But no, it wasn't the be-all-and-end-all movie that everyone said it was. It was too long. It did not end well. The Harvey Dent storyline needed tweaking. The film's message was too heavy-handed and hammered home. It was an excellent film, but not one for the ages.
So now that I've seen the final film in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, "The Dark Knight Rises," I'm laughing to myself that once again, I'm at odds with most of the other critics on this one. Most every review I've seen has said that this film doesn't measure up to "The Dark Knight." And I guess I agree with that. Because I think it surpasses it. THIS is the four-star Batman movie, and it's not even close. And I'll tell you why.
Now before I get too far into it, I'll address what might be perceived on the part of some readers as a flaw in my logic: the running time issue. Because yes, "The Dark Knight" rises comes close to being a half-hour longer than "The Dark Knight," and just barely in the double-digits away from the dreaded three-hour mark, which is about all I can take from a movie, and I said that "The Dark Knight" was too long. But I felt that way because that film did not end in the right place. It had a logical ending, I thought, and then tacked on more. I dare anyone to try and convince me that the final half hour of "The Dark Knight Rises" made the film feel a half-hour too long. In fact, it's probably most viewers' favorite part. They might say instead that it's the opening half-hour that deserves chopping. I happen to disagree with that too. But suffice it to say, this film was deliberately and carefully timed, and as long as it needed to be.
It's tradition to include a plot summary in a film review, but I don't want to give away much. Let me just remind you of a few basics needed going into this film, whether or not you've seen either of its predecessors or have read any Batman comics. It's eight years after the conclusion of "The Dark Knight," and Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is in a Howard Hughes-like seclusion in a section of Wayne Manor mostly covered in sheets, as if he's not only recovering from his days as Batman but somehow ashamed of his real identity as a Wayne. Batman, in a deal brokered with Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) took the fall for Harvey Dent, the spirit of reform in Gotham City who was, in truth, its newest villain Two-Face, because both men agreed that the people needed to maintain his image of martyred idealism to keep hope alive in their fragile city.
A legal mandate bearing Dent's name has put hundreds of criminals behind bars, but not Bane (Tom Hardy), a menacing, hulkish vigilante who wears a face mask that provides him with chemical relief from otherwise unbearable amounts of pain he's endured in his past. Bane, it turns out, is, like Wayne, a former trainee of Ra's Al Ghul, but one who aims to bring the plan of the League of Shadows to fruition. The plan, of course, involves the complete destruction of Gotham City.
Wayne is ultimately convinced to re-don the cowl thanks to gentle nudges from both the Commissioner and one of his officers, the young and idealistic John Blake, with a connection to Bruce that's too good to spoil. And perhaps Bruce receives additional encouragement to reappear as Batman thanks to the arrival of Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), a sexy and seriously accomplished cat burglar/jewelry thief (known in Batman folklore - but never expressly here - as Catwoman).
The decision to reappear as Batman is gently but firmly protested by Bruce's faithful butler Alfred, and Michael Caine's performance as the wise servant is the acting highlight of this film and the element that gives "The Dark Knight Rises" the kind of pure emotional core than neither of the previous installments could claim. I dare say that Caine's work here is every bit as good in its own way as was Ledger's in the last film, but because Caine already has Oscar bookends at home and is still alive, he probably won't receive proper recognition for it.
Neither will Hathaway, who surprises with the best film version of Catwoman ever, with apologies to Michelle Pfeiffer, who had me at attention as a young man with her take on the role in Tim Burton's "Batman Returns." Hathaway is not only all confidence and curvy swagger, but her very movements are borderline-erotic and her quips account for the majority of the light moments in an admittedly dark, heavy, and humorless film. She was shockingly good, exceeding all of my expectations for that character.
