Christopher Nolan interviewed on “The Treatment”

 

 

Christopher Nolan is an English-American screen writer, producer, and director. In 2000, he received serious attention from critics and audience with the release of Memento. Nolan is also notable for writing and directing the Batman film trilogy, which includes Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight(2008), and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Nolan also directed Inception (2010), which received four Academy Awards and a nomination for Best Picture. 

On July 25, KCRW released the interview with Christopher Nolan. Most of the show consisted Elvis Mitchell and Christopher Nolan discussing Nolan’s newest movie, The Dark Knight Rises. Mitchell and Nolan also discussed some of Nolan’s previous works and the influence of other films on his work. One of the most interesting things that I learned in this interview was the influence film noir has had on Nolan’s work. Nolan is a big fan of the stylish crime drama’s of the 1940s and 50s, and he incorporated many aspects of the genre into his own movies. For example, many of his movies involve the dark settings and plots associated with film noir. His characters, even the heroes, are often put in positions of moral ambiguity. These influences played a significant role in the style of Nolan’s movies. 

“One of the great uses of time is the ticking clock, the tension…They knew that if they started from zero and counted up, the audience wouldn’t know when it would end, so they went backwards down to zero…It really speaks to the issue of time.”

In the beginning of the interview, Mitchell and Nolan discuss Nolan’s use of time in his works and in the world of cinema in general. One of the interesting things that I learned from this quote was how the use of the “ticking clock” influenced tension in a movie. Although at times it may seem subtle to the audience, the use of a clock to highlight tension seemed genius to me once Nolan explained it. Nolan uses the concept of the ticking clock in his own movies as well. In Inception, the climax revolves around the concept of a ticking clock signifying that the characters are running out of time. In The Dark Knight Rises, there is a scene in which Harvey Dent and Rachel are strapped to bombs, and there is a clock ticking down to their doom. The clock creates an enormous amount of tension in the film, and rightfully so- it culminates in a death of a protagonist, and the scene indirectly leads to the transformation of Harvey Dent into the infamous Two-Face.

“I think that one of the things I’m going to miss about not working with these characters is that when you take on these grandeur, larger than life characters that the audience has a preexisting relationship with, these icons, you’re allowed to indulge in a kind of grand scale emotional storytelling that you couldn’t do with other stories.”

In regards to working on the Batman trilogy, Nolan enjoyed the amount of grandeur we was able to work with in his movie. I believe that this quote not only applies to the trilogy, but superhero movies in general. I’ve always enjoyed the operatic and dramatic portrayal of superhero movies. However, this interview did give me some insight as to how these movies are able to be played out so dramatically and emotionally. Superhero movies, if one truly thinks about it, often have rather outlandish or fantastical plots and characters. Yet, because there is already a pre-established context for these characters and stories, we do not accept these movies as silly or ridiculous. Because of this pre-established context, superhero movies can use a level of grandeur that other movies cannot really do. I believe that this is something that really makes them special. 

I think if they’re encountering an antagonist who is different, who doesn’t get them at all, essentially, that shares none of their values, and is from a different planet, really, he isn’t as threatening. I really enjoy telling a story with a protagonist that is undermined by a villain that’s really getting under his skin because they share something. They share knowledge in some point of view or bizarre way. The more bizarre way you can find that kind of relationship, you have more fun. 

In this quote, Christopher Nolan discusses the relationship between Batman and some of his adversaries in the Batman trilogy, including Bane from The Dark Knight Rises. In the Batman film series, Nolan establishes the evil of the antagonists by juxtaposing characteristics of the antagonist against Batman’s own characteristics. Yet at the same time, Nolan also makes sure to point out the characteristics that Batman and the villains share because it “gets under his (Batman’s) skin.” I thought that this point was really interesting, as it really did seem to make the villains seem more threatening. Nolan later stated in the interview that Bane, like Batman, sees himself as a hero and savior. Yet at the same time, he and Batman are doing completely different things over the course of the movie. I think that this was a very interesting insight in the way in which Nolan developed the villains of his movies. 

Overall, Nolan’s interview on The Treatment was very intriguing. I felt that I had gained new insight into the development and the ideas behind Nolan’s films. I think that Nolan has contributed a great deal to the world of film in revitalizing a treasured franchise and the use of film noir in modern cinema.