Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Dark Knight Rises Review


Since the year 2000, comic book movie adaptations have invaded movie theaters with notable international box office success. Their solid patronage: a comic-reading generation that's curious to see their favorite superheroes in 3D. But while it’s easy for these films to gain a sizeable audience, it’s never that easy to live up to the expectation. The perfect balance of fantasy and reality seem to elude Hollywood’s grasp, making most movies of this genre either too cheesy or too predictable. Or worse, both. The good news, The Dark Knight Rises movie is neither.


Christopher Nolan's greatest success in his Batman rendition is the additional depth to the characters' original '2D' persona. In The Dark Knight Rises,we saw a Bruce Wayne, barely even coping from his loss, already faced with a decision to protect a city that has never truly loved him. We also saw him fall from grace, half wanting to fail for an easy way out, then rise again. 

Like the Joker (Heath Ledger) and Two-Face/Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) in the previous sequel, The Dark Knight, popular characters were also given compelling portrayals in The Dark Knight Rises.Anne Hathaway plays the role of Catwoman/Selina Kyle, a fugitive thief who's looking for a fresh start. Even the villain Bane, played by Tom Hardy, had a major character makeover; from being a brainless, chemically altered lump of meat, he is now a man with a purpose, a plan and a pair of huge biceps (and an army) to make that happen.

It did not have the visually orgasmic special effects that the Transformers movies had, or the all-star superhero lineup that the Avengers has assembled, but The Dark Knight Rises has kept us at the edge of our seats for the entire two hours all the same. In fact, this movie has shown an entire city crumble down without being the least ostentatious. Instead of over-the-top explosions and flashy fight scenes, it  offered a superbly written script and a gripping and intricate plot that sheds light and casts shadows where they're most needed.


If we're to believe the news, The Dark Knight Rises is going to be the last installment of its franchise. It's a real shame to see a movie this good come to an end. But if you've watched the movie and know how it ends, you can't help but look up and wait for that beacon to light up the sky one more time.


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4 comments:

Arun said...

Great review!

I agree with you about this being an fitting end to the trilogy.

Check out my review .

Cheers!

Ferns said...

do you think I can watch this even if I wasn't able to watch the first two?

Unknown said...

Thanks! It's a fitting ending, but a bittersweet one for us.

Unknown said...

Hi Ferns!

Kaw ba yan, Ferns?

Anyway, I'm afraid not. You'd have to watch the first two, particularly the second sequel to understand Bruce Wayne's "emo" status. Or watch it for Heath Ledger's compelling performance! Haha.