1. Ensure That There's Logic Working Behind Every Action
There's a part towards the last third of the movie where Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham from a Middle Eastern prison. In the case of his return, audiences might've had to suspend their disbelief somewhat to conjure up a solution as to how Wayne got back into a city under such a tight security regime. Still, he might've managed it - the fact that it stays ambiguous is frustrating and lazy from a writing point of view, but it's passable because, hey, we don't always know everything, and the exposition levels at this point are in overdrive anyway. But before Bruce sets about saving Gotham, he spends time painting a huge fiery mural on the side of bridge. Okay, it looks cool, there's the iconic symbol of the Batman - he's back! Woo! Except€ well, why? Why did Bruce Wayne take a couple of hours out of his schedule to do that? From a story perspective, it makes zero sense. The clock is ticking. People are getting shoved out onto the ice fields and murdered. There's not much time. Things are seriously grim. These are the sorts of moments that - during a first viewing, at least - you don't really think about. You're too absorbed in in spectacle of it all. In retrospect, these moments kill a movie dead. And in this case, logic has been traded in for a brief moment of visual wonder. Was it worth it? Absolutely not. Firstly, it doesn't make sense. Secondly, it has us questioning Bruce's motives. Would a genius waste his time with something like that? And why alert the bad guys to his presence, anyway? The lesson to be learnt here, then, is to think through moments like this and ask yourself: is this essential to the story, does it work on a logical perspective, and is there another place that this might work better? If you're lacking logical motive, though, the audience are bound to pick up on it. If not right away, they most definitely will in retrospect.
Like this article? Which screenwriting lessons did you take from The Dark Knight Rises? Are there any other movies you'd like to see in this series? Let us know in the comments section below.