'THE DARK KNIGHT RISES'

'THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (PG-13) (3 1/2 STARS)

Written by Jonathan and Christopher Nolan
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Actors: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Gary Oldman, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman

Let me just mention one thing before I start my review of "The Dark Knight Rises". It can in no way be as outstanding as "The Dark Knight". That is equal to "Superman II" as the best superhero movie ever made. Part of that classic status goes to Heath Ledger as The Joker and a performance and villian that was one of the best on screen. I will say that "The Dark Knight Rises" is easily miles ahead of most any movie that has come out in the last few years. It is an amazing conclusion to one of the best trilogies ever on the movie screen.

"The Dark Knight Rises" has a deep story that is thoughtfully written and it surprised me by choking me up in the end. This is an emotional movie, more so than the darker "The Dark Knight". There is also some great acting on display here including two Oscar caliber performances and a breakout star performance. The movie of course looks stark, beautiful with amazing special effects, great action, fights and some memorable set pieces. It has a middle scene that gave me major goose bumps and freaked me out. It also has an amazing last 45 minutes where the story comes to it's conclusion with a lot of powerful emotion. I just wish that after the spellbinding first half hour the movie didn't meander and drag for the next half hour. The movie should have been cut down a little. The last movie was also long but it was more compact and focused.

"The Dark Knight Rises" is set a few years after the conclusion of "The Dark Knight". Batman is in hiding after being blamed for the death of Harvey Dent. A new force is coming into focus as the evil Bane, who wears a mask to hide a face that is disfigured I guess, hatches an evil plan. Bane is part of a twisted revolution against the 1% of Gotham City that feed on the other 99% of the less fortunate. This plot is very topical to what is going on today with the "Occupy Wall Street" movement and our economical woes. Christopher and Jonathan Nolan have written a very thoughtful screenplay that is about something. What I loved about "The Dark Knight" was that it played out like a 1940's film noir picture. "The Dark Knight Rises" starts with a wonderful first half hour that plays like a film noir mystery. The latter half gets away from that but there are so many effective moments and the ending is fantastic.

The movie introduces a new character named Selina Kyle and she is a tough and crafty thief who runs into Bruce Wayne at a party in his mansion. Their first meeting is a lot of fun and Anne Hathaway is sexy, funny and effective as this well written adversary. The movie will introduce parts of the other two movies and there is a deep story that is more wonderfully complicated then almost every other superhero movie and thats what makes the last Dark Knight movie and this one more effective then movies like "The Avengers" and "The Amazing Spider-man". Superhero movies are not supposed to be written with this much thought and I appreciate that. There are also well written characters we care about and more emotion also, more to care about and focus on.

Movies like this depend on the villains and yes nothing will ever trump The Joker and Heath Ledger but I was impressed and surprised by the character of Bane. He is not as twisted as The Joker but I still thought he was a formidable enough bad guy who seemed like a real threat and I was worried if Bane would be effective enough by watching the trailers. Critics have pointed out that Bane is not that effective due to his voice and that Tom Hardy can't do much with the character. I disagree for I found that Tom Hardy does a very great job in his performance. I understood every word Bane says and I was impressed by the character more than I thought I would be. He is not as intense as The Joker but he is way more effective than the very weak villians in this year's "The Avengers" and "The Amazing Spider-man". Anne Hathaway also gives a commanding, star making performance and she is charming, sexy, lethal and actually funny too. Her back and forth with Bruce Wayne and Batman is very good and reminded me of the dialogue from old romantic comedies of another era.

I was also not expecting some really emotional stuff from a third movie of a superhero trilogy. There is a bomb scene in the middle that includes a whole football field imploding and Gotham City being torn to shreds. That series of scenes were powerful and tense and very well directed. It was so effective it made me actually think that this could happen to any city in reality if terrorists attacked, that segment gave me chills. There is also a fantastic last half hour with a cliffhanging scene at every turn starting with a bravura and crowd pleasing scene of an army of cops rushing into battle against Bane's minions. Then you get some great aerial sequences, an intense fight between Batman and Bane and a neat, unexpected twist at the end.

Also contributing to the greatness of this movie are two Oscar caliber performances by Gary Oldman and Joseph Gordon Levitt playing two well written characters. I think Gordon Levitt is the best actor of his generation (sorry Ryan Golsing) and here he plays a heroic cop and it is a multi layered performance and a character that is the emotional core of "The Dark Knight Rises". This is the best written character that I have encountered in any superhero movie. Gary Oldman also is great and his Gordon is also an emotional and deep character that provides depth and emotion. I also loved Michael Caine's touching performance and I did not expect this much emotion coming out of something that Alfred does in this movie. The above mentioned characters breathe emotion into the movie and they are the backbone of "The Dark Knight Rises".

I also have to mention that Christian Bale is again very solid here and I can't imagine anyone else playing Bruce Wayne/Batman after this trilogy. "The Dark Knight Rises" is not up to the quality of "The Dark Knight" but it is still a great time at the movies. Yes the movie can be very deep and dark and it could be seen as a bummer but I love dark and found the movie powerful in certain scenes and emotional in others. I was surprised that I started to tear up at scenes near the end and the movie does end on a graceful and satisfying note. Christopher Nolan is an amazing director and he has made a fascinating trilogy that is greater than it should be. "The Dark Knight Rises" is an excellent, solid, intense and very effective movie with great performances and many scenes of pure greatness.

P.S. The way Nolan opens up "The Dark Knight Rises" reminds me of how Steven Spielberg used to open up films like "Raiders of the Lost Ark", "Close Encounters" and "E.T.". Nolan grabs your attention right away from the start getting you intrigued and breathless in anticipation.

Also as I am writing this review on Friday I must comment on the theatre shooting in Aurora, Colorado during a screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" early Friday morning. It is another senseless shooting and my heart goes out to those affected by this tragedy. This killer has taken away one of our rights, to enjoy the pleasure of a movie that lets us escape the troubles of the World and then this happens. It is sad, disgusting and heartless and I am very devestated that it happened.