Film Review – The Dark Knight Rises
The Dark Knight Rises is probably the biggest film of the year. At least in terms of the discussion taking place around it. As such I’ve waited a little bit before even beginning to put my own thoughts on the matter down. With so much media being devoted to ancillary issues surrounding the film, be it the midnight premiere shooting, the insane arguments about the political aspects of the movie, etc. It’s definitely a beast of a film with so much going on that touching on everything would be an impossibility. I know The Avengers brought together plot threads of multiple movies but thematically speaking The Dark Knight rises has just as many irons in the fire. Nolan and company work off of plot threads left dangling from Batman Begins and weave them into something that leads to a very satisfying conclusion. I can’t think of any film trilogy that pulls this sort of cohesion off and doesn’t fumble everything at the last minute. This review should try to examine exactly why that is.
I think the first thing I need to bring up is that there is the constant influence of Christopher Nolan. When a series swaps out the creative forces behind them, the franchise loses focus. How different might things have turned out if Richard Donner had remained onboard for another Superman film after number two? Or if James Cameron had been in charge of the third Terminator film? A steady hand at the till goes a long way. That is why the previous Batman franchise faltered. There isn’t any consistency to them from film to film. Even from the ’89 film to Returns, you can see a shift in the way the people writing the damned thing feel about the character. Thematically, those films seem to fight against each other for validity. With Nolan’s trilogy, there is a logical escalation and cyclical nature to the writing and the overall story. By returning to the League of Shadows in The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan effectively reminds us that Batman Begins was more than just a simple setup film. One of the things I had said before The Dark Knight Rises hit screens was that The Dark Knight felt almost entirely removed from Batman Begins. As a standalone film, it works quite well. You can watch it without having seen Batman Begins and there isn’t enough of a thematic connection that you feel like you have missed anything. The Dark Knight Rises is equal parts a continuation of the themes developed in Batman Begins AND The Dark Knight. The rise and fall of Harvey Dent sets the stage for the action but it is Bruce Wayne’s personal journey that he undertook in Begins that drives his conflict with Bane in this installment. By going back to the beginning in this way, The Dark Knight Rises is a film that focuses on the idea of enduring legacy. Bane is attempting to foster Ra’s Al Ghul’s legacy of destroying Gotham. Bruce Wayne is trying to ensure that Harvey Dent’s legacy as a hero isn’t tarnished. Bane does so through calculated action. Bruce Wayne does so through a calculated lack of action. Both of them received the same tutelage from Ra’s but they implement it differently.
In The Dark Knight Rises Nolan puts the focus on the idea of deception and the cloudy morality surrounding bending the truth. Obviously the biggest example is Batman and Gordon’s lie surrounding the death of Harvey Dent, but there are several other deceptions that drive the film. Bane’s entire plan is centered around deception. Whereas Joker in The Dark Knight was as straightforward in his implementation of chaos, Bane has a separate plan for multiple people and they often contradict each other. He tears apart Gotham as part of his attempt to break Batman, but his plan is only allowed to take root because he lies to the population of Gotham and maneuvers them into playing along with his game. Bane turns the people of Gotham into villains the way Joker wished he could have in the third act of The Dark Knight. In many ways, Nolan is showing how much more effective Bane is as a villain than the Joker was. The Joker was unable to turn the people of Gotham against each other. Bane pulled it off. Nolan shows how powerful a lie can be. Lies have power. That is the crux of the film. Everybody in the film is lying. A major lie from The Dark Knight comes back around to drive a wedge between Bruce and Alfred. Selina Kyle’s actions are guided by a promise that turns out to be a lie. In a film about a man that wears a mask, this is a powerful theme to work through.
