Rating of
3.5/4
Batman Ends
SIngli6 - wrote on 06/22/14
This film was never going to be as excellent as 'The Dark Knight'. Even the most devout Nolan fan, in their most elated state of creator worship, would have been all too aware of this film's inevitable failure at topping its critical darling of a predecessor. Setting this aside, 'The Dark Knight Rises' still ends up being a film of tremendous quality. Most blockbuster filmmakers state a desire to avoid CGI, but Nolan actually makes good on his word. Its spectacle recalls the motion pictures of the late, great David Lean, and its plotting has a marvelous Dickensian flavour. The script ventures through various implausibilities, but then so did 'The Dark Knight's. Add the muted, creamy visuals of cinematographer Wally Pfister, and you have a sense that the film is made with a distinct artistic vision (a rarity for a comic book film).
Whilst 'Rises' lacks a stand-out performance in the vain of Heath Ledger's Joker, the cast is still great. The regulars (Bale, Caine, Oldman, and Freeman) are reliable as always, with newcomers such as Anne Hathaway as the sultry Selina Kyle, Tom Hardy as the supremely menacing Bane, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the idealistic John Blake, complimenting them perfectly. Indeed, Ben Mendelsohn as the hammy, campy tertiary antagonist John Daggett and Burn Gorman as his deadpan assistant are worth the price of admission alone.
All in all, it's the stand-out big-budget film of 2012, and possibly the last good movie to have the 'Batman' brand attached to it after news that Ben Affleck is to replace Bale as the caped crusader. I do hope he copies the voice...
