The Dark Knight Rises

Synopsis:

It has been eight years since Batman (Christian Bale), in collusion with Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman), vanished into the night. Assuming responsibility for the death of Harvey Dent, Batman sacrificed everything for what he and Gordon hoped would be the greater good. However, the arrival of a cunning cat burglar (Anne Hathaway) and a merciless terrorist named Bane (Tom Hardy) force Batman out of exile and into a battle he may not be able to win.

Movie Review:

"The Dark Knight Rises" is the third and final film of the Dark Knight trilogy and is directed by the great Christopher Nolan. And this film brings a monumental end to his Batman story in an epic fashion but with some major flaws. It's been 8 years since Batman took the fall for Harvey Dent's murder and Bruce has gone into isolation giving up on the world until a mercenary named Bane pushes Batman into a final conclusion. There is much to love about this movie -- once again, the acting is phenomenal from Christian Bale (Batman/Bruce Wayne) who is fantastic playing a broken Bruce Wayne, still heartbroken after the death of his love Rachel Daws from the second film. Gary Oldman is also fun to watch as Commissioner Gordon who shows that he is still affected by what the Joker did to him and feels guilty lying about the crimes of Harvey Dent. Michael Caine is always great as Alfred, Batman's trusted Butler but he only has one emotional scene with Bruce then he leaves the movie and that was disappointing for Michael Cain fans. But, Morgan Freeman (Luisus Fox) has a bigger role in this film and he is awesome. Newcomers to the cast are Joseph Gordan Levitt who plays an original character named John Blake, a Gotham City police officer and he is one of my favorite characters in this film. Anne Hathaway plays Selina Kyle, a cat Burglar known as 'CatWoman' and she was one of the most surprising elements of the film. CatWoman is both fearless and strong. Bane is the villain played by Tom Hardy and in my opinion, he is not as good as Heath Ledger as the Joker, but he is more of a physical presence as he beats Batman and breaks his back halfway through the movie but he is entertaining even though he has a unusual accent. Marion Cotillard's character, Miranda Tant was just too comedic and out of place in this film. The action and the direction for this film are exciting to watch. My favorites were the stock exchange chase scene, the first fight scene between Batman and Bane; this scene was brutal and emotional, and the final chase scene was intense, yet satisfying. However, this movie gets a little silly at the end which makes me feel like Christopher Nolan was running out of ideas. There are a few plot holes that make you scratch your head. Still, for Batman aficionados, "The Dark Knight Rises" is a classic conclusion to this trilogy with outstanding acting, directing, and of course, plenty of action. I am giving "The Dark Knight Rises" a 3 out of 5 stars.

Director: Christopher Nolan

Cast: Chistian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotilard, Joseph Gorden-Levitt and Morgan Freeman

Runtime: 165 minutes