No doubt the immense success of Christopher Nolan's previous two films, the mind-bending thriller "Inception (2010) and The Dark Knight, has contributed much to the almost unprecedented hype surrounding the latest film from him. Add to this the fact that over 50 minutes of footage for TDKR has been shot in 70mm IMAX Film format and the cast includes Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle and Tom Hardy playing Bane (one of Bat fans' favorite super villains) and you are pretty much guaranteed a 150M$ + opening weekend ( though it could well be over ). But all this hype is not without considerable substance to it considering that in this Facebook and twitter age, every summer blockbuster enjoy meaningless over the top hype and hyperbole. Nolan pretty much redefined the superhero movie genre with his Batman Begins which proved that you can make a brooding, character driven super hero movie that is steeped in enough realism so as to appeal to serious movie goers while still maintaining the lore and fiction from the comic books. More importantly, Nolan separates the trilogy from previous Batman films which were horrendously fantastical, with cardboard cutout characters, whacky action set pieces and terrible art design.
Although the first movie in the series was a pretty good movie, it had some of the drawbacks typical of an origin story. The amount of exposition given to what drove a billionaire to dress like a bat and rasp out hammy one-liners is drawn out, and by the time the tiny plot takes hold we are almost near the end of the movie. But the film established Christian Bale as a very good choice to portray the dark, emotionally scarred Bruce Wayne. R'as Al Ghul was not the most intimidating or charismatic of villains and the league of shadows' plan to destroy Gotham seemed implausible and poorly executed. Despite all of this, Batman Begins stood head and shoulders above all other superhero movies at that time and was a visually stunning thriller. But then came the Dark Knight.
Nolan pretty much made the first film look like an ordinary film with his explosive Dark Knight. Much of the phenomenal critical and commercial success of the film was owed to the immortal performance of Heath Ledger as the Joker. In fact, the psychotic persona, disturbing mannerisms and perfect makeup of the villain threatened to overshadow another fine performance by Bale. This film got most of the ingredients spot on, including the meaty plot, script, casting and the level of intellectuality to proceedings. Ledger's Joker along with Nolan's brilliant writing and Hans Zimmer's thunderous and disturbing score, created numerous memorable scenes - think Joker's varied explanation of how he got his scars, the flipping of the trailer, and of course, the famous " Why So Serious" line, that will be remembered for years to come. Aaron Eckhart's powerful performance as Harvey "Two Face" Dent was another highlight of the film. The blistering pace of the film, with the sometimes tense, sometimes bombastic beats of Zimmer, added to one of the most atmospheric and realistic superhero movie of all time. The way Nolan crafts his stories in multiple layers and weaves an intricate web between the characters warranting multiple viewings to fully comprehend the depth and scope of his films. The film rode a wave of critical acclaim, and commercial success, bagging multiple Oscars including the inevitable Best Supporting Actor for Heath Ledger ( which was unfortunately posthumous). It grossed more than 500 Million $ domestically and another 1 Billion $ internationally while shunning the 3D fad that had enveloped Hollywood.
For all its success and critical acclaim, The Dark Knight was not without its flaws. The scene where Batman abandons a room full of Gotham's Richest with the joker to save Rachel ends abruptly. Dent's motivation to transform to a villain in the final stages isn't very convincing and for someone who wants to wreak chaos, most of the Joker's schemes are intricately detailed and planned to perfection. The brilliant tunnel chase scene while breathtaking in the first viewing, throws up a lot of spatial inconsistencies and erroneous angles upon repeated viewing and keener observations. But these were all overlook-able gripes when you consider the explosive and emotionally stirring final package.With the final film of the Trilogy, Nolan will attempt something that has been the Bane ( pardon the pun :)) of franchises in the past - to not make the third and final installment in a series suck. Granted, Nolan's ambitions are to trump the first two movies and provide an epic send off to the trilogy. From all the trailers, previews and featurettes, it is clear that he is going bigger and grander than the previous movies. Tom Hardy as Bane and Anne Hathaway as Catwoman, raised expectations even further. Bane looked suitably menacing and imposing, while some of the set pieces shown in the trailer looked downright fabulous. All said and done, one wonders whether the Bane character can match up to the lofty heights of the joker and if Selina Kyle will provide more than just Oomph to the story. Nolan has created a name for himself by directing cerebral thrillers and cutting edge visuals and one expects that the best of both styles fuse to create a magnificent conclusion to one of the most beloved superhero franchises of all time. Can Nolan deliver? Will he match the gigantic expectations that have been placed on this film or will the series go out with a whimper?
Bane maybe Gotham's Reckoning, but the TDKR is Nolan's as well.
Links and sources :
The Dark Knight Rises - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1345836/
The Dark Knight - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0468569/
Batman Begins - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0372784/
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