Batman vs Batman vs Batman. "The Dark Knight Rises" Review.

I have come up with a list that I call my “full confidence” list. It is made up of film directors that have 100% of my trust for whatever they are doing even if it sounds like a bad idea. I always have high expectations for them and I look forward to their next film. There are only a handful of directors on that list because in order to be on it they have to be at a certain point in their career where nothing less than a masterpiece is expected by them and they usually deliver. It’s not that they can do no wrong, because most of the directors on the list have a few stinkers, but the possibility of them turning out anything less than excellent is practically nonexistent. Although it plays a big part, the director’s track record isn’t the deciding factor on being added to the list, the short answer is that when they are ready to be on the list I will just know(It usually happens after a certain movie in their career).

The latest director to be added to the list is the auteur behind the batman series Christopher Nolan. He made the list back in 2010 when he directed the masterpiece called “Inception”. It was my favorite movie of the year back then and made me realize that Nolan wasn’t just a great director for the batman series but the real deal.

So naturally after adding Nolan to the list I was waiting forever to watch “The Dark Knight Rises” ever since it was announced, and boy was it worth the wait“The Dark Knight Rises” is a spectacularly made film with everything I could ask for in a movie. To explain the plot would be futile, as it is very deep and complex much like Inception, so I’m not going to even try, but I will say that unlike “The Avengers” which is just plain old fashioned fun, “Rises” is the most ambitious superhero film ever made. Trying to choose my favorite out of the 3 Nolan Batmans is like trying to order one thing at the cheesecake factory; it’s very hard to do but I have to do it.

“Batman Begins” is an excellent start for the series as it builds batman as a dark symbol rather than a guy in a rubber suit. It makes batman into a realistic character that could exist in reality and gives him villains that are grounded with clear motivations and fully fledged actions. He doesn’t fight crazy mutants or deranged lunatics, but mobsters, corrupt police officers, and extremist terrorists. Plus let’s not forget that it takes about an hour to see the suited Batman for the first time, in a scene involving him tossing thugs around like ragdolls.

“The Dark Knight” went a step further; more mobsters, more Batman, and more thug tossing. The Joker is a villain that is motivated only by chaos and corruption and Heath Ledger who plays him brings us a Joker that had never even been imagined before. Jack Nicholson was funny in “Batman” but he wasn’t playing the Joker, he was playing Jack Nicholson.

“The Dark Knight Rises” is on par with its predecessor making it hard for me to choose between them. In the end I would say that “The Dark Knight” is the better made film overall and I have more respect for it but that isn’t the reason I am choosing it over “Rises”; the one thing that is noticeably missing from “Rises” is the Joker. If Heath Ledger was still alive I could see no excuse to why he wasn’t in the film because the Joker would have played a big role in it, and that is why I am choosing “The Dark Knight”. Heath Ledger won an academy award for playing the Joker and for what its worth I think Anne Hathaway should win one for this movie to. Yes she was that good.

But enough of “Sophie’s Choice”. Regardless of its flaws, it is the best movie of the year so far. Go and see it!!!

10/10

Im sure some of you are wondering what my full confidence list consists of. I present to you the full list: in alphabetical order.

Christopher Nolan

James Cameron

Martin Scorsese

Peter Jackson

Quentin Tarantino

Steven Spielberg

Do you have any director that would make your list? Click here to cast your vote.

PS: I want to express my disgust over the Aurora shooting in Colorado. The culprit has done such a horrible thing on many levels; killing people, injuring others, damaging the reputation of the movie, and making moviegoers afraid of going to the movies.