Dark Knight Rises Tries to Rise Above the Rest, Comes Pretty Close

It's taken me awhile to get a review of the highly anticipated THE DARK KNIGHT RISES up because I wanted to make sure I could give it a fair evaluation.  My anticipation of seeing it and my excitement on the day of the midnight premiere might have swayed my view.  I read some reviews after I got home that night and was surprised to see some people literally calling the movie garbage, and not worth watching at all.  A big letdown was the first sentence of another review I skimmed when my Batman high was kicking in after I got home from the 2 hour and 45 minute long film.  Perhaps I only liked the movie because I had looked forward to it for nearly 4 years?  I knew I loved a lot of things about the film, but there were a lot of potential plot holes that didn't really make sense to me.  So I went and saw it again that same day.

               The second viewing of the film was much more enjoyable to me.  This movie has a lot of things happening throughout it constantly and it’s easy to get lost in all of the characters and plotlines going on.  Anyone who is not intimately familiar with the basic plotlines of both BATMAN BEGINS and THE DARK KNIGHT runs a high risk of becoming lost in this movie’s nonstop sequences of suspense, drama and action.  But that is something that I particularly liked about it, since it was clearly meant to be the final chapter in this trilogy.  I knew that after I saw it for my third time, I could safely say this film secured itself in my mind as a great film and an epic conclusion to the Christopher Nolan directed series of Batman films that began with BEGINS in 2005 and was notably brought to most people’s attention by the 2008 blockbuster THE DARK KNIGHT.  This movie is very different from its predecessor and I think that is a good thing. 

               Some of the realism that was created in the previous two films is lost to a certain extent in this Batman tale.  But not to a great enough degree where I feel like it detracts that much from the story.  I know many people have complained that Batman is not in this film enough.  I understand this, I could have used a little more of the character myself.  But did the storyline warrant anymore Batman appearances than what it gave us?  I don’t want to spoil anything major for someone who hasn’t yet seen the film but suffice it to say, Bruce Wayne is not up to the task of putting on the cape and cowl for several portions of the movie.  Every Batman scene is a great, well directed and memorable portion of the film and even in BATMAN BEGINS, Batman didn’t make an appearance until an hour into the movie.  And it makes sense because from the very beginning, this trilogy has really been the story of Bruce Wayne, not Batman.  Christian Bale has such a great take on the character that I almost enjoy any Bruce Wayne scene just as much as any action scene.

               Almost all of the characters from the previous films return in this, and even though everyone seemed to have more fun in THE DARK KNIGHT, all of the actors really step it up a notch in terms of dramatic acting.  The entire cast is giving it their all and it pays off in a big way.  The conclusion of the series is pretty perfect for me but that doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t change a few things if I could.  Hardly any movie is going to seem perfect, but when something is as enjoyable as I found this one to be, I don’t understand why it’s so hard to just sit back and relax and enjoy the movie.  One of the best things about the movie is newcomer Tom Hardy as the villain Bane.  Fans of Bane in the comics will know where the plotline is heading before the rest of the moviegoing audience will, and perhaps that makes some of the film’s brutality easier to swallow if you’re familiar with the Batman comic lore.  Anne Hathaway is also a standout as the infamous Catwoman.  Her take on the character left my mouth drooling.

               Would this film be my favorite in the series?  I couldn’t really say at this point, and it probably wouldn’t be.  Buy why would that even matter?  How many people would say that their least favorite original STAR WARS film is RETURN OF THE JEDI but that they still love that movie?  Sequels are hard to do, and this one manages to surpass or at least come close to the high bars that were set by its two excellent predecessors.  I would highly recommend this film and say that for anyone who is a fan of sequels and trilogies, they definitely have to check this one out.  There’s not too many great trilogies in film, there’s always at least one bad or mediocre film in the mix.  BACK TO THE FUTURE and STAR WARS are both pretty perfect trilogies in my opinion and I’ve gotta say that THE DARK KNIGHT RISES secures Nolan’s Batman Trilogy into my very exclusive list of perfect film series that come in threes.  I really could say a hundred more positive things about this movie but I’ll let you decide for yourself when you see it.  Just remember that making a grand scale movie like this isn’t easy and just because it isn’t exactly what you wanted or seems a little unrealistic to you at times, doesn’t warrant treating the film like it’s your typical summer garden variety crap.  If you want a recent superhero film that only goes through the motions and does have glaring plotholes throughout the entire film, then go see THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and leave THE DARK KNIGHT RISES to us that actually appreciate the film for what it succeeds in being-a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy of films about a man named Bruce Wayne.  

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