale (Batman/Bruce Wayne), Anne Hathaway (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), Tom Hardy (Bane), Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and other Nolan alums Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard, to be released by Warner Bros. July 2012

Batman of Maryland’s Batmobile Bust A Real Hero | NPR

"Eventually, it sinks in and you become him. It feels like I have a responsibility that's beyond a normal person. And that responsibility is to be there for the kids, to be strong for them, and to make them smile as much as I can.'

This week saw a fascinating story of a Maryland man pulled over in a Lamborghini dressed like Batman.  Since Bruce Wayne in the Christopher Nolan movies drives a Lambo, the story got a lot of social network traction, a few discussing the story but most using it as a jumping off point to refer back to The Dark Knight and hopes for The Dark Knight Rises.

Let’s face it, the Lamborghini is more of a Batmobile that that retarded Bat-tank.  -reddit

Luckily, the good people at NPR were among those who actually read the details of why the driver, Lenny B. Robinson, was dressed as Batman in the first place.  Turns out this rich Lambo-driving Batman is also quite a hero:

After the news broke that police in Montgomery County, Md., last week stopped Batman for not having the correct plates on his Batmobile, many naturally wanted to know more about the man behind that mask.

The Washington Post today profiles the mysterious Caped Crusader, and it turns out that he does seem to be something of a real life hero to sick children around Washington, D.C.

Lenny B. Robinson is a “self-made success” in the business world who is giving back some of his good fortune by donning his disguise and then heading to local hospitals to see sick kids and deliver presents “to up-and-coming superheros who first need to beat cancer and other wretched diseases.”

The Post’s Mike Rosenwald, who knows Robinson, went along on one of the hospital visits. His report is one of the feel-good stories of the day. Robinson, Rosenwald says, has taken on some of the mythical crime fighter’s attitude:

” ‘Eventually, it sinks in and you become him,’ Batman told me. ‘It feels like I have a responsibility that’s beyond a normal person. And that responsibility is to be there for the kids, to be strong for them, and to make them smile as much as I can.’ He understands that might sound corny, but he doesn’t care.”

Maryland’s Batman Looks Like A Real Hero : The Two-Way : NPR.

The Dark Knight Rises T Shirt Design Contest

Every t-shirt has a journey…

Wait, that’s not right.  But it could be!  Check out this awesome contest on a website with an even awesomer name and some really awesome shirts.  It’s no wonder they are hosting a design contest for The Dark Knight Rises.  Final judging by Christopher Nolan himself.  Sounds great and we can’t wait to see, and hopefullly buy, the best entries.

This exclusive contest is your rare opportunity to produce artwork for one of the most renowned movie entities on the planet and have a chance to get your design seen by the Art Department at Warner Bros. and The Dark Knight Rises filmmakers.

From the top 10 finalists selected, the top 3 winners will be chosen by The Dark Knight Rises Director/Writer/Producer Christopher Nolan and Producer Emma Thomas. Collectively, finalists will have the opportunity to win up to $12,500 in prize money for their winning t-shirt design, with the top prize being $3,500. The contest starts now and we will be accepting submissions until April 11th at midnight. The contest is free to enter, but you must follow the guidelines and accept the terms below.

via The Dark Knight Rises T Shirt Design Contest – $13,000 In Prizes.

The Dark Knight Rises is Christopher Nolan’s third and final installment of his Batman trilogy, starring Christian Bale (Batman/Bruce Wayne), Anne Hathaway (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), Tom Hardy (Bane), Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and other Nolan alums Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard, to be released by Warner Bros. July 2012

New Dark Knight Rises Toys revealed and ready for preorder from Mattel, it’s John Blake and Alfred Figures

We at Gotham Trending are old enough to remember Robert Wuhl on a talk show promoting the Tim Burton Batman in 1989.  Talking about his cut of the merchandise, any action figures that depicted the image of his character Alexander Knox he said “Oh yeah, I’m sure every kid is going to want The Reporter Doll.”  Times may have changed.  IGN is reporting the newest action figures announced by Mattel and available for pre-order.

Mattel has just revealed two more The Dark Knight Rises action figures from their Movie Masters toy line. Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Gotham City cop John Blake and Michael Caine’s Alfred Pennyworth will be joining the company’s Batman, Bane and Catwoman figures.

– Mattel

The toys are now available for pre-order at BigBadToyStore.com.

via Mattel Reveals TDKR’s John Blake & Alfred Figures – Comics News at IGN.

The Dark Knight Rises is Christopher Nolan’s third and final installment of his Batman trilogy, starring Christian Bale (Batman/Bruce Wayne), Anne Hathaway (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), Tom Hardy (Bane), Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and other Nolan alums Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marion Cotillard, to be released by Warner Bros. July 2012

Gotham City Impostors’ free DLC

In a fandom that has come to take everything connected to Batman way too seriously, it’s a treat to look in on the pure silliness that is Gotham City Impostors.  While the disappointing mess that is Arkham City continues to pull stunts like promoting their use of an ordinary Nintendo port to try and leverage some cyberink, the first batch of free Gotham City Imposters Downloadable Content hit Xbox 360 in February, andthe DLCs are now available on PC.  The new DLCs include katanas, pistols, drop-in matchmaking, improved mouse support and a new highrise level, The 25th Floor. There’s no word yet on a PS3 DLC launch. Producer Nate Edson and associate producer Lucas Myers explain the new PC content in the above video, wherein they prove they are the best actors in existence, ever.

via Joystiq.

Arkham City’s continued embarrassment

Apparently jealous of the Mass Effect 3 flop, the previous sequel to disappoint fans of the original on an epic scale: Arkham City has reached new depths of desperation.  The latest cries for attention for Rocksteady’s disastrous Bat-Failure is a port.  That’s right, they’re advertising a port as a wild innovation fans are thrilled over.

Epic Games VP Mark Rein has apparently seen both Batman: Arkham City and Aliens: Colonial Marines running on the Wii U.

Sadly we don’t have any concrete details to share about these two titles. But at GDC last week, Epic Games VP Mark Rein did tease how Arkham City makes “fantastic use of the touch controller. Rein also said that the Wii U version will not be a straight port.

Batman: Arkham City will presumably launch alongside the Wii U later this year.

via Nintendo Everything.

The sequel to the justly popular Batman: Arkham Asylum outraged fans with a Catwoman bait-and-switch, advertising her as a major component in the game, draped over Batman, and delivering her as only a downloadable optional character who could be omitted, while Talia al Ghul was presented as a love interest.  Since this kind of stunt  was indicative of Paul Dini’s stint editing the print comics, we are forced to conclude the intent was malicious, although what motivates this company to sabotage its own products by setting out to provoke fans remains a mystery.