Firstly, I’m conscious that quite a number of you haven’t seen the movie yet. So this will be an entirely spoiler free review. No blank parts of the screen, no spoiler warnings. Nothing. I’ll even stick to the official synopsis, but before that cast your mind back to The Dark Knight, the final scene had Batman running off into the night, taking the wrap for Harvey Dents death. Now comes that synopsis.
Eight years on, a new terrorist leader, Bane, overwhelms Gotham's finest, and the Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that has branded him an enemy.
So that’s the story, and quite obviously that one line plotline doesn’t give much away, but there are a number of twists and turns along the way in this years most eagerly anticipated movie. The Dark Knight Rises lands in cinemas amidst a gigantic amount of hype. Does it live up to the hype? Has it been worth the wait? Damn right it has!
The scale presented on screen here is gigantic. Gotham has never look larger. Christopher Nolan and cinematographer Wally Pfister provide audiences with an amazing amount of size and scale. This is one vast movie. The sets themselves are breath-taking, and considering Nolan isn’t too much of a fan of visual effects, the quantity of “actual” sets as opposed to digital is huge. And it shows. The Dark Knight Rises is entirely convincing in its location. As are the special effects. The Bat (aka Batwing) never looked great in those behind the scenes shots that we saw months ago. It looked clunky and shaky. Well, on screen? This thing is just a beast! Seriously bad ass. It is entirely intimidating and the first time you see it you will be blown away. The Bat-Pod we’ve seen before, although this time we get to see a bit more of it. Visually, The Dark Knight rises is a sight to behold. A true masterpiece.
But good visuals are nothing without good actors. From past experience we all know Bale can do Batman in his sleep. But this time round, he has a tougher job altogether. This is the most physical outing for Batman yet, and Bale pulls it off effortlessly. As Bruce Wayne he’s the same as always. But he brings out an almost “human” side to Batman this outing. Far more than ever before. Bale manages to project a deeper and more emotional side to Batman through the cowl than you’ll have ever seen.This is the best Batman will ever get on film. But what about the main protagonist? Bane. Played by Tom Hardy, I had my doubts about Bane as the bad guy. Well, those doubts will disappear quite quickly as Hardy is simply phenomenal. The eyes tell it all here. This is a truly terrifying character who is completely and utterly batshit crazy, with no remorse for what he sets out to do in this movie. Again, like Bale, this is a very physical role for Hardy, and when the two collide it is gruelling to watch as Bane has this ferocious intensity, and all the while he doesn’t break a sweat. The rest of the cast are all equally great with some great casting in Joseph Gordon Levitt who plays the good guy cop very thoroughly. Michael Caine as usual, is fantastic, but this is his greatest portrayal of Alfred . And man, does he nail it. For quite some time now, I’ve been quite negative about Anne Hathaway. And while I still don’t see the point of Selina Kyle being introduced into this franchise, Hathaway is sexy, sassy and actually quite brilliant. Thankfully, she’s not overused.
The soundtrack by Hans Zimmer is another positive here, which at times is very haunting and one scene in particular is incredibly poignant. And that doesn’t even have a score running through it. Very clever work by Nolan. At 2 hours and 45 minutes long, The Dark Knight Rises is the longest of Nolans trilogy, and it never feels like it. It’s a very enveloping experience and utterly convincing as well as being quite the intense rollercoaster. You’ll be gripping onto your seat for dear life. You care about the characters intently and I found myself welling up on a number of occasions throughout the movie.
If I had a criticism, it’s Bane’s voice is a bit difficult to understand on two or three occasions. And I’m sure fans of the comic books will bitch on about Bane at length, but this is Nolans version and he has made an astounding piece of cinema.From the get go, The Dark Knight Rises grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let you go until the very end. This is one of the movies of the year. It is simply a phenomenal cinematic experience. A must see!
