Now Playing: Dark Knight Rises

As is tradition, I was at the midnight show for The Dark Knight Rises.  Expectations were running high, as we had just ingested Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. The theatre was, as expected, sold out. What made this so much more civilised was that we had reserved seating, so no eight-hour line-ups were required. Though, in defence of the line-up, it made for a showing of truly hardcore fans. I and four of my boys settled in, with popcorn, M&Ms and moderately-sized drinks; last bathroom break was at 23h45 when, with delicious irony, I breezed in and out and boys had to wait. In line. Oh yes.


In the spoiler-free portion of this review, I will just say that the movie lived up to all my expectations. It was nice to see these characters/actors, in whom we’ve invested for seven years, stretch a little more and get the screen-time they deserve. In a great plot setup, Gotham City has aged eight years and the Batman has passed into legend, disappearing after the events of The Dark Knight have unfolded. The City is ripe for the picking as Bane and Selina Kyle arrive on the scene. Bale is wonderful as the ever-tortured Bruce Wayne and Oldman (the unsung hero of the entire trilogy) is just a fantastically facetted Jim Gordon. The movie highlights how easily society degenerates when rules are overturned and people are pitted against each other.

…a thoroughly satisfying end to the Nolan Batman legacy. Good luck to anyone picking up this mantle. 5 out of 5 stars.

SPOILERS BELOW.

Seriously.


Okay, don’t say I didn’t warn you.


Wasn’t JGL just the most inspired choice for Robin? And even though I totally knew that Marion Cotillard was going to be Talia, (despite her insistence that this was not so), I loved that her relationship with Bane made them both so much …human; relatable almost. And the ever-amazing Michael Caine: that scene when Alfred says he must leave Wayne Manor broke my heart. Sigh. It was ever so good. Tickets already purchased to watch it again next weekend.