The Dark Knight Rises

To critique a film like The Dark Knight Rises is like solving a complex math problem. Factoring in hype, expectations, comparisons to past Christopher Nolan films and the comic-book source material make for a big maze like the one that conveniently appears on the logo of Nolan’s Syncopy Films company. It’s also fitting that the plot of such a massive blockbuster is so insightful and layered that the audience forgets they’re watching comic book characters on screen. The Dark Knight Rises spends significant time bringing the themes of the series’ previous two installments full circle, but not at the expense of new ideas.

Nolan has amassed an impressive cast to fill the screen, many of whom have appeared in other films made by the writer/director/producer. Christian Bale gives his best performance as the Caped Crusader, coming across as a more authentic person than in the past. Yet he keeps the much maligned growl of a voice that has become a mocking point for fans. Of all the newcomers in the film, the obvious standout is Tom Hardy and his take on Bane, one of the most intriguing villains in all of comics. Bane develops as a more calculated agent of evil than Heath Ledger’s Joker from The Dark Knight. But the similarities between the two characters show a divisive split with Bruce Wayne’s ideology of bringing hope to society. Bane and The Joker are by no means the same, but they complement each other as well as perfectly compete with Batman’s beliefs.

There are a lot of characters in The Dark Knight Rises, probably a few too many. Though for the most part they’re either developed or we already know their story from previous installments. Almost any other movie would collapse under this mountain of characters and established actors fighting for their minutes of screen time. But instead the film proves to be large enough for such a task. With that being said, it does run very long, but at no point does it drag. To be honest it would be disappointing if the finale of the story was any shorter. The Dark Knight Rises puts an end to one of the best trilogies ever made and is a defining work of both comic book and action film culture.

Each film earns either zero, a half or a full arrow in five categories. The categories are Acting, Writing/Directing, Emotion, Innovation and Overall Impression. The arrows are added up to equal the full score.