Rent The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Reasonably satisfying conclusion to Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, but not the best - The Dark Knight Rises review by RP

Well, over the last few days I've seen three of 2012's comic-based superhero 'blockbuster' movies: 'Avengers Assemble', 'The Amazing Spider-Man' and now 'The Dark Knight Rises'. And - from low score to high score - that's my order of preference.

'Avengers Assemble' was too silly and took itself too seriously. The Spiderman remake/reboot unfortunately suffered from the 'remake syndrome' - by definition, it wasn't very original, although it did offer some novelty and a degree of humanity to its tale of a comic book hero. But I rather liked Christopher Nolan's third Batman film, even though it's too long at over 2½ hours, there's too much scene-setting and not enough Batman action until well into the film, the entire nuclear-bomb-in-the-city plot is both old and not very well done, and the film is full of plot holes. A bullet-proof batsuit that doesn't stop a knife? Remove the core of a fusion reactor to make a bomb - in minutes? Batman escapes from an underground prison in India (I think) and returns to Gotham in minutes? But these are minor issues...

I guess the reason I liked it is - in common with the other Nolan-directed Batman films - it's so dark. And it has a 'proper' baddie, in this case Bane (Tom Hardy) who's a nasty piece of work. Not up to Heath Ledger's psychopathic depiction of The Joker in 'The Dark Knight' but definitely bad, unlike the wuss Loki in 'Avengers'.

Ann Hathaway makes a good second-string baddie/goodie as Catwoman and steals just about every scene she appears in. Add supporting roles from Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard etc and that's a fine cast you've got there...

[Aside: perhaps sadly, I did watch the end credits and noticed rather a lot of Nolans in it, as well as small parts for Liam Neeson, Cillian Murphy, Tom Conti, Mathew Modine, uncle Tom Cobley and all]

I enjoyed it and I'll give it 3/5 stars - a reasonably satisfying conclusion to Nolan's Batman trilogy, but not his best.

Mistake - The Dark Knight Rises review by BE

I thought I had ordered the Dark Knight movie with Heath Ledger in it. Wrong! I don't usually enjoy this film genre. I became bored with this one but have given it three stars for effort.

The best Batman movie - The Dark Knight Rises review by PT

This is the best batman movie I have seen. Great story about Bane and the prison hell hole he was in, which is key to everything.

Bale is at his best here, as a washed up crippled recluse who makes the comeback as the Batman.

Hardy is exceptional as Bane, a lunatic dictator of a villain, who talks to the people about being their liberator like some Marxist revolutionary.

Loved Anne Hathaway's Catwoman, ruthless but with a heart under the hard exterior.

Last but not least, the superb Marion Cottiard in a smaller role as the humanitarian Miranda, delivers her usual acting brilliance.

An A1 cast deliver an A1 film.