In the interests of time, a million other reviews out there and to avoid repetitiveness, musings shall remain short and sweet…
Chris Nolan’s third instalment of the successful and much loved Batman reboot is finally unveiled, with the pressure of living up to the billion dollar-earning, Oscar-winning sequel The Dark Knight, can The Dark Knight Rises live up to its ridiculously high expectations?
To begin with, it’s worth declaring that Rises is a breathtaking spectacle on a sublime scale; more so than Batman Begins and on par with The Dark Knight.
We’re thrust eight years into the future, and therefore takes a little time to re-establish itself, but does so satisfyingly within the opening thirty minutes. The script incorporates snippets of relevant exposition in order to burst into the film’s second and third acts with great momentum, allowing the events that take place thereafter to have the most impact possible due to the existing investment in the characters.
Christian Bale thrives just as he does in the previous entries, mixing billionaire recluse Bruce Wayne with the masked vigilante well. Michael Caine’s Alfred has meatier segments of dialogue early on, which certainly test Caine’s ability more than before. However, it’s Anne Hathaway’s portrayal of Selina Kyle that really impresses, as she threatens to steal the film all by herself. Tom Hardy’s Bane is effective and as accomplished as his brutish character can be, but is unable to display the taut impact of Heath Ledger’s Joker.
Whilst the narrative and early structure isn’t as polished as The Dark Knight, the set pieces and action sequences are just as mind-blowing. What’s more, the screentime Batman and Bane share is just as riveting as the ones with Joker in the previous entry.
Various moments offer a poignancy that’s largely devoid in the other movies, and achieves the balance of emotion just right, especially where key characters are concerned. Things aren’t hampered by the tremendous score courtesy of Hans Zimmer, either, and adds to the grandiose magnitude of events.
The Dark Knight Rises is a truly epic conclusion to Nolan’s breath-taking trilogy. Apart from a slightly slow beginning, the majority is pacey, slick, thrilling and utterly spectacular. Anne Hathaway surprisingly stamps her authority, as Bale et al remain as watchable as ever.
If there’s one film to see this year, it’s this.
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