The Dark Knight Rises

This Dark Knight doesn't Rise to the standards of previous installments. Christ who am I? Gene Shalit?

**1/2 out of ****

This hurts. The Dark Knight Rises is a disappointing sequel. Unclear in it's purpose and the running time of one-hundred and sixty-four minutes can't accomidate the amount of story crammed into it. Multiple story points need ironing-out. Despite all the dramatic story turns, it is paced in a way that makes it feel monotonous. I'm being a little too negative. It's not a bad movie but the glass is half-empty for me. 

See Christy Lemiere's review.

This is a watchable Batman movie but way below the bar set by Christopher Nolan's two previous Batman films... and needless to say even further below Nolan's body of films in general. There were so many conventions of comic-book based movies and tired cliches that Nolan kept at bay with the first two. In this one, they spilled into the environment breaking my suspension of disbelief. My list of things I could have done without for this film is incredibly long (see SPOILER LIST below) but the two things that bothered me the most were the uncreative time-bomb plot and the weak ending filled with compromises that avoided the kind of finality I expected from a closing chapter. Even the crappy final Matrix movie ended on a grand note.

I can't think of any third part of a superhero movie franchise that achieves greatness. I almost got the feeling that Nolan and his co-writer brother had gotten tired of these characters while focusing on how many ambitious production challenges they would be allowed to pull off with this film's enormous budget.


Yes, the money contributed to Nolan's high production standards is all on the screen. Like the previous two, the set-pieces are bold and astounding. The special effects, flawless. Above all, some of the subject matter is disturbingly topical and kept me intensely connected wondering what if some of our current real-world problems broke into anarchic revolution. In the end though, it's not really the motivating force behind the bad guys, so the topicality becomes irrelevant.

I was in no-way eager to dislike this film, nor did I give myself unrealistic expectations. I'm not a comic book geek. I am a Batman fan through movies and I love Batman Begins. I liked Tim Burton's Batman and sort-of liked Batman Returns but I loved Batman Begins. I wanted them to leave well-enough alone after finally getting the character so right. When The Dark Knight came out, I couldn't believe what a good sequel it was and what a different tone it had. This left me with the faith that Christopher Nolan would make something deeply interesting whether the film as a whole worked or not. The Dark Knight Rises is only sort-of interesting. It was engaging. I know that. But I was, to quote a friend I saw it with, "underwhelmed"... Damn.

SCROLL DOWN FOR TWO SPOILER-FILLED LISTS, ONE NEGATIVE, THE NEXT ONE, POSITIVE.

What I could have done without:

'THE DARK KNIGHT' SURE WAS A HIT. EVEN THOUGH WE CAN'T USE THE JOKER IN THIS STORY, LETS REPEAT EVERYTHING THAT MADE THE LAST ONE A SUCCESS

 THE TITLE: This is nit-picky but I didn't like this title from the get-go. The Dark Knight's success was tremendous considering it didn't have Batman in the title. That's an achievement that I love. But The Dark Knight Rises sounds like an attempt to thrive on the more successful of the two titles. That unfairly separates Batman Begins from sounding connected (And it definitely is). I would have preferred the title Gotham City to further test the waters of disassociating titles.
 OPENING THE MOVIE WITH CAPER PULLED BY THE VILLAIN: The Joker bank robbery opening to The Dark Knight was a hell of a kick-off. But Batman Begins didn't start off that way, so it's not like some kind of obligatory formula to begin the movie with a heist. It might have shown more symmetry to have the third installment open with another flashback to Bruce Wayne's past.
 THE LOOK: Comparatively, Batman Begins was a very stylized movie with controlled lighting, studio sets, and special effects-generated environments. It's a little more escapist in nature, but in a good way. Gotham City looks more like something dreamed up for a science fiction film cleverly combining real cityscapes with digital extentions and practical models. I love that stuff. Nolan abandoned this environment for The Dark Knight because of a big budget that would make it easier for him to use more real-world locations. This is very admirable since most of today's directors, when given a bigger budget take it straight to the effects department. But at the same time, I kind of miss the Blade Runner edge of the first movie. I miss those cool trains. I miss the cinematic glamor the first one had. The Dark Knight had it's own flavor for pushing the realism of the film's environment, but that didn't mean they had to create that environment again (even if they did use a different city to shoot it in). Each film in this trilogy feels different from the last but I think the second two have a bit too much in common. I'm not about to say what could have given this movie a drastically different tone but it didn't really achieve one.

THE VOICE 

After the endless slew of internet spoofs and criticism of the gravelly Batman voice, which I tolerated in Batman Begins but I thought was too extreme in The Dark Knight, Nolan and Bale did anything but tone it down. When Batman needlessly interrogates Bane, the delivery was laugh-worthy because it only made me think of the spoofs.

HOW DOES ALFRED KNOW WHERE TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT THE WORLD'S MOST SECRET AND DANGEROUS ORGANIZATION? 

Alfred's asked to look up info on Bane's known history and returns, revealing casually that Bane was a member of The League of Shadows and personally trained by Ra's al Ghul. Thanks Alfred, good work. When you're done vacuuming can you ask around where Jimmy Hoffa's body can be found?

