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''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), the '' Blade'' ...
. The film is based on the
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. ( doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with the ...
character
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...
, it is the final installment in Nolan's ''The Dark Knight'' trilogy, and the sequel to '' The Dark Knight'' (2008). The film stars
Christian Bale Christian Charles Philip Bale (born 30 January 1974) is an English actor. Known for his versatility and physical transformations for his roles, he has been a leading man in films of several genres. He has received various accolades, includin ...
as Bruce Wayne / Batman, alongside Michael Caine,
Gary Oldman Gary Leonard Oldman (born 21 March 1958) is an English actor and filmmaker. Known for his versatility and intense acting style, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and three British Academy F ...
, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard,
Joseph Gordon Levitt Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...
, and
Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...
. Eight years after the events of ''The Dark Knight'', the revolutionary
Bane Bane may refer to: Fictional characters * Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman * Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series * Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy * Bane the Druid, a Gua ...
forces Bruce Wayne to resume his role as Batman and save Gotham City from nuclear destruction. Christopher Nolan was hesitant about returning to the series for a third film, but agreed after developing a story with his brother and Goyer that he felt would conclude the series on a satisfactory note. Nolan drew inspiration from Bane's comic book debut in the 1993 " Knightfall" storyline, the 1986 series ''
The Dark Knight Returns ''The Dark Knight Returns'' (alternatively titled ''Batman: The Dark Knight Returns'') is a 1986 four-issue comic book miniseries starring Batman, written by Frank Miller, illustrated by Miller and Klaus Janson, with color by Lynn Varley, and pub ...
'', and the 1999 storyline "
No Man's Land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...
". Filming took place from May to November 2011 in locations including
Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the ...
,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, Newark, and
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
. Nolan used
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...
70 mm film 70 mm film (or 65 mm film) is a wide high-resolution film gauge for motion picture photography, with a negative area nearly 3.5 times as large as the standard 35 mm motion picture film format. As used in cameras, the film is wid ...
cameras for much of the filming, including the first six minutes of the film, to optimize the quality of the picture. A vehicle variation of the Batplane and Batcopter termed the "Bat", an underground prison set, and a new Batcave set were created specifically for the film. As with ''The Dark Knight'', viral marketing campaigns began early during production. When filming concluded, Warner Bros. refocused its campaign, developing promotional websites, releasing the first six minutes of the film, screening theatrical trailers, and sending out information regarding the film's plot. ''The Dark Knight Rises'' premiered in New York City on July 16, 2012. The film was released in the United States and the United Kingdom on July 20, 2012. The film received positive reviews, with praise being directed toward the performances, action sequences, direction, screenplay, musical score, and emotional depth, with many critics deeming it a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy. The film grossed over $1 billion worldwide, making it the second film in the ''Batman'' film series to earn $1 billion, and the highest-grossing Batman film to date. In addition to being Nolan's highest-grossing film, it became the seventh-highest-grossing film of all time at the time of its release, as well as the third-highest-grossing film of 2012. It was named one of the top 10 films of 2012 by the
American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...
. It is considered one of the greatest superhero films of all time, one of the best films of the 2010s, and one of the best sequels of all time.


