Let me start
by saying that I love Batman. Always have done, since I was a child and
discovered we shared the same first name, I thought he was the coolest thing since
Captain Scarlet. So it might seem like a
bit of an odd time to be reviewing The Dark Knight Rises, considering that the
film was released over a year ago. But I watched the DVD a couple of weeks back
so it seemed vaguely relevant to write a review, and it took about this long
for my throbbing Bat-erection to subside so that I can look at the film with a
slightly more critical eye. To do that, there may be some spoilers so if you
haven’t seen the film (where have you been?) and don’t want specific plot
points ruined for you, then the gist of it is that the film is very good and
the series is fantastic. If you haven’t seen any of them yet, watch them. If
you have, watch them again anyway. Okay? Okay.
So, 8 years
after the events of the last film, Bruce Wayne has become a recluse and Batman
is M.I.A. He is spurred back into action, against Alfred’s will, by the
criminal mastermind Bane, the apparent heir to Ra’s al Ghul’s League of
Shadows. Beyond this, the plot starts to get all sorts of complex and hard to
detail without getting into spoiler territory, but in short Bane has big plans
for Gotham and Batman sets about trying to stop him with fisticuffs, all the
while having his older body and mind tested by the younger and more dangerous
villain. As well as having to contend with the distraction of Catwoman’s lovely
bottom.
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| A bottom that we see a lot of during gratuitous shots from the rear of the Bat-Cycle. |
The biggest
strength to this film is, of course, the acting. I mean, look at the cast; I’m
not sure it’s possible to make a bad film with a pool of talent that’s so deep
that if you tried to reach the bottom of it you’d perish in the heat of the
Earth’s core. I feel like I’m doing a disservice to the actors by not going
into detail about why each of their performances are so good. The biggest
compliment I suppose I could give to the ensemble is that the quality of the
acting is so good that (before I watched the film to death) I didn’t even
notice the sheer weight of dialogue in the film. There is no need for this much
chatter in this film, but the actors are bringing the script to life so
beautifully that I find it hard to grudge Nolan the amount of dialogue. Yes,
there’s no real need for so much of it, but in the hands of such great
actors and characters, I do find that I want it. There’s even some
moderately successful attempts at something resembling comedy, which should be
commended for not falling flat on its face in the series’ ultra-serious Bat-universe.
One marked
improvement from the first two films are the action set-pieces. While these
have always been a strength of this series, Nolan really brings it this time
and they all look spectacular. The film’s opening and climax in particular are
fantastically choreographed and shot. It’s also nice to see that that Nolan’s
somewhat gotten over his obsession with close-up, shaky-camera, pitch-black
fight scenes and now we’ve pulled the camera back a bit so we can actually see
what the fuck’s going on. The characters have been, on the whole,
well-developed and kept interesting throughout these films and continue to be
in this one. JGL’s young cop John Blake and Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman
Selina Kyle are implemented successfully and are actually sometimes more
interesting than Batman and Bane. Hathaway in particular really brings it with her surprisingly badass femme fatale performance. Tom Hardy’s portrayal of Bane has been continually
compared, unfairly, to Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning turn as the Joker,
considering that the characters are entirely different (Joker’s chaotic mindset
making him unpredictable and confusing for Batman, whilst Bane’s strategic
intellect and physical prowess are what make him a threat). On the whole
Hardy’s Bane is entertaining, if somewhat underdeveloped, as are many other new
characters in this film, as they are crammed in often unnecessarily. However
the creators’ inability to use The Joker this time around means they do
somewhat have to work from the ground up in some aspects of the film’s plot.
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| Seriously, with that cast, how can you go wrong? |
The plot
itself is very entertaining, though the film’s structure does leave something
to be desired. This does cause the middle of the film to drag somewhat as
there’s so much plot to keep track of, however everything is wrapped up
efficiently and in fantastic style in the film’s brilliant climax. On the
whole, the film is carried from stunning set-piece to stunning set-piece by a fantastic plot and the performances of the actors, and that's all we really wanted to conclude this epic franchise. This film is not the best of the series, but that's no criticism. That's like being the worst member of the Beatles. You're still definitely somebody's favourite one, and no matter what you're one of the fucking Beatles! It’s actually a very good film, and a deliciously
satisfying conclusion to a masterful film series. Ringo is still my favourite Beatle, by the way.
