The Ultimate Christopher Nolan Analysis: The Breakout Years

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About this video essay:
An in-depth exploration of the movies of Christopher Nolan. This second episode - The Breakout Years - covers The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Inception and The Dark Knight Rises

Content:
0:00 Introduction
1:04 The Prestige
18:10 The Dark Knight
37:36 Inception
59:39 The Dark Knight Rises
1:21:19 Road to Oppenheimer

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Further Reading:

[kylesty]

I didn’t realize how much of an impact DiCaprio had on the script of Inception. What a great example of what great collaboration can produce. It remains one of my favorite movies.

[kevinjain]

I can't express how grateful I feel to have found this channel. The content is pure gold for every fanatic who seeks to swim into the depths of movies. Following this page for the last 2 years and not disappointed.

[maximuscesar]

The Prestige is the most rewatchable Nolan Movie. Definitely my favorite.

[FusilAutomatique]

Even though you have monetised your works in a small way, this Channel is a work of pure benevolence. Bravo. You help me shed barbs from a weighted heart, thank you.

[philipwhitcomb]

A video on this channel about my favorite director?! Hell yeah! Have a thumbs up!

[nicolaslabra]

that whole piece on The prestige lines up pretty terrifyingly well with the advent of generative AI in the art world, "we are going into a world of terrifying new possibilites, the fact that what artists achieved with so much effort in their whole careers can be replicated easily by the AI, and the prospect of the complete loss of authenticity give The prestige a new dimension of relevance i couldnt have foreseen like 5 years ago.

[connor]

I never really understood why Inception seemed to have such a strong emotional core and moved me with its characters so much more than other Nolan films. Thank you for this brilliantly in depth analysis

[MrHousey]

For me, The Prestige is Nolan's best film. Thank you for the best analysis of it I have seen.

[thesilvermotion]

I can't love this channel enough. A true inspiration. I love how you talk about cinema.

[NewFoundLife]

I agree with a lot of what you said about the Dark Knight Rises. It's frustrating at times, because I can see where Nolan was trying to go with some of the themes, but ultimately some of the writing doesn't feel cohesive.

I wish Nolan showed more of the underside of Gotham. Show the poverty, homelessness, and power divide in the city and then the idea of "A storm is coming" feels more powerful. If Nolan showed how this unrest was brewing and how those suffering latched onto Bane's revolution out of desperation, it would give more weight to Bane vs. Bruce's philosophies.

But Nolan could also show how the good side of Gotham is reacting, show people working together and protecting each other. Show compassion, charity, and kindness in the face of the uncertainty. So when Bruce returns we have an idea of the people who will welcome him back and are prepared to fight. Once we know the players involved it gives the final confrontation much more weight.

[justpeachee]

I may be alone but I really loved tenet. Every time I watch it I come away with a new feeling and sense of it. Just like any Nolan film.

[NaumRusomarov]

not gonna lie. I'm stoked for Oppenheimer.

[Styrophone]

Extremely well put! For me inception just felt like a wave of inspiration of concepts, music, cinema and human experience/psyche. It is truly a treat to be able to experience such masterpieces in our lifetime.

[uqgrnlo]

This is the first time I've heard good and thoughtful criticism of The Dark Knight Rises instead of the usual simple-minded "hOw DiD hIs BaCk HeAl So FaSt????" comments. That alone already made this video excellent.

[dylana.]

I think you're wrong on the dark knight rises on a multiple of ways. Not only does talia shed a new light on a new light on Bane's true character which deepens his character traits but also explains how bane had access to all those tools & information which on a 2nd rewatch expose Bruce's lack of self awareness due to retirement & his true weakness : his heart.

You've explained bruce's character journey very well, though i expected you'd talk about bruce & the batman symbol as an allegory of Nietzche"s ubermensch and the man who inspires the others to rise up & become "more". The will to live, the human insitinct to survive. His trauma of honoring his parents & the lesson his dad taught him, the idea of rebirth = a prominent philosophical idea amongst philosophers & different cultures.
I think you could have talked about batman as a symbol. You analyzed the film as if it needed a thematic punchline like tdk because that's what you expected. The movie may not be as smart as tdk but it's more emotional, which tdk lacked.
The very image of the batman symbol rebuilt at the end is what the dark knight rises symbolizes.

It reminds the audience to have hope. Hope is the main theme of the dark knight rises. It argues about demagogues like Bane trying to profit from the division of society for their own purpose, arguing that social class based revolutions are not for & from the people. The people are manipulated by more powerful figures to enact a revolution that will lead to a no-change, overtime.
They are empty acts of rebellion and violence, like the empty house Selina finds with the photo of the previous owners (she realizes the emptiness of such uprising).
I think you forgot to mention the idea that Gotham's journey is a parrallel of bruce's journey. Both rotting & flawed inside. Both fall. Both are at their lowest for some time. Both try to fight back but fail. Both see despair ( as exemplfied by the captain who fears to fight) and yet retain some hope & then have the truth revealed to them i.e the Batman symbol is literally a light shining bright in the night, a symbol of hope in the darkness).
It is about " the spirit of a revolution" to take arms & defend the city= a spirit of unity & cohesion of one entire city having a single common goal. To not let corruption & personal interests divide a city ( a plague in capitalism that also leads to Gotham's downfall due to Daggett's greed which let a man like Bane gain power). It shows the difference between a city with no spirit & a city with a spirit

It exemplifies, albeit through a sociological science fiction lens, what happens when the people gain hope & fight together for their city & are ready to defend it. The dark knight rises shows what happens when human beings gain motivation again in their lives through a common ideology that unites them to do what's right. The Batman being the personnification of that ideology & the symbol that gave Gotham hope. For bruce, it is finding that ideology through a philosophical rebirth of his soul & finding the meaning to fight again when his city burns.

The batman saved gotham. But this time, the people rose up, defended & saved the soul of their city, not batman. It is an answer to the ending of the dark knight . In which showed Bruce having to lie to save Gotham's soul as the Dark knight, a false triumph.

The Dark knight rises shows a true triumph, united. Batman saved the city on a physical level. But It's the city itself that saved Gotham's soul. Batman gave them the key : hope & selfnesness even in the lowest moments. Batman fully becomes the symbol he aspired to be. He is Gotham's prophet with a final sacrifice. Gotham doesn't need Batman anymore. Bruce wayne is alive, the Batman is gone. Long live the Batman.

And that's why i think the Dark Knight Rises is a beautiful film & a masterpiece of a conclusion that rounds off an incredible trilogy. Thank you for reading if anyone did.

Thank you Nolan🐐

[dnv]

Great Work. I love the Long form works - Wonderful insights, fascinating conjectures, superbly produced. Thank you <3

[lowlowseesee]

to me the prestige felt like a big movie, exciting and not confusing as some of his later work. its so elegant and majestic

[JustinArmstrong-uw]

The Prestige is the most rewatchable Nolan Movie. Definitely my favorite.. Awesome, I appreciate the effort you put into these videos.

[fell]

Awesome, I appreciate the effort you put into these videos

[javierheras]

Now I finally understand the problem with 'Tenet'. What you said about 'Inception', Cobb's journey and its emotional core is exactly what I don't find in The Protagonist.