The Dark Knight Rises, like its predecessors, breaks the traditional flow of superhero films and perfects the tone that director Christopher Nolan has been working on throughout the series. Said tone is very formal and fancy, like the charity ball that Bruce Wayne and Selena Kyle attend in the first act. It's the type of polish that I often see in Oscer-winning Best Films, and I have to wonder if Nolan was aiming for that. Therefore, instead of employing a glib spree of action and super-fighting, Nolan makes sure to balance it all out with suspense and drama, never allowing it to be any other hero film, and therefore at the end of the day he captures what is probably appropriate for Batman and captures the elusive "this is it" feel.

It should be noted that there is also an uncredited cast member, and her name is "Intensity MacIntense" (of no relation to Steve Jobs). Intensity MacIntense shows up on many a scene, never passing up an opportunity to hang around Batman, and she can often be heard chanting in the background when Bane is being, well, intense. Directors often cast Intensity MacIntense erroneously, since she's over-the-top and many people believe that true art is angst and has to be taken seriously, but in The Dark Knight Rises her presence is done right, because if anything the Batman series should be the definitive Hollywood example of where Intensity MacIntense belongs.

It should be noted that Nolan's techniques makes almost no use of exposition, and when it does it flies underneath the radar, so in the middle of the action the inattentive viewer might stop to wonder why the heroes are doing what they're doing. It's a very good idea to keep a sharp ear and pay attention to the details, because it helped me a lot with appreciating the film, although something tells me that I will have to see it more than once in order to understand everything that happened.

The film was an odyssey of sorts. Its story was allowed to take its course and stretch out over a long period of time, which did a lot to help it evade the impression of an episodic nature. I liked it because it truly gives the characters a span of time in which they may develop, and it elevates the scale of the conflict.

During this time, Bane actually succeeds in overturning society with a plot that in the real world would forever be remembered. It was pleasing to see his success, because it would have been anticlimactic is the final villain was just as successful as previous nemeses in the series's rising action. It prevented villain decay, but more than that it also delivered something I always enjoyed seeing in villains, which is genuine success to provide a genuine challenge for a hero who must fail several times before finally succeeding.

Speaking of the hero, the titular Dark Knight actually appears very little in the film. Even Bruce Wayne has limited screen time. Though he could be considered the main character by the virtue of this being a Batman series and him being the titular character of The Dark Knight Rises, had this film been called Bane or Commissioner Gordon he would have been just a main character instead of the main character, because when viewed in the right frame of mind the cast is actually a complete ensemble. At times it felt like it was Gordon's film, and at other times it felt like it was the newcomer Detective Blake's film, because they all featured prominently, contributed to the action, and had their own personal journeys to fulfill. Batman still has his place in the movie, though, but his journey is somewhat separated from the boots of the viewer. His journey is his own, not belonging to anyone else, and he doesn't represent the everyman like other superheroes and archetypal characters. However, that doesn't make his story any less significant, since he most certainly is asked to challenge himself and change more than ever in order to rise.

Adding to the ensemble were the people of Gotham themselves, who Nolan made a strong focus. This is a very important quality in superhero literature that is often either underdone or overlooked, but it finds its appropriate balance in The Dark Knight Rises. Like his brighter counterpart Superman, Batman recognizes his place as a symbol. Throughout the film, the hopes and doubts that people have in Batman are captured, and what made it especially pleasing was that it was not exposition explaining Batman's place in society, but rather it came up because it played a role in the development of the main characters, as well as driving forward the plot. One of my favorite moments was when Batman reappeared for the first time in eight years, and an older officer recognized the signs at once and said said to a rookie that they were in for a heck of a night.

Compared to The Dark Knight, it was certainly a different film. The Joker appeared on the scene, made a big flash, and the next thing you knew he was gone. The time span was rather short, and he only managed to hurt so many people and cause so much chaos. Bane's vision was a bit larger, but it also took place over a longer period of time.

One thing that bothered me about the Joker was his intelligence, which seemed to me to be an informed ability. It often broke my willing suspension of disbelief when watching how he could mastermind everything and how he could come onto the scene one day and control all the gangs while simultaneously burning all their money. While he made a very strong impression and the acting was brilliant, there was only so much that could be said about the character. Bane, by contrast, was a believable leader. He had a voice that was made for orating, a commanding presence, and he had a preexisting cult of followers. His plans were very clear and in many ways quite simple. His ideology was clear and it was easier to see his ability to mastermind and orchestrate a giant plot.

The Dark Knight Rises makes many references to the previous films, so it very much picks up from them while still being a standalone. I should know that it works as a standalone because I watched it with a friend who hadn't seen the first two and she was hardly aware that it was part of a series, even after watching it. But anyway, it uses several flashbacks and tie-ins from the previous films, as well as multiple flashbacks that are not reused footage but are set in the original film. There are more references to the first film than the second, and even a few borrowed elements, which I think helps bring a sense of resolution to the series, especially when there are several references near the end.

It should be noted that there's a sudden but inevitable betrayal, because in these films nothing's ever as it seems. In Batman Begins, Liam Neeson was really Ras'al'Gul, and in The Dark Knight Commissioner Gordon never really died. There is a traitor in this film, and I say this confident that I'm not giving away any plot spoilers because for attentive watchers this should really be apparent, and the identity of the traitor will be obvious as the film goes on, and viewers familiar enough with the comics will even guess the exact nature of the plot twist. It was a little sad, because this was one of the areas where the film let me down. I was under the impression that it was supposed to be a surprise, but I saw it coming from a mile away.

Speaking of characters that you should pay attention to, there are a couple of characters from the comic books that make an appearance in the film, thought they aren't specifically labeled. They should be recognizable to fans by the end of the film, but they have been changed considerably, and the appearance of one of the characters took me by complete surprise. I can't tell you much about these, although I can say that the viewer should definitely invest in Detective John Blake the first time around, because by the end of the movie there's a definite payoff.

I ship a romance between Batman and Catwoman, by the way. I was impressed with the way she was written, which was grounded and far from over the top. She had femininity and skill, but she wasn't an action girl, rather a cat burglar never specifically referred to as Catwoman.. All too often I see in action films the action hero get out of situations too easily, like Black Widow, by the virtue of being an action hero, since a true action hero always has the upper hand no matter what because at the end of the day he or she is the action hero and the thugs are not. However, Selena Kyle had definite limits, and when it came to Bane and friends she knew she was in over her head. There was a genuine need for her and Batman to team up, because they needed each other and they both had to try very hard to stay on top of everything. And yes, I enjoyed her femininity, which wasn't sexual and was more complex and human. It's a good counterpart to Bruce Wayne's masculinity, which is why I was glad she was in the film and I totally ship a romance between them for the way they complement each other.

It was especially easy to like her because she's one of only three Americans in the film, whereas everybody else involved is British, which was the one nuisance that stood out in the film and its greatest flaw. That isn't saying much considering that it doesn't have many, so a better comparison is that Gotham apparently has as many Americans as it does women, which likewise only three in the entire film and equally out of place. For an American icon to be taken over by another British Invasion seems wrong, and in this way I feel the film misses the cultural mark. Fortunately, this was something I overlooked while watching it, but it's something for which I will always remember The Dark Knight Rises for.

Overall, this film was very great and will gain an Oscar Nomination. It is my favorite installment of a trilogy full of great installments because of the strength with which it resolves the series. It is dramatic and intense, but I assume that most people who are considering watching the film want it to take Christopher Nolan's style from the previous two films and bring it to its full maturity, which it did. Overall, it was a great film, and certainly the best hero film in over a decade, with the possible exception of its predecessors, depending on your tastes.

Merida