The Dark Knight Rises (4K Ultra HD)

Me: "you don't NEED to make another Batman film! You have given us everything!" Nolan: "Not everything, not yet." The Dark Knight Rises borrows many elements from The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Knightfall, but DO NOT think this is a straight forward adaptation of those storys. This just borrows some key plot elements, and becomes a stand alone movie. It's alot like what Nolan did with Batman Begins, as that one was heavily inspired by Batman: Year one, but became its own story. WARNING: I may SPOIL The SECOND installment, The DARK KNIGHT, in DETAIL. So at the end of The Dark Knight, Batman took the blame for Harvey Dents fall, now becoming enemy number 1 of the police. The Dark Knight Rises takes place 8 years after the Dark Knight, and as it turns out, Bruce Wayne gave up Batman and is now retired. Meanwhile, Gotham City is currently celebrating a time of peace. The Joker was captured at the end of The Dark Knight (and although his fate is uncertain in this film, all you need to know is that he's gone) and the police have cleaned up the rest of Gotham. Although peace has been achieved in Gotham, our heros have pretty much been eaten alive by this lie. Bruce Wayne hung up the Batman symbol, but never moved on. He is a recluse in Wayne Manor, not knowing what to really do with is life. As for Jim Gordan, lets just say he has been messed up the most mentally after Dark Knight. His wife has left him, and he has been speeking this lie for 8 years, PRAISING Dent going "oh, Harvey Dent, truth, justice, and the american way!" while thinking "yeah, Harvey Dent, the jerk that tried to kill my own son!". So in a way, Jim Gordan is on his own, having nothing but this lie he has to live with. Things change, however, when our terrorist Bane steps in Gotham. He has one purpose: take control of Gotham. He starts a series of attacks in Gotham, forcing Bruce Wayne to pick up the mantle of Batman again to reclaim his city. Of course, there is much more to Banes plan, as he wants to break Batman both mentally and physically. Why? Because Bane is associated with a previous villain in this series, and seeks revenge. This all leeds to a number of sub plots and character arcs (along with the introduction of several new characters) all leading up to an ending where everything is tied together. The POSITIVES: -The writing is great (not as great as Begins and The Dark Knight, but still great). -The action and effects are sensational! 90 percent of the action of this film is done with practical effects and death defying stunt work. There isn't really an iconic "money shot" scene like the truck flip in the Dark Knight, but the action is still really good. Also, the fist fights between Batman and Bane aren't as good as they should be, but are still alright, and improved over Begins and Dark knight. But, the dialogue between Batman and Bane makes up for it. -The acting is incredible. The characters are written and portrayed well, and are all great. There are probably too many characters to take in one film, but, they are all still done well, and you don't want any of them to have been cut out of the film. -There are some great moralls too. Plenty of emotion, and some good character analysis. -The ending: there are no words to describe but EPIC. It's written great, filmed great, and acted great. Somehow, Chris Nolan wraped everything up PERFECTLY, and I am shocked he was able to do so. Trust me, he MEANT IT when he said this would be the final Batman film of this series. SURPRISES: -One of the main charcters in this film was Anne Hathaway as Catwoman. Her role isn't EXTREMELY pivotal to the plot, but important to Bruce Waynes story, and she has plenty of screen time. I didn't think Hathaway would be a good Catwoman, at all, but I was wrong! She was cast PERFECTLY, and gave a great performance. Tom Hardy I already new would be a great Bane (and he was). -In The Dark Knight Rises, ALOT of new characters are introduced, but thankfully, almost every character gets enough screentime, and they all give great performances. -Another newcomer particularly is Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who gives a great performance as Officer John Blake. Although an original character by Nolan, he has several chatracteristics of a few charcters from the comics. He was acted and written so well, that I WANT to see this John Blake character in the comics. -And lets not forget the plot twists. There are moments of BRILLIANCE in this film. Obiously I won't spoil the plot twists for anyone though. Sure, I saw 1 or 2 of them coming, but there were a few I DID NOT expect. The NEGATIVES: -one nitpick I have is how Batman immediatly retired after Dents cover up. Instead, I would have stated Bruce continued to