An Excellent Conclusion

Rating: 9/10 (20 July 2012)

This will be a movie that gains cult status. This series will be talked about 20 years from now and people will be enthralled by the beauty, the grit and the emotion that was invested in this film for years. This I confidently say because a saga needs a good beginning, middle and end, and this movie gave the beginning and middle a perfect end.
One cannot go for a Christopher Nolan movie without some expectations. Every movie of his has been phenomenal with amazing plots and deep characters. Therefore when I sat down for the movie, I couldn't help but feel apprehensive about how it would turn out. Rest assured, I will not spoil this masterpiece for anyone. My review will be split into 3 categories each reviewed out of 3 stars and 1 star for special mention -
1. Cast: Every single character was portrayed masterfully by the actors. The eponymous Dark Knight was played to perfection by Christian Bale. Here, he wasn't the greenhorn who was slowly learning the ropes of vigilante-ism in Batman Begins. He wasn't the experienced and seasoned Dark Knight. He was broken, chipped and dented by the events of the last movie. He was beaten and he had to "rise" again to the occasion and give Gotham the hero it deserved and needed. Anne Hathaway was well cast as Catwoman and the other characters played by Michael Cain, Joseph Gordon- Levitt, Gary Oldman and Marion Cotillard were very good. Tom Hardy needs special mention as Bane because as a villain, he blew me away. He was not the determined mentor or the crazed psychopath. He was a monster, intelligent, cold and calculated, and was probably the one person who could challenge Batman physically, mentally and psychologically. A deadly combination and a worthy adversary. 3/3 stars for Cast
2. Camera (and everything behind): The direction was nothing short epic. Nolan really knows how to tell a tale and in this movie he has gone the extra mile to make it menacing, dark and full of despair. I should say that making a movie like this with the minimum of special effects is really an achievement and the fact that he did not stoop to making this in 3D shows the caliber and will of this man. Editing in certain sequences I felt was not done properly and though does not happen often, when it happens it is jarring. This may be fixed in the Directors Cut when the movie comes out on DVD so I will not gripe about this. The fights were choreographed brilliantly and I really felt the punches thrown by the actors. The atmosphere was portrayed by controlled and skilled use of the music composed by Hans Zimmerman which I will talk about later. 3/3 for Camera
3. Content: The plot is brilliant. The emotion, the despair, the bubbling volcano of revolution that exploded and burnt everything, it was all written masterfully. Though some scenes and plot points seemed forced to achieve some end, it did not detract from what was the leading arc of the story i.e. the arrival of Bane to destroy Gotham City. I cannot find many holes in the plot even though I have tried to. That is not to say they aren't there but they will not be apparent until after the movie and you sit down to think about them. No scenes were really unnecessary and they all built up to a very satisfying finale. 3/3 for Content
Special Mention: The score really helped give the feel of despair and darkness for the movie and the orchestral pieces were well used with silences at the right moments to give suspense and apprehension. In fact, at one such moment of silence, the entire audience just sat with not one sound from a single person. The silence literally shocked us into silence.
Adding the above, I give this movie a full 10/10. The target audience is anyone who appreciates movies AND has seen the first 2 parts. If you have not seen them, I recommend you do before you watch this.