The Dark Knight Rises (4½ Stars)

Thank you, Cineworld, for having "catch up" presentations in your cinemas. I missed this film when it was shown in the cinemas last year, so I jumped at the chance to see it on its one day only showing today. Films like this deserve to be seen on the big screen.

This film wraps up Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, or maybe I should call it his Dark Knight Trilogy. It's far removed from the campy Batman films of the 1980's, and even further from the 1960's television series. Batman's enemy this time is Bane. He's not identical to the Bane that we know from the 1990's DC comics, but at least he's not the mentally backward character who appeared as Poisin Ivy's henchman in "Batman & Robin". The back breaking scene was accurately copied from the comics.

At the beginning of the film Batman has retired. He returns to action after he finds out that Bane has devised a plan to bring Gotham City under his personal control. But it's even worse than this. The city will not just be controlled by him, it will be completely destroyed.

The film's imagery is spectacular, and the action is breathtaking. In itself the film deserves 5 stars, but I have to deduct half a star because Catwoman doesn't carry a whip. Sorry, that's the rules, blunders like that have to be punished. I admit that Anne Hathaway looks sexy in her costume, but the gun is so out of place. Unless I'm mistaken, she has never carried a gun in the comics. What is it with film directors and guns? They even gave Captain America a gun in his solo film.