THE DARK KNIGHT RISES REVIEW

By Sean Smyth

"Why Do We Fall Down? So We Learn To Pick Ourselves Back Up. Duh."

I'm a day late and a dollar short, since we have one review already,  but man did they send our caped crusader off with a bang. Literally. So I figured hey, this movie is so good, it deserves another review.

First off, I just want to state, in writing this, our sympathy goes out to the victims in the Colorado shooting. You are in our thoughts. This review is strictly about the film and in no way coincides with the events of the midnight premiere that is a true low point in our nations history. Our apologies.

The Dark Knight Rises is seven years in the making, if your count from the time Nolanverse (Christopher Nolan) Batman first hit our screens, and man it's been a hell of a ride. I should know. I sat down with my girlfriend and a couple other friends the night before seeing this bad boy and watched the first two back to back. That was a long night, but it was by far the best choice I could make, because true to trilogy form the latest film recalls plenty from it's two predecessors, as it should. I mean, you have to come full circle otherwise, what's the point? So if you are still planning on seeing this TDKR in the near future, I'd suggest giving the first two a go. Not only does it put you into a great frame of mind, but it really helps give you the full experience when watching the final product.

Batman is by far one of the greatest, and most popular comic book characters of all time. Iconic villains, lots of money, sweet tech, and suits; he is just a boss. Plus he is so relatable, the tragedy in his life, growing up alone and taking care of himself. It's just great storytelling. People all over just want to go out and fight crime, do the things the law can not. Be the symbol everyone needs, and the franchise Nolan started is just that in flying, dashing, incredibly vivid colors.

Bringing back the bearded look are we? 

TDKR takes place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight. Dent/TwoFace died in that fall. Gordon became a Hero/Commissioner/a troubled soul plagued by guilt for allowing Batman to take the blame and using Dent's death to catapult Gotham into it's golden age via a bill called the Dent Act that helped clean up the streets. Yes Gotham had it's darkness, but now it's dawn, and there isn't to much bad left on the streets these days. Batman/Bruce secluded himself away from the public in the farthest corner of the newly constructed Wayne Manor (It got burnt down in the first one in case you forgot).

Things are looking good. Just some minor dealing behind the scenes. Many of the Mob bosses are out of the game and Selina Kyle/aka Catwoman (I don't think they actually refer to her as Catwoman in the film at all, just as a Cat Burglar), is running the game on a bunch of newbie high class baddies/stuck up rich people. That is until Bane begins to make his presence known. From there, things spiral well out of control and down the bat hole as Batman is forced out of retirement to try and save Gotham one last time from a city wide take over by Bane's militia.

Dark Knight Rises starts much like how The Dark Knight begins. It introduces our big bad and a elaborate plot to achieve a goal and understand just who this person is in the universe. That big bad as everyone has learned is Bane. Batman's/Bruce Wayne's equal mentally and physically. Born and raised in a prison, at least as the story goes, Bane was in a debilitating brawl that left him near death and the respirator he wears (his mask) is the only thing that keeps him alive.

Dammmmn!

As the film progresses David S. Goyer and the Nolan Brothers do what they do best. Create a series of interweaving, dramatic, character driven plots and stories that culminate in a fantastic climactic finale that really makes you stand and cheer. Some may say that the film lags a bit in the middle, but those people don't really care for the character work done within that time frame that allows our heroes to become who they are at the very end of the film.

Each scene, for the most part (there is a little fat), is tightly compact with story, call backs, and fan favorite spoiler moments that anything said outside of the main plot is a potential spoiler, so I will not be that guy. Instead I will say that Nolan and company does a wildly fantastic job building up the last film getting the most important details right, however some minute details and revelations come off a little cheesy and for me. There is a large amount of Flashbacks, much like Batman Begins jumped around a lot but in my opinion it adds more to the story than it subtracts, but in doing so I saw the "big twist" from half way through the movie. Though that doesn't make the film any less enjoyable.

Possibly my favorite part about The Dark Knight Rises is they have all the characters share the screen rather equally. It is not a singular story. We don't just follow any one character around the entire film. We jump all around Gotham seeing several perspectives and events that shape both the people and the world they live in. I believe in doing so they allow us to have more than one opinion on what is happening, who to believe and how things are going down. That makes the two hours and forty five minuets a bearable breeze. Unless you get that tall Coke with your popcorn.

Christian Bale brings his Bruce Wayne back from the dead with all the charm and quips that one can take from a man so mysterious, and once again his Batman holds as the best thus far in the line of Batmans. Yes, his groggily low pitch speaking voice is well in tact, and he even manages to keep it up in the more intense fight scenes, so Kudos to him on that.

Bale actually spends a bulk of the film as Wayne, much like Batman Begins, rather than donning the cowl nearly the entire time like he does in Dark Knight. This change really shows how Bruce has grown over the years. Starting off as a reclusive, breaking back out, and doing something he really hasn't done in any of the films, show Bruce and Batman are one and the same and they are not immortal. They will not last forever and Bruce finally comes to realize it.