be Batman for 2 or 3 years (as a fugitive being hunted by the police) and slowly faded away, and by the point of this film, he has only been retired for a couple years. This is only a nitpick, since the starting off point of the film would stay the same, and this change wouldn't have made much difference to the plot. And it would still take place 8 years later, the only difference being he has just been retired for a couple years, instead of all 8. -Banes voice is an issue for alot of people. Trust me, you can understand him... 97 percent of them time. There are a few lines of dialogue that you can't quite understand, but overall, the voice was fine. BUT, in the opening, Banes voice was TERRIBLE! Yeah, I could understand him, but you couldn't help but laugh whenever he talked. After the opening act, however, they got the tone right, and Bane started to sound cool later, just bad in the opening. -editing was alright, but felt kind of "choppy" at times. -The pacing was good for the length, but still not that great. -alot of people think the film was too long. I disagree, I thought it was to SHORT! -The movie is 2 and a half hours long, but, this movie is the definition of a 3 hour movie. If it was just 15 minutes longer, almost all of my problems would be fixed.. The pacing would have been better, and the film just would have "flowed" better, instead of feeling clutered with information. And considering that some of our most successful films (Titanic, Lord of the Rings, and a few others) are well OVER 3 hours, I doubt extra length would have been a negative effect on this film in any way. -Despite the large amount of characters cramed into 2 and a half hours, most of the characters get enough screen time, except for one. Marion Cotillard as Wayne interprise member Miranda Tate. She gets a good amount of screentime, but still needed more. If the film was 10 to 15 minutes longer, 5 extra minutes JUST with her would have given her character more time. She was the one character that just didn't get enough development. -I have a few other nitpicks, but only a few are worth mentioning. There is a scene with a bank robbery in broad daylight, but 8 minutes later, it's pitch black! And when it comes to the plot midway through, it may seem a little illogical, but no more than Batman Begins or Dark Knight, so you can't question what is realistic and what isn't WITHOUT questioning the others. You can't ask one question without asking another. Overall, The Dark Knight Rises is, whether you like it or not, a good film, and an incredible ending to Chris Nolans trilogy. And alot of people complain about the ending, saying "MY Batman wouldn't do this!" well, it's not anyone elses Batman in this series, it's Chris Nolans Batman. We all have out own interpretation of the Batman character, and Chris Nolan gives us his. And personally, I don't think Chris Nolan could have ended his take any better. So, if you ignore the comics, forget your personal opinion on the Batman mythology, and view The Dark Knight Rises as a STAND ALONE MOVIE, you should be fine. The main reason why the ending works is BECAUSE it's forshadowed in the previous 2 films (if you payed attention, of course). "if you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, you will become something else entirely. A legend." As a man he can be destroyed, but as a symbol, he can live forever. THAT is a comman theme illustrated in this entire trilogy. If you can accept that, then you should know that The Dark Knight Rises has a very fitting end. If you liked Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, there is no good reason to NOT like this one. If you liked Begins (but didn't care for The Dark Knight) this should be a pleasant surprise, as this movie ties in ALOT to Begins, and I would even reccomend everyone to rewatch Begins before viewing Rises. But, if you DIDN'T care for Begins or Dark Knight, this film probably won't win you over, but everyone should still check this out. For me, this film gave me everything: Suspense, action, genius writing, great performances, 2 great cameos, plot twists, and an incredible ending, Nolan book ends everything as a trilogy should. Another word of warning: If you are looking for a nonstop "Batman" film, well, this may not be for you. This movie features less screentime for Bruce Wayne in the Batsuit than any other Batman movie. But that's the point. We got plenty of Batman in The Dark Knight, so now, we have Bruce Waynes story being completed. If you don't like Chris Nolans take on Batman, that's fine, but don't HATE on these movies just because they aren't for you. Sure, it is pretty illogical at times, but just as much as every other movie in existance. And if someone is going to tear this film apart over nitpicks or small plotholes, trust