"The Dark Knight Rises:" an epic ending to an epic trilogy

[rating=6]

It’s sad to see such an amazing trilogy come to an end, but unless we wanted the sequels to diminish in quality like Saw, Nightmare on Elm Street, and other franchises that refused to die, we had to say sayonara to Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy. “The Dark Knight Rises” does an excellent job at closing the book, making viewers feel not only vindicated, but hopeful as well. Just as its predecessors, this film is truly a masterpiece.

“The Dark Knight Rises” takes place eight years after the events of “The Dark Knight.” Batman has become nothing more than a memory after taking the blame for Harvy Dent’s death, and Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale, Batman Begins) has become a shut-in. Meanwhile, underneath the city of Gothum, the villian Bane (Tom Hardy, This Means War) is plotting to bring the city to it’s knees, enlisting the help of Selina Kyle A.K.A Catwoman (Anne Hathaway, Get Smart) who has an agenda of her own. With the city in peril and the police force unable to handle or understand the grave situation, Bruce Wayne dons the black suit for what will be his final battle against evil, and his most challenging opponent ever.

It seems vastly understated to sum-up in a simple paragraph, as there is so much more going on with each character and other characters that lead their own stories, but for the sake of my keyboard, I kept it short, but the plot is so thick and complicated, I really could go on for several more. Christopher Nolan is not known for simple plots, and this film is not his exception. The complexity of the storyline and the depth of the characters is so simply amazing that they alone could carry the movie, but with the added action sequences, this film is really something else.

When casting was first announced to have Tom Hardy as Bane and Anne Hathaway as Catwoman, I will admit to being a little skeptical. Tom Hardy has only recently graced the screen with his presence in major films such as The Warrior and Inception, so his performance with Bane was critical, and he was amazing. I can only imagine the difficulty he faced having to act with only his eyes to show expression, but somehow he pulled it off in a specacular way.

Anne Hathaway’s performance was the largest concern to most of the Batman fans, but it honestly shouldn’t have been. Anne Hathaway has proved time and time again that she can do not only dramatic roles, but action roles as well, and her Catwoman predecessors didn’t really raise the bar much. Let’s not forget Halle Berry’s Catwoman, which was a gigantic flop, or how about Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman who looked like she sewed her costume together in the dark with a staple gun. Catwoman could only go up as far as the role was concerned, and Anne Hathaway proved to be the perfect woman to do so, with a grade-A performance with not only the acting, but the physically demanding stunts as well.

It’s not fair to only dwell on two of the actors, because the truth is that all of the actors and actresses involved with the film brought their A-Game to this movie. Michael Caine’s performance was truly moving, and Christian Bale, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Gary Oldman were in some of their best performances. This film was a real treat.

“The Dark Knight Rises” is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action (explosions, gunplay, peril, and everything else typical for a Batman film), some sensuality (a couple is seen kissing passionately and later shown under the covers of a bed) and language (scattered profanity throughout).

Ben Asper