Last week Renn reported on the likelihood of a Dark Knight Rises director’s cut making its way to Blu-ray in June of 2013. Supposedly, if approved, this cut would feature a more fleshed-out origin for Bane as well as additional scenes with Ra’s Al Ghul. The footage would have added about thirty minutes for a 195 minute running time. Sadly (or splendidly, depending on your level of enjoyment with the film) we can now confirm that no such director’s cut will make its way to the masses.
The Playlist has it confirmed with Nolan’s reps: no such cut has or will ever exist. It’s not surprising, given Nolan’s process and how few deleted scenes of his make their way to home video. Despite lengthy running times, Nolan likes to shoot his films lean – meaning most of what doesn’t make it to screen has been weeded out in the preproduction stage.
As Renn mentioned in his piece (linked above), we do know this footage exists – multiple sources have it confirmed. But Nolan’s one of the few directors with the luxury of final cut. If there are scenes that didn’t make the final film, it’s because he didn’t want them there. An issue I’ve come to notice with TDK and TDKR is their pacing; scenes move at a breakneck pace that feels rushed when held up against Zimmer’s effective if omnipresent score. If anything, I think The Dark Knight Rises would in fact benefit from an extended cut that slows things down and gives us more insight into Bane – a character I loved but who feels slighted by the picture’s end. Disappointingly, it was never to be.
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