The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Christopher Nolan's trilogy finale was intended to end with a bang and with little if any controversy, but alas, that was not the case.

Criminal cases aside, there has been much fandom complaining regarding the presumptive drop in quality from the penultimate to final film.

I happen to disagree, adamantly.

I think it's a film on par with the other two films, but one which is less about being a superhero than about a man torn, losing the hero in him, even as he fights to save Gotham.  An ideology threatened.  A city whose Utopian facade crumbles from within, tossed aside not by a man defined by faulty morality, or insane hedonistic anarchism, but a man defined by a faux leftist agenda with a destructive edge.

As a superhero film, it provides very little in terms of action and other traditional fare, although fans of Batman and his comics, will be thrilled as they see the titular and ancillary characters careening towards a predefined destiny.  There, there are no surprises, just hints spewed throughout.  A quote here, a look there, the brief mention of a name, always enough to entice and titillate.

The cinematography is not as dark and broody as Batman Begins (2005), or as crisp and hopeful as The Dark Knight (2008), which is fitting.  It is clean, and stark, and expansive, and ever so menacing in a subliminal way.  Some of the shots have focus that is slightly off, but it manages to feel like part of the stylization of the film, even if at times it comes across as not intentional.

And the one true problem with the cinematography is the use, in two occasions, of specifically iconic NYC landmarks, the Empire State Building decked in Red White and Blue, and the Freedom Tower still in construction.

I don't per se have a problem with the shift from Chicago to NYC to showcase the evolution of Gotham, although I presume a shift from 1970s New York to the modern decadent one would be more fitting.  But I get the point, this is a city that is thriving against all odds, and in its shiny lights, the moths of the underclass, the 99%, are being crushed and brushed aside.

But why use emblematic Empire State edifices that, even for a short second pulls you from the suspension of disbelief?

The music bothered me the first time I watched this, but I think that had more to do with the quality of the sound system than with the sound design and sound editing itself.  They are both, perfectly tuned and supplementary to the themes of shallow danger and menace, in a world tossed against itself in a distractionary bend.

The score is exquisite, and just like the previous two films, manages to extol the best in the audience.  Tossing you to the edge of your seat when needed, crescendoing your enthusiasm when required, and shaking your core where desired.  My only complaint would be a personal one, and that's the overuse of music, often hiding what could have been a beautiful sound design, masked behind the iconic simplicity of the Dark Knight Trilogy soundtrack.

The acting is spot on, as usual.

Gary Oldman's weak man with an iron will astuteness can be feared through his eyes.

Anne Hathaway's confused and at the same time resolute Catwoman can be felt in her schizoid manias, which are only truly matched by Christian Bale's Batman, who in a true last gasp of treason and surprise, loses his final facade, his voice, for the fractured one of his alter ego.

But the true revelation, is the complete breakdown of Michael Caine's Alfred, and his descent into failure and weakness, leaving him, at the tomb of his two previous masters, quivering his lips and crying for forgiveness.

I would like to complain about the ending though, mainly the demise of Catwoman and Batman, but it's not fitting, and it might just be my pessimistic screenwriting style (my wife's characterization, not mine), but I wanted them dead, I was ready for that, not happy in Florence, even if that goes against reason and logic.  Really in three seconds he ejected the Bat and escaped the radioactive blast radius of the bomb!  But that there hides the bigger problem, the Bat itself, and that I can't forgive.

The Bat can only really be blamed on a script that required it to be able to succeed in hiding a few plot holes, which the Bat only resolves the way duct tape fixes a broken bumper.  But that aside, the script is a true fit end to a trilogy that has been solid in its writing.

My one true unforgivable complaint, is the one weakness of editing that all three films have had, and that have bothered me on all three occasions.  The three second revelatory flashback when somebody mentions something from the past, it happened most noticeably in Batman Begins with Bruce Wayne holding a charred stethoscope in the smoldering remains of his Manor, flashing back to his father using the stethoscope on Bruce himself.  But here is seems more poignant in that it cuts away from the immaculate build up of tension and action.  I'll forgive the horrible Rachel castings before I forgive this.

Watch this film in an IMAX screen if you can help it.  The spectacle and superior sound system are worth it, just avoid the Liberty Science Center domed IMAX which keystones the image into an unrecognizable and out of focus mess.

Otherwise buy it on Blu-ray for prosperity and posterity, it rightfully deserves a place there.

The Dark Knight (2008)

Artwork for Theatrical Release

Yes, Heath Ledger is great and would have been phenomenal in the third as well (if that was the original plan).

Yes, it's a shame Cillian Murphy was notably absconded and underwellmingly pathetic.

And yes, maybe Katie Holmes should have returned for the sequel, if for nothing else than so we could see her chipmunk faced Rachel get blown up by a better actor.

But those are fanboy arguments, and have no place at the 'list.'

Unless I bring them up.

Which I did.

My apologies.  Not Really.

