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The Dark Knight Rises
2012, 164mins, 12
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer (s): Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer
Cast includes: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman, Marion Cotillard, Morgan Freeman
UK Release Date: 20th July 2012
Remember when films used to be events? Full-blooded
ceremonies of pop cultural extravagance? A time in which a flick didn’t get one
week of heavy promotion before vanishing into the ether until an eventual
plethora of home media releases? Good, neither can I. However I have read about
such an era, Hollywood epics of a magnitude and social significance that they
became focal parts of the world around them, maybe Steven Spielberg’s beach
emptying masterpiece “Jaws, the operatic “Star Wars” sequels or even going
further back to sweeping epics like “Gone With the Wind”. There was a time when
a trip to the cinema was more than just trivial recreation, albeit films that
recall such a fact are now few and far between. However this weekend one such
offering hits multiplexes in the form of Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight
Rises”. Following on from his magnificent double-header of comic book
adaptations 2005’s “Batman Begins” and 2008’s “The Dark Knight”, audiences have
been thirsting for this final instalment, the completion of a potentially
sublime trilogy. Warner have been pushing the film hard for over a year now,
throwing out titbits and chunks of fanboy baiting material to wow the masses,
before unleashing a trailer and a ferocious marketing surge sometime around
Christmas 2011. Since then it’s been unstoppable, “The Dark Knight Rises” superseding
the status of a mere blockbuster, morphing into phenomenon, or as I stated
above an EVENT. No matter how you feel about this movie, it recalls the
community element of the film-going experience
terrifically, legions of motion picture lovers to lining up to worship
at the altar of theatricality, desperately hankering to confirm if Nolan can
match or even better his previous spins around Gotham City. This is
critic-proof. It will make vast sums of money. It will be discussed and debated
irrespective of general consensus. How lovely is it to have a director, a
visionary even, and a franchise that stirs such passion amongst the public?
This is what Christopher Nolan really brings to the table with “The Dark Knight
Rises”. Oh, and the film itself is bloody brilliant by the way.
“Rises” opens 8 years after the events of “The Dark Knight”,
Batman is gone and Harvey Dent is venerated as a hero and beacon of hope.
Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman, back to restrained mode) has successfully
cleaned up the streets, Gotham a changed cityscape. With this knowledge and the
fact his alter-ego has been branded a murderer; Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is
now a recluse, his only contact with humanity coming through his loyal Butler
and dear friend Alfred (Michael Caine). Enter Bane (Tom Hardy), a mercenary
boasting a troubled past and connections with an old adversary of Batman’s,
looking to start what his master couldn’t finish. Bane seeks to clear Gotham of
the controlling bureaucrats, police interference and wealthy upper crust which
in his eyes have been holding society to ransom, implementing terror tactics,
cold-hearted strategy and a gang of competent thugs to initiate his bidding.
With Gordon hospitalized, Wayne has to consider bringing Batman out of
retirement to combat the new threat, enjoying the help of snarky thief Selena
Kyle (Anne Hathaway) and a courageous young cop (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) in his
search for justice. However after such a lengthy break Wayne may not be ready
to tackle Bane, an opponent who outmatches the Dark Knight both physically and
mentally.
There’s an obvious social commentary that burdens “The Dark
Knight Rises” slightly, Nolan blundering on about the inequalities in society
sporadically, never really reaching a concrete resolution or final message of much
consequence concerning the subject. It filters into the picture jarringly,
providing a large portion of the motivation for Bane’s early manoeuvres. As a
result it deserves to be referenced and highlighted as a clunky and obtrusive
figment of the screenplay. It doesn’t really work. There I said it. However
with that my substantive issues with “The Dark Knight Rises” have been essayed
in completion, the patchy execution of the societal imbalance marking my only
resolute problem with the movie. Other than that it’s plain and largely
flawless sailing, a fitting finale for the tales the preceded it.
As with everything Nolan attempts, “The Dark Knight Rises”
is more than just a marker of its genre, it’s a tremendous action film, a compelling
investigation of multiple characters and a twisty psychological battle. The
film concludes amidst a monumental warzone, so fans will definitely get their
fill of scale. It’s aesthetically spectacular on every level, delivering
several memorable set-pieces, all laced with the film-maker’s flair for
intricate detail and love of money-shot cultivation. Nolan works through the
franchise regulars (Oldman, Bale, Caine etc.) and newcomers alike, ensuring the
story rounds out in fittingly epic and gratifying fashion. The phrase anti-climax
simply cannot be applied here. Despite its grandiose length (just short of
three hours) “The Dark Knight Rises” never drags, it wizzes forward as a master-class
in pacing and narrative construction, each scene propelling to the next
excitedly, raising the stakes and providing economic context to ensure the brew
sits fast at a scintillating temperature. In honesty it feels like watching a
regular 90 minute adventure – I’m still at odds trying to understand how Nolan
achieved such a feat. Well no, that’s a lie. I’m fully aware it’s through a
faultless understanding of storytelling law and stringent editorial
transitioning that “The Dark Knight Rises” triumphs so aggressively in this
department, but it’s worth marvelling at anyway.
