A Dark & Thrilling Conclusion

Rating: 8/10 (22 July 2012)

Christopher Nolan's final installment in the Batman universe is a remarkable piece of work. With stunning visuals, a chilling score, and commendable acting, the final chapter in the trilogy has all the makings of a great movie.
The film opens eight years after the events of "The Dark Knight", and begins by introducing Bane, who is the latest villain preparing to terrorize Gotham. It immediately becomes apparent that he will fully test Batman, both mentally and physically. Acted by Tom Hardy, Bane is both interesting and menacing. There's only one problem; his voice. Most of the time, he's easy to understand, but there are a handful of moments when it can be challenging to work out what he's trying to say. Aside from this, he provides an intriguing antagonist as he carries out his horrifying plan.
In addition to Bane, there are a multitude of other characters who are introduced. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays John Blake, a young police officer, Marion Cotillard is Miranda Tate, a businesswoman at the head of an important energy project, and Anne Hathaway portrays Selina Kyle, who assumes a role undoubtedly based on Catwoman. All of these new characters are excellent additions to the story, in particular John Blake and Selina Kyle provide many of the film's more entertaining moments.
As far as the returning cast is concerned, Christian Bale is by far the most improved. This is the first film in the trilogy where I felt that he truly carried the movie. He is simply brilliant from start to finish. Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Gary Oldman all reprise their roles as well, with both Alfred and Commissioner Gordon being very changed characters. All three of these men are excellent throughout the film.
However, despite all of the positive attributes this movie inarguably possesses, there is one fundamental problem; the story. To put it simply, this is a much weaker script than the previous film. The central plot of the movie is somewhat ridiculous (Bane's plan is carried out over a period of five months, with no response whatsoever by the government), and much of the dialogue is noticeably worse. It's not a boring script by any sense of the word, but it's mostly predictable and to be frank, the climax of the movie is easily the weakest point of the film.
Thankfully, the final few minutes of the film are fantastic. The franchise ends on a strong note, with all of the loose ends tied up quite neatly.
All in all, this is a good movie. The visuals are fantastic from start to finish (seriously, this is a pretty film to look at), the score is fantastic, and the acting is, for the most part, quite enjoyable. However, it's just a good movie; it could've been great with a better script, but it still provides an enjoyable conclusion to a fantastic trilogy.
RATING: 7.5/10