Dark Knight Rises Review

There are several thousand people who have been eagerly awaiting the release of the final film in Christopher Nolan’s Trilogy. There are several million comic book fans around the world who have been waiting for the end to this generations Batman saga. Very few of these fans will realize what a monumental event this trilogy has been to this generation’s throng of filmgoers.

While Batman Begins and the Dark Knight has been masterpieces in their own right, Nolan’s true achievement was creating the definitive modern Batman and a universe which is not so far removed from our own. This is the first time since Tim Burton’s Batman, that the superhero film landscape has had a monumental shift in the public consciousness. This trilogy will inspire future generations for years to come and in many ways define the next iteration of the caped crusader.

Batman Begins was about life, The Dark Knight was about death and the Dark Knight Rises is about rebirth.  As a film the Dark Knight Rises is not perfect, nor is it a perfect story. Running at a lengthy three hours, the end of Christopher Nolan’s trilogy boasts a tightly packed narrative with an incredible, noteworthy cast, awesome villains, an ending that sets up the sequel and gives respect to its comic lineage. Not perfect but pretty damn good.

With all these elements in play you would think that the film would lose its focus or certain scenes would lose their impact. Quite the opposite, Nolan mixes elements from the first two films in the series to create a story which will resonate deeply with both audiences.

By the end of the film, I could feel the reverberations of the cheers from the audience and understood how the moviegoers felt. Despite this being the end of an era for Christopher Nolan’s Batman he has created a film which defied the expectations of its audience while delivering on the hype.

Tom Hardy’s Bane may not have the comic book popularity of fellow thespian Heath Ledger’s Joker. His performance in the film however complements Ledger’s Joker rather than standing as a direct rival to his performance. Bane is a powerful creature full of purpose who destroys anything that gets in his way. Compared to Ledger’s Joker who was merely a sadistic loner, Bane has an army willing to fight and die for him on a whim which makes him a far more dangerous adversary.

Joseph Gordon Levitt is one of the stand outs of this film as well. While his role in the story seems slightly forced his performance makes up for any shortcomings in logic and continuity. Anne Hathaway is delectable and sexy as Catwoman, she brings much to a role that in many ways hardly exists. Her role is perhaps the weakest of all the cast which in many ways defeats her purpose in the film however, Hathaway’s performance again saves the film from slipping into the mediocrity and holds it above water far more than seems possible.

Christian Bale reprises his role as the Dark Knight in what is arguably his best performance in the Batman films to date. What is notable is how Bale’s grating Batman voice is hardly annoying anymore and in many ways feels far more natural. I’m unsure whether this is the result of my suffering through it in the last two films or merely Bale finding the right balance between Emphysema and a sore throat but for some reason it works. Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman are their usual selves with some other minor characters living up to their roles as well.

All in all The Dark Knight Rises as a sole film is not as good as the Dark Knight. However, as an end to Christopher Nolan’s trilogy it is far more satisfying due to the method in which it references its own created mythology. The ending unlike the previous instalments looks to hope and the future rather than expected conflict which is in many ways how it should be.  

Rating: 9/10