- Christian Bale in the action-adventure “The Dark Knight Rises,” a film about Batman returning to protect Gotham City from a new terrorist leader. (Ron Phillips/ Warner Bros. Pictures)
“Bourne-ification.” It refers to the effect that the movie “The Bourne Identity” had on the genre of action films. (It’s a fictitious term.) It started a trend of dialing down the glitz factor and upping the grit factor. James Bond’s been “Bourne-ified,” for example. He wears fewer black ties but gets more black eyes.
So what’s that got to do with Batman? The thing about Batman’s brand of super-heroism is that he’s got no actual super-powers. He’s got super-money that buys super-gadgets that function as super-powers. Batman is human. Batman is perfect for Bourne-ification. How do you “Bourne-ify” Thor’s magic hammer? Exactly.
“The Dark Knight Rises,” the latest episode of the “Batman” franchise, is definitely Bourne-ified. It’s realistic for a comic book. Gritty! But is it interesting? Kinda sorta. It takes itself fairly seriously. Should it? It’s Bourne-ified, but it’s still a comic book, and a comic is by nature—fluff. Gritty fluff, anyone?
When last we saw The Dark Knight, aka Batman, aka Bruce Wayne, he had nixed his adversary Harvey Dent, aka Two Face. The public was unaware that Two Face was really a demon, and so the “Dent Act” was enacted, putting a massive dent in criminal activity in Gotham City, and thus putting Batman out of business. So the Dark Knight’s been slumming around, depressed and unmotivated, with a bum knee, for eight long years.
