BY: Divina Sethi
The Dark Knight Rises marks the end of the beloved Dark Knight trilogy. Christopher Nolan sealed the deal with this one. Dark Knight Rises promises action, love, betrayal, courage and the re-emergence of batman.
Set eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, it shows a side to Bruce Wayne that fans have never seen before. We have seen Bruce angry, hurt and vindictive, but never broken. In this film- following the death of his childhood sweetheart- Bruce has retracted into his shell and retired as the nocturnal hero of Gotham.
However, Gotham still needs the masked vigilante. Several events and people in the entire film initiate the revival of Batman. One of these is John Blake (played by Joseph Gordon Levitt), a police officer who was orphaned at a young age. Blake has grown up idolising Batman and his courage, and he returns the favour by (unbeknownst to him) inspiring Wayne to reprise his role as the city’s saviour.
The plot showed not only the revival of Batman, but also the revival of Ra’s al Ghul’s legacy, carried forward by his relative (spoilers!) and her accomplice Bane. Tom Hardy plays the 7 feet tall supervillain Bane, who overpowers Batman in every possible way. Other new characters are introduced in this film. Anne Hathaway’s batgirl is initially shown to be a notorious burglar, who eventually joins forces with the Bat and Marion Cotillard plays Miranda Tate, Wayne Enterprise’s CEO and Bruce’s new lover.
The best part of the film, and any film out of the trilogy is the philosophy. The Dark Knight trilogy is probably the most philosophical superhero franchise. Wayne doesn’t bother about the cliché of being a hero; he merely wants to protect the city his parents built. The philosophical issues that the first two films tackled were revenge and anger respectively. This movie focuses on Batman’s courage and commitment towards his city after being exiled to an underground prison.
It gives me hope that someone so broken has the ability to heal himself and find a sense of purpose and courage within him after having lost it in the last film.
If not for the action, watch The Dark Knight Rises for an incredible end to the best superhero franchise of all time!
Panorama 2016 