REVIEW: The Dark Knight Rises

PLOT: Eight years on, a new terrorist leader, Bane, overwhelms Gotham's finest, and the Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that has branded him an enemy.

REVIEW: The Dark Knight Rises has unquestionably been the most anticipated movie of the summer, if not the entirety of 2012. The main question now is, did it live up to the hype? If you're asking me that question, the answer is undeniably yes and it's by a long shot. Christopher Nolan has done what few other filmmakers have ever challenged themselves to do, let alone successfully done, and that's make a trilogy that gets better with each film. The only comparison I can make to Nolan's Batman trilogy is Peter Jackson's epic Lord of the Rings trilogy which scored itself quite a lot of recognition by moviegoers, critics, and the Academy alike. Nolan's trilogy has not been recognized quite on the same level as Peter Jackson's by the Academy, but I think with The Dark Knight Rises Nolan has finally proven himself to the fans and critics that he's a mainstay in modern cinema. Not only that, but I feel that he has now proven himself to the Academy and should be recognized in the category of Best Director as he has yet to be nominated for the award. But Christopher Nolan does not single-handedly make this movie what it is, as he has assembled an oustanding cast throughout his years of filmmaking. Actors and actresses, old and new, provide an oustanding range of acting for a superhero film to date. The score to the film is another big part of what drives The Dark Knight Rises into your heart and mind, and even though it's somewhat a copy from the other films, it's very much at the wheel of this third and final installment. Where this film falls short though is left to each individual viewer, and there are complaints that can obviously be made, but when a filmmaker astonishes you so much with his magical direction, you can't help but put those complaints aside for the appreciation of one hell of a film, directed by whom I would like to call, the modern master magician of film.

Christopher Nolan's track record is still a bit sparse, but from time to time I have to remind myself that his track record is also nearly perfect as well. Ever since Memento, Nolan has continuously delivered films that have entranced audiences everywhere. He's done it in several different genres, though some would argue that most of his films are of the action variety. He's done it in several different ways too, and a film I often find myself using to describe his style is The Prestige. Most of his films consist of the three acts discussed in the film: The Pledge, The Turn, The Prestige. Some would say that his Batman trilogy was a per film, demonstration of just that. In Batman Begins, Nolan clearly redefines Batman as a character and grounds his mythos in reality, as opposed to a lot of other creations in the Bat-universe. What was typically known as a superhero movie, had now become something as simple as a crime drama. But what Nolan did was intertwine these elements that were previously only seen in summer blockbuster superhero films, into a film that could be watched by almost anyone and be seen as something other than a popcorn action film. There was heart, humor, drama, action, dazzling performances from the cast, and brilliant writing and direction to the point that the viewer almost forgets that they're watching a Batman film. With Batman Begins, Nolan showed The Pledge of his trilogy by introducing us to this new version of the common character, all the while remaining true to the character of Bruce Wayne and his basic story. Then came The Dark Knight, the absolutely spellbinding film that defined several careers in the making, and unfortunately led to the loss of a true up and coming star, Heath Ledger. His extraordinary vision of the Batman in absolute turmoil, pitted against one of the greatest villains of all-time (not just in the Bat-universe), the Joker. It was a film that finally proved superhero movies weren't just for kids, and it wasn't just for comic book geeks,  it could be for everyone if given the chance. It was a true villain's movie also, showing that our heroes are only what their villains make them, and a haunting portrayal of the Joker showed just how serious a Batman film could be. Though the performance of Ledger as the Joker is the most memorable portion of The Dark Knight, Nolan was meanwhile leading us along through another one of his acts in the Batman trilogy. The Turn, as it was, demonstrated by Nolan and his evolving cast of talent to bring the Batman universe to a bigger scale than had ever been seen in film. It was an unseen titan of a movie before Ledger's death, which then only propelled it into absolute insanity (much like the Joker himself). The success of The Dark Knight finally gave Christopher Nolan the mainstream attention he so deserved years previous, and thus began the demand for more of Nolan's Batman, or The Prestige of his Batman "magic". With The Dark Knight Rises, it was thought that the quality of its predecessor was unreachable, and that at best he could only find what made the first film so great. Not only were most wrong, but they were caught up into The Prestige of Nolan's magic as well. This film clearly shows all of Christopher Nolan's strengths as a director. He so subtly injects everything you need to know and feel into his film, and it isn't until it's necessary to realize their importance to the plot do you notice it. I think this could very well be his biggest and best accomplishment to date, reason being that not once since or before Peter Jackson's Return of the King have I seen a third film so easily top the previous two films before it. It's absolutely amazing how great of a film The Dark Knight Rises truly is, but of course, not all of the credit can go to Nolan.

