I'm afraid you weren't alone. I'm glad I didn't end up going to the midnight premier with my friends, not because I live in Colorado, but it took be the entire credits to get myself to a point where I felt I could come out of the theater.

Yeah, I'm surprised it somehow didn't get spoiled before hand, but it was a great twist.

SPOILER - ROBIN IS NOT GAY ANYMORE!

I saw it today and thought that the violence was pretty understated compared to a lot of the "gore porn" horror movies that are released. I wouldn't take young children to see it.

I also thought it did a very good job of not applauding violence.

Aside from the actions of Bane...

You start with a man who's life is ruined--and the lives of all those around him--by violence.  Violence that has caused him regret.

You go on to the lamentation of his friends for him to put it behind him and go on with his life.

The portrayals of Bane's violence give nothing with which to sympathize or empathize.

Batman has to come to grips with the effects of violence in his life and what has cost him and make a real choice as to whether he can endure more suffering to defend the innocent.

Batman in the film steadfastly refuses to use lethal weapons against his enemies and in the end is willing to sacrifice himself to save others from them.

The villain's source of pain is revealed and one is even shown shedding a tear--making them more human--but also showing that their pain was no greater than Batman's and that each had to make a choice as to what they would do.  Batman chooses to "rise" and they choose to continue to descend.

I don't think we should be casual about violent films or take them for granted but this one actually took a moral high ground.  It certainly is no more graphic than reading in the OT about Deborah driving a tent stake through the head of a king.

The point of the stories is as important as the content.  Batman is a fable for our generation--a morality tale and a hero legend.

IMO the ending was complete garbage and what they did with "Robin" was a crime. I did enjoy many of the nods to other Batman lore though and aside from the ending I liked the movie a lot. They used Bane for his main purpose, which is to break the bat. Him not having nor even mentioning his "venom" was a bit of a let-down, but, it gave him a more grounded feeling not to have it. Still, I just think the ending blows. They should of left him dead.

I've heard from a reliable source I know that the ending that was used in the movie was actually originally planned as an alternate "happy" ending where he survives the explosion and that Nolan originally wanted him to be dead at the end. The "he dies" ending will be included with extra/cut footage in the 3 disk collectors edition.

At the beginning of the movie when Alfred starts talking about his wish to see Bruce in some random cafe with a wife and kids, you just knew there was no way they couldn't end the movie without that scene, as cheesy as it was.

Also, is Bane supposed to sound like Sean Connery hooked up to a sleep apnea machine?

Maybe it was, but then if Bruce really did survive it, I think that's exactly what he would have done. And the way they set up the ending, the only difference between him living and dying is him finishing the auto pilot. Given that Fox did ask him to look into it, its not like they had to go out of their way to make it. And the whole having to manually having to fly the bomb away from people is just as over done these days I think.

Now, could they have made a more powerfully tragic scene if they went from the get go he should die? Maybe. But in a way it would clash with the other films in the series, which had a roughly positive ending. And perhaps its an even more powerful message that a man can climb out of the pit of darkness, beat its spawn, save the world, and retire afterwards living the normal life the cruel world had denied from him since he was a child.

IS HE NOT GAY ANYLESS?

There....

always pays to shout.....;p