The Dark Knight Rises is an excellent capper to Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. While it doesn’t quite reach the heights of The Dark Knight, it still offers up an excellent examination of the themes established in the first two films while delivering an action-filled story that also works on a surface level for those looking for just a regular superhero film. Batman is an interesting character because of what drives him to don a cape and cowl, but this trilogy of films makes his surroundings equally interesting by throwing social politics into the mix.
It can be difficult to discuss The Dark Knight Rises too much without getting heavily into spoilers. I also don’t want to discuss much without getting into the previous film The Dark Knight because it does establish the end point for this film to take off from. While it could be seen as The Joker and Two Face taking on Batman, The Dark Knight really is much more than that, and The Dark Knight Rises simply doesn’t work without the previous film.
Here is what I will say about the film’s plot. The story picks up 8 years after The Dark Knight, and Bruce Wayne is a reclusive, shutting himself from society. Batman hasn’t been seen in years. Police Commissioner Gordon is wrestling with retirement. New to the franchise is Selena Kyle (Anne Hathaway) portraying a version of Catwoman, but that name is never mentioned. Bane (Thomas Hardy) is a terrorist looking to cripple Gotham City. Wayne Enterprises board member Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard) has a technology that could prove beneficial to mankind. Police officer John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) becomes the right hand of Commissioner Gordon.
Oh, there’s more, but I’ve already said way too much.
At over 2 and a half hours, it is the longest of the three films. It also could easily have been separated into two films, much like Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End should have been. What I found interesting is how The Dark Knight Rises is less a direct continuation of the previous film, but more of a dovetailing of the two films into a complete whole. There is a complete arc presented in this trilogy, and it would be very easy to continue on from here as the set up is provided, but it wouldn’t be part of the same story line. You just have to have seen the films to understand that comment.
For all the heights The Dark Knight Rises attains, there are some lows, this isn’t the perfect superhero film some were expecting (especially in light of how phenomenal The Dark Knight was). The issues I had with Batman’s vocal treatment are still present. Thomas Hardy sounds like he is trying too hard to channel Sean Connery. And the film is too long, it really should have been done in two parts. A couple of nagging questions (if you think about the trilogy as a whole too long) are never resolved.
Despite these problems, The Dark Knight Rises closes this chapter in the cinematic life of Batman in a way that few other filmmakers could have. Warner Brothers, notoriously shy about taking chances with the DC superhero properties, let alone offering up films, gave Christopher Nolan a lot of leeway and he assembled a team that delivered perhaps the absolute benchmark for what Batman could be.
For the Blu-ray we get three discs of content, the first containing a Blu-ray of the film with no special features. No audio commentary, nothing. Instead you have to download an app to your iPad in order to experience the content that should be made available as a picture in picture track or as Warner Brothers has so wonderfully presented as Maximum Movie Mode. This is a slap in the face to consumers and is a step backwards in terms of commercial offerings. Warner Brothers really messed up here. There are a lot of customers here shelling out their hard earned money that won’t be able to access the content they think they are paying for.
The 3rd disc is a DVD copy of the film, with the special features appearing on the second Blu-ray disc. We get about 3 hours of stuff looking at the making of the film and more starting with a near hour long look at the iconic Batmobile through the ages. It is a must-see for fans, but it does feel as if there is more to it, as if it were cut to fit on the disc. A number of mini-featurettes clock in at almost two hours and none more than 10 minutes in length. I would have appreciated a more comprehensive overview rather than having it chopped up like this. Pieces include examinations of the iconic pit prison, the battle between Batman and Bane, ending the series, Anne Hathaway’s turn as Catwoman, and so much more.
I’m expecting another edition of the film to arrive which will include an audio commentary and more featurettes. There isn’t a reason right now to hold off on buying the film. If you have the previous two films, you need this.