The Dark Knight Rises: Movie Review

In the movie business, only a select few films gain as much fame as “The Dark Knight” has. After re-inventing the image of the original caped crusader, the movie was highly acclaimed for its take on the classic Batman versus the Joker fight. Instead of focusing on a crazy scheme, as has been done so many times before, the movie focuses primarily on the struggle between Batman and his inner demons. The Joker served as a means of bringing out these demons, attempting to force Batman to break his no-killing moral code. In the latest installment, “The Dark Knight Rises”, Batman engages the less-psychotic, more emotionally disturbed villain Bane.

                The majority of people who are inquiring about this movie have already seen “The Dark Knight”, and most have seen its predecessor, “Batman Begins”. This is the final installment in the Dark Knight Trilogy, making it essential for movie-goers to have seen this movie’s 2 prequels in order to fully understand it. That being said, I can sum the analysis of this film up in one word: “unique”. Just so that there isn’t any confusion, I’m not about to bash this trilogy. I thought that “Batman Begins” was a phenomenal work of art that redefined the way superhero movies are made. Likewise, “The Dark Knight” struck me as deeply moving and attention-grabbing, though a bit overrated by the masses. What makes this film so unique isn’t its deviation from the dark consistency of this trilogy, but rather its deviation from the comic franchise which this was based off of.

                It’s been said that a movie is only as good as its villain. This final film of the batman trilogy introduces a multitude of cruel characters to the big-screen. The primary villain is, as was widely promoted by the media, Bane. He’s portrayed as a leader, a man with goals and ideas, and doesn’t seem to care about anyone but himself. Bane made this movie as spectacular as it was, but he difference here is how he’s portrayed in this film. In the comic series, Bane’s appearance is anything buy subtle. He is a monster, towering over most humans, with tubes feeding him precious venom (the drug that empowers him). He seems more restrained in this movie, and much less feral. His personality and motives differ in this film. In the comic series, as well as other media appearances (video games), bane is a disturbed, power-hungry, yet intellectual, person. He is portrayed as having no friends, and finding comfort in a teddy bear which he owned from a young age.  I feel as though it’s a shame that this wasn’t shown in the film, as the bear reflects a significant part of Bane’s personality. It shows the softer, calmer side of what is otherwise a ravaging monster. Additionally, Bane’s goals in cartoons/video games are on a much smaller scale. Typically, Bane searches for ways to gain more power (usually by means of acquiring more venom) in the comics. In this movie, Bane sets his sights much higher, concocting a “takeover Gotham City” scheme which rivals that of much bigger-time villains, namely the Joker. In the end, it seems like his strategic methods have evolved into more “hands on” techniques.

                As stated in “Media and Culture”, many comics are being made into video games and movies. As comics began to change, becoming more graphic and in-depth on issues such as death and crime, they increased in popularity. The problem is that these comics are being quickly blown away by the limitations of still frame graphics. What I’m trying to say is that this isn’t the first Batman movie, and definitely won’t be the last. The movie was highly anticipated, and was by far one of the best I’ve seen in a while. The action was on par with that of “Batman Begins”, while still maintaining the mysteriously dark tone set by “The Dark Knight”. Though there were noticeable gaps between actual comic information and the movie’s information, the overall idea and descent into a darker time remained consistent with the comic universe.

Christopher Nolan truly has a knack for bringing out the true evil and psychotic world seen in the comics. Indeed, this director did overlook some details which I felt may have only served to amplify the already intense edge-grasping emotions, but he managed to add others which induced the same reactions. He managed to replace Bane’s bear, the one thing that the monster can find comfort in, with something else (spoilers involved, so I'll leave that to speculation). He took a disturbed individual, and made him even more corrupt. The man even managed to throw in a few winks to the comic fan-boys, myself included, which almost entirely made up for the slightly altered information. In the end, “The Dark Knight Rises” earns my respect as a masterpiece, the likes of which are rarely seen in the film business. I’d give it no less than a 10/10 rating.