I want to start off by doing something that many fans of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy have done in recent months. I want to make a prediction regarding Bruce Wayne/Batman’s fate in The Dark Knight Rises (20 July). I predict that Batman will die in the final film of Nolan’s tale. To clarify, this does not mean that I necessarily believe that Bruce Wayne will perish in this film. He could hang up the cowl for good and never return to his alter ego again, and for all intents and purposes, I would consider that the “death” of Batman, even if Wayne manages to survive his encounter with Bane.
I know that this has been a common prediction among fans, many speculating on the role that Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Gotham cop John Blake plays in the future of Batman, but most of these predictions have been mere guesses and conjectures, with little evidence to support them. I, however, feel that the answer to Batman’s fate in The Dark Knight Rises has been hiding under our noses since the release of 2008’s The Dark Knight, specifically in the last sequence of the film. The answer to me is simple: The Dark Knight trilogy is an allegory for the life of Jesus of Nazareth.
Before you write this off as a Christian Batman fan grasping at straws, I wish to point out that this theory comes from a non-religious viewpoint, using only the story of Jesus of Nazareth as evidence to support my claim. I’m no expert on the Bible, but it doesn’t take a theologian to know the basic story of Jesus’ life: He was (allegedly) born to a virgin mother as the human incarnate of God the Son. After being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus spent the last few years of his life spreading the Word of God by teaching, preaching, and performing miracles. During this time, Jesus had gained a small but loyal group of followers, known as disciples, but was betrayed by one of them, leading to his arrest. After a short trial, Jesus is sentenced to death and is crucified, which most Christians believe was God sacrificing his only son so that the sins of all believers may be forgiven. Three days after his death, Jesus is risen from the dead, after which, following a few appearances to his disciples, he ascends into heaven. Most Christian doctrines agree that Jesus will return to Earth one day for the Last Judgement, although that has yet to happen. Of course, this is a very broad and general description of the life of Jesus, but it will suffice for the purposes of this article.
Now, allow me to apply these principles to the Dark Knight trilogy, film by film:
Batman Begins
From the get-go, we learn that Bruce Wayne is the son of Thomas Wayne, the richest and, arguably, most influential man in Gotham. The elder Wayne has a larger-than-life image to the people of his city, who consider him the man who built Gotham into what it was (for better or for worse). His name, after all, is on buildings throughout the city. Perhaps Thomas Wayne is a symbol for God, the Creator. Thus, Bruce Wayne would be the Son of God, or Jesus.
After failing to assassinate his parents’ killer, Wayne embarks on a journey in order to gain the skills needed to free Gotham from the crime and corruption of the underworld that lurks just beneath the city’s surface. Eventually he finds himself at the doorstep of the League of Shadows, where a mysterious man named Ducard offers to teach him the skills and mental mindset needed to achieve his goals. Despite the revelation that Ducard really wishes to free Gotham from the evil that threatens to overtake it by destroying the city and the chaos that follows, the training that Wayne receives from the League of Shadows is instrumental in his becoming Batman. In this regard, Ducard represents John the Baptist and the training is Wayne’s baptism, which directly leads to the emergence of Batman as a public figure.
As Batman, Wayne attempts to free the people of Gotham from the fear in which they live their lives, with mixed results. Along the way, however, Batman gains several key followers, or “disciples”, if you will: Lucius Fox and Jim Gordon become Batman’s most powerful allies, and Rachel Dawes is his confidante.
Following the defeat and death of Ducard/Ra’s al Ghul, Batman becomes a public hero to the people of Gotham, representing Jesus at the height of his popularity and influence. Therefore, Batman Begins chronicles the origin and rise of Jesus from a Jewish carpenter to the harbinger of a new school of thought and way of life.
The Dark Knight
In the context of this allegory, the first major scene in The Dark Knight is that in which Batman impostors attempt to stop a crime, only to be bailed out by the actual Dark Knight himself. This scene illustrates exactly the kind of influence that Batman has established over the people of Gotham, which is a symbol of the type of influence that Jesus had over those who heard him preach during the height of his popularity. Interestingly, it was that almost maniacal influence that signaled the beginning of the downfall of both Batman and Jesus.
