Following what the American media have dubbed the Aurora massacre, the President has declared a state of mourning and all US flags are flying at half mast. There is a palpable sense of a shocked and introspective nation. Newspapers and televisions screens are beginning to fill up with eye witness acounts and descriptions of the unfortunate victims, the lucky survivors and the enigmatic killer himself. It therefore felt a little strange to be going to see the latest Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, tickets to which I had inadvertently bought the previous evening. The film itself was disappointing. The primary villain, Bane, loses credibility as the film and its complicated back story progress. And, despite all of his protestations to the contrary, Director Christopher Nolan has left the door wide open for (yet another) movie in the franchise. What interested me more was the experience. Heavy security measures were in place but the cinema was absolutely full. No costumes or masks were allowed and all bags were searched. I looked around me whenever somebody got up to leave or returned (which is what the Aurora killer did) and saw how people could not hide momentary flashes of anxiety. When Batman spelt out his  ‘No guns, no killing’ moral code to Cat Woman, there was a sense of a surge of collective support from the audience. I myself felt a frisson from time to time whenever somebody walked down the aisle…