THIS POST DOES NOT CONTAIN SPOILERS. I will post a review that contains spoilers by the end of the month, giving readers plenty of time to see the final installment of the Batman trilogy.
Unimportant backstory: I just spent a little over 8 hours watching the complete Batman trilogy at my local movie theater. I would hope that would qualify me to be in (one of) the best positions to review The Dark Knight Rises. As I am typing this the time is now 3:30 AM, which means terrible grammar and confusing wording might occur. My apologies ahead of time.
Summary
A masked mercenary named Bane arrives in Gotham City soon after Gotham’s White Knight falls (*oh the irony). Bruce Wayne must, once again, become the masked vigilante called Batman to stop Bane.
Heads Up and Catching Up
Let’s just get this out of the way: the Joker is NOT in this movie, nor is he ever mentioned. The film makers decided to do this out of respect for Heath Ledger. In my opinion, Batman’s most recognizable villain should at least get a shout out. It was impossible for me to believe that all traces of the Joker could be completely erased within the given amount of time between The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises.
With that all said and done, let me establish a timeline between the previous movie and this one. I have to assume someone reading this review has already seen The Dark Knight, because let’s face it, who hasn’t? The Dark Knight Rises begins almost exactly (my guess is within days of) where The Dark Knight ended. Jim Gordon is head of the police department, Harvey “Two Face” Dent is dead, and Batman has gone into hiding.
Mini Review
While this film doesn’t top The Dark Knight, it definitely comes closer than the first film, Batman Begins. The main antagonist, Bane, challenges Batman both mentally and physically, much more than anyone in the previous films. Like all proper superhero movies, expect satisfying action sequences with lots of explosions. Definitely one of the summer’s must see movies.
Due to the non-spoiler nature of this blurb, I can’t really say anything else. However, I will list a few spoiler free words that are important to the movie. When you see the film, you’ll understand. And the words are:
Pearl
Stocks
Football
Well
Ice
*It’s ironic because when Harvey Dent died, he literally fell to his death. “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”
The Cultured Project 