Perfect End

Rating: 10/10 (22 July 2012)

In 2005 Christian Bale became Batman. Seven years later Christopher Nolan's wonderful depiction of the caped crusader came to an end. For people who have loved the first two movies in the series, The Dark Knight Rises does not disappoint.
First of all, you are drawn in from the very beginning with the music thanks to the magnificent Hans Zimmer. Nolan clearly budgeted a lot of money towards the special effects used throughout the film and there are plenty to be amazed by without them feeling forced.
The cast chemistry was amazing. Christian Bale for the first time was overpowered by an adversary (Bane) and had to once again find himself. This let Bale have more time to give us a quality portrayal of Bruce Wayne. Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Gary Oldman stuck true to their characters, where newcomer to Gotham, Anne Hathaway, gave a good performance as the cat burglar Selina Kyle. The best performance of the movie, however, came from Joesph Gordon-Levitt. His portrayal of an incorruptible cop got plenty of screen time and blended perfectly with the film.
Overall Nolan's vision of Batman is by far the best Batman of all time. The trilogy itself is a contended for best trilogy of all time in any genre. It is hard to complain about this film, but there were two small things I thought could have been improved.
I thought Nolan's Bane was a rich, complex character. I understood the need for the face mask, but it was hard as a viewer to understand what he was saying. I felt like he had some amazing lines, but sometimes I simply could not make them out. I also felt he deserved a better death, a more noble death for such a true character.
And secondly although Michael Caine's emotional performance was perfect I would have liked to see him a little more and have more award winning dialogue.
Overall The Dark Knight Rises is still the best film I have seen in a years. The journey Nolan has been able to take us on shows what everyone wants to see. Someone to rise up and protect those who need protecting. I fully expect Oscar nominations from special effects all the way to movie of the year. If TDKR doesn't win best film of the year I think it is safe to say that no comic book adaption ever will.