me, if I tried I could EASILY do that to any other movie. Just acknowledge that these ARE good films, instead of complaining about what you DON'T like. It's not that I ignore the problems in this movie, it's because there is MUCH more good than bad, so I can still give it 5 stars. Also, some people were dissapointed with The Dark Knight Rises because the expectations were SO overwhelmingly high. PLEASE, do NOT let your expectations get the best of you! Think logically (like me) before viewing this movie. Sure, this film isn't 10 times better than Dark Knight as that was to Begins, but, it's still great! I still love all 3 chapters of this trilogy (something alot of trilogys fail at). So, if you enjoyed Batman Begins and Dark Knight (and payed attention to the themes illustrated in them) you should enjoy this. Is this the PERFECT everything a fanboy could want Batman film? Well, no. But heck it'll do! It's still a great Batman movie, and succeeds in doing what was most important: giving the trilogy a fitting ending. Sure, the movie isn't perfect, but quite frankly, a perfect film just doesn't exist. And if there is anything else that anyone is confused or scratching their head about, please comment. After seeing this film 3 times, I have been able to explain nearly every plothole or problem I had when I watched it the first time. If you were confused in any way, feel free to ask questions :) Everyone should check this out, as it is a truly incredible ending to this amazing trilogy. Me: "I never said thank you." Nolan: "and you will never have to."

The following review started out as a gentle and respectful reply to another reviewer, so it may not seem as cohesive as other reviews, but I'm now posting it for two reasons: 1) I'm really tired of all the "too long" comments, because I see that response as an indication of the general loss of decent attention spans that now exists in the citizens of our troubled nation (USA, but maybe other nations too?), and 2) there seem to be a lot of shots taken at Chris Nolan-just for being Nolan, and since--IMHO--TDKR is the most "Nolan-ese" of the series, I suppose people who don't like Nolan will find more to dislike than those who like him. And, it may also be true that points 1 and 2 above are connected. On the other, I really like long films, and I really like Chris Nolan's film-making, so I'll admit that my bias in those two areas shows up clearly. Oh well. But, to the "review": I'm not a Batman fanatic, from the comix side, but I do like Chris Nolan, esp Memento & Inception, and I guess this film "felt" more like a Chris Nolan film than the first two. I'll also concede that I am one of those crazy people who actually likes *really* long films! (Ben-Hur and Lawrence of Arabia are two of my favorites.) Having said that, I'll note that I thought TDKR was amazing, and--in some ways--the best of the three. I had not read many reviews of this one until I watched it, so the way the plot unfolded was mostly new to me, and I have to say that I genuinely liked the way Nolan paced that unfolding, especially as Bane was set-up as virtually unbeatable, perhaps even by Batman at his peak. I've heard Bane described as "jolly," or perhaps just too flippant, but I think his attitude is simply a supreme confidence to the point of arrogance, and his arrogance makes him dismiss Batman, and any other opponents, with a vile amusement that is probably flip and sarcastic, and tied very much to his angry and bitter "soul." Also, to note one example that comes up as negative, I have seen the "climb" out of the prison described as "too long," or "boring." Nonetheless, I really liked the technique of revisiting Wayne's attempts until he finally took the blind prisoner's advice and climbed "as a child," without the rope. Now, I'll concede that after the first two attempts, I was already telling myself, "he has to do it without the rope, like a kid," but I think Nolan wanted the audience to be a bit ahead of Wayne on that point, because he kept showing the footage of the kid climbing, and the absence of the rope was pretty obvious. To me, it shows that Batman/Wayne is still having difficulty getting his mind/spirit back to the point where he can battle Bane with any chance of success, and Nolan just lets us see that before the character does. Some folks have criticized Nolan's portrayal of Batman/Wayne as borderline crippled over an 8-year period, but he is just human, after all, and it shouldn't be a shock that his emotional loss in The Dark Knight sparked a long period of withdrawing from everything. If you believe Batman is simply a man in great shape and with great martial arts training, and with a few other skills, then you will accept that all of that can be lost through neglect and carelessness and a sorrowful