Critics are already saying that Hardy's Bane lacks the charisma of previous Batman villains. I find this fight to be unfair, as everyone knows that The Joker is the greatest of all of the Batman villains and only those who followed the comic into the 1990s and beyond will even be aware of who Bane is. Those readers will also be disappointed in aspects of the character; his reliance upon a serum known as "venom" to manage his pain is not included at all in this film, and the issue of the what and why surrounding his mask is not satisfactorily explored. And then, of course, there's the challenge facing an actor to perform behind a sawed-down version of Darth Vader's mask, limiting Hardy to eye movements and body language and a voice that, as Rolling Stone critic Peter Travers said, "sounds like Sean Connery behind an air conditioner." This is true, but I was able to understand it. In fact, it's no worse than Bale's Batman voice. And to those who think Bane is boring, I say that revelations about the character in the film's final act render him a compelling and satisfying adversary.
I could go on and on in essays about this film, but I'll end with my list of five reasons why "The Dark Knight Rises" is the four-star film in Christopher Nolan's Batman oeuvre, and then open the floor for debate:
1. It's the most emotional of the three films. Mostly because of Alfred, but this is also Bale's best work as Wayne/Batman, the recently Oscared actor giving his character an emotional core to match the weight of that mythical back story.
2. Selina Kyle elevates the film. In a sense, she gives Bruce someone to mentor. Why is she worth mentoring? It would seem that she isn't. But Bruce clearly sees something in her, and audiences are made to agree as the film wears on. I don't think this would be the movie that it is without the character, or without the way Nolan and Hathaway specifically handle her vs. how she's been used in past tellings of the story.
3. The ending is perfect. Yes, I know there will be debate. And I will also admit that for as go-go-go as the last half hour was, the final ten minutes were so full of information that I was exhausted at the end and had to talk out what just happened with a friend. But I've also rarely seen a finish that so completely ties story elements up while still making it possible for more Batman films to be made by other directors in the future.
4. The themes are more satisfying. Yes, there are a lot of them in here, and some might argue too many. But I think that made it better for me. Nolan was too bombastic with the themes in "The Dark Knight." This time, I think he was a bit more ambiguous with some of them, such as the nature of Batman as an idea vs. a specific person. And it's true that he shoots for a take on modern politics when Bane upends the stock exchange, resulting in Wayne's loss of his fortune. And that political message seems be that the ultra-rich have a moral responsibility to step up and give more away. But that's a message as liberal as Obama's tax proposals and as conservative as Warren Buffet's pleas to be taxed more. It's timely.
5. This is Nolan's best direction. Aside from some bizarre scene fade-outs that left me scratching my head, I've never seen Nolan do more with his widescreen, IMAX-filmed photography, particularly breathtaking in a sequence where Bane and his crew seal off the city in the midst of a nuclear bomb threat. He also, for the first time, finds a way to control the bombastic score of Hans Zimmer, at one point noticeably dropping the score completely during an intense hand-to-hand combat scene between Batman and Bane, allowing the natural sounds of the scene to propel the action in a way that reminded me of the climax of "The French Connection." And in true Nolan style, most everything important to the plot of the film is revealed to the audience many minutes prior to the moment where that element comes into play. It's also worth noting that, like "Inception," Nolan allows this movie to contain more ambiguity than the previous films, which I think opens this movie up for more interesting discussion than the previous films.
I don't want anyone to think that "The Dark Knight Rises" is a perfect film, because it isn't. It's simply the best film of the trilogy. To some degree, this film takes a hit where plot logic is concerned, as characters seem to appear wherever they need to be to further the action and we never see or understand how they got there so quickly or easily. Fortunately, the character work is so excellent that this silly aspect is more forgivable.
I never even made it to discussing the work in this film from Marion Cotillard, far and away one of the best actresses working in film today and playing a character who provides an exciting link to Batman books of the past. Nor have I (and this by choice) fully analyzed how wonderfully Nolan uses Joseph Gordon-Levitt and how important I think that character was to the film, in some ways this movie's version of Harvey Dent, but a better one.
But to each his own. "Batman Begins" was a thrilling origin story, and "The Dark Knight" a sequel with some flawed structure but the best villain. But if you ask me, the thematic deconstruction of the archetypal superhero, the debate over the value of the vigilante, and the responsibility of the individual with any means to contribute to the improvement of society - none of these ideas has ever been as brilliantly articulated as it is here. The word "rise" is heard many times throughout the film, and the image of rising a not-so-light motif. But when all is said and done, Nolan's final Batman film lives up to its title.
4.0 out of 4
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