First, let me address the tragedy in Colorado at the midnight showing. What happened was serious, but it was also the weak workings of an intelligent, insane man (he was studying neuroscience). The point I'm trying to make is that one man, out of his mind, made a horror of a choice, but that has nothing to do with the film that was made. Some people are already trying to make this tragedy synonymous with the film and it can't be that way. It can't because then that one crazy person wins.
Now, The Dark Knight Rises review.
Second, the reason you're reading. You want to know how good the third and final installment of Christopher Nolan's (The Dark Knight, Inception) gritty, realistic Batman franchise was. Well, to save everyone a lot of time, it was amazing. This was a film that was considered to be impossible. It had to top The Dark Knight...without Heath Ledger. All this talk around it has satirized most people's perception of what they're going to get with TDKR. This isn't the Joker's story; this is Bruce Wayne's tale. Set eight years after the last film, TDKR plays like a dark stained fairy tale that memorializes the events from the first two and ties them together in a way that provides both the real and fictional world with a solid, full ending.
I'm not going to sugar code this film at all because it is a story of revenge and anger. This anger of course is the staple complexion of Batman; it fuels him. What we get from this latest film is a beaten Bruce Wayne still living in the sorrow of his lost love Rachael. What Nolan does to build this final chapter is he progresses the world in which these characters live, to a time where Batman isn't as young and go-hard as he once was. All the characters we're so familiar with (Fox, Gordon, Alfred) have played out in such a way that Batman and Nolan have to build them up again. Just as the title insists, he makes his cast rise. Most of all, Christian Bale rises as well.
Getting down to the cast, it was spectacular as always. There was one moment at the end of questionable acting, but it was overshadowed by a hard acted team effort. For me personally, Anne Hathaway (The Devil Wears Prada, Rio) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, Inception) led the way. The way they were able to adjust to a post-Joker Batman was so entertaining to watch. JGL is always expanding as an actor and his character, John Blake, really fits into the Nolan Gotham mythology nicely. I said to my sister afterword that Hathaway was the best Catwoman, but she said it was because I was in love with her. I think we're both right.
Everyone wants to know, however, if Tom Hardy (Warrior, Inception) and Bane outperformed Ledger's Joker. Short answer, no, but in all fairness that was asking a lot. That's not to say Hardy didn't bring it. He handled Bane with big boy swagger and a side of scary british mask face to keep the kiddy's cowering. Bane was the kind of character who, like The Joker, had drive. I personally wish the Nolan brothers (Johnathan Nolan co-wrote the script with Christopher Nolan) had given Bane a little more wildcard element just to fully utalize Hardy's acting abilities. Still, Bane comes off as a bulking baddy of fun and like Blake and Catwoman, belongs to Nolan's universe.
As for the story, I won't spoil any specifics. It is a long story (the film is almost three hours), but it pays off every other minute with something brooding and relevant to adore. It is the kind of story that shows vision and scope in a grand way. I'm always impressed with how much Nolan can expand and adapt his style to a bigger scale. The Dark Knight Rises is no different. Inception feels smaller when put pound for pound against it. I even consider the story to be a better one than the first two. It stays so close to the chest just like it's central character. I believe when people get a chance to watch it a few more times, they will realize how full of a film it is. Structured, strong and fitting in every way. This is the trilogy filmmakers and studios should strive to develop.
In summation, any fan of Batman or comic books or superheroes or anthing along those lines will want to see this film. I myself have plans to go and see it again this week. It bleeds the sort of heart and thought most films can't convey and acts as the perfect place to stop what could never be a neverending story. If you aren't a fan of this type of film, it will convert you. It will engulf you. There is no stronger example of a comic book adaptation in existance. Enough said.
TyT
www.ThoseDudesShow.com
P.s. - There are some great cameos to look out for. Two in particular put a book ending sort of feel into the mix (if you get my drift *WINK*).