apathy. OK, I'm in danger of rambling here, but I guess my point, for what it's worth, is that I have watched all three of the films in this particular Batman series. I have really enjoyed all three, but I've been waiting for the true "Nolan" twists to show up. Batman Begins was extraordinarily tame in its "Nolanisms," and then The Dark Knight seemed much more a Nolan product (esp in the Joker protrayal), and finally in The Dark Knight Rises, the "true Nolan" finally shows up, especially in those scenes where the action is so fast and shocking that it is almost bewildering, which is what you get in Inception (albeit for different narrative reasons). As for the ending, should Nolan have left Batman's fate more ambiguous, and would that have been more effective? Possibly, but as it stands, Wayne's fate is something about which only the audience, Alfred, Lucius, and Selena truly know. From an emotional perspective, I just liked that touch(with no excuse). There's other little stuff too, like the way Gordon is brought down and chastized for allowing the lie about Batman to continue. Gordon has been a true shining star up until this film, and he does his best to get his police force back on board, and he ultimately makes sure Batman's image is reversed, but there is a point, after Bane reads his speech, that Gordon is justifiably portrayed as pathetic and helpless. Again, a Chris Nolan technique that produced in me a profoundly sad feeling. Yikes! This was a lot longer than I intended. I'm not trying to slam anyone else's review, or start a "review war;" I'm just pointing out the personal perspective from which I "watched" this one, and I'm hoping some of you on the border might give TDKR another shot. Happy New Year!!! Grace and peace, Rick.

I was exceptionally impressed by this trilogy as a whole. The Dark Knight blew most people away and set an extremely high standard for this one to meet. I don't think this film met the standard for pure intrigue set almost single-handedly by Heath Ledger in his role as the Joker. I was however very impressed by Tom Hardy's performance as Bane and loved the character. I have heard many complaints about Bane from random people, but he is well constructed and developed, and highly formidable. He is a completely different animal from the Joker, and as the original story told, was meant to be Batman's arch-nemesis. I loved this movie for many reasons, including the depth of plot and for the story itself. Like most great movies, I think that it takes multiple viewings to pick up on all of the subtleties woven into the plot. (Study it closely naysayers, depth is there.) Many people complain of gaps and plot holes, but I don't give those complaints as much credence due to the subtle points woven in. Nolan does a good job of succinctly referencing most of those issues to move the story along quickly, you just have to pay closer attention. So purely as entertainment, I think this movie is incredible and well worth multiple viewings. ~plot spoiler alert from this point on~ This movie is very important, culturally, in my opinion. Nolan clearly draws a lot of inspiration from our society today, and writes a lot of cultural parallels into the movie. Much of what I am referencing here is the class warfare instigated by the cries of Bane for the citizenry to take back their city. A certain portion of the population is fooled into following a certain number of Bane's henchmen (not to mention the criminals set free) under the pretenses of rights to other people's property. This may seem like a digression, but Catwoman's character is a huge part of this side of the story. She is the caught between the two sides throughout much of the movie. She begins as one who sympathizes with movement of the [storm that is coming]. As the movie progresses however, she transforms from one who agrees with the deluded occupiers, to someone actively (however unwilling and detached she tries to be) engaged in fighting alongside the rational opposition to Bane. Catwoman's character is necessary for Nolan because I believe he wanted to show the line of logic that a fence sitter could follow to go from one side to the other. The tipping point for Catwoman was after a family was unceremoniously ripped from their home and Catwoman stood looking at a photo of the family and said "This was someone's home..." to which her friend replied, "No, this is everyone's home." She failed to buy into the propaganda machine controlled by Bane, and subsequently began to oppose those she once stood with. There are many more details showing cultural and societal parallels written into the movie. I won't go into any more, but in case it interests you in addition to the the movie for story's sake, watch for them. That is all, it's an incredible movie.

