For years, we have eagerly anticipated the end of the Dark Knight trilogy. Nolan's last outing with the series was the fantastic and dark The Dark Knight. With The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan hopes to make a darker, and almost hopeless film that is of an epic scale we can only dream about. He made many promises....but in the end was the hype too much, did he keep the promises he made?
The Dark Knight Rises picks up several years after the events of The Dark Knight. Harvey Dent is dead and Gotham still mourns over his grave (in fact, they have dedicated a whole day in his honor: Harvey Dent Day. That sound you hear is me trying to suppress a giggle). Bruce Wayne has hung up his bat cowl for the time being and appears to have been stricken with an unexplained case of weakening bones (Why??? How??? ). Soon enough Bruce will have to pick up his old hobby again, for Gotham is in some pretty serious trouble. The Villain Bane has set his sights on Gotham, and intends to wipe the city from the face of the Earth. Along with a slightly untrustworthy new ally in Catwoman, Batman sets out to save Gotham once more.
Yes, we have all indeed anticipated TDKR for a long time. Our hopes have been raised incredibly high. Unfortunately, as a reviewer the job now falls on me to be the bearer of bad news (bad news that will drop me into acid with the fan boys). The Dark Knight Rises is NOT a great film. It's good, acceptable, fun even...but not great.
The film suffers from any real memorable villain. The Dark Knight had Heath Ledger's Joker who easily went toe to toe with the Bat and lit up the screen whenever he graced it with his presence. The Dark Knight Rises gives us Bane, who is an adequate villain. He makes for a good threat and obstacle for Bat Man to overcome, but he can't reach the insane heights of the Joker. They say a hero is only as good as his villain, and naturally that doesn't bode well at all for the Dark Knight Rises (There's also a 3rd act twist, which doesn't help things).
We all know Christian Bale plays Batman/Bruce Wayne and he puts a somewhat different take on them here. I feel his character is not as strong here as it was in the Dark Knight. Gary Oldman does a superior job as lieutenant Gordon (no surprise there, he's usually great no matter what he's in). Michael Cain is back as Albert, who is starting to feel some serious guilt and responsibility for Bruce. Tom Hardy steps in to play Bane and does a pretty great job. I've got to say for some strange reason I really do love the character of Bane, but I still think that joker made for a more memorable and stronger villain. Bane makes for a menacing villain, but one that ends up being not as memorable as one would hope (a sin considering he is the only man to ever break the Bat, and even that part of the story lacks the weight it should have). It doesn't help that a late 3rd act twist takes a lot of the gravitas of his character away. He's a likeable villain, but one that fails to really scare. Anne Hathaway makes for a great and sexy Catwoman (I could eat her up in that tight little outfit she wears), unfortunately, the script does her in. She plays little role in the proceedings, the film seems like it doesn't know what to do with her, and her character doesn't feel like it belongs in this film. The addition of Catwoman comes across as nothing more than fan service here, a shame really considering she could have been such a strong character. Joseph Gordon Levitt does a great job as John Blake (easily the best character here), a rookie cop that helps out Gordon in investigating Bane and saving the city. He's a memorable character here, made all the more memorable by the time the film ends (You'll see what I mean). Joseph Gordon Levitt's role here is nowhere near the best of his, but it'll do. Marion Cotillard makes for a great Miranda Tate, not gonna say much else about this character.... if you want to see more then see the film.
So, as you can see...it's not that the acting's bad....it's the way the characters are handled that makes them weaker than the characters in The Dark Knight. It doesn't help that the story arc of the film is all over the place and doesn't flow together all that well. Also, the script could have used a bit of touching up as well.
The Dark Knight Rises is a film that tries to be epic, but more often than not ends up being silly.It's really a drastic tonal shift for a series that prides itself on its darkness and edge, a tonal shift that; while unintentional; still hurts the film in the long run. That said, while the film is not as epic or dark as it wants to be it is not without a few epic moments (The Bat is easily the most bad-ass thing about the film, the explosions around Gotham scene is chilling, The Back-breaking fight is great, the final fight is indeed quite epic, there's a cool cameo by Johnathan Crane/The Scarecrow, There's a scene with a fiery bat-signal over a bridge that gave me chills the first time I saw it, and it is also really flippin cool to see Gotham begin to tear itself apart...I could watch two hours of Gotham descending into madness and I would be happier than a kid at Disneyland).
There has been much talk about the ending to this film. No, I won't spoil it for anyone. All I'll say is that for myself, it was disappointing but satisfying at the same time. The first two acts of The Dark Knight rises are solid but slow and not all that engaging, the 3rd and final act (the ending) is the strongest part. This makes for much wriggling in your seat as you watch Batman's silly antics that just aren't as cool or thrilling as they were in The Dark Knight, while you wait for the not so grand finale. The final fight is epic but has a weak ending (Bane is done in all too easily), and the moment we were all hoping for occurs (It's not as powerful as you would think it would be) only for the rug to be pulled out from under us mere minutes later in a way that doesn't make sense. At least Joseph Gordon Levitt's role in the finale is pretty flippin cool.
While The Dark Knight Rises is not the grand finale we were all expecting, it still makes for a satisfying and fitting conclusion to a great series. Expect a few epic moments, but not much considering the run time of this film. This is popcorn cinema folks...pure and simple. The truth is, the super-hero films of late have taught me to expect more from these types of films...and The Dark knight rises does not provide that, only more of the same. I think we should demand more out of our Super-Hero films. Oh well. The Dark Knight Rises is a satisfying ending to a strong trilogy. Despite my many complaints, I still enjoyed it and would recommend it to others...just as long as they agreed to lower their expectations first.
3/5 STARS
I just want to clear something up. I am indeed a fan of Batman...I have been so since I was young. I walked in fully expecting to LOVE this film, I WANTED to love this. I wish I could give this film 4 stars, 5 even!!!! But that wouldn't be fair. As I've already said, The Dark knight Rises is not a great film...it's just good.
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