Review: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Batman (Bale) and Catwoman (Hathaway) in Nolan's epic finale.

Directed by Christopher Nolan
Produced by Christopher Nolan, Charles Roven, and Emma Thomas
Written by Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan, and David S. Goyer; characters created by Bob Kane
Starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Morgan Freeman

I'm obviously late in posting this. In short, I loved the film and think it's the best of Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy. If you want to keep reading, there's more after the cut. (Spoiler-free)

****

Christopher Nolan's slam-bang finish to his epic, ground-breaking Dark Knight trilogy delivers a satisfying conclusion to the Batman legacy. In this finale, Bruce Wayne (Bale) has retired from being Batman and has been living as a recluse in Wayne Manor for eight years. When his mother's jewels are stolen by Selina Kyle (Hathaway), he discovers that a new villain known as Bane (Hardy) is in Gotham and might just force him out of retirement. In the midst of this struggle are Commissioner Gordon (Oldman), Lucius Fox (Freeman), Alfred (Caine), philanthropist Miranda (Cotillard), and an orphaned cop named Blake (Gordon-Levitt). The question is: Will Batman be able to save Gotham now that he's an outcast? That's a very brief synopsis because you shouldn't know more than that when seeing it for the first time. There's a great deal that happens that I won't even go into here.

For me, most of Nolan's longer films are too packed with plot. While this film is certainly heavy on it, Nolan manages to pace the film much better and avoids being too bloated, giving everything enough time to digest without rushing ahead to the next twist. The film is nearly 3 hours long, but I didn't notice at all. Nolan has achieved a brilliant structuring here, combining the reliance on Bruce's development in Batman Begins with the ensemble format of The Dark Knight. It makes for a wonderful send-off, with an ambiguous ending on top of all the twists. Also, the film has fine performances from both the new and returning cast, with Bale continuing to highlight both sides of Bruce/Batman and Hathaway and Hardy making their mark on iconic, but somewhat underwritten, characters. With Wally Pfister's always-beautiful cinematography and Hans Zimmer's thrilling score, the film is a great technical achievement. Although some have problems with suspension of disbelief, I was totally engrossed and was able to overlook some of the questionable choices that Nolan made. I do have a few minor issues with the film, but, on the whole, it's an epic blockbuster that flies by and does not disappoint. It's one of Nolan's best, and it's the best film I've seen so far this year. Go see it, if you haven't already.

Oscar Potential: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Makeup, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, Best Visual Effects

'The Dark Knight Rises' teaser poster

As per usual, Christopher Nolan begins the promotions for his films a full year ahead of time.  His follow-up to The Dark Knight, aptly titled The Dark Knight Rises is set for a July 2012 release, and rumor has it that the teaser trailer is set to premier in front of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 this weekend.  I like the poster; it's not the blurry "Why So Serious?" genius of The Dark Knight's teaser, but it's visually stunning and has the sense of a whole city collapsing.

What do you think?

Bane from The Dark Knight Rises

Above is the creepy new picture of Tom Hardy in The Dark Knight Rises, which just started principle filming the other day.  More excitingly, the very first image from Christopher Nolan's much anticipated follow-up for his Oscar-winning 2008 The Dark Knight.  Much ado was made regarding the first cryptic image of Heath Ledger's The Joker a few years ago, and Bane's appearance isn't disappointing me right now.  Typical Nolan twist on hardcore comic characters.  Let's hope the rest of the film holds up, shall we?

An improvement over the horrendous imagining of Bane in Batman and Robin, pictured below.

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Batman Reboot: When an unstoppable force meets an immovable object

For those of you in the dark, Warner Bros. is now planning a Batman reboot in conjunction with a planned answer to The Avengers Justice League movie.  It won't be helmed by current franchise director Christopher Nolan either, but Nolan will remain on as producer.  The oddest part of this amalgam of superheros poised to save the day in Justice League is that none of the notable characters--Batman, Superman, or Wonder Woman--will be a continuation off current projects featuring said characters.  No Wonder Woman from her yet-to-premier NBC show.  No Superman from Zack Snyder's upcoming film.  And most importantly, no Christian Bale as Batman.  That's right, the actor and hero that saved a genre is being rebooted at the conclusion of The Dark Knight Rises.

It's the unstoppable force of the studio meeting the immovable object of creative integrity.  It's clear: the studio wants more and Nolan is walking away after film #3.  Can't really blame him, lest he forever be known as the director of Batman.  He's young, can do anything he wants right now in his career, and he have proven he can make his films both bankable at the box office and the Oscars.  Plus, a director returning for the fourth film in a franchise can only be as ill-fated as Indiana Jones 4, right?  Thankfully, WB is keeping Nolan on (or, possibly, Nolan is choosing to stay on) as producer of Justice League and the Batman reboot, which makes us assume he'll still have creative control.  But does he really want creative control outside of the world you created?  Nolan has the chance to close out a trilogy the right way, and not Warner Bros. wants to say "thank you, but no," to the reputation and respect he has injected not only into Batman, but superhero films in general. 

When an unstoppable force
meets an immovable object

Now, I have a slight problem with that.  For starters, The Dark Knight Rises isn't even out yet.  Not only is it not even out, but they haven't even begun principle photography!  Why is Warner Bros. giving up on Nolan's vision of the caped crusader already?  Could Batman be that potential of a cash cow that they think people will pour in to see the character no matter what creative team or actor is on board?  One can attribute the financial success of 2008's The Dark Knight to many things: the high quality of the film, the high-grossing superhero genre, and the recent passing (and brilliant performance) of Heath Ledger.  One of those elements returns, with a second one hopeful for The Dark Knight Rises.

I think what is most notable with the prematurely announced reboot (that is, a reboot before the franchise is even done booting) is that Warner Bros. is doing it less out of greed and more out of necessity.  Why reboot a blockbuster franchise staring an Oscar-winner unless you absolutely have to?  Perhaps the immovable object of creative integrity isn't as immovable as we'd hoped: it's being trampled, in fact.  I'm thinking, momentarily at least (and probably reading too much into this announcement), that Nolan is killing off our watchful protector.  A dead hero means you'll have to reboot.  Maybe I'm just being a little too...serious.

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