Review: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

The highly anticipated conclusion to the newest Batman trilogy has finally arrived, but has it lived up to everyone's expectation? In short, I'd like to think so. This film had much of the same type of Batman plot you'd normally get, but in this case, his newest enemy is the genius man with superhero strength, Bane. It also shouldn't be forgotten that Catwoman also made the team of masked villains, even when she spent the whole film flip-flopping from good to evil.


As mentioned, this film tried to take on a bigger cast than any of the other ones, while still trying to take the time to give spotlight to each one, as well development. Though, with the film running at nearly three hours, it nearly succeeds by simply never wasting a single second in the film. The cost ended up being that our very own Batman didn't appear as much as I'd at least like for a conclusion. At times I even felt that due to time constraints, Wayne had a very superficial development. It didn't leave as much of an impact as it should have, leading in to the final act of the film. Partially on account of that, and partially because the story took a bit of a cheap route in its final battle, the last part to this film did not deliver that powerful punch I was hoping for. I'll at least tip my hat to the plot twists this film had, which were most definitely surprising and worthy of all the build-up that people have created around these major spoilers in pleas not to be spoiled.

As was probably expected, this film shines most with its action, as it delivered fantastic chase scenes and edge of your seat hand to hand combat. Bane worked well as a villain in this film throughout most of it, as his advantage over the now rusty Batman, was that he had received the same training as Batman, but on account of constantly using his super strength abilities, he had the edge. Credit should also be given to the composer for the film, Hans Zimmer, who delivered a fantastic soundtrack that went along so well with the scenes, and often creating the urgency and tension in several scenes before the characters did. Also, the choice to completely omit music in some scenes, also helped to create a realistic portrayal of some of the hand to hand combat scenes that this film delivered marvellously. Although Batman may be a man who relies on his gadgets, this film did a good job at not simply trying to wow its audience with new technology, but instead chose to go back to the routes of what action can all be about. This worked as a well done reminder of where Batman's skills really lie.

Despite being one of the more serious superhero films out there, it still manages to be playful without being simply silly. There is a small dose of comedy thrown in, which was mostly graced to our screens because of Catwoman. To say I'm not a fan of Hathaway would be an understatement, and her role in this film really wasn't all that outside her element. Her character wasn't much revolutionised as we've seen other actors in this trilogy do, but she played her part well enough and didn't manage to get on my nerves too much. Her interactions with Batman could easily be tagged the comic relief of the film, but I felt that made for a good balance because ultimately, it's best not to be too serious when your films about an unstoppable guy in a suit.

In all, this film will no doubt please the fans as well as entertain and impress any movie goer. The director, Christopher Nolan, is most definitely continuing his long run of truly epic films. He brings the action people long to see, as well as a very satisfying conclusion. Along with a strong cast, fantastic visuals, and more than enough moments that will make this film a memorable one for years to come, this is without a doubt a must see film for all.