As the Joker goes on a killing spree, demanding that Batman reveal his true identity, the public, who once praised the Dark Knight, begins to turn on him, realizing that the Joker probably wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for Batman. His credibility as a viable crime fighter comes into question, just as Jesus’ claim as the Son of God was doubted before his arrest and trial.
Before this, however, Batman gains another powerful ally in the form of district attorney Harvey Dent, who first utters the words “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain” to Bruce Wayne, a phrase which applies to the rise and fall of both Batman and Jesus and to which we will return later. As it turns out, Dent ends up becoming the disciple who betrays Batman, a bullet (rather than a kiss) effectively marking him as the man to blame for the degeneration of Gotham. Harvey Dent becomes Batman’s Judas; it was Dent’s actions that forced Batman to “sacrifice” himself so that Dent’s sins could be forgiven and the people of Gotham could be saved. Sounds an awful lot like Jesus’ crucifixion, doesn’t it?
“[…] he’s the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now. […] he’s not our hero. He’s a silent guardian, a watchful protector.” Those are the words that Jim Gordon says to his son after Batman decides to take responsibility for Harvey Dent’s crimes. If there is any one sentence that best illustrates the comparisons between Batman and Jesus in the Dark Knight trilogy, that’s the one.
The Dark Knight Rises
Of course, since The Dark Knight Rises hasn’t been released yet, this is where the predictions come into the picture. However, since Batman Begins chronicles the origins and rise of Batman and The Dark Knight chronicles the fall of Batman, should the allegory ring true, The Dark Knight Rises should chronicle the resurrection and ascension of Batman. Here’s how I think it will happen.
We know that The Dark Knight Rises takes place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, during which Bruce Wayne lives as a hermit, Alfred being his only companion. However, when a new super-villain threatens Gotham, Wayne returns to the cowl and resurrects his alter ego in order to protect the city that he sacrificed himself to save.
Obviously the idea of resurrection has a direct connection to the life of Jesus, albeit in a much shorter time frame. Nonetheless, the notion that Batman rises from the ashes of Wayne Manor to become a beacon of hope for the city of Gotham once again is very Christ-like in nature. Granted, Frank Miller originated the idea with The Dark Knight Returns in the mid-’80s, but none of the previous allegory is present in Miller’s work, and for this reason I think the 2012 version of TDKR will turn out a bit differently than the 1986 version.
For starters, I think that Batman will defeat Bane on his own, a point that has been hotly contested among fans for quite some time. I don’t think that John Blake turns out to be Robin, and I certainly don’t think that he takes up the mantle of Batman after Bruce Wayne’s incapacitation. Why? Because the peoples’ faith in Batman needs to be restored before the end of this film. When Jesus rose from the grave three days after his death, he first paid visits to several of his followers, all of whom had forsaken him during his crucifixion. He made believers out of his nay-sayers, and so too will Batman in The Dark Knight Rises.
Furthermore, it is my belief that Batman will perish either during or immediately after the defeat of Bane, fulfilling the final recorded chapter of Jesus’ story: ascension. Batman will save the city of Gotham from the evil that threatened to destroy it before saying goodbye to the city as a hero that will be remembered for generations. I’d like to say that Bruce Wayne is killed during the battle, fulfilling Harvey Dent’s phrase “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain”, but if Wayne survives and decides to simply hang up the cowl, there is the possibility of the eventual return of Batman, putting the icing on the Jesus allegory and confirming my suspicions in grand fashion.
Either way, the similarities between Nolan’s Batman trilogy and the story of Jesus are too numerous and specific to be notched up as mere coincidences, and given the allegory present in the first two films of the series, I can’t fathom that The Dark Knight Rises doesn’t continue the trend.
But I suppose we’ll all find out on 20 July, won’t we?
ThatFilmGuy is the founder of That Film Channel as well as its main contributor. Follow him on Twitter: @theREALjshaff
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