The Dark Knight Rises could have been even longer...

...if it actually used the scenes filmed to explain Bane's backstory. As is, TDKR doesn't really explain much of how Bane got the way he is; we know he needs the mask up pump himself full of painkillers, but why? Some deleted scenes would explain:

The thing that you should have seen during that sequence is [Bane] being injured in his youth. So one of the fundamental things about his costume is that he has this scar from the back injury. Even if he hasn't got the bulletproof vest on, he still has to wear the waist belt and the braces. In that scene in the prison, where he's learning to fight the same way Batman learned to fight, he's wearing an early version of his waist belt. It's showing support, but it's not the finished one he eventually wears. He's also wearing an early version of his gas mask, all glued together ... If you look at the film, unless they've cut it—and I'm sure they haven't—there's a whole early section for Tom Hardy where he's fighting and being taunted by people. He's got chains on him, and he's standing on a wooden thing while people are attacking him. And in that scene, he's wearing a much more ragged, primitive version of the mask.

The above quote is from costume designer Lindy Hemming, and we can only hope the DVD/Blu-ray edition will have those scenes intact.

Via Vulture