The conclusion to Nolan’s Batman trilogy is finally here!
Nearly a decade after taking the fall for Harvey Dent’s death and disappearing into the darkness, a fugitive Batman (Christian Bale) watches from the shadows as the Dent Act keeps the streets of Gotham City crime free. Meanwhile, an elusive cat burglar seizes the chance to strike, and a masked anarchist plots a devastating series of attacks designed to lure Bruce Wayne out of the shadows. Determined not to abandon the people who he once risked his life to protect, The Dark Knight emerges from his self-imposed exile ready to fight. But Bane (Tom Hardy) is ready, too, and once Batman is within his grasp, he will do everything in his power to break Gotham City’s shadowy savior.
Did you go see the movie? Why or why not? What did you think? Was it everything you thought it would be, or did Nolan betray you like that spinning top at the end of Inception? We want to know what you think. Use the comment section below to share your review, thoughts, ideas, arguments, and more, and be on the lookout for Major Spoilers’ review soon!
18 Comments
Personally, I loved it. It was way more than I expected to get out of it, and I expected an awful lot. Nolan hit the essential “fan” buttons, while also finishing an epic story that really did not waste one minute of the three films it took. I loved Avengers, but TDKR really kicked that to the ground as my new favorite movie.
I thought it was a fitting finale for the trilogy.
I thought Anne Hathaway may have been the best Catwoman yet, as she stole nearly every scene and captured the feel of the ‘modern’ Selina Kyle perfectly.
As Bane goes, I was a little off-put by Tom Hardy’s voice and his final defeat was a little too abrupt for my tastes, but I think he made a great villain in a movie that was, essentially, about hope.
They telegraphed the ending from the beginning, but I was alright with that, too.
And, they wrapped up all of the threads and thematic elements of the previous two movies nicely. The story was told, from beginning to end, it what was — essentially — a seven and a half hour long comic-inspired opera.
It’s been a great ride.
Darn you, Michael Caine, for making me cry!
I very much enjoyed the film. It was a good ending, though not something you see often in Batman incarnations.
*My heart goes out to those in Aurora CO today. No one deserves the horror you suffered*
Boy was the bar set high for this movie. Where the first two aimed at being grounded in reality, TDKR was the most “comic book” of the three. It reminded me of a four-issue mini-series but one that loses steam by issue two – making the last two a slog.
There is a healthy crop of stunning visual moments – the opening hijack scene is one of the most outstanding in the series. It sets up Bane as a master tactician with a mob of highly trained fanatics serving his every whim with deadly precision. That doesn’t play out through my first viewing. I kept waiting for Bane’s physicality to be showcased. His fights with Batman, his murdering civilians and the killing of his own men lacked the intensity I was expecting from early reports from the filmmakers. His potential to be a true physical and mental threat never paid off for me. That’s no slight to Tom Hardy, I found him captivating throughout.
Also I’d have liked to see more of Selina Kyle’s story/motivation.
I enjoyed George Chimples review though I disagree that tightening the editing would have helped. I never felt the weight of how much time is supposed to pass within the story. I just couldn’t buy the fact weeks and months were falling off the calendar when they were. Strangely I also felt this film had the least amount of soliloquy (especially compared to the last film). Even still, nice write-up man!
As a Nolan-Verse devotee I’ll be going to see TDKR again; more as a desire to see if I missed something bigger, rather than (as with Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) an “OH MAN I GOTTA GO BACK!!!” sensation.
Make mine, Major Spoilers!
I liked it…alot. I feel this film drove the idea of Batman being ‘real’ in my mind more than any of the other films. The ending then solidified it for me. It was fantastic.
I really liked it.
It was swell, I particularly did enjoy the inclusion of Talia as the “REAL” mastermind pulling the strings from the beginning.
I see a lot of complaints, most of which are nitpicks. first and foremost, DKR is an epic.
Not a “omg this movie is epic,” but a true epic in terms of film. In saying that it comes with all the highs and lows that epics bring, and that includes books and comic book epics. No epic is perfect and all are flawed for one reason or another. Nolan said that he was inspired to make this movie like the great Hollywood epics of old. Specifically the silent era type, so as soon as I read that I knew what kind of movie I was going in to. And I was not disappointed in the slightest. IMO, the film is better than both begins and DKR. I could bitch about editing and tightness of plot, and other things I have no business bitching about since I know nothing about them, but I won’t. All the movies flaws are easily looked over. If you pull back and look at the film as a whole you get a grand superhero epic that ends this trilogy in spectacular style. Really what more you ask for?
