Jasonic's Favorites: The Dark Knight Rises
Hello, and good evening, Internet!
As of this post, I am now up to THIRTY reviews on this blog! With that, this is the end of the superhero series that was allowed to definitively end and I'll say it is awesome despite people's criticisms.
Released in 2012, The Dark Knight Rises was the highly anticipated third installment of the ever-popular The Dark Knight Trilogy that continues to be well-regarded even today. Critics loved it and it was a financial grand slam, creating one of the most excellent trilogies of all time, up there with the original Star Wars trilogy, Back to the Future, The Lord of the Rings, and more! This was one of the most hyped movies of last decade alongside The Avengers the same year and for many it lived up to expectations, regarded often as a worthy followup to the already fantastic predecessor, The Dark Knight. Despite that, the film has been slammed with criticisms moreso than its predecessors, some saying it was the worst/weakest in the trilogy if not a letdown. By all extents though, the general concensus was NOT that it was an awful movie nor was it ill-regarded as much as Batman & Robin -- though even that is sometimes considered a cult classic. As it stands, the early 2010s when it came out saw an even greater onslaught of Internet critics and the ever-popular "Sins" channels that started around that time with CinemaSins; as a result, Internet criticisms became more widespread with some, myself included, hopping on specific bandwagons that movies with illogical plots, bad writing, or glaring plotholes were terrible, some not even caring that, despite their flaws, lots of our favorite movies continue to tell great stories. That said, some recent YouTube video essays have re-assessed this movie, pointed out how effective it is despite its flaws, and claim that it was better than you remember, leaving me with the hope that another viewing was what I needed to really understand and digest this movie for what it was. I was right. Although the criticisms against this movie were certainly overblown as the Internet continued to grow, I will determine what I always do about whether or not the criticisms were warranted or not. To find out, we must lead the charge to save Gotham. Let's fix our broken limbs, strap back on the cape and cowl, and fly the Bat aircraft straight into the smash hit, The Dark Knight Rises!
***SPOILERS*** (unless you're a Batman fan who has seen/adored this movie, I'd turn away now)
The story picks up eight years after The Dark Knight; in it, all of Gotham continues to mourn the fallen "White Knight of Gotham", Harvey Dent, on Harvey Dent Day, the GPD commissioner, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), reluctant to share the truth about Dent's fall into insanity as Two-Face. Meanwhile, the excommunicated League of Shadows mercenary, Bane (Tom Hardy), hijacks a CIA plane over Uzbekistan, capturing the nuclear physicist, Dr. Pavel (Alon Aboutboul), to commence his plan to take over and destroy Gotham. During this time, Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), has been a stagnating recluse, depressed and unable to move on from his ex-flame, Rachel Dawes, after her death in the previous movie. Things take an unexpected turn, however, when a cat burglar disguised as a maid, Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), cracks the safe containing Bruce's late mother's pearls, stealing Bruce's fingerprints to sell to businessman, John Daggett (Ben Mendelsohn), a rival billionaire socialite who plans to use Bane to take over Wayne Enterprises. Daggett, however, double-crosses Selina and she, in denial of the promise of a clean slate for her criminal record, alerts the police and flees while the police pursue Bane and Daggett's henchmen into the sewers. The henchmen, meanwhile, capture Commissioner Gordon in hopes to kill him, but he escapes -- not without getting shot -- and is recovered by GPD officer, John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). As an orphan who deduced Bruce's former secret identity as Batman, Blake persuades Bruce to return to his vigilante work and stop Bane knowing that they are serious business. Bruce fixes himself up and goes once more into the off the books armory of Wayne Enterprises where Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) provides him with a new aircraft he simply calls "the Bat" in order to give him an edge over Bane and his mercenaries. Bruce is unfortunately ousted from his company and left bankrupt when Bane and his henchmen use Bruce's prints to verify a series of frauds at the Gotham Stock Exchange, forcing him to re-emerge as Batman and lure the cops away from Bane -- the police still believing Batman is responsible for Two-Face's crimes. Batman encounters Selina (known also as "Catwoman") during the scuffle, the two not quite seeing eye-to-eye despite their promises to help each other; Bruce then goes home where he disputes with his butler, Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine), about his decisions to go after Bane, the butler resigning after admitting the truth about Rachel's letter he (Alfred) previously burned. Bruce then entrusts his new lover, Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard), to Wayne Enterprises, he and Catwoman going after Bane only for Bane to get the upper hand and break Batman physically. Imprisoning Bruce on the other side of the world, Bane then rallies his forces to take over Gotham for the next five months, the city under threat of nuclear detonation. In the midst of Gotham's darkest hour, the Dark Knight must rise literally and figuratively to take back Gotham City, even if it costs him his life.
