By: Scott Johnson on April 3, 2012
Yesterday, we gave five reasons why The Avengers could beat The Dark Knight Rises at the box office, and today, we flip the switch. There is a reason why the Dark Knight Rises is constantly showing up in polls at the top of the list for most anticipated movie of 2012.
Most people already consider it a foregone conclusion that The Dark Knight Rise will be a great movie. The only big question is will it be so epic that the Academy Awards will be forced to nominate a superhero movie for Best Picture. Here are our top five reasons why The Dark Knight Rises could beat The Avengers at the box office.
5. Christopher Nolan’s Fan Base – While both Christopher Nolan and Joss Whedon have huge fan bases, Nolan is more established as a movie director. Nolan has a strong track record of producing excellent movies, and his fans thoroughly trust him to deliver a good product. Christopher Nolan is one of those rare directors who has the box office drawing power of big name Hollywood star. People will go see a Nolan movie just because he’s the director.
4. IMAX Will Boost Ticket Dollars – While The Dark Knight Rises isn’t being released in 3-D, a large part of the film was shot in IMAX. Die-hard fans will have no problem shelling out the higher ticket fees to see The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX. The film will likely break all previous records when it comes to IMAX ticket sales.
3. Last Movie In Trilogy – While The Avengers has been set up by previous Marvel Studios films, it really is the first of what will likely be a series of Avengers movie. On the other hand, The Dark Knight Rises is the last of a trilogy. The last Harry Potter movie proved that no one wants to miss the last film in a series. Nolan’s Batman films are an established product with a large fan base that has been built up over time.
2. Batman Is Bigger Than The Avengers – The Avengers are big, but Batman is bigger. After Superman, Batman is probably the best known superhero in the entire world (even though an argument could be made for Spider-Man). There were four big budget Batman movies before Nolan even rebooted the franchise with his trilogy. Plus, the last Nolan Batman film is the third highest grossing movie of all time.
1. Likely Critical Acclaim – Critics are notoriously vicious when it comes to reviewing comic book films, but Christopher Nolan has won the respect of critics with his previous works. While Avengers might get positive reviews from critics calling it a fun ride and action packed, The Dark Knight Rises will likely get labeled a masterpiece and thought-provoking. The Dark Knight Rises has a greater chance at receiving critical acclaim than The Avengers does, which can help drive box office dollars.
