The Dark Knight Rises, Christopher Nolan’s third installment of the Batman reboot starring Christian Bale.
The background
The Dark Knight Rises is one of summer 2012’s most anticipated films. After an intensive marketing campaign, endless speculation, sold-out first screenings and a raft of trailers, the reviews are in. Can director Christoper Nolan’s third and final Batman film live up to massive audience expectation?
The best film of the trilogy
“This last installment of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy makes everything in the rival Marvel universe look thoroughly silly and childish… As a cohesive whole this ranks as the best of Nolan’s trio,” wrote Todd McCarthy at The Hollywood Reporter. Part of the power of The Dark Knight Rises is that Nolan weaves real-world fears into the plot, such as terrorism and economic instability. And the story is ingenious, including “at least one major, superbly hidden surprise”.
The weakest film of the trilogy
“There’s a slight sense of disappointment that this sequel can’t match the heights of the first two films,” said Tim Grierson at ScreenDaily. Nolan struggles to integrate the four new characters – Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman, Marion Cotillard’s Miranda Tate, young police officer John Blake and villain Bane – alongside the large cast of familiar faces. Bane is particularly problematic: “One can’t help but feel that he’s a bit one-note, stripping his showdowns with Batman of some of their dramatic power,” Grierson wrote. Still, “the effects, cinematography and production design are all top-notch.”
Bringing the trilogy full circle
“The film reasserts the primacy of its title character and the general excellence of Bale’s performance, forcing Wayne to reckon once and for all with the alter ego he’s fashioned for himself and Gotham in the name of justice,” wrote Justin Chang at Variety. The Dark Knight Rises may not match the “demonic showmanship” of its predecessor, but given that this is the final installment, Nolan had more “story obligations” than before: “The result is a nearly three-hour yarn that draws on key plot points from ‘The Dark Knight’ before bringing the trilogy full circle, back to the origin story of ‘Batman Begins,’ even as it ushers in a motley crew of villains and allies .”
Watch a Dark Knight Rises trailer below.
