The Dark Knight Rises

Not as good as the previous films.

Synopsis: Eight years after the last film, Bruce Wayne must reemerge as Batman to fight off a new threat to Gotham, Bane.

In the wake of the tragedy in Colorado, The Dark Knight Rises may no longer have the enthusiastic following it had previously, however I went to honor those loyal movie-goers who attended the midnight movie and never got to actually finish the film they waited so long to see.

Characters:

Batman/Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale): His character has gotten a lot weaker since TDK. He is completely broken in more ways than one and, despite the actual symbolic and literal rising, he is not at the same strength as he was before. His voice is still annoyingly raspy, but his Batman dialogue is very much cut down. This Bruce Wayne is similar to the character from the beginning of Batman Begins. He has gone full circle (aka nowhere).

Alfred (Michael Caine): He is awesome as usual, but he disappears half way through the movie. There really is not much to say about his character, although I think he needs a big hug. He works so hard only to have Bruce Wayne return to being Batman and endangering his life for a city that doesn't appreciate him and blames him for a crime he didn't commit.

Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Anne Hathaway): She is a modern femme fatale in leather spandex and heels (which can't be practical). She is just... there. She is an instigator of some plot threads, but does not do too much else.

Bane (Tom Hardy): He is not as threatening as the Joker. He stands around a lot when he's not fighting Batman and makes speeches in a Sean Connery voice that's amplified so much that it sounds like a dubbing rather than someone speaking through a mask. The times he does fight Batman, he is really a threat to the characters, but he did not induce fear in the audience like the Joker (at least not for me). He seems to be more talk than fight, although that might be because he could crush most people like bugs. His plan: Destroy Gotham as Ra's al Ghul planned. However, he pointlessly draws it out in an attempt to break the spirits of the Gothamites, thus allowing Batman and the police to retaliate and (as this is a melodrama superhero movie) win.

Commissioner Gordan (Gary Oldman): Like Alfred, Gordan is incapacitated through most of the movie. However, I liked how his character arch and relationship with Batman was completed at the end of the film.

John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt): The rookie cop who is suddenly catapulted to detective because of plot conveniences. Also... side-kick!

Other characters were not really memorable, but there were a few minor characters/cameos that made me smile like the nerd I am.

Cillian Murphy returns as Scarecrow/Jonathan Crane, although he is not mentioned by name. He is clearly recognizable and his role is a bit humorous. It makes me wonder whether it was originally written for the Joker, but was redone due to the death of Heath Ledger.

Liam Neeson pulls an Empire Stikes Back Obi-Wan Kenobi thing to move the plot forward and reveal something about a character that Bruce Wayne misinterprets.

Lastly, for those who have watched the Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood, Burn Gorman (Owen Harper) has a minor role in the movie, and he does a great job with the material he has.

This movie is the weakest of the trilogy and has much more in common with the first film than the sequel. One could take out The Dark Knight entirely and not really miss a thing due to the fact there are flashbacks from both films within this one (although they are luckily few and far between).

Overall rating: 3/5