The Dark Knight Rises 2012

Rubbish* ok ** Good *** Great **** Unmissable*****

Key:

TDK: The Dark Knight

TDKR: The Dark Knight Rises

Just Seen.... The Dark Knight Rises***

             I actually saw this film on it’s opening 20^th July (No advanced screenings) but have left my review a little while as hopefully more people could watch before I publish my verdict so we could look at key points without spoiling.

            Well we always knew The Dark Knight would be a hard act to follow, I mean how could it not? The most successful superhero film of it's time grossing over a billion and also a Academy Award wining superhero film, how often does that happen? It pushed the boundaries of what can be achieved with the genre and left the audience wanting more.... then we got it.

SPOILER ALERT:

ANYONE NOT SEEN THE FILM STOP READING NOW

           As a stand alone film The Dark Knight Rises is great, its faults rise (No pun intended) because it’s part of trilogy. When I say faults I referring mainly to contradictions from the other two films, which is gob smacking when this is still Nolan’s baby. How could it go wrong?

           Let’s start small (Well city size actually) after two films set in Chicago as the back drop of Gotham now we’ve moved to New York? Mainly because it fits his story better, common sense no but “his” story yes. The New York setting works better for a siege movie (An example being err… The Siege 1998) which is basically the second half of the film. That’s one bonus but the downside i.e. continuity is out the window then. This tactic of connivance continues throughout the film where writing decisions were made that don’t honor the film’s past narrative in order to fit this new story.

            I mean look at great supporting cast sacrifices made to support the story. Commissioner Gorden spends a hour of the film in hospital just to allow the police to make bad decisions that Gordon wouldn’t have made i.e. Let Bane escape to go to chase Batman, walk into a trap that leaves the entire police force incapacitated whilst terrorists seize the entire city, you know little mistakes.

            Loyal Alfred abandons Bruce on moral grounds for, wait for it… continuing on as Batman even through this is something he has encouraged for two and half films. In fact if we cast our minds back to Batman Begins there is a tender moment where Bruce asks Alfred "Still havn't given up on me?" and Alfred replies firmly "Never." I guess he meant to say "Never....until The Dark Knight Rises then I'm off".  But hey at least it explains why he didn’t attempt to find Bruce when he was abducted and thrown in a prison for six months  especially when earlier films have shown he has the means to do so. In fact at the start of the film he even tells Bruce all about Bane's prison so he clearly even knows where it is!              
          
             Let’s move on to theme, the previous film concluded when that the heroes had won the battle but lost the war. They stopped the Joker and killed Two Face but before he died Two Face’s actions would mean all the criminals Harvey Dent has persecuted would be back on the streets. In order to prevail they leave the moral ground behind to make a victory out a lie and Batman takes the blame for the Two Face murders so the criminals stay behind bars. Here the lie which has secured Gotham’s safety kept hundreds of villains behind bars, finished off organized crime and left the hell hole which used to be Gotham now crime free for eight years! This is great surely? Apparently not, it’s become a lie which is tormenting Bruce and Gordon for years now, the results are taking their toll.

 "Batman has become a

 bearded, crippled recluse…

 now that’s the superhero

 I’ve been waiting four years to see"

             Gordon’s loyal wife and son left him and town. Which again fits “his” story better, but surely you could have achieved more with them in later moments of the story? Sympathy when Gordon is shot? Maybe even a reconciliation? Could have provided extra tension in the siege sequences? Frankly there are all sorts you could have done… but no… they’ve just gone and never speak to him again… Fair enough, but that’s nothing compared to Bruce Wayne.  

             Batman has become a bearded, crippled recluse… now that’s the superhero I’ve been waiting four years to see. But the point is, the new theme is that “lying is bad and the truth will set you free”. Fair enough, doesn’t really fit the nature of the previous films which shows lying has been for the greater good (Kept criminals behind bars, Hidden his identity to protect loved ones) but hey that’s the new direction they want to finish the franchise on and why not.

