Where the BLEEP Is the Dark Knight?!

Rating: 5/10 (6 June 2013)

Being a solid fan of Batman, the Dark Knight, whatever he's also called, I went into this movie expecting the same quality entertainment that the previous 2 had. And sadly, I was underwhelmed. Now I know many out there will probably hate me for saying this, but hear me out. The acting is excellent, the villains are menacing, and there's plenty of action-oriented moments, but I didn't like the film. First, why oh why did the film have to be close to 3 hours? Seriously? They couldn't cover the same story in a shorter 2-hour time slot? For most of the first hour, Batman is hardly seen at all. Second, when Bane faces the city of Gotham with the dilemma of letting him rule, or die in the massive explosions, why does the city so quickly allow itself to be overtaken? After that pivotal moment, the film suddenly thrusts us into the dead of winter (I'm guessing some time has passed) and now the city is under the constant threat of armed militias and execution squads. And still, Batman takes his sweet time showing up. Third and finally, what's with that ending? So, Batman wanders off, and now suddenly Robin shows up to take over?! Kind of a lackluster ending to what would have been a great trilogy, in my opinion. With this one, Christopher Nolan I think got struck with "epic-itis." Epic-itis is what happens when a director makes a successful epic and from that point forward feels he can't make anything less. Sometimes it works out: the original STAR WARS trilogy comes to mind. Then, just like George Lucas, he can't make anything less than epics, hence the over-long next three STAR WARS movies. As for Nolan, he also recently did INCEPTION, a much better and successful epic film. Along with INCEPTION, both of the first two Batman movies were each around two and a half hours. Pretty epic by today's standards, and at times squirmingly slow to sit through. Aside from the long running time, with almost every scene, Nolan tries to top himself with more spectacular visuals and whatnot. And in so doing, he loses focus on what makes Batman so appealing: a dark and brooding hero, wickedly delightful villains, and a world at war between the forces of good and evil. If you must see this, go right ahead. But I personally think Nolan screws up the Batman formula too much!