The simple question brings a complex answer here. The question with "The Dark Knight Rises" is obvious--is it as good as "The Dark Knight"??!? The answer is "No"--but that is an answer that has to be considered in context. "The Dark Knight" is arguably The Best Superhero Movie Ever; clearly is at or near the top of anyone's list in the genre. It also is one of the best movies made in the first decade of the 21st century. But when considered with movie series that have gone into two to three sequels, "The Dark Knight Rises" is a high-quality effort; very much a worthy third act in Christopher and Jonathan Nolan's story of Bruce Wayne. Take into account some of the recent "third chapters" we've seen--X-Men 3, Spider-Man 3, The Bourne Ultimatium; Superman 3 from the '80s, Rush Hour 3, Batman Forever from the Burton/Shoemaker set...TDKR sets itself above these movies because it follows the continuity of the first two movies--the path that the Nolans followed, their vision of Bruce and Gotham--and gave it a full and completed story. Chris and Jonathan have been very good in combining parts and pieces of the great Batman stories of the last 25 years in this series. Obviously, much of their vision of Wayne has been based on Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" throughout the trilogy; and there were strong elements of "The Killing Joke" in TDK as well as harbingers of the "No Man's Land" series from 1999. TDKR--obviously--draws from both "Knightfall" and allows a reimaging of "No Man's Land" to come to fruition. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that the Nolans REALLY liked the "No Man's Land" scenario. But just as obviously, Chris and Jon also took great care with their imaging of The League of Shadows--in their real-world vision of The Bat, The League seems the perfect and best antagonist to this vision. Tom Hardy's Bane, in turn, fits brilliantly. Hardy captures much of what the character was when he was introduced--highly intelligent, uncompromisingly vicious. Again, much credit goes to the Nolans, who have a capacity for getting actors who will physically mold themselves. Christian Bale worked himself into good shape for all these movies. Hardy becomes a powerful, intimidating presence as Bane; though his mask (The positive for the Blu-Ray/DVD set is that Hardy's lines--at times, unintelligible in the theater--were cleaned up for the disc release...) serves a different purpose than in the original story. It's a great performance from Hardy, who has to do so much of it just with his eyes. This movie allows for the actors that Chris and Jon rely on for good performances to step up--Joseph Gordon-Levitt's John Blake, the young Gotham police officer who knows who Bruce Wayne is/was and brings him back into the game; Marion Cotillard's Miranda Tate ("I'm sorry, but what was her name again...??!?"), and again, Hardy. Bale's final turn as Bruce Wayne...is morose at first, with Bruce having become Howard Hughes in the aftermath of the Joker and Harvey Dent. As I've said over the years, Chris and Jonathan see Bruce Wayne more as a person with multiple personas more than a person with a secret identity; and what Christian captures early is how not letting the Batman out has affected him. Christian has been solid in his interpretation thoughout the trilogy. What brings Bale's Wayne back to "The Game" are Gordon-Levitt's Blake--explaining what he knows about Bruce, how he knows, and the sudden direness of the situation; AND... Anne Hathaway's Selina Kyle. I cannot emphasize enough that Hathaway just kills it. She brilliantly captures the modern-day Selina; sharp-tongued, skilled high-end jewel thief, top-end martial artist, protector of her neighborhood...and just drop-dead gorgeous, especially in her catsuit. Kudos to the Nolans for the cat-eared goggles for Selina. In interviews after the completion and release of the movie, Hathaway has wistfully talked about Selina, quietly imploring the Nolans to revisit her at some point. Here's an open hope that the Nolans DO find a path back to her. Michael Caine's Alfred seems full of regrets here, and does not get as much screen time as in the first two. Morgan Freeman's Lucius Fox is still the sly and intelligent inventor. Gary Oldman has had a wonderful grip on Jim Gordon throughout. Again--"The Dark Knight Rises" is not on the level of its magnificent predecessor. But it is a very, very good film; and a great completion to The Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy. Plus, it does leave some crumbs out there to lead to a new storyline. So, bravo to Christopher and Jonathan; Christian, Michael, Gary, Morgan, Liam Neeson, Anne, JG-L, Tom, Marion...well done. Highly recommended.

