Four long years after the series’ previous film wowed critics and audiences, The Dark Knight Rises hit 
theaters to complete Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. The film faced a tough act to follow after the wildly popular The Dark Knight. It was hard to know what to expect from Rises, considering the untimely death of actor Heath Ledger made it impossible to follow up on the Joker storyline. Instead the film feels like more of a direct sequel to the first film of the trilogy, Batman Begins, with elements of the second film thrown in for consistency. On its own merit The Dark Knight Rises, now available on Blu-ray, is an entertaining film that closes the trilogy in a satisfying way.
Rises is set eight years after the events of The Dark Knight. Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) has become a recluse, Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) is racked with guilt over his deception of the public regarding the death of Harvey Dent. And, of course, Batman is persona non grata in Gotham City. That doesn’t matter too much because crime has virtually been wiped from the streets. The tranquility is interrupted when the masked strongman Bane (Tom Hardy) begins to wreak havoc, attempting to continue the mission of Ra’s al Ghul and the League of Shadows (as established in Begins). Bruce Wayne is forced out of seclusion, resurrecting Batman as the city begins to fall to Bane.
Rises brings back several familiar characters from the previous films, most notably Wayne's butler and surrogate father, Alfred (Michael Caine). Alfred dutifully watches over Wayne as he hides in a secluded wing of the mansion, fretting over the lack of any productive life the billionaire has. Also returning is the previously mentioned Commissioner Gordon and techno-wiz Lucious Fox (Morgan Freeman). There are also some new characters to bring some diversity to the storyline. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Detective Blake, who always seems to be one step ahead of the game. Anne Hathaway shines as Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman (though she is never referred to by that name during the film). Both characters bring an extra, and much welcome, spark to film. Of course, there is also Bane as the villain.
As enjoyable as I find the film overall, I have mixed feelings about Bane as a villain. He seems like more of a strong-arm man than anything else. He is mere brute force, and is not really that interesting of a character. We don’t get to know enough about him, though some intriguing elements of his backstory are revealed (including why he wears the breathing apparatus). There are other evil forces at work in The Dark Knight Rises, but to say anything further would give away the twist at the end. Another element that doesn’t quite work is the attempt at contemporary political commentary. The “occupy movement” allegory already feels outdated, and the message is muddled at best. Bruce Wayne receives little sympathy from the financially strapped Selina Kyle when he loses his fortune. On the other hand, the middle-class masses are all too eager to blindly follow the maniacal Bane. So who is worse—the filthy rich (depicted as uncaring) or the common man (depicted as unable to think for himself)?
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Article comments
1 - egumon
I don't agree that Nolan's depiction of the rich and commoners was a political commentary. The way the rich are depicted is a common theme in the Batman comics, not a Nolan creation. In fact, it's the whole reason Batman exists, as his father's murder is what caused the rich of Gotham to become reclusive and uncaring. His depiction of the common people is nothing short of realistic. The effects of mobs on the human psyche are well documented; look at how city people act after a major sports win. Now throw in a major terrorist attack on home soil, the threat of more and the extreme fear and stress it would generate, and think about how that mob would act.
2 - Sherry
@Egumon - thanks for the comment. I'm not sure we are in disagreement really. I wasn't saying the depiction of the rich was new, I was just making a point about how it fit in to this film. I agree that a mob mentality can be dangerous - I'm not entirely sure it would be as easy as it was in this film - at least I hope not.
3 - Snacks
The Dark Knight Rises, simply put, was awful. We nearly walked out but decided to stay and see if something amazing would happen to justify all the praise I had read. Nope. And I liked the first two Nolan Batman movies.
Still this realism approach is getting tiresome. This movie especially is based on a realism approach and yet who would seriously dress up like Batman and take the risks he does if he were not special in some way? Seriously? So bring back a little of the special. Make Bruce Wayne into a superior athlete or something to explain why he can take the punishment he does.
- Long
- Boring
- 8 years later, Bruce Wayne can barely walk & then mysteriously he can jump around again like no bad knee (no surgery). Realism? If Nolan were not playing the realism game, then it could make more sense.
- And the back injury recovery? Realism?
- Does Batman know how to fight anymore? Blocks punches with his face? Only throws punches? No kicks? No ducking? Nolan should watch The Matrix and Spiderman movies, at the very least. Batman had terrible fight scenes. He looked slow and like someone who never trained in combat.
- Where were Bruce Wayne and Batman for the majority of the movie? It is a Batman movie, huh?
- If we're going to pretend a regular guy would do what Batman does, then at least have him use his utility belt more.
- Villain... too many long boring scenes.
- Lots of plot holes.
- Boring, boring, boring movie.
- Constant movie score in the background to the point that it just plain became annoying. Kinda like Nolan was trying to trick us into things were either exciting or might be about to get exciting, while of course was not the case.
For future Superhero movies, let's take a few steps away from realism. Like ok, if a villain smashes a building, then yes the is a real financial consequence, etc. But let's keep the fantasy of special people, Batman included, being able to do something a little more than we can. Like with this whole realism thing, will The Flash be only able to run a little faster than the Olympic 100 metre champ? That is realism. At the same time having him move too fast is indeed a problem. So somewhere in between...
Nolan... stay away from Superhero movies if this wreck called The Dark Knight Rises is your template.
4 - Mark Williams
The Dark Knight Rises bears repeated viewings due to its complexity and rapid editing in places. Sub-titles on the DVD are a major plus. One thing I find fascinating about all three of Christopher Nolan's Batman movies is the way the villains use truth to good effect when constructing their criminal schemes. The heroes are not totally good here and the criminals are not completely evil, either.