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Friday, July 20, 2012

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (2012)

Directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring Christin Bale, Michael Caine, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman, Marion Cotillard, Morgan Freeman, Matthew Modine, Cillian Murphy, Juno Temple, Aidan Gillen, Liam Neeson, Nestor Carbonell, Josh Stewart

At the time of Heath Ledger's death, when rumors already started to circulate about the possible plot of the third movie in Nolan's series, it was said that The Joker was supposed to be included in this film. Now it's easy to see why. The anarchy released in previous installments, as large as it had been, was only a prelude to the third act where pretty much every major villain in the series thus far shows up. Shit, they even bring back Neeson's dead Ra's Al Ghul. Kind of. Gotham's destiny is threatened even more than ever before. The stakes are up. Not only for the people of Gotham and our legendary caped crusader but also for Nolan.

 The Dark Knight was a massive box office hit which was not only because of the brilliant film itself but also 'cause of Ledger's untimely demise during the film's post-production. The Joker was his last completed (and most brilliant) work. Rises didn't have anything as dramatic going on behind the scenes until the film opened earlier today. Unfortunately this film also now has the shadow of death over it after the brutal shootings at the Denver premiere which left 12 dead and several injured including a three month old baby (may I ask what the fuck was the baby doing there in the first place?). This unfortunate incident will no doubt have very little impact on the movie's success which Warner Bros still predicted will most likely not outdo the second installment.

 The pressure was on Nolan to deliver a die hard ending to his acclaimed trilogy not only after The Dark Knight but also after the success of Inception and though Nolan doesn't quite reach the same absolute brilliance of those pieces, Rises is still a masterful, well thought-out conclusion to the series with the third act climaxing to a beautiful and valiant hint at the future. Especially the very last shot before credits almost brought a tear to my eye.

 Anarchy returns to Gotham eight years after the events of the previous film and largely thanks to Hardy's bald baddie Bane. Hardy is a brilliant actor and he does wonders with the minimalistic delivery. Nolan brought back alot of his Inception cast and they perform together seamlessly now in Gotham City. Rises has great characters and a brilliant cast to perform them though I personally thought Hathaway's Catwoman was a bit feeble and even useless. No-one still can swing their tail like Michelle Pfeiffer. Also, at times the film seems a bit scattered and the evil plot of the bad guys doesn't have the same brilliance of The Joker's plan (or lack thereof), a plan which kind of gave you pause 'cause it actually made sense in it's demented way and was even appealing. Well, to me at least. His plan put not only Batman and the rest of the characters but also the audience to a test of moral reflection. The Dark Knight Rises is a very solid film much like Batman Begins but maybe not the masterpiece The Dark Knight was.

SINIVALKOISILLE
Yön Ritarin Paluu sai synkän ensi-illan Denverissä sattuneen ammuskelun merkeissä, mutta tämä tuskin tulee kumminkaan pitkällä tähtäimellä vaikuttamaan suuresti elokuvan menestykseen. Normaalisti kassamenestys ei olisi ainakaan itselle mielenkiinnon kohde, mutta koska edellinen osa nettosi aivan rutosti hilloa paljolti Heath Ledgerin valitettavan poismenon luoman ilmapiirin ansiosta, oli tälle trilogian päätösosalle jo tältäkin osin kovat paineet. Kova paine on saattanut olla ohjaaja Nolanillakin, joka ei ole niittänyt mainetta lähivuosina ainoastaan Batman-elokuvillaan vaan myös massiiviseksi hitiksi paisuneella (ja nerokkaalla) filmillä Inception. Anarkia tekee hienon paluun Gothamiin pääasiassa Hardyn nerokkaan minimalistisesti tulkitseman kaljun pahiksen, Banen myötä. Käsikirjoitus on nokkela ja tarjoaa kimurantteja käänteitä, mutta lopulta se ei riitä verrattaessa Jokerin suunnitelmiin (tai tarkalleen ottean niiden olemattomuuteen) edellisessä osassa. Ne olivat kumminkin kaikessa hulluudessaan jopa houkuttelevia ja hyvin järkeiltyjä argumentteja, jotka pistivät lepakkomiehen lisäksi myös katsojan pohtimaan omaa paikkaansa moraalisessa mittelössä. Yön Ritarin Paluun jatkuvuus tuntuu hieman rikkinäiseltä ajoittan ja Hathawayn Kissanainen tuntui ainakin henkilökohtaisesti hieman kesyltä ja jopa turhalta. Michelle Pfeiffer on siis edelleen kevyesti ikimuistoisin hännänheiluttaja. Kiteyttäisin niin, että Yön Ritarin Paluu on loistava elokuva kuten ensimmäinen osa, Batman Begins, mutta ei aivan mestariteos kuten Yön Ritari.

The Dark Knight Rises at IMDb

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