Like all good summer blockbusters, this film was hyped up for months – if not years – before its release. So the question is: did it rise to the occasion? In many ways, it did. Like the previous Nolan-helmed Batman films, the performances were good (though Christian Bale seems to need a throat sweet more than ever), the scope and set pieces exciting and the story well-thought out. Anne Hathaway impressed as Selina Kyle, as did Marion Cotillard as a clean-energy businesswoman. Tom Hardy was visually dominant as the hulking Bane, but his dialogue was often hard to hear, through his masked-orifice.
In terms of story, the arc was clear, developing pre-existing characters, while introducing new blood such as Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Blake (Gordon’s protégé). Robin-Hood themes of rich versus poor seemed especially pertinent. Flashbacks to the previous two films were used well; it’s hard to imagine anyone would see the third without the preceding parts, but it helped even die-hard fans to put the pieces together. At times, it felt that there were possibly too many characters to keep track of, probably a consequence of the film’s length. As with The Dark Knight, the film felt relentless, particularly at 165 minutes long.
The stunts were incredible and there are plenty of new gadgets for Batman to play with. It is even more impressive, considering that some scenes actually used over ten thousand extras, rather than resorting to now-standard CGI tricks to depict crowds. Unlike the previous two films, here Batman genuinely seems to be more vulnerable in fight scenes, which raises the tension considerably.
Overall, this is a good film on its own merit, but compared to The Dark Knight, it falls short. The main reason for this is probably the Joker character, who had so much personality; as a villain, Bane is never really fleshed out (physicality aside). Imposing, destructive and merciless, yes, but as characters go, Bane is left wanting. There are some funny lines, but without charismatic leads, the humour from the preceding films is less obvious. Still, The Dark Knight Rises is a worthy final act to a distinguished trilogy; one that cements Nolan’s reputation as both a filmmaker and master-storyteller.