The perfect end to a perfect trilogy

Christian Bale as Batman in "The Dark Knight Rises." (AP/Warner Bros. photo)

(Editor’s note: Paul apologies to the readers for this delayed review. He was on the island of Samar, Philippines, when this movie premiered, far from a cinema or news about the theater massacre in Aurora, Colo. He filed this review on his return leg from Tacloban City, on the island of Leyte, Philippines.)



Director Christopher Nolan has really outdone himself on “The Dark Knight Rises,” just like he did with “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight.”

But “The Dark Knight Rises” is something more. It’s not just a great movie, it is a superb achievement that will not be forgotten. Just like “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” the landscapes and the scenery are breathtaking. It is rare to find a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the last few seconds.

First off, the acting in “The Dark Knight Rises” is fantastic. You feel compassion when a character is hurt or when they are in the deepest darkest pit of despair. Nolan picked the perfect cast for each character portrayed in the film. Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gorden Levitt, Anne Hathaway were all believable and simply a joy to watch.

But I think out of all these actors Hathaway (Catwoman) stands out as the best one. She was perfect for the role she played and no one could have done it better. This is definitely her best role in any movie by far.

One of the great things about “The Dark Knight Rises” is all the background you get about each character. Some people may think that some of the side stories in the film are distracting and boring but I think they are fascinating.

Unlike “The Dark Knight,” you get more background about Bane, which I love and is very interesting. The Joker is a villian with seemingly no back story, but he is still a great villian. But Tom Hardy (Bane), is a ferocious character that will not stop until Gotham is ashes and he really is “Gotham’s reckoning.”

Director Nolan is great at wrapping up a movie well. No loose ends are left untied through “The Dark Knight Rises,” and this film stands as one of the best concluding movies to any series or trilogy.

The script is stupendous, the story is stupendous, because the story is not your usual superhero movie story because it feels like this film crosses a fine line between a great superhero movie and a great movie in general.

Not many directors can accomplish this task and not many movies you will see this year will be as good as “The Dark Knight Rises.”

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

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Paul Dunlap’s reviews have appeared on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) and the movies section of Yahoo.

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