When I first started seeing trailers and footage from the new Batman movie, “The Dark Knight Rises,” my eye drew comparisons between the war on “the rich” portrayed therein and the “Occupy Wall Street” campaign in which compassionate, loving liberals defecated, raped, murdered, and vandalized their way into the hearts and minds of America. I’m pleased to report that no such comparison was intended, and none was conveyed. I saw it at the midknight showing last night at the Grand.

According to this interview on comingsoon.net, the screenplay for TDKR was begun right after the previous Dark Knight movie hit the screens. A distinct allusion to Charles’ Dickens work “A Tale of Two Cities” was present from the get-go.

As luck would have it, or by coincidence if you aren’t a detective, I recently began re-reading the Dickens work with fervor. I’ve been taking my time to really get into the characters and the setting of revolution-era France, and I have found it profoundly more stirring than in times past. Because of my newfound intimacy with this story I was easily able to see its influence on TDKR, particularly with regard to Gotham City…or what Bane, the villain, causes it to become.

I would love to outline a few of the direct comparisons between the two, but I can’t risk letting any spoilers fly. All I have to say is that reading A Tale of Two Cities, no small task at that, prior to watching Dark Knight Rises will give you a better feel for the film and the blight that strikes Gotham City. I’ll leave it at that.

By the way, what happens to “the rich” is not glorified in this movie, as much as the American left loves to champion disdain for successful people under the leadership of the modern Democrat party and the current occupant of the White House. Believe me, if there was such a slant in this movie I’d perceive it. I did not. With so much liberal activism in Hollywood these days, it’s not out of line for us to expect it, but you have nothing to worry about here. Enjoy the show.