In the past few weeks, we’ve seen tons of video and photo images from the Pittsburgh filming of Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight Rises’. Now that filming has wrapped in the steel city, the film crew has gone international. The first stop found the crew on ex-Walian Christian Bale’s home turf. Wales’ Brecon Beacons National Park is home to the Henrhyd Falls. This stunning 90ft waterfall houses an inlet beneath the falls that will double for the Batcave in the upcoming film.
According to sources that caught a glimpse of the filming, “They were there for a couple of days just a few weeks ago. … I understand it’s going to be used in the opening sequence of the film, as Batman discovers the Batcave. … But we’ll have to wait and see.” Brecon Beacons Nation Park’s beautiful vistas are not unfamiliar with Hollywood crews. The park has been used in a myriad of films including ‘Stardust’, ‘King Arthur’, ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ and most recently ‘Clash of the Titans 2’.
Back in the states, the filming has moved from Pittsburgh to Los Angeles. According to sources, the security on the LA set is much tighter than that in Pennsylvania. Nonetheless, we have our first images of the first stunt set as it is being prepared for the cameras. The photos show a massive storm drain and a parking garage that is being filled with Gotham City Police vehicles, taxis, and motorcycles. The set is allegedly going to be used for a “huge bike race” sequence with Batman squaring off with a squad of Bane’s mercenaries. This isn’t confirmed but a tweet from @Irod81182 on Twitter saying that he “Just saw Christian Bale on the bat-cycle on the set of the dark knight rises” would seem to validate the speculation. Other sources say that Bane’s team has taken a hostage but who that might be and why is not yet known.
With Bane preparing to tear up LA, another Bat-villain is making news of another kind. When the first images of Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman began to appear online, fans everywhere began to rage against the fact that her costume wasn’t feline enough. Where were the ears? The claws? The tail? If the most recent reports are to be believed, at least some of the fan contempt may be unfounded. According to Manny the Movie Guy and Hollywood Reporter, those ridiculous high tech goggles that Catwoman sports in those first photos will turn into cat ears when they’re pulled back onto her head like a headband. Both Manny and the Reporter were unable to reveal their source for this info but it is purportedly someone who has been to the set and is close to the filming. Manny says of the goggles, “Imagine the goggles pulled back and it will reveal the pointy cat ears by way of those funky blue lights.”
I’ve looked closely at the pictures and I still don’t see any ears, but if the sources speak truth, it’s a step in the right direction. I want to see Catwoman on the screen and, so far, we’ve got a generic cat-burglar.