This probably represents Bale’s best turn as the Caped
Crusader, primarily because he spends less time behind the mask here than in
previous endeavours. The second act is effectively a deconstruction of Wayne as
a character, subtle in the way it sees him come full circle from his origins in
“Batman Begins”. Thoroughly engaging and predictably intense, Bale communicates
Wayne’s inner strife vibrantly, using a rapport with several other performers
(major props Michael Caine) to help highlight the trauma and yearnings that
drive the billionaire. Anne Hathaway and Gordon-Levitt blend nicely into the
world, firing up three dimensional and entertaining turns, each bringing an
extra squirt of thematic juice to the movie. That’s the thing about Nolan, the
economy of storytelling doesn’t just apply to plotting, it’s relevant to all
bases, including characters. He stretches his screen entities out for maximum
reward, forcing them to earn a seat at his party. If somebody can’t bring
enough on paper, they won’t make final cut. Thankfully these most notable new
additions are interesting to explore, the sharp casting only pronouncing the
success further.
Then there’s Tom Hardy, the million dollar question being –
does he fill Heath Ledger’s shoes? The
answer is probably not, but such a comparison is cruel to force upon any actor.
Firstly Ledger’s Joker is now regarded as one of the most distinctive screen
villains of the modern era, maybe even ever. If we measure Hardy on such a
steep gradient, then shouldn’t all mainstream baddies be subject to the same
insane scrutiny, No, of course they shouldn’t. Genius is great, but it
shouldn’t render brilliance less valuable, and that’s what Hardy is, brilliant.
The British actor uses his eyes (he’s behind a breathing apparatus for most of
the runtime) and immense bulk to create a viable threat, matching up alongside
Batman formidably. There are several little speeches and diatribes Bane recites
during the course of the film, all of which Hardy slam-dunks, slathering
everything he says with an icy elegance. He may not be Heath Ledger, but I
doubt that’s what he or the film-makers were going for. Rather I’d like to
think they all wanted something fresh in the guise of Tom Hardy, forcing his name home in a different but effective
style.
The Gotham sets are as lavish and expansive as they’ve ever
been, acting as a hectic playground for energetically devised action beats. Nolan
mixes jets, armed vehicles and a bomb into the cocktail, but the most
electrifying sequences are probably a pair of fistfights between the hero and
muscle laden Bane. The first is a vicious and unrelenting crucifixion, Nolan
getting close and tight into the action, cutting fast between hits to emphasise
the gravity of the beating one character takes. The next is as much a battle of
wits as anything else, as are many large slabs of the picture in retrospect.
Mind games are front and centre here, as seen in the particularly cruel torture
one entity doles out to another. The bombastic gunplay and explosive chases
still satisfy, but it’s the more intimate and grounded chapters in this saga that
thrill hardest.
A love arc with a business partner (Marion Cotillard) works
slightly better than the comparative components of past films, but that’s faint
praise. Nolan never seems that fixated with this relationship, using it
rigorously as a plot mechanic and personality crux for Wayne. It functions well
in this regard, rendering one or two flabby instances of romance tolerable as a
result. The film-maker proved he could
make this sort of thing credibly with “Inception”, a film where such elements
felt more pivotal, in “Rises” they’re just present to dial up the motivation
and present an extra lick of flavour.
Is “The Dark Knight Rises” as good as it predecessors?
Impossible to say after just one viewing, although my principal reaction would
be to suggest it doesn’t quite match “The Dark Knight”, the mac daddy of this
series to date. Repeat inspection might allow for a variety of conclusions, so
until then, I reserve the right to shift my opinion. One thing is for sure though;
“The Dark Knight Rises” is a worthy denouement, an intelligent, expertly
crafted and thoroughly exhilarating blast of big screen magic. It’s the sequel
you wanted, maintaining a level of quality only a select few franchises have
sustained before it. Now stop reading this and go see it. “The Dark Knight
Rises” deserves your attention and the huge financial success which it will
undoubtedly register.
A Review by Daniel Kelly, 2012
3 comments:
Fantastic film, fantastic review. Nicely written Dan! Completely agree about Tom Hardy as well - comparisons with other villains are just tasteless, and Bane is a phenomenal villain.
This film had me from start to finish and that was just exactly what I wanted, especially from the last installment in this perfect trilogy. It’s going to be a shame not seeing Christopher Nolan doing Batman flicks anymore, but maybe this will allow him to pull off some more original flicks like The Prestige and Inception. Look forward to his future. Good review Dan.
Nolan's finale isn't perfect, and may not be the greatest installment of the trilogy, but it solidifies this three-part tale of the Batman legend as one of the best ever told.
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