Plot

Above
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
, a masked former member of the
League of Shadows The League of Assassins (sometimes renamed the League of Shadows or Society of Shadows in adapted works) is a group of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The group is depicted as a collective of assassins who ...
,
Bane Bane may refer to: Fictional characters * Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman * Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series * Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy * Bane the Druid, a Gua ...
, leads an attack on a
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
plane to abduct Russian nuclear physicist, Dr. Leonid Pavel, while planting a corpse as the scientist's decoy before crashing the aircraft. Meanwhile, it has been eight years after the death of District Attorney Harvey Dent, and organized crime has been eradicated in Gotham City thanks to legislation giving expanded powers to the police. Police commissioner James Gordon has kept Dent's killing spree as "
Two-Face Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character was created by Bob Kane and first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #66 (August 1942). As one of Batman's ...
" a secret and allowed the blame for his crimes to fall on
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...
. Gordon has prepared a speech revealing the truth but hesitates to read it at a public celebration. Bruce Wayne, still mourning the death of Rachel Dawes, has become a recluse and Wayne Enterprises has stagnated. Bane enlists Bruce's corporate rival John Daggett to buy Bruce's fingerprints. Daggett hires cat burglar
Selina Kyle Catwoman is a fictional character created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Debuting as "the Cat" in ''Batman'' #1 (spring 1940), she is ...
to steal Bruce's prints from Wayne Manor, but she is double-crossed by him and alerts the police. The police arrive and pursue Bane and Daggett's henchmen into the sewers while Kyle flees. The henchmen capture Gordon and take him to Bane, but he escapes and is found by officer John Blake. Blake, an orphan who has figured out Bruce's secret identity, persuades him to return as Batman. Bane attacks the Gotham Stock Exchange and uses Bruce's fingerprints in a series of fraudulent transactions that leaves Bruce bankrupt. Batman resurfaces while intercepting Bane and his subordinates. Bruce's butler,
Alfred Pennyworth Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Pennyworth is depicted as Bruce Wayne's loyal and tire ...
, fears that Bruce will get himself killed fighting Bane, and resigns in the hope of saving him, but only after admitting that he burned a letter that Rachel left for him saying she was going to marry Dent. Bane expands his operations and kills Daggett while Bruce and Wayne Enterprises' new CEO Miranda Tate become lovers. Kyle agrees to take Batman to Bane, but instead leads him into Bane's trap. Bane gloats that he intends to fulfill Ra's al Ghul's mission to destroy Gotham City before defeating Batman, then breaks his back before taking him abroad to an underground prison where escape is virtually impossible. The inmates tell Bruce the story of Ra's al Ghul's child, who was born and raised in the prison before escaping — the only prisoner to have done so. Bane traps the police forces in the sewers and destroys all but one bridge surrounding the city. He kills Mayor Anthony Garcia and forces Pavel to convert a fusion reactor core into a decaying neutron bomb before killing him. Outside Blackgate Penitentiary, Bane reads Gordon's speech to a crowd, revealing the truth about Dent. He releases the prisoners of Blackgate, annuls the laws, and exiles and kills Gotham's elite in kangaroo courts presided over by Jonathan Crane. Five months later, Bruce escapes (after two prisoners adjusted his herniated disc back into place) and returns to Gotham. As Batman, he frees the police and they clash with Bane's army in the streets; during the battle, Batman overpowers Bane. Tate intervenes and stabs Batman, revealing herself as
Talia al Ghul Talia al Ghul ( ar, تاليا الغول; ) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman. The character was created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Bob Brown, and firs ...
, Ra's al Ghul's daughter. She attempts to activate the bomb's detonator, but the bomb fails to activate due to Gordon blocking the signal. Talia leaves to find the bomb while Bane prepares to kill Batman, but Kyle arrives and kills Bane. Batman and Kyle pursue Talia, hoping to bring the bomb back to the reactor chamber where it can be stabilized. Talia's truck crashes, but she remotely floods and destroys the reactor chamber before dying. With no way to stop the detonation, Batman uses his aerial craft, the Bat, to haul the bomb far over the bay, where it safely explodes. Before takeoff, Batman subtly reveals his identity to Gordon. In the aftermath, Batman is presumed dead and honored as a hero. Wayne Manor becomes an orphanage and Bruce's estate is left to Alfred. Gordon finds the Bat Signal repaired, while
Lucius Fox Lucius Fox is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Bruce Wayne / Batman. He is Bruce Wayne's business manager at Wayne Enterprises who runs the business interests that s ...
discovers that Bruce had fixed the malfunctioning auto-pilot on the Bat. While traveling abroad, Alfred glimpses Bruce alive and in a relationship with Selina Kyle - they quietly acknowledge one other but move on without speaking. Blake, whose legal first name is revealed as
Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') ** Bush-robin **Forest r ...
, resigns from the GCPD and receives a parcel from Bruce leading him to the Batcave.


