When I saw this in the cinema upon release I thought it was a fairly flawed follow-up to The Dark Knight (2008). It was a very good film. But it was a bit long and had a villain whose motives were more vague and less believable than the Joker’s.
My experience wasn’t helped by seeing it in IMAX and being unable to hear the dialogue for most of the film (there wasn’t a problem, it’s just how Christopher Nolan likes his audio. Which is insane. And it’s the reason I don’t see new Nolan films in the cinema anymore).
Since then though it’s become one of my rewatched staples, and I’ve seen it another 6-8 times. Though my feelings for it remained the same. That it was great, but rather flawed and lagged in parts.
But I’ve just gotten back from seeing it in the cinema again. And I’ve walked away with an increased opinion of it. Firstly, it wasn’t in IMAX, so I could hear basically every word.
But more than that it was just wonderful seeing a proper high-quality blockbuster in the cinema. The cinematography, soundtrack, sound design, and action were great to see on the big screen. Aside from Civil War (2024), I haven’t had a cinema experience come close to it for quite a few years. Sure, there’s some cringy moments – especially from Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman. And it remains a flawed film. But it’s still a Nolan film, so it’s many times better than nearly all the dross that I see these days.
The Dark Knight Rises is still a wonderful film to sit back and experience. 83%
Find out where to stream it. This review is also on Letterboxd. See my original review from 2012.
