The Dark Knight Rises (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
For most of 'The Dark Knight Rises', Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is burdened with regret & guilt. It's been 8 yrs. since he vanished; turning from hero to fugitive. Accused of causing D.A. Harvey Dent's death, Wayne has slumbered under the weight of this lie. See, Batman sacrificed everything for what he & Commissioner Gordon (the great Gary Oldman) hoped was the greater good. Gordon even said, "Batman is the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now". So having hung up his bat hat (protecting the citizens of Gotham), he has lost his sense of purpose. Wayne has isolated himself from everyone; except Alfred (Michael Caine), his loyal & loving butler. He believes Wayne has done enough good & should retire completely.
But 4 characters, each with their own agendas, aim to draw out Bruce/Batman. Selina Kyle (a sly & humorous Anne Hathaway) is a cat burglar who steals his mothers necklace & worms her way into his damaged consciousness. John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is an idealistic cop who sees Batman as a hero with his heart in the right place. Miranda Tate (the bewitching Marion Cotillard) is a wealthy executive who's willing to help Bruce's struggling company with a clean-energy project. But the most formidable character appears to be Bane (Tom Hardy), a masked terrorist who is hell bent on destroying Batman, Gotham's police force, & eventually the 6 mile-wide city. He frees every criminal from prison & gives them a chance to avenge themselves on the rich & the powerful. Mayhem ensues.
'TDKR' is the final film in Chris Nolan's poignant examination of the role of heroes in our culture. These Batman movies have changed the way we view superhero stories & the way other filmmakers approach their own (before Batman Begins, there was only a basic, lightweight template that superhero movies followed). As is typical of his films, the narrative structure/storytelling gets a bit muddled. My patience was tried during the middle hour (of its 166 min. length). But watching Batman kick butt on his Batcycle & new Batplane is awesome. The last 45 minutes of the movie are spectacular. And I am too enamored & wowed by the performances, emotional fireworks & epic filmmaking to not have been swept away by it, anyway.
Although no one achieves the level of brilliance & unabashed showmanship exhibited by the late Heath Ledger in TDK, the cast still impresses. Christian Bale's Batman/Bruce is more heroic, yet more conflicted than he's ever been before. A masked Tom Hardy is unrecognizable as the brutal Bane. Even his voice has been altered (sounding like a blend of Darth Vader & Sean Connery). Hardy is fine, but I think Bane lacked charismatic menace. Michael Caine plays Alfred with a real mournfulness. And dammit if I didn't tear-up because of him (a cafe scene & a cemetery scene). Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a great addition as the intuitive cop John Blake. And Anne Hathaway impresses as Selina. Hathaway has her doubters. But I think her smart slinkiness & guile will prove many naysayers wrong.
Thematically, Nolan taps into our memories of 9/11 with images of a city caught up in fear. And he also has something to say about the anger that millions of abused Americans feel towards the affluent minority who have left next-to-nothing behind for anyone. Also, Bruce's biggest battle is not with Bane or how to stop Gotham's annihilation ... but his own inner struggle to find his life's purpose when the past is defined by regret & the future is only a mystery. Bruce once saw himself as fearless (especially after Batman Begins), but after the events of The Dark Knight, he had been reduced to self-doubt & possible self-destructiveness.
With Batman Begins, Nolan rejuvenated this comic book saga with a can-exist-in-the-real-world drama. In The Dark Knight, he gave us Heath Ledger's iconic Joker, as well as exploring the ethical dilemma of doing wrong while fighting wrong. And 'TDKR' closes the trilogy as an audacious movie spectacle. All of Nolan's films contain masterful filmmaking (visuals, sound, Hans Zimmer's ever-present/throbbing musical score). It's also safe to say that he can be too ambitious. There's almost TOO much in his movies; making the pace feel both belabored & hectic, at times. But you really feel the high motional stakes in the film's turbulent, propulsive final Act. The ending is full of heroic frailty, guts, glory, loss, & love. I felt the bloat of 'TDKR', but on the whole, this trilogy ends triumphantly.
But 4 characters, each with their own agendas, aim to draw out Bruce/Batman. Selina Kyle (a sly & humorous Anne Hathaway) is a cat burglar who steals his mothers necklace & worms her way into his damaged consciousness. John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is an idealistic cop who sees Batman as a hero with his heart in the right place. Miranda Tate (the bewitching Marion Cotillard) is a wealthy executive who's willing to help Bruce's struggling company with a clean-energy project. But the most formidable character appears to be Bane (Tom Hardy), a masked terrorist who is hell bent on destroying Batman, Gotham's police force, & eventually the 6 mile-wide city. He frees every criminal from prison & gives them a chance to avenge themselves on the rich & the powerful. Mayhem ensues.
'TDKR' is the final film in Chris Nolan's poignant examination of the role of heroes in our culture. These Batman movies have changed the way we view superhero stories & the way other filmmakers approach their own (before Batman Begins, there was only a basic, lightweight template that superhero movies followed). As is typical of his films, the narrative structure/storytelling gets a bit muddled. My patience was tried during the middle hour (of its 166 min. length). But watching Batman kick butt on his Batcycle & new Batplane is awesome. The last 45 minutes of the movie are spectacular. And I am too enamored & wowed by the performances, emotional fireworks & epic filmmaking to not have been swept away by it, anyway.
Although no one achieves the level of brilliance & unabashed showmanship exhibited by the late Heath Ledger in TDK, the cast still impresses. Christian Bale's Batman/Bruce is more heroic, yet more conflicted than he's ever been before. A masked Tom Hardy is unrecognizable as the brutal Bane. Even his voice has been altered (sounding like a blend of Darth Vader & Sean Connery). Hardy is fine, but I think Bane lacked charismatic menace. Michael Caine plays Alfred with a real mournfulness. And dammit if I didn't tear-up because of him (a cafe scene & a cemetery scene). Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a great addition as the intuitive cop John Blake. And Anne Hathaway impresses as Selina. Hathaway has her doubters. But I think her smart slinkiness & guile will prove many naysayers wrong.
Thematically, Nolan taps into our memories of 9/11 with images of a city caught up in fear. And he also has something to say about the anger that millions of abused Americans feel towards the affluent minority who have left next-to-nothing behind for anyone. Also, Bruce's biggest battle is not with Bane or how to stop Gotham's annihilation ... but his own inner struggle to find his life's purpose when the past is defined by regret & the future is only a mystery. Bruce once saw himself as fearless (especially after Batman Begins), but after the events of The Dark Knight, he had been reduced to self-doubt & possible self-destructiveness.
With Batman Begins, Nolan rejuvenated this comic book saga with a can-exist-in-the-real-world drama. In The Dark Knight, he gave us Heath Ledger's iconic Joker, as well as exploring the ethical dilemma of doing wrong while fighting wrong. And 'TDKR' closes the trilogy as an audacious movie spectacle. All of Nolan's films contain masterful filmmaking (visuals, sound, Hans Zimmer's ever-present/throbbing musical score). It's also safe to say that he can be too ambitious. There's almost TOO much in his movies; making the pace feel both belabored & hectic, at times. But you really feel the high motional stakes in the film's turbulent, propulsive final Act. The ending is full of heroic frailty, guts, glory, loss, & love. I felt the bloat of 'TDKR', but on the whole, this trilogy ends triumphantly.