Cast

*
Christian Bale Christian Charles Philip Bale (born 30 January 1974) is an English actor. Known for his versatility and physical transformations for his roles, he has been a leading man in films of several genres. He has received various accolades, includin ...
as Bruce Wayne / Batman:
A billionaire socialite who dedicates himself to protecting Gotham City from its criminal underworld, as a feared vigilante. Nolan has stated that, due to the eight-year gap between ''The Dark Knight'' and ''The Dark Knight Rises'', "he's an older Bruce Wayne; he's not in a great state." Bale employed a martial arts discipline called the
Keysi Fighting Method ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...
, now modified for Wayne's current state and Bane's style. Bale has stated that ''The Dark Knight Rises'' will be his final Batman film. Bale acknowledged that Batman is "not a healthy individual, this is somebody that is doing good, but he's right on the verge of doing bad". Bale clarifies that "He doesn't want to forget is parents' deaths He wants to maintain that anger he felt at that injustice". Bale felt bittersweet about leaving the franchise, saying that it was like "saying goodbye to an old friend." * Michael Caine as
Alfred Pennyworth Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth is a fictional Character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Pennyworth is depicted as Bruce Wayne's loyal and tire ...
:
Bruce's trusted butler and confidant, who acts as a father figure to Wayne but is unable to accept Wayne's desire to revive his Batman persona, even resigning from his position to impress the seriousness of his position upon him. Christopher Nolan emphasized the emotional bond between Pennyworth and Wayne, stressing its importance in the previous films and predicting that the relationship will be strained as it never has before. *
Gary Oldman Gary Leonard Oldman (born 21 March 1958) is an English actor and filmmaker. Known for his versatility and intense acting style, he has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and three British Academy F ...
as James Gordon:
The Commissioner of the Gotham City Police Department, and one of the city's few honest police officers. Oldman described the character's work in cleaning up Gotham City as having left him world-weary and slightly bored, likening Gordon to a soldier who leaps at the chance to be on the front lines. His life has taken a turn for the worse since ''The Dark Knight''; his wife has left him and taken their children, and the mayor is planning to dismiss him from his job. Gordon feels guilty over his role in covering up Harvey Dent's crimes and is prepared to resign from his position as Commissioner over it, but then senses that Gotham is about to come under threat. * Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle / Catwoman:
A professional cat burglar, grifter, and
femme fatale A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype o ...
who establishes a playful, teasing relationship with Wayne that "takes some of the somberness away from his character", and pursues a "clean slate" (a computer program rumored to be able to erase a person's criminal history) when she crosses paths with both Wayne and Batman. Hathaway auditioned not knowing what role she was being considered for. Hathaway described the role as being the most physically demanding she had ever played, and confessed that while she thought of herself as being fit, she had to redouble her efforts in the gym to keep up with the demands of the role. Hathaway trained extensively in martial arts for the role, and looked to Hedy Lamarr—who was the initial inspiration for the comic book character—in developing her own performance. ''Batman Begins'' and ''The Dark Knight'' writer
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), the '' Blade'' ...
had previously ruled out in 2008 including Catwoman in a third film for having already appeared in
Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), '' Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993 ...
's '' Batman Returns'', portrayed by
Michelle Pfeiffer Michelle Marie Pfeiffer (; born April 29, 1958) is an American actress and producer. A prolific performer whose screen work spans over four decades, she became one of Hollywood's most bankable stars and popular sex symbols during the 1980s ...
. * Tom Hardy as
Bane Bane may refer to: Fictional characters * Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman * Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series * Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy * Bane the Druid, a Gua ...
:
A mysterious and physically imposing
revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...
villain who was excommunicated from the
League of Shadows The League of Assassins (sometimes renamed the League of Shadows or Society of Shadows in adapted works) is a group of supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The group is depicted as a collective of assassins who ...
and portrays himself as a "liberator of pain". He is desperate to continue Ra's al Ghul's legacy by destroying Gotham. The character was chosen by Christopher Nolan because of his desire to see Batman tested on both a physical and mental level. According to costume designer
