brilliant story arc

Rating: 8/10 (3 May 2013)

It was never really a question of whether the third and final act in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy would be good. Nolan doesn't make lousy films – and even at their most critically divisive (Inception comes to mind), he uses filmier techniques and spectacle that leave most Hollywood epics in the dust, heads spinning. So, no – 'The Dark Knight Rises' was always assured some degree of quality. But just how much are we talking here? A brief word on the story – spoiler- free as always. You'll want to go back and re-watch Batman Begins before heading to The Dark Knight Rises. It, arguably more than the Joker-focused sequel, has more to do with the unfolding events in the closing chapter than you might expect. Nolan sets this entry up to really validate his Batman films as a true trilogy, linking together characters and excerpts from the first two films, recapping the key points with well-edited care, and managing to land this character- heavy, expository behemoth with a steady hand. This is an achievement on par with the greatest film trilogies of the 20 and 21 centuries – no exaggeration