WHERE THE HELL DID ALFRED GO?

After a lifelong devoted friendship between an orphan and the closest thing to family he has, Bruce sends Alfred away over the matter of a secret kept from him. So... for all those months of Bane's occupation, what was Alfred doing? Did he know that Gotham City and Master Wayne were in danger? Was he watching the news? Was he absent from the movie because he was meant to re-emerge as some kind of surprise role in saving the day? Nope. Batman/Bruce Wayne shows back up and supposedly sacrifices himself and Alfred comes home to cry. You know, I'm really surprised that this trilogy didn't come full-circle by putting Alfred in danger which was something that Bruce feared might happen if anyone learned his identity. Bane and anyone connected to surviving members of The League of Shadows knew who Batman really was and as long as they wanted Batman to suffer, I would think the plot would have involved Bane trying to execute those who Bruce Wayne loved while he was helpless to do anything about it.

DID CATWOMAN REALLY WORK IN THIS STORY?

I know Anne Hathaway was really good in this role but I thought her character, in terms of writing, needed work. Joker's lack of background info worked because he seemed to be a villain whose work was crude and made from scratch yet terrifyingly effective. He might as well have been some bum off the street who was possessed by the devil. There was something about Selina Kyle's slick outfit and high-tech gear that made me want more justification to her Catwoman essence. I was frankly bored and annoyed with her moral test, forced romance with Batman, and cocky one-liner during the last act.

I DON'T THINK YOUR AVERAGE COP IS READY TO FIGHT AFTER SPENDING THREE MONTHS BURIED IN A TUNNEL

Even in a comic book movie.

HOW DID BRUCE WAYNE GET BACK INTO GOTHAM?

Bane and the terrified US Military have the entire island section of Gotham contained. How did Bruce Wayne get all the way across the world and into the city of terror? I know he's got skills and it had to happen, but it was a step worth showing, don't you think? 

I DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR THE NAME, 'ROBIN' IN NOLAN'S BATMAN SERIES

That bit of last minute fan service was downright cheap. Yes Joseph Gordon-Levitt's excellent invention of a character in this movie is the closest person you could get to a Robin that would work in this series. However, the suggestion of that identity collides with the ending hint that he's going to be the new Batman... Well he never got to fight side by side with him so... or never got the ninja training it would take to... It's just so arbitrary. I hate it.

QUI-GON-GHUL-KENOBI

I never expected to see a Christopher Nolan film that features the hallucination/dream of a deceased character haunt the hero until he literally fades away and the hero screams "NO!" What a cliche.  

HOW MANY TIMES CAN BATMAN'S IRREVERSIBLE INJURIES BE REVERSED?

His back is broken. Then it turns out to be not all-that broken -Thanks to the services of a prison doctor Bane provided him with? Batman is slowly sadistically stabbed by someone who wants him dead. Then he gets back to fighting. Then he's easily subjected to the fallout from surviving a nuclear device. Actually all of Gotham City probably was, despite how far away that bomb went off. 

A TIME BOMB? 

After two movies of clever inventive tension builders like a water vaporizor that releases a hallucinogenic terror drug from the cities water pipes and then two boats full of people given the option to kill or be killed, we have a plot device involving a city-leveling nuclear bomb that has a specific time limit? That Batman also saves the day, in what feels like a cross between the finales of The Iron Giant and The Avengers, is just kind of trite.

TALIA AL GHUL -WHAT A TWIST!

The twist involving the real identity of Marion Cotillard's character (and Bane's origin story turning out to be her's) would have been mind-blowing to me if they had worked on making it plausible. So this means that Talia Al Ghul spent years of her life waiting for the right moment to avenge her father and finish his work. She had Bane send Batman to live the rest of his short life in agony. If that part had gone according to plan, was Batman ever supposed to know it was her who beat him? She sure seemed happy to let him know when against all odds he came back to save Gotham. It's nearly perfect in concept but it just doesn't feel solid in execution. Talia's grand monologue of exposition was a bit too much as well.

WASTEFUL CASTING
I am reminded of the Star Wars prequels when I see a cast list of esteemed actors who get roles in a movie and then get almost nothing interesting to do. Matthew Modine? Cool! Haven't seen him in a while. He had a lot of screen time, but he just played an idiot cop. Juno Temple, the up-and-coming young English actress, who's left a memorable impression in each film she's been in plays Selina Kyle's underdeveloped possibly lesbian sidekick. These are the kind of roles reserved for newcomers who want a chance to be seen in a movie for the first time, not established stars.

SOUNDTRACK: ALL HANS NO JAMES
The first two films were a collaboration between Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard. They are both talented for different reasons but I like Howard's music for having heart. The combination of their music forms brought variety to the first two movies. I don't think it would have saved the movie to keep him on board but I still think the movie is missing his contribution.
I can listen to these two tracks and guess who did them: This is Zimmer.  This is Howard.
  