After reading that plot synopsis, there's already a lot going on; with several new characters and plotlines, it's a wonder that they all intersect neatly without fully overshadowing each other. This could have easily been another Spider-Man 3 situation where they introduced too many new villains and side characters under studio pressure, but as far as how director, Christopher Nolan, works, he does his utmost to ensure that ideas get implemented intelligently -- many going as far as saying he has ZERO bad films. That said, people have complained about the amount of characters here, but me, personally, I don't mind how much bigger they made things for the finale; for one, the integration of Catwoman is a must for every live action Batman and it was only a matter of time before she came to this series. With The Dark Knight being as near perfect as it is, however, having her show up there might have weighed the film down so maybe a hint or two at people like her and Daggett may have benefitted the series in the long run. Regardless, being a bigger Batman fan now allows me to see the inspiration for characters like John Daggett with the name and character being loosely inspired by the corrupt businessman from Batman: The Animated Series, Roland Daggett. His presence and the actor were a welcome addition to the talents behind this franchise and he allowed for someone as physically imposing as Bane and his League of Shadows mercenaries to covertly slip into Gotham and take control of the city. For that matter, Bane is almost (almost) the perfect threat for a final villain to defeat; this marks the character's return to live action since Batman & Robin -- a version that people besides super fans don't acknowledge -- and gives him a second chance at being a credible villain that many can take seriously with his menacing appearance, physically imposing build, and serious feats like breaking Batman. As someone who has since played Batman: Arkham Knight, I am more than on board with the idea of a Batman finale being about Batman and the police taking back Gotham from a villain takeover and Bane serves that purpose well with Batman and Bane's confrontations feeling earned. After an out of shape Batman loses to Bane in the iconic recreation of the Knightfall comic moment of Bane breaking Batman's back, the amount of trial that Bruce goes through to get back in play makes the final confrontation feel both earned and vicious as both combatants earn their place in the story. One complaint I have seen in years past is that Bane's presence as the supposed "main villain" gets undermined by the twist with Miranda Tate being Talia al Ghul, the real mastermind behind everything, while Bane was just her lackey doing all the heavy lifting; I don't hate it as it's a neat tie-in to Batman Begins though I can understand why her being the final villain and death feels underwhelming when Bane is also killed anti-climactically by Catwoman. Even so, everything building up to the ending with Batman's supposed self-sacrifice is thematically strong and makes the possibility and eventual confirmation of Bruce's survival end the trilogy on a good, if bittersweet note.
As with every Nolan film, the actors do some of the most outstanding jobs -- this trilogy overall having some of the best performances in superhero film history. Christian Bale has delivered an excellent performance as Bruce Wayne, his attitude having devolved into a defeated man who thinks he lost everything who, according to Bane, does not fear death, but welcomes it. I'm all for broken, mentally unwell, or physically incapable heroes who no longer do what they do best and Bale conveys that well in moments like his literal defeat against Bane, the demeanor shifting when he rises figuratively and literally from the Lazarus Pit. There are often jokes about his Batman in this movie gaping his mouth open more often and how his batgrowl sounds more dopey than previous films, but, from a character standpoint, it makes sense as this Batman is resuming duty and is mentally and physically tired out. Despite a more limited role and appearance, Michael Caine is still the heart of this trilogy, showing so much genuine care for Bruce's well-being, even expressing pain in his confession about what was in Rachel's letter. Anyone playing Alfred in live action has always been the heart of the Batman movies and Michael Caine is amongst my favorites. One of my favorite actors in this and Harry Potter continues to be Gary Oldman whom I completely agree with CinemaWins that he's always a win; the amount of heart he puts into being a conflicted man who built Harvey Dent's legacy on a lie to help his friend, Batman, and his discomfort when the truth comes out will never stop being a potent moment with Oldman disappearing so well into just about every movie role he's in. In addition to the returning actors -- including a badass cameo of Liam Neeson returning as Ra's al Ghul in Bruce's vision and a flashback -- the newcomers fit just as neatly amongst them; for my experience with Anne Hathaway, this was my first real time seeing her grow beyond her breakout Disney role in The Princess Diaries and take on a more adult role. Her self-proclaimed adaptable persona as Selina Kyle/Catwoman is very in-character, able to switch between her seducing, competent personality and feigning a frightened woman persona on the fly to suit the situation. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, meanwhile, proves himself a competent actor with how his character slowly molds himself into a less traditional version of Batman's Boy Wonder sidekick, Robin; even though his GPD name, John Blake, is NOT a Robin from the comics, the emotional delivery of his backstory, his deducing Bruce's secret identity, and nobly competent cop persona proves him to be a worthy successor to Batman by the end and Gordon-Levitt's acting is part of why it works. Little did I realize early on that this was the first major role I saw of Ben Mendelsohn -- whom I later saw forefront Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Ready Player One, and Captain Marvel -- as John Daggett; he sells the overcompetent, corrupt businessman personality well, believing himself to be in charge until Bane intimidates him and subsequently kills him once he's served his purpose. Speaking of Bane, the late Heath Ledger's previous performance as the Joker gave Tom Hardy a LOT to live up to and he succeeds in his own way; many have mocked the Bane voice -- my friend saying he sounds like "the father of the Three Little Pigs from Shrek" -- but in all honesty, it makes for an iconic voice as it's not what you'd expect from such a menacing and imposing dude. With the majority of Tom Hardy's face covered most of the film outside a flashback, Hardy excels in acting with his eyes, body language, and tone of voice, intimidating everyone with his words, actions, and build. It's no wonder people adore him as an actor and this, Inception, and the Venom movies have since shown me his level of versatility. Marion Cotillard, while a much more subtle villain, telegraphs her intent through lines and manipulation that parallel Talia's father and, by the time the twist happens, her tone of voice becomes soft-spoken levels of intimidating in a way that reminds me so well of her role as Mal in Inception. If that movie told me anything, it's that Christopher Nolan continues to keep a lot of these great actors under his belt and they continue to be excellent elsewhere.
As with every Dark Knight film, the action continues to be a highlight of what makes this Batman work. There aren't as many physical fight scenes in this as in the previous movies, but what's there and the vehicle chase scenes are some of the coolest a Batman movie has done this century. The opening scene of Bane hijacking the plane, his men killing everyone, and transfusioning Dr. Pavel's blood to make it look like he died in the crash is just as much of a highlighting opening as was Joker's in The Dark Knight. When Bane's men cable the plane to there's and tear it apart, the resulting scuffle looks to reuse the zero gravity techniques of Inception's iconic hallway fight, creating for a tense setpiece as the CIA people are shot, piling up as the plane's flips vertically toward the ground, Bane eventually cabling to the hijacking plane holding Pavel and letting the CIA plane fall to the ground. The setpiece combined with Bane's straight to the point reveal of himself is a great juxtaposition to Joker's theatrics and that's one of the reasons pretty much all three movies have effective intros. Nolan then continues to prove his vehicle action expertise in the awesome motorbike and Batpod chase sequence through the tunnel and onto the bridge, Batman time and again proving his ingenuity with the Bat Pod as he maneuvers about the escaping bikes and the structure. He eventually lets himself get cornered by the cops before shooting rockets at a truck with a ramp, creating a ramp for himself to escape their pursuit; this leads into the reveal of the Bat aircraft in action, effectively setting up its maneuverability for the climax. The main physical fight scenes are the previously mentioned confrontations between Batman and Bane and, from an action standpoint, they work well for both characters; Bane's claims that Batman fights like a "younger man" are apparent as Batman goes in fists swinging, anger boiling in an effort to overpower Bane, which proves to be his weakness as Bane's super strength allows him to overpower Batman. With this being Bane's highlight battle, he even goes as far as cracking the cowl and eventually recreating the iconic comic book shot of him lifting Batman up before breaking his back; sometimes a simple one-on-one fight between two combatants with no music adds to the tension and this fight makes for among the best Batman fights put to screen for that reason. Even better when Batman confronts Bane once more in broad daylight amongst the police going to war with Bane's mercenaries for the final battle; character-wise, the Batman who emerged from the Lazarus Pit emerged also a new person -- much like the Lazarus Pit in the comics reviving one's life -- and it's apparent in how much more refined his focus and strategy are. No longer is Batman flailing in anger, but instead is able to go toe-to-toe with Bane, able to dislocate one of the pieces of his mask enough to overpower him and interrogate him for the trigger to the atom bomb. After such an effective final battle, the following chase sequence with Batman in the Bat and Catwoman on the Bat Pod chasing down Talia's truck is what I was talking about for the Bat craft's maneauverability; the Tumbler tanks fire so many missiles that Batman then has to shake off by navigating around buildings, allowing them to safely explode away from him. And the finishing touch is when he allows the final missile to blow up the last Tumbler standing, effectively ending the chase as they crash Talia's truck, killing her. I'll never get tired of how much practicality, if minimal CGI, exists in these scenes and that's one reason they're so good.