Essentially, The Dark Knight Rises is a great bit of filmmaking. It does stumble in some respects. But the parts of the film that make up the whole really pop. Anne Hathaway is an amazing Catwoman. She’s the finest movie version of the character since 1966 and really manages to pull off the dichotomy of wounded, confident, and sexy that the character requires. Joseph Gordon Levitt puts in his usual good work as a character who could have sunk the movie if they had played it differently. If we are going to talk about what works in the film, the character work is definitely tops. Michael Caine and Gary Oldman put in their best work of the series, without a doubt. And since we’re talking about character work, let’s take a moment to discuss Tom Hardy’s Bane. Heath Ledger put in a memorable turn as the Joker, that’s true, but Tom Hardy does something wholly original with the character. The Bane in this film takes elements of the character in the books and evolves him into something else entirely. The Bane in the comics is a cold and calculating man with the same level of intelligence on display here, and he does have the ties to Ra’s, though not identical in nature. But in the animated world as well as that abomination in Batman & Robin, his strength has always been the primary focus. Here, Tom Hardy gives us a man of belief and conviction, one trying to leave a lasting legacy. He plays him with bombast and intensity. I think over time his Bane will be regarded as one of the most interesting comic film villains in history.
So those are my thoughts on the matter. I could probably spend another couple paragraphs on the film but I think I’ve hit the major points. I figure everyone has seen the film by now, but if you haven’t you should check it out, in IMAX if you can. The film is very well shot and plays well on a bigger screen. The Dark Knight Rises is one of the finest cappers to a trilogy you could ever hope to find. I certainly can’t think of a better one off the top of my head. That’s one of the finest compliments I can pay the film.
New Dark Knight Rises Trailer…Rises
This trailer is expected to hit in front ofThe Avengers on Friday but it hit the net unexpectedly this morning. I will say that it gives us some more snippets of what to expect but all in all I’m still pretty blind as to what sort of turn this film is going to take when it finally hits theaters. It hints that Bane really does break the Bat the way he did in Knightfall and that we may be getting a sort of absolute finale for the Batman character when the credits roll. I know Christopher Nolan is an unconventional filmmaker to say the least so I don’t expect a simple resolution. Not by a long shot.
Addendum:
Christian Bale’s creepy beard thing here is destroying my psyche.
Academy Awards Liveblog – A Day Too Late
So last night on Facebook I liveblogged the Oscars. Here’s the transcript in an attempt to actually post something today.
Joss Whedon Up For AVENGERS Directing Gig?
The word going around the web the last few days is that Marvel is very keen on Joss Whedon possibly stepping up to the plate to direct the live-action Avengers movie. The reaction to this little tidbit falls on a scale that starts with fanboy nerdgasm and ends with teeth gnashing and caps-locked ranting. Either you think he’s perfect for the job based on his previous ensemble work or you think that he’ll suddenly turn everyone gay and have them speak like hipster high-schoolers.
There’s also been complaints that he’s not a big enough name to anchor Marvel’s flagship film. Who the hell cares? You think the average Joe Schmoe really knows one director from another. I mentioned to a customer at the shop that the guy behind Batman was going to be heading up the new Superman film and he replied; “Christian Bale?” Let’s not assume that everyone knows or even cares about the behind the scenes aspect of film production. I don’t think it was Jon Favreau’s name in the director credit that sold Iron Man to the masses. And with a movie like The Avengers I don’t think it will take much selling at all. You throw a bunch of superheroes into one film and the novelty alone is enough to give it some amazing numbers.
My take on this is that both sides would really benefit from Whedon’s involvement as director. Serenity shows that he can work some amazing big-budget action sequences. And the man practically made his career on ensemble character moments. It’s like this was the film he’s been waiting for his entire career. Plus, he has a working history with Marvel, having done amazing work on the X-Men. And maybe this would be the film to make him a more mainstream name. He could probably garner enough goodwill to put together more projects of his own if he was attached to a film that made more money than God.
Honestly, I think if Whedon is in serious consideration, it’s not a bad idea. It’s actually a pretty good one. But it all really depends on the script anyway, if that thing sucks, it doesn’t matter who is behind the camera as nothing will be able to save it. Gavin Hood is an excellent director but he couldn’t save Wolverine Origins. So meditate on that.