             Well that’s what I thought so I was surprised when another contradiction comes to the surface. At the end of the film Batman sacrifices himself and saves the whole city! A hero! Blake tells Gordon that the millions of people who Batman saved deserve to know that it was in fact Bruce Wayne who sacrificed himself and had been the one serving and protecting them all these years! Gordon decides it better to lie about it and not tell the truth…. Ok…. Right well lesson learnt then Commissioner.

                 Now let’s just cast our eyes over at some of the plot holes left in the open. For instance how the hell did Bruce Wayne get from a African prison to Gotham City with no money or resources or help within a day and penetrate an un penetrable fortress. But anyway don’t worry about that, why the hell are the terrorists trying to blow up Gotham anyway? Oh yeah because they want to finish Ra’s al Ghul’s mission that was to rid Gotham of crime and corruption because it was beyond saving. Right…. But wait Gotham has been Crime free for 8 years and in fact that only crimes being committed are by the ones who plan to rid Gotham of it?  Then they say they are giving Gotham “back to it’s people!” screams Bane, ahhh that’s nice… but wait… you actually murdering it’s people on a daily basis and giving power to the mental murdering prisoners of Gotham.   

                "She’s never actually

                           called or referred to

                                 (That I recall) as Catwoman?"

                Then there’s Catwoman.... ahhh yes Catwoman, but hold on she’s never actually called or referred to (That I recall) as Catwoman? But anyway forget that. As far as anti heroes or femme fatales go surely this has to be one of the most evil? Bruce Wayne doesn’t agree in fact when he confronts her upon his return from prison his almost charming with her. This may be down to the old sayings like; forgive and forget, life’s too short… yeah maybe… perhaps I’m just being too harsh. I mean all she did was steal his deceased mother’s necklace (That she was coincidentally murdered for), bankrupt his Multi-Million Dollar Global business, force him into a trap with Bane which results in him having his back broken then abducted, dumped in horrific prison for six months whilst he beloved Gotham is blown up and it’s people murdered on a daily basis. But even then good old Bruce tells her he sees “good in her”… really? Where the hell is he looking? Surely not into the eyes of the hundreds of thousands of innocent people that have been wiped out through Bane’s insane genocide because of her actions……? But hey she looks nice in her skin tight outfit so cares hey Bruce?     

             Look I could go on and on, the point being third films are always tricky. I suppose the tactic should be to make a rubbish sequel then your third film seems great? But they didn’t. The Dark Knight hit all the right notes possibly beyond their own expectations and The Dark Knight Rises had to follow. And how do you beat the predecessor? Well Jonathan Nolan said at the European Premiere at Leicester Square you got to make it “bigger and better”. That doesn’t guarantee that a film’s going to be successful. The story should, every time it should, because everything else is subsequently built upon it.

             Here they really worked on story and went over board for spectacle. The substance got a little lost and the factors that really worked in other films were absent in this. The prime example is Batman! I think he only makes three appearances in his suit, whilst the first half we have the bearded crippled recluse. However it’s with great irony the franchise got buried with the arrival of Batman and Robin and this one finishes with the introduction of the latter....   

                  Outcome

          All things said you might be thinking I’m laying into TDKR (Well frankly I am), but the fact is, had it been a stand alone film I think it would have worked a hell of a lot better. It’s solid enough, the action is fantastic (The end battle between the cops and criminals is epic), the acting is strong as ever from a great cast (New addition Tom Hardy takes on the bad guy duties from Ledger’s big Academy Award winning shadow and pulls it off) and it’s also an intelligent superhero film that fly’s above others (The Amazing Spiderman doesn’t have a patch on the maturity shown in TDKR). Unfortunately they lost the plot (literally) and tried to do too much, but then again what’s honestly wrong with that? I mean nothing ventured, nothing gained. It worked great in Batman Begins and in The Dark Knight. You really have to admire the intelligence and respect Nolan gives to his audience. He never attempts to short change the audience in terms of the reality he has succeeded implementing in making a believable super hero franchise which has engrossed audiences round the world. And the honest truth is there is still nothing out there like what Nolan has achieved with the Batman films.