The Dark Knight is a far better film than Batman Begins (2005), even if more flawed.  It has a better and more complicated structure, a more humanistic, even if migraine inducing, moral and characters, both heels and heroes, that are as multi-layered as they are scary and enjoyable.

The Dark Knight's Gotham, although only a year separated from the first part, is brighter, cleaner, but still very much creepy, and often more dangerous in its enticing complacency.

The lyrical motifs in this film are spot on and subtly funny oftentimes, whereas they were non existent in its prequel.  This film is full of foreshadowing and inside jokes, which make continuous viewings very enjoyable and not repetitive.

Artwork for Theatrical Release

Heath Ledger managed to imbued his Joker with so many apropos nuances that Gary Oldman's Lt. Gordon seemed flat in comparison, while making Maggie Gyllenhaal's disinterested Rachel seem to be a part of Spiderman 3, strewn across for the ride.

A few complaints, as if I wouldn't notice (and believe me when I say that I actually hate people that do this, but this one was way too obvious).  Why does Lau use Bruce Wayne's private jet, can't he afford his own, says I tongue in cheek.  Although not a plot hole (I believe it's more a case or careless art-direction), it was significant enough for me to note it, so be warned Nolan et al, if I see Bane traipsing around in a Laughter 18-wheeler with a purple S emblazoned, I will walk out.

Although I will give them credit for not making the latter as vomit inducing as Maggie Gyllenhaal's oft ridiculed assertion "You make your own luck."

God I'm glad she went "Kaput!"

Again, buy this film twice on Blu-ray, posterity and what not.

Batman Begins (2005)

Teaser Artwork for the Theatrical Release

Batman lore aside, Batman Begins is a really well structured film, with all its singular pieces fitting properly along the others, while at the same time heightening them and emphasizing them where necessary and proper.

The editing is almost spot on, nothing jarring, nothing out of place.  The only exception coming late in the film when Christian Bale's Bruce Wayne is kneeling in the ashes of a smoldering Wayne Manor and he picks up the charred remains of his father's stethoscope.  The editor (or director, can't decide) decided to flash back to two very quick shots of a young Bruce and his father.

Um, duh!  We get it, we're not stupid!

Aside from that, I was mesmerized at the cleanliness of the editing.  There were no awkward cut aways to hide shooting problems, no unnecessary shaky cameras due to lack of b-roll.  Always staying just long enough on the impetus action and jumping away to a reaction, just as the audience starts to wonder and wander.

The camera work is exceptional and well thought out, and that helps the editing tremendously and manages to heighten all the iconic actors' performances.  Capturing every one of Michael Caine's smirks and teary eyes, all of Gary Oldman's insecurities and inner struggles, and Christian Bale's inability to handle the weight of having naively created, even if ideologically, a symbol so polarizing and destructive.

Artwork for Theatrical Release

The pacing itself is fantastic, aided in great part by the advancing narrative, the smooth editing, and the cyclical music which has, in a sometimes subtle and sometimes brash fashion, managed to become as emblematic of the Batman canon as the Tim Burton soundtrack, while avoiding the screeching Prince interludes.

On a technicality, I would rank this film lower than it deserves, and that is simply in due part, because,  at a budget of $150,000,000 it could not afford a great CGI house to create a seamless integration of the Gotham El and the Narrows.  Both seem pathetically bad, compared to the quality of the cinematography that encompass them.  Sometimes lacking contrast, sometimes seeming iridescent at night.

Buy this film twice on Blu-ray, one for posterity and one so you can watch it until the layers of the disk peel away.  It is a more than well deserve opening salvo to the Christopher Nolan Batman oeuvre.

Batman: Year One (2011)

Artwork for the DVD/BluRay release

My first ever film theater viewing, back in a dusty theater in the center of Mendoza, Argentina, was Batman (1989) with one effeminate Michael Keaton.

Ever since, I have consumed Batman everything, and although I don't consume it with the veracity of perhaps other adamant fans, I have consumed it all, including the soundtrack to the oft-vilified Batman and Robin (1997).

This film, in the cannon of Bat-films, is phenomenal, somewhere between The Batman Animated Series () with its many permutations (i.e. Mask of the Phantasm [1992]) and Batman: Gotham Knight (2008) with its episodic beauty.

Although I don't remember the comic book enough to compare it frame by frame to the movie, what bits I do recall, seem to match pretty well, and in there similarities, are surpassed.

The movie, is dark and moody; and its animation is equally so, but crisp and clean at the same time.  The voice acting is pretty spot on, and so is the music.

The only complaints come in the budget department, it feels like the film lacks in ambition.  A more demanding soundtrack and animation department, could have made this movie earth shattering, the way the 1992 animated series was.

Otherwise it is very enjoyable to watch.  Even my 3 1/2 year old daughter snuggled next to me and cheered when Catwoman put on her cowl.

Buy it, and enjoy the subtleties of it.