The Dark Knight Rises

It’s hard to imagine now, but back when The Dark Knight was released it wasn’t a world stopping cinematic event. Batman Begins had been surprisingly enjoyable and Christopher Nolan had a solid track record, but there was no indication as to how superb that film would be and how it would become part of the cultural zeitgeist. A few years down the track, with a side excursion into the minds of Leonardo DiCaprio and co to keep us going, Nolan now emerges with the The Dark Knight Rises which, thanks to the popular and critical acclaim that met the previous film, is arguably the most anticipated film release since The Phantom Menace. The story then: Following a storming opening airborne sequence we come to Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), now holed up in his mansion and a virtual recluse to the world outside. One character even comments that Wayne now has long fingernails and is urinating in jars (Nolan followers will get the reference here). Soon enough he finds cat burglar Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) half-inching something from his safe which sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Wayne donning the cape once more and engaging in battle with Bane (Tom Hardy) who is planning to bring anarchy to the streets of the now relatively crime free Gotham City. So where to begin when reviewing this? Let’s begin at the obvious staring point and yes, this isn’t as good as The Dark Knight (to be fair though, how could it be?). As a standalone film you could also argue that Batman Begins has the jump on it as well. However, as the closing chapter to a thrilling trilogy, it’s a perfect conclusion. This is almost as standard a film that Nolan has ever made, but on current form standard Nolan is still 99% better than everyone else out there. Nolan’s gift is that he shoots films with tight scripts complimented with his eye for stunning visuals, aided by his long time cinematographer Wally Pfister (also returning here). The Dark Knight Rises has more of the same, but doesn’t reach the heights in either area compared to the previous film. Both Nolan and his brother Jonathan are assured writers, but this screenplay gives as much as it takes. It’s a cracker in terms of a third act script as it perfectly concludes numerous storylines from the previous two films, including a smart little twist towards the end. Where it doesn’t work though is in its confused politics in which Bane’s manipulation of the masses rising up against The Man before then being overrun by the state is working both left and right wings and not really saying much at all. Some people may also be put off by the outrageous coincidences that occur in the plot that help move things along, but that has always been stock in trade with Nolan. On the ocular front things are somewhat hampered by the productions relocation from Chicago to Pittsburgh. The steely but smart look of The Windy City replaced by a computer aided sprawling mass (though arguably that’s most peoples impressions of what Gotham should look like in the first place). In addition, the films signature scene (gridiron game goes kaput!) has already been half spoiled by its exposure in the trailer and the impact of it in the film is also lessened by some below average special effects. On an aside here I haven’t seen the IMAX version of this yet, but this has over an hours worth of IMAX camera shots (compared to TDK’s 20 minutes or so) so this should help booster things aesthetically. So, to Bane. You’re probably already aware of the negative reaction that Hardy’s voice had when the first teaser clips were released in the fact that most people couldn’t work out what the bloody hell he was saying. It’s clearly been re-dubbed for the film release, but there are still many occasions where Hardy is muffled in his speech. It’s hard to believe a filmmaker of Nolan’s quality let that slip through the net (unless it was on purpose to add some extra mystery, but I doubt that). As for Hardy himself, fine actor though he is, he gets lost behind the mask here and can’t inject Bane with much of a personality and his general “badness” can’t hold a torch to the unhinged tappings of Heath Ledger as the Joker or indeed Cillian Murphy as The Scarecrow. The voice is bizarre to say the least. It’s apparently based on a famous bare knuckle boxing champion, but it sounds more like an exaggerated version of Peter O’Toole and, coupled with Hardy’s habit of holding his lapels, instead of having a fearsome foe we have what appears to be an English gentleman in a gimp mask. In terms of other memorable players the best on offer is Hathaway. Not only is she great in the part (beating, amongst others who auditioned, Jolie, Portman, Biel, Theron, Blunt and Green to the role), but her morally ambiguous character is one of the most interesting parts of the screenplay. It’s just a crying shame that she doesn’t appear that often. So sounds like quite a few negatives so far….and yet….and yet…..there’s just something about this film that gets under your skin. From further exploration of the relationship between Alfred (Michael Caine) and Wayne to the horrors of mob justice, there’s plenty for people to get their teeth into. Even if the quality does dip on occasion, there’s very few wasted moments or scenes (again, classic Nolan) and the story always moves forward. This also has a wry sense of humour that provides more adult chuckles than the broad laughs you get in other superhero ventures. I know some people will again find this hard viewing in terms of its cold feel and lack of heart, but this is the whole point behind Nolan’s Batman world. This is a superhero film without a superhero. The Dark Knight is the superior film, especially as it had a dangerous edge to it in the fact that we really didn’t know what would happen next. With The Dark Knight Rises we just know peeps will be rescued and things will turn out alright in the end. However, after the mayhem of the first two films, don’t we deserve to relax a little? As Nolan himself has stated the idea behind him taking up the reigns for a final time was that he saw this as a great opportunity to finish the story as opposed to expanding it. He’s triumphed on that front. Also at 2 hours 45 minutes long it doesn’t outstay its welcome (which the shorter previous film did by a good 20 minutes) and there can’t be a better seal of approval than that.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Arguably the lesser of the three films, but still a great watch and a perfect conclusion to Nolan’s epic vision. Rating: 8/10.