The acting talent in The Dark Knight Rises is insurmountable in the world of superhero film, and the only reason it's possible is because of the amazing Chris Nolan. By far though, Nolan has made use of one actor more than any other in all of his films, and that is the talented Christian Bale. Bale has assumed the role of Batman since Batman Begins, and has slowly transformed himself into the Bruce Wayne we now see in this third installment. Coming from young and reckless, to brave and bold, and now weathered, beaten, and still reckless. When we first see Bruce Wayne in The Dark Knight Rises, he is walking around with a limp and cane, and has obviously seen better days. Eight years have passed since we last saw the wealthy bachelor in action as the Batman, and though only half that time has passed in the real world, Bale is able to portray that in such a subtle way. The tormented Bruce Wayne that I know and love so well from the comics, is brought to the screen with such perfection that I couldn't help but smile even though Bruce had found himself at odds with Gotham, and the world. The Dark Knight Rises is the definite Bruce Wayne film, as you can say Batman Begins was for Batman, and The Dark Knight was for the Joker. I can't really point out directly what it is that makes his performance so much wiser and roughed up, but you really feel that Bruce Wayne hasn't seen the lights of Gotham in eight years, or since we last saw him at the end of The Dark Knight. Bale at this point though has done something that no other Batman actor before him has done, and that is to actually become Bruce Wayne, and even more so to become the Batman. Never when you watch any of the previous incarnations of Batman on film, do you truly see the character on screen as Batman and not even think of the actor hiding behind the cowl. Christian Bale's on screen presence is little to none, and it's so easy to lose yourself in Nolan's mastery of creating an ultimately believable and real Batman. Christian Bale, is Batman. Christian Bale, is Bruce Wayne. There's also no doubt in my mind at this point, that there is no one else who could have done this as well as he has done it and I'm so glad that Nolan discovered the brilliance of Bale as an actor in the early 2000's. Nolan's only success in finding acting talent however, is not just with Christian Bale, but also with the supporting casts of his films, especially in his Batman trilogy.

Obviously, none of us will ever be able to forget the stunning performance given by the late Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight which won him a posthumous Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. When Heath was first chosen for the role of the Joker, I along with many others thought "how in the hell is this young actor going to even come close to anything that's the Joker, surely it will be awful". The result was absolutely jaw-dropping, and I'll credit that to Christopher Nolan knowing the talents of actors and where they can take themselves, when no other director is willing and/or able to find these skills for their own films' daring roles. Again in The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan has hand-picked his actors specifically for his Bat-world, and he does it well. Bane, a character previously tackled (and should have been sacked) in the god awful Batman & Robin, is now treated with respect in Nolan's universe. Chosen for the role is yet another up and comer, Tom Hardy. I first saw Hardy in the film Bronson, where he played the infamous criminal Charlie Bronson. He was bulked up and made out to be an absolute monster in this film, so it was no question to me whether he could appear as the brooding and menacing Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. My doubts stemmed from the fact that after such a wonderful performance from Ledger and the Joker, how do you top that in the next film with a villain that to me, is equally as threatening to the Batman. Bane is commonly known from the Batman comic arc of Knightfall, where he famously breaks Batman's back and puts him out of commission as Gotham's savior while he goes rampant on the city. Bane is a very smart villain, probably one of Batman's smartest foes, and it just seemed like such a hard villain to tackle after the Joker, especially in Nolan's universe. What Tom Hardy and team came up with was absolutely brilliant, and it's really uncanny how it works so well in the film. Hardy's English accent goes nowhere, and honestly may even be a little stronger in the film. Along with the Vader-like mask combo, it provides for an ultimately disturbing voice performance that completely commands the viewer's attention. Being that Tom Hardy's performance is limited to his eyes, partial facial expressions, and his masked dialogue, I find that it's equally as impressive as a performance like Ledger's. Sure it's not of the same physicality as the Joker, but it's equally as haunting and entrancing, as I would say that every scene in this film where Bane is on the screen, my eyes were glued. Though Bane and Batman are the main antagonist and protagonist in The Dark Knight Rises, there are so many other performances that continue from previous films and ultimately reach their arc's end, as well as other new additions to Nolan's mythos.

