Review: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

The caped crusader returns back to entertain in The Dark Knight Rises. Here is my take on the last installment of the trilogy (Nolan’s version).

Plot: Rises is set in an age and time when Gotham is no longer the crime capital that it used to be. Offenses are so petty that there is no need for a man with a mask to fight crimes anymore. But there is always a calm before the storm and for Gotham this storm comes in the form of Bane.

Bane is not the unpredictable or scheming kind of villain that we are accustomed to see in the Batman series so far. He is anything but that; he is pure brute force who likes to be in command and power his way no matter when or against whom. He’s seen by the Batman as the enduring spirit of Ra’s al Ghul; ruthless and with just one aim – the destruction of Gotham.

Effects: Despite the lack of truck flipping awesomeness in the movie, it still packs a punch when it comes to technical details. Be it the explosions that rock the city or the hand-to-hand combat it is impossible to call anything a farce. That’s the most beautiful thing about this whole trilogy. Instead of going for impossible looking stunts or out-of-the-world effects that could have been shown in any Hollywood movie (especially a Batman film), the director has gone to great lengths to showcase realism surrounding the fictitious character and his weapons.

From the tank like Batmobile to the powerful Batpod to the indestructible Bat, fans are in for a treat. I wouldn’t rate The Bat as the best looking bat vehicle, but the way it makes its appearance is absolutely jaw dropping! But that’s probably the only big gadget this film was to produce. That is not to say it was disappointing but there was definitely scope for more in three hours of a Batman film. Nothing too serious though. Musical score by Hans Zimmer is a big plus and adds to feel of the movie in more ways than can be described by words!

Cast: An applause for Christian Bale is due. The guy has bought to life a comic book character and has played his part admirably. Be it the recluse or the fading billionaire or the Dark Knight he enthralls in this film. Michael Caine, Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman look snug in their roles and deliver really good performances.

Tom Hardy as Bane can barely be seen or heard properly (behind his mask), but convinces everyone with his mannerism and body language. Oozing with confidence, he truly looks like the man commissioned to bring Gotham to its knees! Joseph Gordon-Levitt does well as a hot headed but honest cop, but is hardly challenged in his character. Anne Hathaway as Selina and Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate look good, but, perhaps could have shown more conviction during the final few scenes.

Direction: Here’s a director who certainly has convinced everyone about who or what the Batman is – not a glorified superhero but a mere mortal who cares about lives of millions he has absolutely no connect with! As a director Nolan has taken the Batman films to a whole new level.

One cannot help but smile looking back at the story-line. Sometimes a director picks up a good script and sometimes, if fortune favors, it is the other way round. I believe that the fans of the Batman got lucky this time. Think about it – without the dramatization and the dark nature of these films, it may probably have remained just three more batman films (even with the same story-line). I am sure that even those who had questions about Batman’s physical limits will now question the very notion of what a super hero is, thanks to these three versions of Nolan!