An incredible conclusion to a defining trilogy.

Rating: 9/10 (22 July 2012)

With this final part of his trilogy, Nolan has completed his grand vision for one of most important and long-standing superheroes ever created, Batman. His trilogy will go down as one of the greatest and coherent in cinematic history, and I try here not to be hyperbolic.
4 years it has been since The Dark Knight subverted what many expected of the superhero genre, blowing audiences away with its maturity, its scope and its grim, dark tone. Admittedly, Burton's early films were steeped in Gothic imagery, but Nolan's Batman has always been uncompromisingly dark and realistic in tone. Many superhero films have been released in The Dark Knight's wake, and all have failed to best Nolan's work, in my personal opinion. So did The Dark Knight Rises improve upon Nolan's near perfect sequel?
No.
Granted, TDKR is a fantastic film, a spectacular blockbuster with an almost unparalleled intelligence in its field. Rarely has a summer blockbuster challenged my mind to such a degree as TDKR. It is a serious film that asks serious questions, and undoubtedly carries a political message (regardless of what the cast and crew say to the media.) The production is flawless, the performances stellar and the pace was brisk and consistently engaging. The first hour was rather slow, but to my mind this was necessary in order to re- engage us with the characters and to build towards a mesmerising final hour. Michael Caine was particularly moving as Alfred, and this should go down as one of his strongest performances to date, and arguably the most impressive within the film. Hardy's 'Bane,' was another standout, providing a great physical performance. Every movement he made, every reaction and position, conveyed sheer ferocious power. His voice, however, seemed slightly disconnected from his actual actions, as if his voice was simply dubbed over his performance and he wasn't really saying it in that situation at all. Ultimately, this didn't truly ruin his performance for me, but it occasionally felt slightly jarring to see his neck and cheeks not move while he was supposedly talking. Hathaway was also excellent as Selina Kyle, as was Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox. Christian Bale proves yet again what a truly excellent actor he is, providing audiences with the best Bruce Wayne ever committed to screen, his pain and anguish finally coming to the stoic surface. The film is incredible and absolutely worth seeing. But it has not, in my opinion, bested its predecessor.
The Dark Knight was truly ahead of its time. A mature, excellently crafted crime opus with a dark, sadistic edge. Ledger's 'Joker,' is one of the greatest villains ever put to screen, primarily because of Heath Ledger's stunning, Oscar-winning performance. The film tackled issues no other comic book film had ever even attempted to integrate, and in doing so elevated itself beyond the pale previously set by Batman Begins. I have not a bad word to write about The Dark Knight. And herein lies the problem; Nolan set the standards so highly that not even he could replicate such dizzying heights with his second sequel. Bane is not as engaging a villain as The Joker, TDKR had a slightly bloated running time and the plot of TDKR was occasionally, only slightly occasionally, a bit far-fetched and hard to follow. Expectations were so high for this film that it would have been impossible for Nolan to match them all. But he's done an amazing job of trying, TDKR may not have been the best of Nolan's trilogy, but is certainly an absolute masterpiece.
What Nolan has done with this film is come full circle. TDK didn't link to Batman Begins in many ways, but TDKR has integrated Batman Begins into its story to such a degree that there isn't an ounce of closure needed here, no exposition. TDKR is a magnificent conclusion, the trilogy as a whole is Nolan's undoubted masterpiece. It's sad to arrive at our final destination, but what a journey it's been.