Lindy Hemming Lindy Hemming (born 21 August 1948) is a Welsh costume designer, who won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for the 1999 film ''Topsy-Turvy''. Hemming's name is an example of an aptronym. Career After she studied at the Royal Academy of ...
, the character wears a mask that supplies him with an
analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...
gas to relieve pain he suffers from an injury sustained "early in his story". Hardy intended to portray the character as "more menacing" than Robert Swenson's version of the character in
Joel Schumacher Joel T. Schumacher (; August 29, 1939June 22, 2020) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Raised in New York City by his mother, Schumacher graduated from Parsons School of Design and originally became a fashion designer. H ...
's '' Batman & Robin'' and that in order to do so, his portrayal entailed creating a contradiction between his voice and body. Hardy gained for the role, increasing his weight to . Hardy based Bane's voice on several influences, which include
Bartley Gorman Bartley Gorman V (1 March 1944 – 18 January 2002) was a bare-knuckle boxer. A Welsh Irish Traveller, Gorman called himself "the King of the Gypsies". Between 1972 and 1992, he reigned supreme in the world of illegal gypsy boxing. During these ...
and the character's comic book heritage. Bane claims that his revolution's enemies are the rich and the corrupt, who he contends are oppressing "the people", when in reality this was a ruse in order to exploit the citizens of Gotham City for the League of Shadows' ultimate goal in destroying Gotham City. * Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate / Talia al Ghul:
The current CEO of Wayne Enterprises who encourages a still-grieving Bruce to rejoin society and continue his father's philanthropic works but is later revealed to be the daughter of Ra's al Ghul and Bane's accomplice. Cotillard also does her own dub-over voice in both the European and Canadian French dubs of the film. **
Joey King Joey Lynn King (born July 30, 1999) is an American actress. She first gained recognition for portraying Ramona Quimby in the comedy film ''Ramona and Beezus'' (2010) and has since gained wider recognition for her lead role in ''The Kissing Booth ...
as Young Talia al Ghul *
Joseph Gordon-Levitt Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...
as John Blake:
A young police officer whose instincts lead him to believe that there is trouble on the horizon and is promoted to detective by Gordon when the elder cop saw something of himself within the younger. Blake represents the idealism that Gordon and Bruce Wayne once held, but soon lost in their battle against crime in the city. The film reveals his legal name to be Robin John Blake, an homage to Batman's sidekick in the comics,
Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') ** Bush-robin **Forest r ...
. *
Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...
as
Lucius Fox Lucius Fox is a character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Bruce Wayne / Batman. He is Bruce Wayne's business manager at Wayne Enterprises who runs the business interests that s ...
:
The ex-CEO turned executive vice president of Wayne Enterprises, who runs the company on Wayne's behalf and serves as his
armorer Historically, an armourer is a person who makes personal armour, especially plate armour. In modern terms, an armourer is a member of a military or police force who works in an armoury and maintains and repairs small arms and weapons system ...
for the Batsuit, providing him with high-tech equipment and discreetly developing cutting-edge technology and weaponry, even as Wayne Enterprises starts losing money. * Matthew Modine as Peter Foley: Gordon's second-in-command who disdains Batman. * Ben Mendelsohn as John Daggett: A rival billionaire socialite who employs Bane in his plan to take control of Wayne Enterprises. *
Burn Gorman Burn Hugh Winchester Gorman (born 1 September 1974) is an English actor and musician. He is known for his roles as Owen Harper in the BBC series '' Torchwood'' (2006–2008), Phillip Stryver in '' The Dark Knight Rises'' (2012), Karl Tanner in t ...
as Philip Stryver: Daggett's assistant and senior executive vice president of Daggett Industries. Philip Stryver is named after Stryver from ''A Tale of Two Cities'', the novel that ''The Dark Knight Rises'' directly drew influence from. *
Nestor Carbonell Nestor may refer to: * Nestor (mythology), King of Pylos in Greek mythology Arts and entertainment * "Nestor" (''Ulysses'' episode) an episode in James Joyce's novel ''Ulysses'' * Nestor Studios, first-ever motion picture studio in Hollywood, L ...
as Anthony Garcia: Gotham City's mayor. Carbonell reprises his role from ''The Dark Knight''. * Juno Temple as Jen: Selina Kyle's friend and accomplice. *
Josh Stewart Joshua Regnall Stewart (born February 6, 1977) is an American actor who is best known for his role as Holt McLaren in the FX TV series ''Dirt'' and as Detective William LaMontagne, Jr., on the CBS series ''Criminal Minds''. He was also cast as ...
