Dark KnightThe War on Terror analogy ends with Harvey Dent, representing the US, effectively being absolved of his crimes in order to preserve his image – but in real life, the opposite is true. The loss of evidence of Iraqi “weapons of mass destruction,” the subsequent terror attacks, and the threat of ISIS all undermined trust in Western governments, and trust in Western governments has never recovered to its level in the 20th century.
The Great Recession of 2008, fueled by risk-taking trades that left the housing bubble poised to burst, further eroded public trust in institutions. The impact was widespread, and resentment intensified as banks were bailed out with taxpayers’ money – culminating in the Occupy movement, which was most prominent in New York, but still has a presence around the world.

In many cases, dissatisfaction with apparent injustice has now snowballed into apathy towards Western civilization itself, and rarely a day goes by on Twitter that doesn’t see uptight teenagers posting inappropriate calls for communist revolution. Why am I bringing this up in a Batman movie review? Because in the world The Dark Knight RisesCatwoman is that edgy teenager.
Be careful what you wish for
It’s been eight years since Harvey Dent died. The lie is real and he is held up as a symbol of justice, complete with his own holiday in Gotham. Meanwhile, a weakened Bruce Wayne hides in a wing of his house, walking with a cane. Then something catches his eye – a nimble maid who steals from his safe, though he soon realizes he’s more interested in her fingerprints.
Wayne catches up with Selina Kyle (who is later revealed to be Catwoman, as if that wasn’t obvious from the start) and takes back her mother’s pearls. His answer is to raise his car keys during the kiss, but not before licking his lips as the “storm” comes that he thinks will put Gotham’s elite in their place.
“A storm is coming, Mr. Wayne. You and your friends better get ready, because when it happens, you’ll all wonder how you managed to live so big and leave so little for the rest of us.†– Selina Kyle
But The Dark Knight Rises is not a revolutionary fantasy – it is a warning. After the city’s institutions are overthrown, Kyle is clearly remorseful. “This is someone’s house,†he said sadly, staring at family photos on the counter as his friends celebrated around him. He was a radical teenager who realized that the revolution he was calling for was not the one he dreamed of, and ultimately helped Batman to end it all.
Power to the people
Our main villain for this film – and the one who pays Kyle to get Wayne’s fingerprints – is Bane. Surprisingly, he’s the only villain in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy who looks superhuman. Scarecrow does drugs, Joker is a terrorist, but Bane seems to have incredible strength, and at one point punches through a chunk of concrete without showing any signs of pain. He also has a ridiculous voice, both in terms of pitch and tone, making it difficult to take him seriously.
His first big move in Gotham is a siege on the stock exchange, which is certainly a symptom of the anti-banker sentiment during the film’s development. He and his henchmen use Wayne’s fingerprints to make a trade to take over Wayne Enteprises and gain access to its military technology – including a generator that can be converted into a de facto nuclear bomb. I find it hard to believe that the transaction will be completed, considering that the transaction is clearly fraudulent.
Bane’s goal is to increase violence and “restore control over violence [the] city to its people†. He achieved this through another incredible scheme, where he lured the entire Gotham police force except Gordon and Blake into the sewers and blew up the tunnel to trap them inside. From there, he implements a full-fledged communist revolution, complete with kangaroo courts (presided over by the Scarecrow), prisoner releases, and roaming bands of law enforcers.
“A squad will be formed. The powerful will be torn from their dilapidated nests and thrown into the cold world we know and live in. A trial will be held. The spoils will be enjoyed. Blood will be shed.†– Bane
The final sacrifice
Even in the face of Bane’s silliness, one of his biggest disappointments The Dark Knight Rises is Batman’s shortcoming. Wayne spends most of his time out of action, and behaves erratically when he returns. With Rachel dead and no motivation to clean up Gotham once and for all, forget about Batman, and settle down, Alfred fears this story will simply end with Wayne in a coffin. Faced with this concern, Wayne’s response was to scream and throw him out.
Wayne was also too careless regarding his identity with Catwoman, who immediately sold him to Bane. Since then, he has been in a remote prison and watched the situation of Gotham on TV. He eventually escapes, but even that is handled in a nonsensical manner, with a big, beefy Bruce Wayne struggling to pull off a jump that a small child apparently managed to pull off years ago.
Upon returning to Gotham, it was revealed that Miranda Tate – real name Talia al Ghul – was the real villain. He is someone who escaped from prison as a child – Ra’s al Ghul’s son, no less. He wants to finish his father’s work in destroying Gotham. Bane protected her in prison, and was excommunicated from the League of Shadows because Ra’s al Ghul could not accept his love for his daughter.
“Innocent is a strong word to say in Gotham, Bruce. I honor my father by completing his work. Revenge on the one who killed him is only a reward for my patience.†– Talia al Ghul
At the end of the story, when the bomb is about to explode, Batman flies it into the sea. Just before he does so, he hints at his true identity to Gordon, who receives the message. It was one of the few moments in the film Really works like its predecessors – Batman does heroic things, and there’s a personal story tied in, as Gordon cares for Wayne after the murder of his parents and is very grateful for Batman’s services.
Presumably dying in the explosion, Batman becomes the icon he aspires to be, complete with statue. However Fox later learned that Wayne had fixed the autopilot feature on his air vehicle, meaning he could have bailed out before the explosion occurred. Continuing the new focus on personal narrative, in the final moments of the film, Alfred sees Wayne in a cafe with Selina. The two exchange meme-worthy nods, and it’s heartwarming to know Wayne got his happy ending.
An imperfect finale
I’ll state it clearly: The Dark Knight Rises is the weakest of the trilogy. It benefits from Nolan’s style and strong established characters, but there’s too much going on. It feels rushed, with a lot of very quick changes between short scenes. Additionally, most of the plot takes place on a macro scale, meaning personal stories get lost among all the revolutionary montages and scene changes.
It feels as though the filmmakers felt they needed to raise the stakes for the finale, but struggled to do so for long stretches. Dark Knighta very grounded universe. By opting for big ideas and city-wide struggles, they sacrificed much of the existing storyline. This is made worse by the absence of Batman, with Wayne being a recluse, broke, or imprisoned for most of the film’s running time.
Plus there are so many huge holes in the characters’ motivations and plans, Rise It’s a bit hard to stomach afterwards Batman Begins And Dark Knightboth of which are excellent shows with very tight plots. However, I do appreciate the film’s underlying themes and role as a 2012-era warning about the extreme “burn it all” attitude held by many people in the modern age.
And whatever is said about the rest – the weirdness, the implausibility and the missed opportunities – there’s no denying the gravity of the ending.
3/5
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