First of all I took my wife to see the movIe, we were going to wait after we heard what happened in CO , but we though it was Important that we go and show that this tragedy does not have to blemish super hero movies.
On to the movie. Anne Hathaway did a great job. She put a fresh air into Catwoman. In away she acted a tribute to Julie Newmar. Joseph Gordon-Lovett was a nice addition to the cast. Showing that not all he cops in Gotham are idiots other than Comissioner Gordon. Then the nods to the first two movies was beautifully done. Dent, Scarecrow, Ras Agul all well done. The only thing I found telephoned in was the ending, but we all know the Bat can’t die. Still I loved it.
One of the best parts of this movie to me was the soundtrack. I absolutely loved every element of this film, but the way the “Deshay Basara” chant acted as a pulse to the movie had me subconsciously squeezing my wife’s hand in beat every time it came on.
I felt underwhelmed. The final showdown with Bane was unfulfilling, his death was too sudden, and while I didn’t mind all the beats the ending hit (Blake’s was especially well done), the Alfred/Bruce part…ugh. The cast was great. Gordon, Blake, Alfred, all fantastic. Anne Hathaway was tremendous. I don’t really disagree with the review posted here; the time flow bothered me, months flew by in the blink of an eye. I’d add that it felt like they tried rushing to the first Bane fight because there was so much ground to cover. Good but not great, 4/5.
I didn’t see it and probably will wait for it to come to dvd. Not because I think it will be bad, I think it will be very good. I’ve just found that the trilogy thus far has been more enjoyable at home than in the theater for me. Though with all the positive buzz I am looking forward to it.
PS
My heart goes out to the victims of that despicable act.
The movie was awesome. I just wish the Joker had gotten a small part. Even just him attacking someone. It would have been really interesting to see how he acted in Bane/Talia’s Gotham.
They could have had Heath Ledger laughing in the background of one of the trial scenes, that might have been a nice little tribute, but I think their thinking is it would have pulled focus from the movie they were making. They were probably right.
Though I enjoyed it, I was practically laughing out loud at the sheer preposterousness of it all. Is Nolan the idea guy? Yeah. But did he have to throw in all the ideas at once???
I liked it, but I think somebody should have stopped, taken a breath and toned it down. You want to break the Bat? OK. You want to blow up the city….again? Yeah, sure. I guess what else can you do if you want to go big, right?
But that the city was essentially held hostage and ruled by Bane for MONTHS??? Come on!!!
I mean, you get that they really, really based it in A Tale of Two Cities because alone, as a movie, it makes no sense!!!
Alfred…all he did was bitch throughout the film until what they did and it felt almost like a mistake or something that he was AWOL when he was.
I thought Hathaway was strong and Hardy was doing the best with what he had…but it felt way, way too big for its own britches. Give me epic and dense, but make it kinda coherent or believable.
I love Nolan, but its not just ideas, man. Ideas are the start.
And I cant understand why SO MUCH TIME was given to Lovett. I mean, he’s fine but….???
The only way you can look at these films is as the story of a city, told through the life of Wayne. It’s about the peril and saving of a city in three acts.
It was great. All the reasons have been covered by previous comments. I hadn’t thought about how much Julie Newmar and Lee Meriwether was in Hathaway’s performance. I guess I have a crush on four Catwomen now, if you could Adrienne Barbeau.
I wish they would have just gone for it with Blake and in the end you found out his real name was something else. Remember that other guy spent some time as a cop. The other thing was there was a non Catwoman love scene. That could have been the origin of a psychotic little ten year old. I was also waiting the whole movie for venom.
I don’t understand why they need to go so big with the plots. I mean I guess they were sort of referencing No Man’s Land, but most DC type (Detective Comic rather than Batman Comic, as in no super powers) are Batman fighting criminals, not saving the world.
I think everyone would agree that the second movie was the best of the trilogy, and that was Batman fighting gangsters. I think they get in the weeds when the whole city is at stake. It’s easier to be emotionally involved with a few characters in danger rather than a whole city.
I liked it. I thought the Batman’s costume was too bulky though. When they design those costumes they need to make them so the stunt man can move in them. It made for sub par fight scenes in all three movies. But I was pretty happy with this movie and how it wrapped up his life. It’s how I’ve always wished he ended up.