As far as trilogy enders go (Matrix, Lord of the Rings, Santa Clause) this is hands down awesome...but that's only because the bar has been set so low. I'd rate The Dark Knight Rises slightly ahead of Star Wars III, but it doesn't hold up to the standards of quality set in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. The pacing was forced, the story illogical, and a sense that this was Batman you were seeing, but that everything was trying to be wrapped up prematurely, like half the development team was doing their job and the other half just wanted to get it over with and get paid. *Spoilers* Bruce Wayne losing Wayne Corporation: between his wits and Lucius Fox that would never happen, nor would they build a fusion reactor without realizing beforehand that the technology could be converted into a bomb. That's an oversight neither man would make. Second, Bruce's personal fortune would not be tied up in a single location for someone to steal with a thumb print at the stock exchange. He would have bank accounts, etc that would be uneffected, so the idea of him being broke is ridiculous. Still, the way the movie is filmed it seems plausible if you don't think too hard and just go along for the ride, as most people seem to do with movies. Catwoman: pleasant surprise to see Anne Hathaway fit the roll so well. Her acting saved a badly written part, for her betraying Batman to his death then falling in love with him makes no sense, nor does Batman's telling her she's making a serious mistake and then is all 'forgive and forget' later. He didn't even punch her once for that, even though he nearly died. The Bat Plane: Fox says it's just another Wayne prototype...so where's it been the past 8 years? If it had been something Fox had been working on in the interim, fine, but he doesn't say that, so why didn't he give this to Bruce in Batman Begins? That said, the design and function is awesome. Good tech work, bad writing. Bruce the Hermit: The knee leg injury was said to have been from the fall that killed Dent, but we see Batman running away afterwards...so no serious injury. He's had 8 years of 'retirement' to heal up, get reconstructive surgery, whatever. No excuse for him to be in anything but perfect health. As for being a recluse, he should be a fit recluse, otherwise all the lessons he learned in the first two movies are tossed aside. Batman was supposed to be on the run, every night patroling the city looking for bad guys and having to run from the police at the same time, not retire and live in the east wing of Wayne manor pining over Rachel. Ras's daughter: Why wasn't she there when Bruce was trained? Was she already on the board of Wayne Enterprises? She and Bane pop out of thin air into the league of Shadows storyline. Bane: Supposed to get stronger from the drugs, not use them as painkillers for an injury that we never get to see. He is clunky, slow, and strong. Batman's fighting knowledge should have him dancing around the man with hit and run attacks, not going at him fist to fist. Bane's victory was forced. As for his line about having grown up in the dark...he lived in a prison with a giant sunroof! Gotham held hostage for 5 months: no point in this save to give Bruce time to heal and escape. If they planned on nuking the city they'd do it. If they planned on taking over and staging a revolution, they'd do it. Both didn't fit. Ras's manipulation was designed to destroy the city, not play with them. This was not a true league of shadows operation. Alfred leaves: not true to character, nor his revealing the note he'd burnt. His absence seemed to be written in to get Bruce alone and poor. Having a Butler sticking around would be counter productive. Again, the storyline was forced here. Bridge blown to stop bus: All the bridges were blown in the beginning...save one??? Supposedly to get supplies in, you assume, but then you see barricades and fencing put up to keep people from getting out. Again, written in just to have something to blow up at the end for dramatic purposes. Robin discovers Batman: Apparently happens due to a look on Bruce Wayne's face, showing him the same pain at having lost his parents. But wait a second...Bruce Wayne lost his parents, so Bruce Wayne should look like that. Batman didn't lose his