3D Glasses Sometimes Required

26th July 2012

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Review: The Dark Knight Rises - The Legend Ends….just not as smoothly as you’d expect

Above: Really subtle there, Nolan! Are you sure there isn’t any lakes in Gotham that Batman can’t walk on!?

Preface: This review is dedicated to the victims and their families of the Aurora, CO tragedy. If you really want to read my thoughts and feelings when it first happened , you can read them here: http://3dglassessometimesrequired.tumblr.com/post/27666141844/the-elephant-in-the-room-aurora-colorado-7-20-2012

Plot Summary: Eight years after the events of “The Dark Knight”, Gotham City has been wiped of crime after the death of Harvey Dent and the resulting Dent Act, even resulting in Batman going into retirement…for some reason (I assumed he would keep trying to protect the city no matter what at the end of “The Dark Knight”). This leaves Bruce Wayne into becoming a isolated shutout, consumed by his depression over the loss of Rachel and directionless without the Batman. “Thankfully”, along comes Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) and Bane (Tom Hardy) who threaten to destroy the very foundations of Gotham to bring him back

     Christopher Nolan’s Batman films have left their mark on both pop culture and cinema.”Batman Begins” helped revive the brand and show the popularity of the reboot (which, granted, may have started the recent trend of reboots, remakes, and sequels that has resulted in the most creatively bankrupt era of cinema ever, but that’s for another time) and the influence ”The Dark Knight” has had needs no introduction. Of course, all great things must come to an end as the most anticipated film of the year finally arrives, with it some of the loftiest expectations of any film ever. The result is a heavily flawed and messy finale that still manages to be grand, exhilarating, and even emotional where it counts.

     If there is one thing that can be said about”The Dark Knight Rises”,it is that it feels truly epic in every way. From the wealth of characters backed by Nolan’s typical high standard of casting, to the action sequences, to the expanded use of IMAX, to the very themes and messages that it tries to convey and the greater narrative as a whole, the film does have a monumental weight of finality and scale and Nolan, backed by the near-unlimited financial and creative resources of Warner Bros., shows it in every beautifully-shot frame of it.

     The cast follows suit. Anne Hathaway gives a credible and enjoyable performance as Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Side note: She is never called Catwoman in the actual film, but I’ll refer to her as that regardless), showing the proper physicality to be a creditable threat and having a great energy that compliments the character, elegantly moving from damsel in distress to sly cat burglar in a second. Tom Hardy makes Bane a worthy successor to the late great Heath Ledger’s Joker, truly breathing danger and a palpable sense of menace in every scene he’s in, matching a monstrous physical weight with a clever accent that has hints of Sean Connery. Joseph Gordon-Levitt adds another strong and affable performance as John Blake, a rookie cop to Gary Oldman’s Commissioner Gordon (who, in turn, gives another powerhouse performance, as good movies that has Gary Oldman in it do),simply adding to and benefiting every scene he’s in. The weakest link of the new characters is Marion Cotillard’s Miranda Tate and even she’s not bad in it, giving a credible performance to just a bland character. The returning cast continue to offer solid work, with Morgan Freeman managing a few good jokes whenever he’s on screen and Michael Caine even breaking a few hearts through his many speeches.  This leads to Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman himself. In his final performance as one of the most iconic comic book characters of all time, he manages to…maintain the same quality performance, not standing out either way. He does manage to improve his infamous “Batman” voice a little, though there are moments where it is just plain silly.

Simply the true way to see this movie

    I’ve grown to appreciate Nolan’s use of practical stunts and effects in his action scenes and they don’t fail to impress here. From the opening plane heist sequence to the sheer number of police cars in one scene to the simple brawl between Bane and Batman in the middle, the scale and execution has never felt more greater than in this movie, only further complimented by Hans Zimmer’s incredible score here and the greater emphasis on the IMAX technology.  While not used as classy as in Mission: Impossible -Ghost Protocol, the IMAX here truly feels dominating and grand. Making up roughly a full hour of the movie (up from about 30 minutes in”The Dark Knight”),the IMAX simple compliments every aspect of the film, expanding every major action sequence and even the random small indoor conversation and making the gorgeous cinematography that much more stunning. It’s only the climax where things get a little mixed. While the action is intense, with the number of physical extras, props, and effects becoming mind-boggling, the new emphasis on the CGI “Bat”, Batman’s new flying machine, feels a little out-of-place with its’ CG given all of the other practical effects before it (though it does have its’ own standout sequence).

     Sadly, it is the grand scale and size of this movie that is also the source of the film’s many issues. Even with a lengthy 165 minute running time (a length that hasn’t been seen in a wide release since 2008’s Australia. I should know, I actually saw that damn thing in theaters!), there are so many characters and plot points and themes and social commentaries that go underdeveloped and unfocused that it just ends up making the film more messy than it needs to be. For example, the whole “Occupy Wall Street” aspect of the movie (which, to Nolan’s credit, wasn’t what he was intending) and, to an extent Catwoman herself, feel tacked on, being as dropped as quickly as it was added in. If anything, it serves more of a plot point than a genuine part of the script. The worse part of this is how this muddled focus affects the “Rises” aspect of the film, It is simply not given the proper screen time or focus to stand out and properly develop because the film is spending its’ second act setting up more plot points, where the hero’s journey that Wayne/Batman should be going through feels rushed and underwhelming, when it should be essential to the themes of the franchises as a whole. In general, there’s no specific theme or message to “The Dark Knight Rises”, lacking that sharp precision that made “Begins” and “Dark Knight” much stronger films that could stand on there on, where as “Rises” uses them as much as a crutch as Wayne’s cane in the beginning.

Rising: It’s not as a big a deal as you thought it would be

Characters are given treatment, especially the new ones (with the exception of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, though he gets the benefit of having more screen time, even more than frickin’ CATWOMAN!!) This most affects the relationships between Batman with Catwoman and Bruce Wayne with Marion Cotillard. Neither are given the time or attention to bulid chemistry between the two or develop their relationship or character. The great number of characters also has the problem with some of them disappearing for some time while the plot continues to progress. This gets so bad to the point where sometime during the second act, I forgot Batman was even in this movie! Hell, a third of the way through, one character literally says he’s leaving the movie and doesn’t come back until the epilogue.

     Speaking of issues with the plot, the number of plot holes and character inconsistencies are borderline impressive considering that this is from the creator of “Memento” and “Inception”, some of the most complex and cerebral films of this generation that still managed to keep a tight and focused narrative and theme. Things like how does one character know another, to why doesn’t one tell another what he knows, to about…half of the climax and ending plague the film throughout and constantly distract when things start to drag a little. The ending also is a strong sticking point to such an extent that I just might have to write a separate piece on it.

    ”The Dark Knight Rises” is easily the weakest film in the “Dark Knight” trilogy. It’s simply too ambitious and epic for its’ own, with too much plot and characters (and at the same time, not enough character) that go undeveloped, inconsistent themes and messages that are not focused enough and plot holes that are as gigantic as the film itself. Still, for as messy as it is, Nolan delivers where it counts with some of the most thrilling action and use of IMAX this year, strong performances from his entire star-studded cast, and the true weight and finality that few movies attempt in this day and age. It’s easily worth seeing if only to witness the kind of technical and creative ambition and craftsmanship that few dare to attempt, a superhero epic that is like nothing else for a long time coming. While not the finale this series really needs, it is satisfying enough to be the one that it deserves.