The Dark Knight Rises

Sometimes movies become more than just movies. Sometimes the really good ones do more than just entertain us for two and a half hours, they make us think.  To craft such a film requires creativity, timing, but most of all blind chance. Take the recent Hunger Games craze that swept o'er this nation of ours. The premise was simple, girl gets stuck in a deathmatch against other kids. There have been numerous stories that followed similar, or nearly identical plots, but what made this book and subsequent movie so special was the context in which this story was presented. Instead of being an inspiring story of survival against all odds or a tear-wrenching romance between doomed lovers, this became an empowerment story. It made it seem possible that one girl, a kid no less, with no weapons beside her wit and bow, could topple a culture of bigoted violence and disregarding avarice. And it presented this point in a human and down-to-earth way, with an outcome that seemed fantastic and real at the same time. Now, there were certainly other parallels between the book and reality that the attentive might draw, but the points were muted. In the end, it was about selling the story. Which worked pretty well.  

Now, keeping that example in mind, let's move on. The Dark Knight Rises will always be remembered for its part in that terrible shooting in Aurora, Colorado. When I went to see it last week for my birthday, I couldn't help but remember that fact. Did the movie cause the shooting? No. Can we hold the film responsible for it? Absolutely not.  But that doesn't change the fact that violence doesn't faze us like it used to. Even as I write this, I'm hearing about another public shooting down near Texas A&M. It seems like people are doing crazier and crazier things every day.

The movie opens by presenting the villain, Bane, a masked terrorist with his eyes on violent social reform. From a moviegoer's perspective, he was a great villain. He was smart, he could fight, and when he talked, what he said made sense, though his covered mouth made deciphering his words tough. But from the objective person's perspective, he was a psycho who had no problem killing people who violated his perverse sense of justice. He makes it clear that he has changes in store for Gotham City, changes that he won't let silly things like ethics get in the way of. He's intent on giving control back to the masses and distributing true freedom (anarchy) to the people. I found myself reminded of the French Revolution at times, just with nuclear bombs and machine guns instead of guillotines and swords.

Gotham City is in a state of seeming prosperity in much contrast to the conclusion of the second film, where mobsters and corrupt officials were rampant. If you've seen the second movie, then I'll be pleased to tell you, Batman's sacrifice at the end paid off. But because of that, Batman is blamed for everything bad that happened. So Bruce Wayne (Batman's alter ego) has gone into reclusion, his life in shambles. The police force has grown soft in the time of peace and Commissioner Gordon, Batman's stoic comrade from the previous films, is an unwanted relic from the long-past crime war.

As you can probably already tell, this is the perfect setup for the showdown that's about to happen and as the title purports, The Dark Knight does indeed need to rise in order to save Gotham.

The film moves at a fairly heavy pace, which may have to do with its near three hour duration. But unlike its predecessor, The Dark Knight, it maintains a fairly cohesive plot throughout. Though it lost me a couple times when I missed dialogue or something. This movie was not crafted in the mold of typical super hero flicks, despite the comic book costumes and Christian Bale's weird growly voice when he is in Bat-mode. It is more akin to a crime thriller, with its share of plot twists, some easier to spot than others. Seriously, I was surprised that Robin didn't pull out his yellow tights halfway through the movie.

Overall though, it leaves you feeling satisfied and with a lot to think about. The conclusion is open-ended which may lead some viewers to expect a new Dark Knight in the future. However, Christopher Nolan has already said he's done with the series. So even if a new one is released someday, it will probably not have the weight or timeliness of the Dark Knight Rises.   

Josiah Bell, Teen Blogger