FLASHBACKS

'Just in case you're don't remember the last two movies, here's what this character is referring to.' Could Nolan have withheld the clips and just waited for when they mattered? For that matter, didn't he have any alternate coverage or unused takes from the previous films that could have kept everything fresh?

CHEAP FORESHADOWING SO WE CAN END A BATMAN MOVIE AT A SUNNY OUTDOOR CAFE IN ITALY

Alfred has the fantasy that one day he might see Bruce Wayne from afar at a cafe in Italy, maybe with a wife and kids, and Alfred would smile and walk away knowing that he fulfilled his mission to give his master's son a good life. This feels like an arc for just this film and not the entire trilogy and it also seems like a contrived last-minute invention. What if he went to the wrong cafe? We knew that Bruce Wayne had a need to find a life with Rachel, lost her, and then gave up on enjoying life. This really begs the question: What did Bruce Wayne want out of a life without being Batman? Rachel made the statement in Batman Begins that the Bruce Wayne she knew never came back to Gotham. Nolan's entire trilogy revolved around the idea that Bruce Wayne is a little disturbed to the point that he doesn't know what to be if he isn't fighting for justice while dressed up like a bat. He even spends his days tainting the reputation of Bruce Wayne so that no one would ever think he could be a hero. Who is Bruce Wayne when he is liberated from Batman? Is he cursed to be more Batman than Bruce Wayne? That's such a tough question which is kind of why I would have preferred a tragic-yet heroic end. Nolan wanted to fix Bruce's life though. The results were pretty phony looking. 

"...the way this movie takes back anything definitive throughout the rest of the film…. Well, it’s like it wants to say… “Haha, we didn’t mean it. They’re all ok! See see, we could do another one if we ever wanted to!” The film just didn’t have the courage of its convictions." -Harry Knowles -even more disappointed than I was. Read his spoiler rant.

The good stuff:

EIGHT YEARS LATER

It was wise to set this far enough after the events of The Dark Knight. When you have a character like The Joker who can't come back without awkward and unwanted recasting, you just have to abandon the character. The only way to do that properly, is to separate him from the story through time and just leave what happened to him to the audiences imagination. I also really like the idea that the events of the last film left Gotham free of Mob domination and Bruce Wayne a reclusive Howard Hughs-like weirdo who doesn't have to be Batman anymore.

THE STATUE

The only thing that would have made me happier with this film would have been if the Batman Statue wasn't in City Hall but outside in the center of the city and the movie could have ended on a shot of the statue looking over everyone and the power of the immortal symbol of the Batman while some Wagnerian music plays. Facist? Sure. Batman kind of is.

BEN MENDELSOHN

Great Australian actor. Just check out his creepy performance in Animal Kingdom. In this film, his character Daggett is such a rich asshole white collar criminal who's not too different from the mobsters in the previous movies who have a terrifying awakening when they realize they have no power over the maniac they made a deal with.

A CELEBRATION OF ALL FILM CAN DO

No 3D. No Digital. This movie was completely shot on all the best methods analogue can offer. 35mm-scope, 65mm, and IMAX. I have yet to see the IMAX version of this movie which will show off the full viewing potential but I love imagining it. This movie is beautifully shot. It wasn't cheap, but most big-budget filmmakers aren't interested in investing a lot of their money towards this kind of stuff.

THE OPENING SEQUENCE

I have a theory that a good chunk of Nolan's films are aimed at trying to shoot 007 scenes without ever having to make a James Bond movie. This was ambitious and huge in concept. Quite a show by itself. 

THE BOYS HOME 
The subplot involving the Boy's orphanage and Joseph Gordon Levitt has a lot of resonance with the character of Bruce Wayne and his passion. What about children who suffered losing their parents as he did with no home or support? I love his being called Bruce Wayne, the billionaire orphan. It is so fitting that Wayne Manor is left to be a home for the boys.

BRUCE WAYNE AND SELINA KYLE DANCE

Nolan intentionally or unintentionally echoes a scene from the earlier Batman franchise every now and then in his series. His immitation is always more interesting. Like in Batman Returns, Bruce and Selina dance in a champagne tinted ballroom. This time instead of dancing to Souxie and the Banshees, it's to Ravel. Beautiful scene.

JONATHAN CRANE

I love that Cillian Murphy reprises his role in each film, even if it's just for a chuckle. 

THE RETURN OF THE LEAGUE OF SHADOWS

While I thought that this movie tried to repeat characteristics of The Dark Knight to a fault, I'm happy that it's villains are heavily tied to the first film. The dangerous organization that contributed to the creation of Batman, was a little too strong to fade away. They meant much more serious business than The Joker ever did and it was appropriate to end a trilogy with their return in some form.

BANE 
There's been a lot of back and forth arguments on whether Bane works in this movie. While I have trouble with the development of his character, especially near the end, it really doesn't matter. The only point to him is that he is terrifying, strong, and the weapon of another mastermind. His screen-presence is undeniably strong in a Darth Vader kind of way. When I couldn't make out what he was saying I found myself staring at his vicious eyes. I don't care what anyone says, Tom Hardy did a lot with this role.

Here's the surprisingly positive "Half in the Bag" review.