Here is my review of Dark Knight Rises, I will be discussing all the plot points and surprises so Spoiler Alert!
consider yourselves warned:
After years of waiting and Nolan giving us Inception we are finally at an end. Batman quest to find closure comes to fruition and we can all move on, or can we.
First let me be clear, I had a lot of fun with the movie. the Nolan brothers and Goyer took some of the most interesting Batman storyline and blended them together to create a ‘‘Best of’’ Knightfall, No Man’s Land, Knight Quest and above all Dark Knight Returns. The cinematography is A++ and the IMAX shoots are a delight, ask anybody and they will tell you to pay the extra coins to see the Imax experience. The acting is solid, Bale gives us is best performance yet as the cape crusader but it’s really the new comers that shine the most. Hathaway, Gordon-Levitt and Hardy proves once more that Nolan is a casting genius and that we never should question is choices. The special effects are seamless, even the ‘‘Bat-sputnik’’ look real in it’s crazy stunts.
But this is a review and as any good criticism I should point out what is not working or could have been better. Let’s start with the 1st act, Bruce is a recluse and nobody as seen him in almost 8 years. So let me get this straight, he trained for 8 years in Begins then was Batman for 1year and started to inspire people but as soon as Harvey Dent died he hung out the cape and cowl, sat on is bad leg and grief the lost of his ‘‘girlfriend’’ and let gotham to itself. As soon as a small mystery arise (Catwoman stealing a neckless) that was enough to inspire him again. I don’t buy it, the concept is good and goes back to Dark Knight Return but Bruce is too young and was always something of an Xtreme sport junkie in that particular iteration I cannot see him not even driving is Lamborghini just for fun from time to time. Also I understand he trained a lot but you need to practice these skill to keep them. They also make it clear that he is not in is prime anymore, a Doctor points out all that is wrong with is body and 40 year old and et needs a special leg thing to walk normally (at the start anyway because it looks like the leg healed at the same time that is back did in prison). Why does all this bother me so much you are asking yourself, well in 3 movies it’s the first time that Nolan brought me to the point of saying to myself ‘‘well of course he’s Batman’’. Where in the previous instalment I believed that he could happen in this one I believe he could happen only to Batman. It also cheapen Bane physical prowess. Ok he broke the Bat, well he broke a Bat that did not trained for 8 years and has a bad leg.
Ok so let give the movie it’s premise and move on. Catwoman story is, well almost perfect just under develop and it’s a damn shame because I love everything they did with her. As most of the character that would deserve more screen time (Miranda Tate) she suffered because of the Robin Begins angle of the script. John Blake a newly created character that as nothing (nothing important at least) to do with the comic. He is kind of a cross between Tim Drake and Dick Grayson. He finds out who Batman is almost like Tim Drake but he’s the perfect orphan that wanna help all the time and that is a cop like Dick Grayson. My big problem is that it’s basically his movie, a lot of what is doing would have had more weight in the hands of Gordon and Catwoman which are character that I’m already more invested in and that I want to see change and evolve. John Blake as a key role in all 3 act and every time he is on screen I wish somebody else would be. If it wasn’t of is strong performance that would be a total misstep.
Let’s now go to act 2. Here I’m having a blast, Batman is back and we already forgot about all of is physical problems, the action sequence are fierce and well shot, Bane is still interesting as the Uber-terrorist that can find followers as easily as I can buy Dr Pepper and as most of the lower class of Gotham in is pocket. Then at the mid point of the movie there is a break (pun intended). So Bane win the fight against Batman, fly to asia and drop him in the Lazarus pit prison and fly back to Gotham (that is dedication to suffering) to put is plan in motion. At this point I still think Bane is an intelligent Bad-ass that is a good detective and a fierce warrior that fights for anarchy. I already don’t trust Miranda Tates and I’m pretty sure of who she is. Bane put is plan into action and then the confusion begins. At the moment of writing this I saw the movie only once so bare with me. I don’t understand what the new League of Shadow wants to achieve by keeping Gotham hostage for months before blowing it up. Ok they make Bruce suffer and this is a story of vengeance but beside that what do they achieve. Well the answer to that is that they give enough time to Batman to hang from a rope so that is back can heal (seriously, I’m no doctor but getting punch in the back and hanging from a rope is no treatment, well he’s Batman) and that he can learn a final lesson on fear to make him complete. It also give us time to explore the past of Bane and the heir of Ra’s Al Ghul and put some misdirection. Biggest missed opportunity of the movie is here. Gotham is hostage, in ruin, life is suppose to be hard for month and we are never expose to the people. Yeah we see some of them but mainly cops and criminal. We should have felt the soul of Gotham the same way that Dark Knight did, we should feel bad for the family that have to survive, instead I get more John Blake starting the plan that Batman will be able to complete once he returns. So Bruce heal and gets out of Lazarus (what a shock) then go back to Gotham. Wait, how does he do that, he’s broke in the middle of nowhere Asia and nobody can go in our out of Gotham, well he’s Batman (that’s the third time that crossed my mind).
So Act 3 start and it’s basically a chase the bomb senario. Blake send a bunch of orphan through a tunnel that Catwoman opened when Batman returns but still try to go through a bridge, Gordon chase the bomb that is now about to explode (Batman as great timing, well he’s Batman) an all out cop vs criminal war start, we have a final Bane vs Batman fight. All epic but lacking suspense. At this point I never feared for Batman life, of course he’s gonna best Bane, and he almost does before Miranda catch him by surprise has Talia and all of a sudden Bane becomes a thug. All that Bane did was Talia’s plan, she told him who Batman was, she infiltrated Gotham richest and will let Bane die as a good pawn. This destroy the character of Bane and to put the final nail in the coffin instead of having Batman giving the last punch he gets shot by Catwoman, so anti-climatic. Then it’s a question of dropping the the bomb in the sea and fake Batman death which once again I never believed since they talk about auto-pilot once every act of the movie. Once again I pointed out all the stuff that bugged me but the editing and music makes all of this engaging and epic. The pursuit of Tumblers and Bat-Sputnick is one of the best of the series.
The epilogue is where I have the biggest problem. By having Bruce retiring so young after a good total of 2 years of Batman activity it cheapen the resolve of the character. In Dark Knight Returns he stop being Batman because of old age and even then he came back. He’s a tortured man that wants to make sure his mission is complete. Here I feel that he has no mission, the League of Shadow has been defeated so he can now move on. Instead of battling the Joe Chill of this world he was only there to save the entire city of treats of epic proportion. I think it damages the very idea of Batman. Does it wrap the serie in a nice bow, yes, but as Gotham been truly saved after months of economic downfall and terrorist oppression, no. It has not blown up but most of the work is still to be done. Yes I see that the Bat statue is suppose to be a beacon of hope for the reconstruction of the city but Gotham as already been fooled once, will it again? So John Blake real name is Robin, that is personnal but Dick Grayson would have gave me a better chill.
Over all The Dark Knight Rises is an amazing movie, engaging, beautiful, well acted and directed but the script lacks in the details, the same kind of details that made it’s predecessor the best Superhero movie to date. Still I think it’s the best of the year, well it’s Batman.
In final I will compare the Dark Knight trilogy to the original Star Wars trilogy. The first one is a great introduction to the world, a tight fun movie. It’s sequel is perfect in every respect. The final is entertaining but never rises to the height of it’s predecessors.
Please feel free to tell me I’m full of it and let me know what you taught of the movie and the Trilogy as a whole.
Nightwing