I don't know as many songs from this soundtrack as I do from the previous movies, but it goes without saying that Hans Zimmer is THE man for composing this and Nolan's various other movies and he does NOT disappoint! The track accompanying Bane's opening, "Gotham's Reckoning", is quite a composition, starting off intense with the strings before settling into heavy brass to signify the entrance of Bane's men hijacking the plane. Did I mention I really appreciate how many songs in Hans Zimmer's scores are named after quotes and terms from his movies throughout his soundtracks? It's worth noting here because of how potent Bane proclaims himself to BE Gotham's reckoning with the false pretense to give it back to the people and how capturing Dr. Pavel is his first step toward taking control and priming the nuke. The track increasing in itensity only serves to highlight the intense zero g fight in the plane and right at the very end of the songs we hear the prisoners' chant (translated to "rise") -- perfect foreshadowing! A nice leitmotif throughout some of the tracks is Catwoman's theme with a whimsical piano slyly twinkling in the background; as someone who can't get enough of CinemaWins and his work, he was the one who made a possible connection to the song "Whatever Lola Wants" from the musical Damn Yankees. That being a play I saw a production of at my high school, I have some attachment to that song and it being a possible inspiration for a theme of Catwoman is totally befitting of the character and her playful, deceiving nature. The killer re-entrance of Batman 45 minutes into the film is accompanied by his iconic theme from this trilogy, Hans Zimmer really nailing it on the head that, "Yes. Batman is BACK!" His two note score will always signify the power of Batman's presence and the intelligence and ingenuity of his character that I canNOT help, but win it as part of the movie and his re-introduction. Particularly in the track "Why Do We Fall?" -- the title itself a callback to Batman Begins -- the track plays over the scene of Bruce climbing out of the pit and by the moment where he makes the climb all the way up, the Batman theme returns with more power and a little extra distortion on the horns. This scene is made more potent by the music and the fact that it is very emotionally a completion of Bruce's trilogy arc; for three movies, he had always been figuratively down in the well he fell into as a kid, his father rescuing him with a rope in the opening of Batman Begins. In The Dark Knight, he used Harvey Dent as a rope to leave Batman behind, hoping someone else would take up his job of stopping the criminals so he wouldn't have to do it forever -- even be with Rachel, another one of his figurative "ropes" into the life he desired. The flashback of his father asking "Why do we fall?" and Bruce using it as motivation to climb without the rope becomes the moment he learns to conquer fear and despair through sheer strength and willpower, no longer relying on ropes as a safety net. This and the many themes and ideas throughout The Dark Knight Trilogy are what make the elements and accompanying music so awesomely potent; Hans Zimmer will never stop being a win in movie compositions!
And with that, I will say that The Dark Knight Rises, despite its flaws, still manages to tell a great Batman story and a potent end to one of the greatest trilogies of all-time! Despite the many characters and plotlines, the elements and themes all fit together cohesively enough, the acting is stellar as per usual in Nolan's films, the physical and vehicle action continue to be some of the best put to superhero film, and the accompanying Hans Zimmer score showcases his talent and potency tenfold as per the themes of this movie. People saying it's the "worst in the trilogy" makes it sound awful at first glance, but despite everyone's criticisms and some plotholes, it manages to be one of my favorite Batman movies and endings to a trilogy of all-time. With Christopher Nolan deciding pretty early on that this would be the end, it's a wonder that they've held to it and allowed Batman to be rebooted a couple more times first with Ben Affleck in the DCEU and with Robert Pattinson in the current The Batman Trilogy. Knowing Hollywood these days, many should follow his example and allow something great to end while it's good so that we don't end up getting another franchise like the MCU, Star Wars, Jurassic World, or Terminator falling off due to all the milking they do with those. While there are still good ideas and silver linings even in those franchises, who am I to complain? I have no control over what Hollywood execs say and still find reasons to enjoy and give chances to a lot of my favorite franchises even if they keep coming out with things past their time. With that, I conclude that The Dark Knight Rises is a solid end to its perfect trilogy and give it an A-, recommending it to fans of Batman, The Dark Knight Trilogy, and people who enjoy epic third movie conclusions done right.
Thank you all for reading and I will see you in the next review!
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