Keep em above the waist Bruce.

Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman also return as Alfred and Fox respectively. They are both very involved in the decision Bruce makes for his life and his company, and play those two separate father figures to him quite well. Each with their own little piazza. Alfred wanting Bruce to go back into the world while Fox wants Bruce to help the floundering Wayne Enterprises. Their single scenes alone with Bale are some of the more memorable scenes of the film, probably because they are the only two who know of his double life and each character shows sides that we have not seen which is quite refreshing.

Gary Oldman as Commissioner Jim Gordon is amazing as always. He is the drive behind the entire film.  Everyone kind of revolves around him and what he is trying to do for Gotham. In fact at one point he becomes the face of Gotham much like how Harvey Dent was in The Dark Knight. Only Gordon is reluctantly to pick up that responsibility because of how things ended with Dent and because everything they built from Dent's death is all a lie. Oldman brings Gordon a big heart who will give anything for the city he's helped rebuild and even with Oldman's age, Nolan manages to give him some great action scenes that suit his character perfectly.

I am Batman!

Speaking of Gordon, he becomes a mentor of sorts to Officer John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an ambitious and loyal cop who becomes intertwined in the fight in a very personal way. Honestly Levitt does well enough with the character, though he seems kind of tact on.

I'm not saying Blake's story isn't interesting,  he is very action worthy and manages to unravel some serious plot points along the way, but when I was saying some of the scenes were cheesy, many of them were involving him. Especially one scene early on in particular where he goes to see the secluded Bruce Wayne and won't take no for an answer. I was kind of shaking my head and saying, really? That is kind of lazy. Even for me. I suppose he makes up for it in the ladder part of the film.

You smell that?

Selina Kyle aka Catwoman (Anne Hathaway) is far better. She starts off a little shaky, not sure who she is going to be, but she soon blossoms into one of the, if not the best Catwoman to date. She is sultry and independent, and constantly looking for a way to capture the upper hand in any scenario. Many were nervous about seeing Hathaway in the iconic skin tight leather but she holds her own against the senior cast and probably has one of the best arches in the film, in terms of change and understanding which garners her a new lease on a life that was crumbling. Oh, and I'm pretty sure she's bi (sexual), for those of you who are interested in that. If I'm not mistaken she did play both sides of the fence in the comics as well.

There is also Marion Cotillard, who is a board member with Wayne Enterprises working with Fox to try and produce a device that is capable  of creating sustainable energy for an entire city. She plays the love inserts of sorts to Bruce and one of the reasons why things spiral out of control. She does a good job and eludes to something bigger later on, but who am I to ruin that for you.

Last but not least we have Tom Hardy rocking the awesome looking respirator as Bane. Many people are comparing Bane to the Joker. Who is better and what not... Well there is no competition when you're going up against the Joker with all his flare and showmanship, so when your watching Bane and you think man he's no where near as good as the Joker, then you don't know what you're talking about. Bane is just as, if not more ruthless than the Clown Prince. Killing men left and right, bursting in and out of buildings, taking hostages and just being cunning and fantastic with his slow drawl, and incomparable wit. He is truly unflappable, and Batman's equal.

Tom Hardy does a fanatic job being that wonderful character actor he has become known for. He gets the walk, the voice, the tone, and the look down to a T. He looks as though he stepped straight out of the comics. When he finally goes toe to toe with The Bat I promise you will be on the edge of your seat.

Cozy! Right?

Besides my problems I was discussing early on with Blake the only other problem I had wars trying to understand Bane. It was like they took audio on sight, while they were shooting, then did ADR with Hardy while he was wearing the mask and cranked the audio all the way up. It makes it very difficult to catch everything he's saying, especially in the early parts of the film. It also sounds a lot like the respirator is doubling ask a sparker as he talks louder than any other character in the film. Even when he sharing a scene. It's slightly distracting, and odd considering Nolan is a very natural director and doesn't really like to alter his actors performances.

The Dark Knight Rises takes the style of Batman Begins and mixes it with the set and action pieces of The Dark Knight. Nolan brings it home with beauty and spectacle and a story that brings all three films into a single entity. Watching Batman rise from the ashes like a Phoenix makes you want to stand and cheer and want nothing more than him to overcome the overwhelming odds. Nolan and company does a great job wrapping the film up in a tight little bow that it makes you sad and wish that their was going to be another, even though we all know their won't be.

That wish, that want, to see Batman take up the cowl one last time is something special, something that many films, many trilogies are unable to do. And to have Nolan behind the camera makes it something even more special, because you know the story is going to be priority and it won't fall by the wayside like many other action films. I'm going to miss Batman, and that is why we are giving Dark Knight Rises 4.8 out of 5.

So let's hear what you have to say. Agree? Disagree? Are you satisfied with how things when out? Do you want more? Are you disappointed? Just comment below! And as always, thanks for reading.