The Dark Knight Rises (FILM REVIEW)
The Dark Knight Rises
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Batman Emerges from Exile to Battle
Terrorist in Trilogy Finale
The Dark
Knight Rises brings down the curtain on the brilliant Batman trilogy directed
by Christopher Nolan and starring Christian Bale as the Caped Crusader. Each of
the earlier episodes, Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008), earned a
spot on this critic’s annual Top Ten List, #s 9 and 1, respectively.
Given
how the late Heath Ledger played The Joker to perfection, delivering an
inspired, Oscar-winning, career performance in the previous installment, you
knew it would be hard for Nolan to find as compelling a character for his
highly-anticipated finale. And if The Dark Knight Rises does have a weakness,
it lies in the fact that its primary villain pales in comparison. Otherwise,
the movie measures up to franchise expectations, though its convoluted plot and
2¾ hours running time is likely to have younger kids squirming in their seats.
The
picture’s point of departure is eight years after the end of the last
adventure, when Batman selflessly accepted the blame for the untimely demise of
District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart). The broken, embittered vigilante
has apparently kept a low profile over the intervening years, allowing the
Gotham Police Department to fight crime on its own.
But that’s only until the arrival in town of Bane (Tom Hardy), a card-carrying
member of the association of assassins known as The League of Shadows. Although
his speech is pretty much muffled by a Hannibal
Lecter-like contraption affixed to his face, you don’t need to understand his unintelligible
mumblings to know that he’s a maniacal menace. The masked terrorist is hell-bent
on blowing up the city with a nuclear device and of course it isn’t long before
Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) needs help handling the mayhem.
Meanwhile,
Batman’s alter-ego Bruce Wayne already has his hands full with Selina Kyle
(Anne Hathaway), a cat burglar he catches snooping around his mansion. Fortunately,
Wayne still has
loyal assistants in his butler Alfred (Michael Caine) and weapons/vehicle/gadgetry
specialist Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman). Plus, he forges a new friendship with
John Blake (Joseph-Gordon-Levitt), an idealist cop with excellent instincts who
might be sidekick Robin should the series be spun off.
Outfitted
with a state-of-the-art motorcycle and hovercraft, a revivified Batman engages
his evil adversary with an unbridled enthusiasm. And between purist Nolan’s
loyalty to 35mm film and live action stunts, what’s served up onscreen proves
to be nothing short of spectacular.
A
tip of the cap, or should I say of the cape, to a terrific trilogy for the ages!
Very Good
(3 stars)
Rated PG-13 for sensuality, profanity and intense violence.
Running time: 165 minutes
Distributor: Warner
Brothers
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