parents, as far as everyone knows, so where's the link between Bruce and Batman? Total bomb here. Makes zero sense. Training Robin: a few conversations, a bad of goodies, nothing more. Gordon's speach: Conveniently ends up in Bane's hands. He says 'search him' and the first thing the goons grab out of his pockets is a bunch of paper? They then find a gun...shouldn't they have got his gun when they knocked him out in the first place? Bad writing here, all to get the speach into Bane's hands. Clean Slate: Very convenient technology. Daggot's little speach points that out well. Fighting: Not enough effort put into this. Batman Begins level of choreography was not replicated. Bummer. You can see bad guys waiting around waiting their turn to get hit. Police mob at end: So cliche it doesn't deserve to be in Batman. Walk up at tanks held by criminals? Seriously? Bad writing again. Batman's armory: How did Bane find it? How did he know where to look for it? It was supposed to be a secret, so where was the security breach? Never explained. Batman getting owned: Little things like Catwoman disappearing when his back is turned...Batman doesn't turn his back. He's the badass, and the writing waters down the character to trump up catwoman. This was much more a Bruce Wayne movie than a Batman movie, and they didn't do Bruce Wayne well either. His intelligence disappears at convenient times. Bruce running away with Catwoman: nice ending after thinking he's dead, but totally out of character. Both them hooking up and him quitting being Batman. Gothan is a mess, Gordon needs help, and he leaves an untrained newbie to take care of everything and even a brand new bat signal on the roof? No, totally not right. Bruce Wayne leaving Gotham behind permanently and running off(supposedly broke)just doesn't fit. Batman/Bruce is not supposed to be happy. He is a tragic figure turned hero...not a lover/family man. Him being happy is not the objective, him keeping other people from avoiding the loss that plagues him is. That is Batman. A lot of good things in this movie, but the writing was subpar and contradictory with the previous two films. In the end it's worth watching a few times, but in the grand scheme of things it doesn't live up to Batman Begins, at all.

Great movie

Fabulous.

This is the third and final movie in the Nolan Batman trilogy. The movie is set years down the line from the events of The Dark Knight. Batman has essentially disappeared and Bruce Wayne has become a crippled shut-in, hobbled by injuries from years as Batman. Of course, those two things do not seem to correlate as (seemingly) nobody has any idea who Batman is. However, Gordon who knows (and carries with him an admission) of Batman's innocence in the killings that Two-Face committed, is not exactly looking to track Batman down. When a new threat in the form of Bane (played by Tom Hardy) emerges and threatens the city, Bruce must yet again don the cape and cowl. The movie also includes Catwoman/Selena Kyle, played wonderfully by Anne Hathaway, but much differently than how Michelle Pfeiffer played the role in Batman Returns. There are a ton of Blu-Ray extras. There is a screen app integration that is kind of like a picture-in-picture track that can be played with the movie that acts kind of like a commentary track and kind of like a behind-the-scenes look at making the film. But it is very clunky to use. On the second Blu-Ray discs, which just has extras, there is a feature on ending the trilogy that is split into three main parts, each part having several individual sections. All of the material is very interesting and well worth watching, and in total are probably as long (or longer) in running time than the movie itself. Overall, the series was wrapped up very well. The ending was a bit forced for me, and takes a lot of suspension of disbelief, beyond what you already have to have for a movie like this. It was very well-acted and had tie-ins to the first movie. I know that some people felt the reveal at the end of who was working with Bane was forced but did not mind it. While it was not, in my opinion, as good as The Dark Knight, I think it provided a fitting end to the trilogy and is definitely worth the pickup on Blu-Ray (or on 4K UHD now that it is available in that format).