as Barsad: Bane's right-hand man. * Alon Aboutboul as Dr. Leonid Pavel: A Russian nuclear physicist who is kidnapped by Bane and the League of Shadows in order to convert a fusion reactor funded by Bruce Wayne and Miranda Tate into a weapon to be used for the destruction of Gotham City. * Aidan Gillen as CIA operative Bill Wilson: A CIA operative who was tasked with tracking down Bane for terrorist activities before his appearance in Gotham City. (Bill is referred to solely as "CIA" in the film's dialogue; the character's name is revealed in the film's novelization.) * Brett Cullen portrays Byron Gilley, a U.S. congressman who is kidnapped by Kyle. Brett Cullen would go on to portray Thomas Wayne in the 2019 DC Comics adaptation '' Joker''. * Chris Ellis as Father Reilly, a priest at the orphanage that Blake grew up in. * Tom Conti as Prisoner: An unnamed prisoner who serves as Bruce Wayne's caretaker in Bane's underground prison, The Pit. *
Daniel Sunjata Daniel Sunjata Condon (born December 30, 1971) is an American actor who performs in film, television and theater. He is known for his role as Franco Rivera in the FX television series '' Rescue Me''. Early life and education Sunjata was born a ...
as Mark Jones, a U.S. Special Ops officer who leads a task force into Gotham to assist Gordon and the GCPD in freeing the city from Bane's rule. *
Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on '' Th ...
as Ra's al Ghul: Liam Neeson reprises his role from ''Batman Begins'' in a cameo appearance; he also appears in a brief flashback. ** Josh Pence as Young Ra's al Ghul. He appears in scenes set thirty years before the events of ''Batman Begins''. * Cillian Murphy as Dr. Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow: Cillian Murphy reprises his role from ''Batman Begins'' and ''The Dark Knight''. * India Wadsworth as the wife of Ra's al Ghul and the mother of Talia al Ghul. * John Nolan as Douglas Fredericks, a board member of Wayne Enterprises. John Nolan is Christopher Nolan's uncle and he reprises his role from ''Batman Begins''. * William Devane as the President of the United States. Other cast members include Rob Brown and
Desmond Harrington Desmond Harrington (born October 19, 1976) is an American actor. He has appeared in '' The Hole'' (2001), ''Ghost Ship'' (2002), and '' Wrong Turn'' (2003), Desmond joined the cast of the Showtime series ''Dexter'' in its third season, as Det ...
as police officers; Christopher Judge as one of Bane's henchmen; and Noel Gugliemi as an ex-prisoner who is in charge of exiling corrupt elites during Bane's revolution. Thomas Lennon, who had appeared as a doctor in Nolan's 2000 film '' Memento'', once again plays a doctor. United States Senator Patrick Leahy, who had made a cameo appearance in ''The Dark Knight'', returned in ''The Dark Knight Rises,'' as a Wayne Enterprises board member. Several members of the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
have cameo appearances as members of the fictional Gotham Rogues football team in the film, including Ben Roethlisberger, Hines Ward, Troy Polamalu, Willie Colon, Maurkice Pouncey,
Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...
,
Heath Miller Earl Heath Miller Jr. (born October 22, 1982) is a former American football tight end who played professionally for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons from 2005 to 2015. Miller played college football f ...
, Aaron Smith, Ryan Clark,
James Farrior James Alfred Farrior (born January 6, 1975) is a former American football linebacker who played fifteen seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Virginia. He played with the New York Jets a ...
,
LaMarr Woodley LaMarr Dewayne Woodley (born November 3, 1984) is a former American football outside linebacker. He played college football at Michigan, where he was recognized as a unanimous All-American, and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sec ...
, and
Casey Hampton Casey Hampton Jr. (born September 3, 1977) is a former American football nose tackle who played twelve seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Texas, and recei ...
, and former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher as the head coach of the Rogues. Pittsburgh mayor
Luke Ravenstahl Luke Robert Ravenstahl (born February 6, 1980) is an American politician who served as the 59th Mayor of Pittsburgh from 2006 until 2014. A Democrat, he became the youngest mayor in Pittsburgh's history in September 2006 at the age of 26. He wa ...
, a kicker in college, appears as the kicker for the Rogues' opponents, the Rapid City Monuments. In 2008, the Rooney family sold a minority stake in the team to
Thomas Tull Thomas Tull (born June 9, 1970) is an American billionaire businessman, entrepreneur, and film producer. He is the former chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Legendary Entertainment. Tull is the founder of Tulco LLC, an investment hol ...
, the CEO and president of
Legendary Pictures Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC ( doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborate ...
, which produced ''The Dark Knight Rises''. Aaron Eckhart expressed enthusiasm in returning for a sequel if asked, although he later stated Nolan verified that his character, Harvey Dent / Two-Face, was dead, and only archive footage of Eckhart from ''The Dark Knight'' appears in the film.


