Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Action, characters, acting. Pretty much everything
Cons: Dialog could
have been mixed in better
The Bottom Line:
Worthy conclusion
To superhero saga
Will leave fans happy
Christopher Nolan's Masterful Conclusion to His Dark Knight Trilogy
After not enjoying the last Batman film, I was hesitant to
see The Dark Knight Rises. I finally
decided that if I was invited to see it with friends, I'd go, but I wouldn't go
out of my way to see it. Fortunately,
some friends asked me to join them on opening night because I really enjoyed
it.
I am going to be very careful to not spoil this movie. However, I will make some references to the
last film. Those will mostly happen in
the next paragraph. You have been
warned.
It's been eight years since the night Harvey Dent died and
Batman became public enemy number 1. In
that time, Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) has cleaned up the streets
of Gotham City. But he's done it without
the help of Batman, who is still in hiding.
Likewise, Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) has spent the last eight years in
Wayne Manor grieving Rachael and refusing to move on with his life.
That changes, first when Bruce has a run in with cat burglar
Selina (Anne Hathaway). But he really
must come forward after Bane (Tom Hardy) comes to town. Bane has a plan all his own to destroy Gotham . Is the
city ready to forgive Batman? And can
Bruce truly come out of retirement to be Batman again?
As I said, I went into this movie a little leery about
whether I would ultimately enjoy it or not.
Now I'm not going to say it was all light. There was still plenty of darkness to the
film. But it wasn't overly depressing
and the ultimate messages of the film were more uplifting overall.
The movie is a two hour and forty minute epic. I really was expecting the movie to drag at
some point. But it never does. I was engrossed the entire time. Yes, certain plot developments were expected,
but everything was so well done I really didn't care.
Even though these have been more realistic superhero movies
(well, as realistic as you can be in this genre), the movies have been filled
with great action sequences and special effects. This one is no exception, and they hold
together well. I bought what I saw, and
the action was all easy to follow and exciting.
Many of the actors returned from the previous two films, so
it's hardly a surprise that they are great here. Of the new cast members, I loved Anne
Hathaway as Catwoman. She brought a sass
to her lines there were just so much fun.
Another great newcomer was Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a policeman who
becomes involved in the plot.
I have seen neither of the previous films since the last one
came out. I wish I had because there are
references to them that I had forgotten.
I had to have my friends fill me in on the way home. So if you can, rewatch them before you see
this one.
If I had one complaint, it was Batman and Bane's
voices. At times, they are hard to
understand over the background noise/music.
They really should have mixed the sound better. Still, I could always follow the story, so it
was a minor complaint. I wasn't the only
one who felt that way; we all agreed it was an issue on the way home.
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