REVIEW TEXT

Name : Nadia Kurnia Hapsari

Class : XII Science 2/22
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES


The series of Batman has always been the number one for
me. I absolutely love its comic and the two previous films, Batman
Begins and The Dark Knight. Especially because the handsome
Christian Bale played as Bruce Wayne a.k.a Batman.
The Dark Knight Rises is the most entertaining of Christopher
Nolans Batfilms, and it is certainly the best. Is it not bad at all? Im
not quite sure. The whole movie feels like a series of
contradictions. It has a long duration yet rushed, deeply serious yet
utterly silly, politically minded yet ultimately flat. But, those
reasons make this movie wildly entertaining.
The film picks up eight years after the death of Harvey Dent
at the end of The Dark Knight. Batman was never again seen after
that night, and Bruce Wayne has become a hermit as well. In the
wake of Dents death Gotham City apparently cleaned up its act
instantly, and organized crime is a thing of the past. Gordon is now
commissioner, but hes seen as a relic, a war hero in a time of
peace.
Trouble arises when a mercenary named Baneplayed by
Tom Hardy, big guy, bald, relying on a respirator mask to keep him
O
R
I
E
N
T
A
T
I
O
N

E
V
A
L
U
A
T
I
O
N

I
N
T
E
R
P
R
E
T
A
T
I
V
E

R
E
C
O
U
N
T


alivehas come to Gotham, and hes building an army beneath the
streets in the gutter. Meanwhile, someone has hired a cat burglar
Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) to steal Bruce Waynes fingerprints.
Perhaps theres a connection of some sort between these events.
Fascinated by Selinas skill, Bruce slowly walks out of his
retirement. His body has been worn down by his adventures (he
walks with a cane), but he forces himself into shape to investigate
the cat burglar and Bane.
The first hour of the film is light and easy to digest. There are
actual comedic scenes, and its engaging to see Bruce Wayne pull
himself together from his utterly out-of-character majority-of-a-
decade slump. And as Banes weird and complicated plan comes
into focus it seems as if Nolan has finally embraced the comic book
origins of the character. Or at least attempted to fold them into a
genre idiom he understands.
The movie then goes on from its lightness into a dark
themed movie when Wayne finally comes out of his shell and
shows Gotham his new rides. Throughout the film Bane speaks out
to the people of Gotham. The Dark Knight Rises includes absolutely
not one single average citizen. The closest it gets are a bunch of
orphans who hang around cop John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt).
Theres one line of dialogue that indicates some homeless have
been joining Banes army, but the film casts them simply as
criminals. Perhaps this is Nolans intention, to say that the
underclass is naturally criminal and that the middle class are a
bunch of helpless orphans.
The film does have great performances going for it. Bales
Bruce Wayne is nicely essayed, and since Wayne is in the film as
much, if not more than Batman, thats a relief. He still has that
stupid voice as Batman, but at this point you figure they feel
committed to it. Anne Hathaway is probably the , bringing life to
her every scene. Catwoman is in no way as good as the Joker, but
she has the same electrifying impact on this film that Heath Ledger
did in the last one.
Tom Hardy is criminally wasted in the film. Bane is a dud;
driven by the exact same motivation as Ras al Ghul, he feels like a
repeat, except with a genius plan. Hardy works hard to act behind
that idiotic mask, but its no use. Theres a moment towards the
end, in one of the films too many flashbacks, where we see
Hardys full face and were reminded of what a powerful figure he
is on screen when allowed to be completely seen.
I
N
T
E
R
P
R
E
T
A
T
I
V
E

R
E
C
O
U
N
T

As the movie wrapped up with five final minutes that play
out exactly like Superhero Hype forum fanfic, I wasnt hating it. I
hadnt been squirming in my seat. I thought a lot of it was dumb, I
laughed at things that probably werent meant to be laughed at,
and I experienced a few moments of deflation when I realized the
movie had nothing to actually say. But I had also been caught up in
it, even when it didnt quite work or make much sense. I liked that
Nolan went a little broader, even if that broadness occasionally
clashed with his efforts to be realistic.
I just dont care either way. After being profoundly
disappointed by the way Batman Begins turned out, and after really
enjoying most of The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises is really a
blow for me. Not only by the actors playing it but also by its
unthinkable plot, and in the end its a big shrug because every
legend has an end.
I
N
T
E
R
P
R
E
T
A
T
I
V
E

R
E
C
O
U
N
T


S
U
M
M
A
R
Y