Production


Development

In 2005,
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), the '' Blade'' ...
confirmed that he wrote treatments for two films involving the Joker; the first would involve Batman, Harvey Dent, and Commissioner Gordon hunting the Joker, while the second would have the Joker scarring Dent and turning him into
Two-Face Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character was created by Bob Kane and first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #66 (August 1942). As one of Batman's ...
during his trial. The third treatment ended in the same way as the final version of ''The Dark Knight Rises''. Other aspects of the third treatment were incorporated into ''The Dark Knight''. However, Heath Ledger's family stated that he was planning on reprising his role as the Joker before his death. After Ledger's death, Christopher Nolan decided not to recast the role out of respect for his performance, and initially was hesitant to make a third film. Warner Bros. president of production Jeff Robinov had hoped a third film would be released in 2011 or 2012. Nolan wanted the story for the third installment to keep him emotionally invested. "On a more superficial level, I have to ask the question," he reasoned, "how many good third movies in a franchise can people name?" Nolan said that he never even thought a third film was possible in the foreword for his book ''The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy''. Nolan only agreed to a third film on the basis of finding a worthwhile story, fearing that he would become bored halfway through production if he discovered the film to be unnecessary. By December 2008, Nolan completed a rough story outline, before he committed himself to '' Inception''. Later in December,
Alan F. Horn Alan Frederick Horn (born February 28, 1943) is an American entertainment industry executive. Horn became President and COO of Warner Bros. from 1999 to 2012. Horn next served as the chairman of Walt Disney Studios from 2012 to 2020. During his ...
confirmed that while discussions with Nolan about a third film were ongoing, no casting had been done, and Horn denied all such rumors. Before Nolan confirmed his involvement, Gary Oldman had said he was confident Nolan would return. Following the success of the Joker in ''The Dark Knight'', studio executives wished for the Riddler to be included as the primary villain as he was considered a similar character and encouraged the casting of Leonardo DiCaprio. However, Nolan wanted the antagonist to be vastly different from the previous incarnations and committed to using
Bane Bane may refer to: Fictional characters * Bane (DC Comics), an adversary of Batman * Bane (''Harry Potter''), a centaur in the ''Harry Potter'' series * Bane (''The Matrix''), a character in the ''Matrix'' film trilogy * Bane the Druid, a Gua ...
instead, citing the need for a character with a physical presence within the film. He was initially unfamiliar with the character's back-story, but pointed out the appeal of an archetype, labeling it as "the extreme of some type of villainy". When comparing the choice of Bane with the Joker, Nolan highlighted the Joker as an example of "diabolical, chaotic anarchy and has a devilish sense of humor", juxtaposing him against Bane, whom he likened to "a classic movie monster ..with a terrific brain." Nolan has said that his draft of the script was inspired by
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
' 1859 novel '' A Tale of Two Cities'', which centers around the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
. This homage to Dickens was briefly illustrated by having Bane inconspicuously finger knit paracord in the film, symbolizing Madame Defarge, the villain of '' A Tale of Two Cities'', and more overtly by Commissioner Gordon's eulogy for Bruce Wayne, which is taken directly from Dickens' novel. On February 9, 2010, it was announced that Nolan had "cracked" the story and was committed to returning to the project. Shortly afterward, it was announced
David S. Goyer David Samuel Goyer (born December 22, 1965) is an American filmmaker, novelist and comic book writer. He is best known for writing the screenplays for several superhero films, including '' Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' (1998), the '' Blade'' ...
and Jonathan Nolan were working on a screenplay. Goyer would leave the project during pre-production to begin work on '' Man of Steel''; Jonathan continued writing the script based on the story by his brother Chris and Goyer. Nolan said that his brother's original draft was about 400 pages. The film's storyline has been compared with the ''Batman'' comic book series' story arc " Knightfall" (1993), which showcases Bane; the miniseries ''
The Dark Knight Returns ''The Dark Knight Returns'' (alternatively titled ''Batman: The Dark Knight Returns'') is a 1986 four-issue comic book miniseries starring Batman, written by Frank Miller, illustrated by Miller and Klaus Janson, with color by Lynn Varley, and pub ...
'' (1986), in which Batman returns to Gotham City after a ten-year absence; and the story arc "
No Man's Land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...
" (1999), which depicts a Gotham cut off from the rest of the world and overrun by gangs. The nickname "the Dark Knight" was first applied to Batman in ''Batman'' #1 (1940), in a story written by Bill Finger. Nolan confirmed the Joker would not return in the third film, and dismissed rumors that he considered using unused footage of Heath Ledger from ''The Dark Knight''. Reportedly, before his death, Ledger had plans to reprise the role of the Joker in the third film after enjoying his time filming ''The Dark Knight'', a notion supported by Ledger's costar Aaron Eckhart, who portrayed
Two-Face Two-Face is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character was created by Bob Kane and first appeared in ''Detective Comics'' #66 (August 1942). As one of Batman's ...
in the film. ''The Dark Knight Rises'' reunited Nolan with many of his past collaborators, including cinematographer Wally Pfister, production designer
Nathan Crowley Nathan Crowley (born 28 February 1966) is an English production designer and a former art director, who is best known for his collaborations with Christopher Nolan. He was nominated six times for an Academy Award for Best Production Design for ' ...
, editor Lee Smith, costume designer Lindy Hemming, special effects supervisors Paul Franklin and
Chris Corbould Christopher Charles Corbould, (; born 1958) is a British special effects coordinator best known for his work on major blockbuster films and the action scenes on 15 ''James Bond'' films since The Spy Who Loved Me. He has also worked extensive ...
, and composer Hans Zimmer.


