A satisfying conclusion to thrilling trilogy

Rating: 7/10 (30 July 2012)

Christopher Nolan has continuously provided us with intelligent, mature and original material with his blockbuster film-making, and after the dark knight and inceptions it was likely the dark knight rises would never truly live up to the monumental expectations placed upon its shoulders. The dark knight was a rare specimen, a comic book film that reflected modern society and raised deep questions in a way that never felt preachy or forced. The film was celebrated universally and went down with immense critical acclaim. Thus The dark knight rises has a lot to live up to. Not only does it have to compete with two modern greats in Christopher Nolan's previous batman films, but it also has to compete with Nolans more recent offering inception. The good news is, whether you think this matches the brilliance of begins, the thrills of the dark knight, or the professionalism of inception, TDKR does bring a satisfying conclusion the dark knight legend. The film is full of the intelligence and maturity you'd expect although it has to be said it never goes quite as dark as you might hope. Nolan once again has created a blockbuster that assumes the audience is as intelligent as he is, rather than patronising them and treating them like children who have only come to be dazzled by explosions and fist fights. Having said that when Nolan does bring in the pyrotechnics and the brawls they are stunning. High points include a jaw droppingly brutal fight between Bane and our hero mid way through the film where you can feel every single punch, and Banes escape from captivity in a plane that is unlike anything you've ever seen before. As usual the cast is all on top form. Bale brings us his most tragic and underplayed performance yet as a broken man following the events of the dark knight, Michael Cane provides reliable support as the true beating heart of the film in its more subtle small moments, Morgan Freeman injects some small humour in the film to counter act the sometimes overwhelming seriousness of the story, whilst Joseph Gordan Levitt proves to be a welcome presence as a newcomer to the trilogy. Other newcomers perhaps are not as impressive. Marion Cotillard's Miranda is a fairly uninteresting addition to the characters inhabiting Gotham, whilst Anne Hathaway amounts to little more than a waste of space, not that there's anything wrong with her performance, its just we'd gladly lose some time with her in favour of more time with Batman or our villain. Which brings us to Bane. You have to feel sorry for anyone following in the footsteps of Heath Ledgers unforgettable Joker, yet Tom Hardy proves he is more than up to the job as the hulking threatening legitimately believe Bane, who unlike previous incarnations of his character has real method, psychology and ideas behind his mask. The controversy over Banes verbal clarity has divided opinion but you will at least be able to make out most of his dialogue if not all of it and even if you don't, Hardy's physicality and facial expressions more than compensate in letting you know what the intelligent brute is thinking at all times. Bane allows us to really see Batman pushed to his physical limits as he faces an opponent stronger than ever before and as Batman is pushed to his physical limits he also pushed closer to his psychological limits too. Outside of the cast we have a visually stunning film, with brilliant cinema-photography, visual effects, and a brilliant (as usual) accompaniment from Hanz Zimmers score. The pacing of the film drags in places (particularily in an overlong 2nd act) but there's always a stunning moment just around the corner to inject life back into the narrative. And by the time the credits roll you really feel like you've not been cheated and have come to a dramatic conclusion to the batman story. The magnificent screenplay allows us to know then end is just around the corner (as Selina Kyle says "Theres a storm coming") and when it arrives it does so marvellously. The Dark Knight rises, may not be perfect. It has its pacing problems, too many characters, and a surprising lack of batman. But it more than makes up for all its flaws through its stunning set pieces, touching emotion, intelligent themes, and overall sense of event and power. Nolan has once again (and for the last time) delivered a batman film with true heart, brains, and excitement. Lets see what he does next