The Dark Knight Rises

Nolan offers a dark and gritty film with menace continually rumbling underneath the surface: A fantastic finale for The Dark Knight trilogy

Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman & Gary Oldman

Dir: Christopher Nolan

Writers: Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer, Jonathan Nolan, Bob Kane 

What's it all about?

Set eight years after the last instalment, The Dark Knight Rises opens with Gotham in 'peace time' celebrating Harvey Dent Day, a day for a man painted as a hero, whilst the Batman who has not been seen since, has been made out as a villain. Only Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) knows the truth, but as the Dent Decree is what is keeping Gotham's villain's locked up, he remains silent. Meanwhile, having hung up his cape, Bruce Wayne (Christopher Nolan) has become a recluse, speaking only to trusty butler Alfred (Michael Caine), whilst Wayne Enterprises pumps money into a futile clean energy project, headed by Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard). Unfortunately, it seems that peace time can't last forever: a storm is coming, as sultry cat burglar Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) warns Mr Wayne after she steals his mother's necklace from an 'uncrackable' safe. This storm comes in the form of the monstrous Bane (Tom Hardy), a beefcake of a bad guy if you ever saw one. As Bane's power surmounts, Wayne goes to Lucien Fox (Morgan Freeman) to gather some new gadgets and enrols the help of Commissioner Gordon and good-cop John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) as he summons his strength to rise again as The Dark Knight.

Worth a watch?

This film really does define 'epic'. Whilst I wouldn't say it is as amazing as The Dark Knight (mostly because Heath Ledger gave such a legendary performance), Nolan and crew have certainly stepped things up a notch. The whole film is loud, brash and in your face, but in the best way possible: you can't do Batman and terrorists quietly. There are plenty of explosive moments with booming base to go with it, drawing you into the drama. The plot, again, not quite as staggering as the last Batman instalment, but still offers enough intrigue and "I didn't see that coming" moments, concluding the trilogy in a satisfying manner. Gary Oldman delivers yet another solid performance and I really enjoyed Gordon-Levitt's turn as the cop-turned-detective who Gordon takes under his wing. Nolan is known for re-using actors in his films, and this one is pretty much the cast of The Dark Knight meets the cast of Inception, but it's clear to see why: many of them are great character actors. Nolan-newbee Anne Hathaway was also surprisingly good as Selina Kyle - I have found her rather annoying in the past, but then I had only really seen her in ditzy rom-com roles. As the first female villain in this Batman trilogy, she really stepped up to the plate. Christian Bale was great as ever. Some dislike his grizzly Batman voice, but personally, I think it's great.

Give it a miss?

A voice I didn't enjoy so much was Bane's. I know that this is the accent and tone he is meant to have, but on first hearing him speak I just found him laughable. Yet as time wore on, I grew accustomed to him and I was able to focus on the story again. Someone who I did find tedious and annoying was Cotillard's character. Considering she is an Oscar winner, I didn't think she was on her best form. There were a few elements of the plot that felt like Nolan had skipped forward and then circled back to, but on the whole, there isn't much to criticise about this film, other than, considering it is a 'Batman' film, you don't see a whole lot of the caped crusader until near the climax.

So overall....

I find this film hard to rate, as after seeing Avengers: Assemble, I felt that was the pinnacle of superhero/comic book films. This film was equally as brilliant, but for very different reasons. Whilst Avengers offers a colourful, punchy, comedic and more 'classic' take on comic book film making, Nolan offers a dark and gritty interpretation with menace continually rumbling underneath the surface. You almost forget that you are watching a 'superhero' as there is an element of 'realness' to the whole thing. The Dark Knight is one of my favourite films, and this very nearly meets it's exceedingly high standards. That said, it is fantastic finale to a fantastic trilogy. 

• Lives up to expectation  2/2
• Scenery/Effects 3/3
• Eye Candy 1/2
• Quality of Acting 2.5/3
• Plot 4/5
• Quality of film within it's genre: Action 5/5, Superheroes & Comic Books 5/5

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