Filming

During location scouting in December 2010, Nolan began searching for locations such as India, Romania, and Michigan. According to the ''Romania Insider'', Nolan was interested in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north o ...
's historical centers, Edgar Quinet Street, the
Palace of the Parliament The Palace of the Parliament ( ro, Palatul Parlamentului), also known as the Republic's House () or People's House/People's Palace (), is the seat of the Parliament of Romania, located atop Dealul Spirii in Bucharest, the national capital. The P ...
, and the Turda salt mine. The film had an estimated budget of $250–300 million, coming down to about $230 million after tax credits. Nolan elected not to film in 3-D, but instead stated that he intended to focus on improving image quality and scale using the
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...
format. ''The Dark Knight Rises'' featured over an hour of footage shot in IMAX (by comparison, ''The Dark Knight'' contained 28 minutes). Nolan had several meetings with IMAX Vice-president David Keighley to work on the logistics of projecting films in digital IMAX venues. Wally Pfister had expressed interest in shooting the film entirely in IMAX, but because of the considerable noise made by IMAX cameras,
35mm 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film 35 mm film is a film gauge used in filmmaking, and the film standard. In motion pictures that record on fi ...
and 70mm cameras had to be used for shooting the film's dialogue scenes, as dialogue had to be dubbed when shot with IMAX cameras. Chairman and president of the IMAX Corporation Greg Foster stated that IMAX planned to run the film in its theatres for two months, despite only being contractually committed to run the film for two weeks. Nolan also bypassed the use of a
digital intermediate Digital intermediate (typically abbreviated DI) is a motion picture finishing process which classically involves digitizing a motion picture and manipulating the color and other image characteristics. Definition and overview A digital intermediat ...
for the film, resulting in less manipulation of the filmed image and higher film resolution. Filming was scheduled to start in May and conclude in November 2011.
Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as ...
commenced on May 6, 2011, in
Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the ...
, India, at the
Mehrangarh Fort Mehrangarh Fort covers an area of 1,200 acres (486 hectares) in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. The complex is located on a hilltop around 122 metres above the surrounding plain, and was constructed by Rajput ruler Rao Jodha, though most of the exi ...
before moving to
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, where it operated under the working title ''Magnus Rex'' to reduce the visibility of the production. Shooting locations within the city included Heinz Field, the site of an
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
game, with members of the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
playing the Gotham Rogues football team. More than 11,000 extras were used to depict the shot sequence. Filming in Pittsburgh also took place at the Mellon Institute and Software Engineering Institute at
Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...
. A letter sent out to residents and business owners detailing road closures revealed that the streets of the city would be featured "as the start of hefilm".
9-1-1 , usually written 911, is an emergency telephone number for the United States, Canada, Mexico, Panama, Palau, Argentina, Philippines, Jordan, as well as the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), one of eight N11 codes. Like other emergency n ...
operators were told to expect an increase in calls related to gunshots and explosions in the film's production. The Pittsburgh leg of production wrapped after three weeks on August 21, 2011. The next portion of the filming began in Los Angeles in late August and finished up on October 23 after nine weeks of filming. New York and New Jersey were the next places of filming. The Trump Tower replaced the Richard J. Daley Center as the location for the headquarters of Wayne Enterprises. In November 2011, shooting shifted to
Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat, seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and the second largest city within the New Yo ...
.
Newark City Hall Newark City Hall is located at Government Center in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. The building was built in 1902 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 17, 1978. History The building is a five ...
and Military Park were among the locations used for filming. Other shooting locations include London and
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...
, the latter of which was used for "additional exterior filming". Principal photography concluded on November 14, 2011. The external waterfall scene at the end of the film was shot at Sgwd Henrhyd falls, on the edge of the
Brecon Beacons The Brecon Beacons ( cy, Bannau Brycheiniog, ) are a mountain range in South Wales. In a narrow sense, the name refers to the range of Old Red Sandstone peaks which lie to the south of Brecon. Sometimes referred to as "the central Beacons" ...
National Park in
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. Production photos from filming in Pittsburgh showed a second Tumbler chassis after the first was destroyed, indicating that a new Batmobile would be in the film, following the destruction of the first in ''The Dark Knight''. Further set photos revealed a "new vehicle" being transported to Wabash Tunnel, prompting speculation as to its nature. In June 2011, Autoblog confirmed the presence of the new
Lamborghini Aventador The Lamborghini Aventador () is a mid-engine sportscar produced by the Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini. In keeping with Lamborghini tradition, the Aventador is named after a Spanish fighting bull that fought in Zaragoza, Aragón ...
on the film set. Several accidents occurred during the production of the film. While filming at Wollaton Hall,
Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
, a tractor-trailer crashed into the main entrance, though no one was injured. A stuntman
parachutist Parachuting, including also skydiving, is a method of transiting from a high point in the atmosphere to the surface of Earth with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent using a parachute or parachutes. For ...
later crashed through the roof of a home in Cairngorm Gliding Club, Feshiebridge in
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, and became wedged there after a failed landing during a skydiving stunt; he was not seriously injured. While filming scenes in Pittsburgh, Hathaway's stunt double crashed into an IMAX camera while filming a sequence that required her to ride a Batpod down a flight of stairs during a riot. There were no injuries, but the camera was destroyed. A second accident took place in Pittsburgh when the truck carrying the then-unidentified vehicle later termed "the Bat" went off-course and crashed into a lighting array, damaging the model of the aircraft. Production was delayed while the model was repaired. Shortly before Christmas of 2011, Christopher Nolan invited several prominent directors, including
Edgar Wright Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English filmmaker. He is known for his fast-paced and kinetic, satirical genre films, which feature extensive utilisation of expressive popular music, Steadicam tracking shots, dolly zooms and a ...
,
Michael Bay Michael Benjamin Bay (born February 17, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget, high-concept action films characterized by fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use ...
, Bryan Singer,
Jon Favreau Jonathan Kolia Favreau (; born October 19, 1966) is an American actor and filmmaker. As an actor, Favreau has appeared in films such as '' Rudy'' (1993), '' PCU'' (1994), '' Swingers'' (1996), ''Very Bad Things'' (1998), '' Deep Impact'' (1998) ...
, Eli Roth, Duncan Jones and Stephen Daldry, to Universal CityWalk's IMAX theatre for a private screening of the first six minutes of ''The Dark Knight Rises'', which had been shot on IMAX film and edited from the original camera negative. Nolan, feeling that the use of
film stock Film stock is an analog medium that is used for recording motion pictures or animation. It is recorded on by a movie camera, developed, edited, and projected onto a screen using a movie projector. It is a strip or sheet of transparent ...
in cinema was being phased out due to the introduction of
digital cinematography : Digital cinematography is the process of capturing (recording) a motion picture using digital image sensors rather than through film stock. As digital technology has improved in recent years, this practice has become dominant. Since the mid- ...
and projection, used this screening to make a case for the continued use of film, which he asserts still offers superior image quality to any digital format, and warned the filmmakers that unless they continued to assert their choice to use film in their productions, they may eventually lose it as an option. Nolan explained; "I wanted to give them a chance to see the potential, because I think IMAX is the best film format that was ever invented. It's the gold standard and what any other technology has to match up to, but none have, in my opinion. The message I wanted to put out there was that no one is taking anyone's digital cameras away. But if we want film to continue as an option, and someone is working on a big studio movie with the resources and the power to insist nfilm, they should say so. I felt as if I didn't say anything, and then we started to lose that option, it would be a shame. When I look at a digitally acquired and projected image, it looks inferior against an original negative anamorphic print or an IMAX one."