When I first heard that Anne Hathaway would be in Nolan's third Batman film, I just thought "well there goes half the movie". Anne Hathaway to me, is almost as bad as Sandra Bullock, and while she is nowhere near as bad, I was still worried that she would completely suck the life out of her role much like Katie Holmes did her role in Batman Begins. However, Hathaway as Selina Kyle a.k.a. Catwoman completely caught me by surprise. She absolutely nailed everything about the Catwoman character that appeals to me. She had the sex appeal, she had the attitude (or cat-titude, if you will.. Meow!), and more than everything else, she grounded the character completely into Nolan's universe even though I totally thought it was impossible. And again, I was amazed that someone who I never could have seen in a Batman film, was selected by Nolan to take on one of the most well-known Batman characters and straight up nailed it. Again, Nolan knows the skills of his acting crew and I don't think I could ever doubt any of his choices again. Another new addition in The Dark Knight Rises, is Joseph Gordon-Levitt as young cop John Blake. I've been a big fan of JGL since his breakout role in the film Brick (which if you haven't seen, is definitely worth a watch), and I knew he would pull his weight here much like he did in Nolan's previous film Inception. I really like Blake's relationship with Bruce Wayne and Batman, and I think it was a big proponent of what made this Bruce Wayne tale so epic and important to the story. His character really puts it all out there for the audience to see, if you hadn't noticed it from Bale's brilliant performance in the first place. Marion Cotillard also shows up big in this film as another recycled talent from Inception, and really plays her character well on both sides of the coin. There were many other small roles in the film that were given bigger parts this go around, which made them feel like new, along with a few other new small roles which were all well-acted. There is an unbelievable amount of actors in this film that I recognized, and it made me realize midway through just how large and epic this film really is. That any actor out there, was probably dying to just to play someone like a Security Guard #2 role.

Of course, many of the supporting characters from the previous two films make a return in the third installment as well. Morgan Freeman again plays Bruce's technological support Lucius Fox, who again provides a lot of the comic relief in the film. Freeman is undoubtedly a great actor, and again shows the importance of Lucius Fox to Nolan's Batman arc. Also returning from the first two films is Michael Caine as Bruce Wayne's butler Alfred Pennyworth. Caine has most definitely done a fantastic job throughout playing Wayne's caretaker, and really only "family" member he has left. Caine is a wonderful actor, who by now is very seasoned in the art, and this film is definitely his breakout performance under the guise of Alfred. There are many heart-to-heart interactions between Bruce Wayne and Alfred in The Dark Knight Rises, several of which brought tears to my eyes. There is one gut-wrenching scene in the final minutes of the film with Alfred speaking to Bruce, that almost sent me to the floor, curled into a ball and sobbing uncontrollably. Never have I found myself moved to tears by any of Nolan's Batman films, but there were at least a couple of times in the last half hour where I found myself glassy eyed. Even after the movie was over, and I was discussing it, I was unable to recount a few of the final moments from the film without losing control of my voice. It just goes to show how powerful this film truly is, and Caine's performance this time as Alfred is absolutely oustanding, and shows just how integral Mr. Pennyworth is to the existence of Bruce Wayne and the Batman. The other returning character present is Jim Gordon played by the great Gary Oldman, and as usual does a fantastic job as Batman's one and only trusty ally in the G.C.P.D. It's not really his most prevalent and awe-inspiring performance, as it is pretty much Jim Gordon per usual, but also as usual he's still a very important piece to the epic scope of a puzzle that The Dark Knight Rises is.

The last, but definitely not least important piece of the puzzle is the score composed by Hans Zimmer. Zimmer has done the scores for all three of Nolan's Batman films, and having done so he is able to piece together a familiar yet unique musical setting for The Dark Knight Rises. This score is so intense and demands the attention of the listener on a subconscious level. It reminds me of the driving scores behind a film like David Fincher's The Social Network, where it absolutely commands the viewer to watch what is happening on the screen. It adds a whole other level to the film, and it's merely just playing in the background the entire time. Zimmer has done a lot of great work on a lot of great projects, but his score behind this film may be some of his best work to date. In the end, The Dark Knight Rises is nothing short of a masterpiece. It cannot be credited to just Christopher Nolan, though most of it has to be put under his name because of his unreasonable ability to suck in a viewer of his films. It also can't be credited to the cast and crew in any specific order. Much like the rest of Nolan's Batman films, it is all of the elements and talents put together that provide for a truly unique, cinematic experience that brings Batman, and other heroes and villains to the level of reality like its never been seen before. Yet again, Christopher Nolan has proven to us that superheroes can exist on an Academy quality level of film, and still remain true to their source material without being hokey or corny. I demand that Nolan finally be recognized by the Academy for Best Director in 2012. I would also love to see Christian Bale finally recognized for his one of a kind performance as Bruce Wayne and his masked alter ego, the Batman. On top of that, I'd even be happy to see Tom Hardy be recognized for his performance as the spine-tingling Bane, though I doubt the latter two of three will happen. The Dark Knight Rises was a special occasion of the summer, and of 2012, and of cinema history in general. Not only has the Dark Knight risen, but so has the expectation for superhero film in the future, as well as any movie that Christopher Nolan decides to make next. We are all waiting for your next magic trick, sir.

ACTING : ( 10 / 10 )

STORY : ( 10 / 10 )

EXECUTION : ( 10 / 10 )

POSTER : ( 10 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 10 / 10 )