Design


Costume design

Costume designer
Lindy Hemming Lindy Hemming (born 21 August 1948) is a Welsh costume designer, who won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for the 1999 film ''Topsy-Turvy''. Hemming's name is an example of an aptronym. Career After she studied at the Royal Academy of ...
explained that Bane uses a mask to inhale an
analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...
gas, which, in director Christopher Nolan's words, "keeps his pain just below the threshold so he can function." In designing Bane's costume, Hemming needed it to look "like an amalgam of all sorts of bits and pieces he cobbled together, as he passed through some very remote places. We made parts of his vest, for example, from fragments of an old military tent. His clothes are militaristic, but are not in any way a uniform." Hemming also designed Bane's mask to look "animalistic". Costume effects supervisor Graham Churchyard created a three-dimensional model of actor Tom Hardy's face and skull to design the mask, allowing the mask to perfectly conform to the contours of Hardy's face. Hemming personally designed Bane's coat, which she admitted took two years to complete. Taking inspiration from a
Swedish army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav ...
jacket and a frock coat from the French Revolution, it was designed to make Bane look equal parts dictatorial and revolutionary. The design was difficult as Hemming struggled to find a tailor in Los Angeles who could work with shearling. The Batsuit consisted of 110 separate pieces, each of which had to be replicated dozens of times over the course of the production. The base layer was made of a
polyester Polyester is a category of polymers that contain the ester functional group in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include natura ...
mesh that is utilized by the military and high-tech sports manufacturers because of its breathability and moisture-wicking properties. Molded pieces of flexible urethane were then attached to the mesh, to form the overall body armor plating. Carbon fiber panels were placed inside the sections on the legs, chest and abdomen. The cowl was sculpted from a cast of Bale's face and head to become a perfect fit for Christian Bale. The suit remained unchanged for the film since ''The Dark Knight''. In creating Selina Kyle's catsuit, two layers of material were used, the outer layer being
polyurethane Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane is produced from ...
-coated spandex embossed with a hexagonal pattern. The catsuit also consisted of elbow-length gloves, a utility belt, and
thigh-high boots Thigh-high boots, known also as thigh-length boots or simply thigh boots, are boots that extend above the knees to at least mid-thigh. Other terms for this footwear include '' over-the-knee boots'' (abbreviated OTK boots; the full term is also u ...
with spike heels.


Production design

Concept artist Tully Summers commented on Nolan's style of
cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...
when asked about the difference between his designs for this film and fantasy-based designs for '' Men in Black 3'': "The difference for me was Christopher Nolan's visual style. One of the things that makes his Batman movies so compelling is their tone of plausibility. He will often prefer a raw, grittier design over one that is very sleek and product design pretty. It's sort of a practical military aesthetic. This stuff is made to work, not impress shoppers. ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a war film." Producer Emma Thomas stated this Batman film has a different visual aesthetic from the first two Nolan-directed features, explaining that "it's meant to be winter in Gotham, so that right there is going to lend a whole different look to the film." The film introduces a vehicle that has been compared with the Batplane and the Batcopter, dubbed "the Bat". In designing the Bat, Nathan Crowley approached it as if it were an actual military project, emphasising the need for it to "fit into the same family" as the Tumbler and the Batpod. The final version of the Bat takes its design cues from the Harrier jump jet, Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey and the
Boeing AH-64 Apache The Boeing AH-64 Apache () is an American twin- turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear arrangement and a tandem cockpit for a crew of two. It features a nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night v ...
. Chris Corbould described the Bat's size and shape as presenting a major challenge for filming given Christopher Nolan's emphasis on practical effects over
computer-generated imagery Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the use of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, simulators, and visual effects in films, television programs, shorts, commercials, and videos. The image ...
. In order to make the Bat "fly", it was variously supported by wires, suspended from cranes and helicopters, and mounted on a purpose-built vehicle with hydraulic controls to simulate movement. When designing the Batcave set, Crowley and fellow production designer Kevin Kavanaugh hit upon the idea of flooding the Batcave and having Batman's equipment, the Batsuit and a
supercomputer A supercomputer is a computer with a high level of performance as compared to a general-purpose computer. The performance of a supercomputer is commonly measured in floating-point operations per second ( FLOPS) instead of million instructio ...
rise from the water. Another set was designed at Cardington as an "underground prison", a rough-hewn labyrinth of stone cells in a vast abyss with a vertical shaft leading to the surface. Exteriors above the prison were filmed in
Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
, chosen because the "forbidding landscape added to the desolation".


Music

In an interview in October 2010, composer Hans Zimmer confirmed that he would be returning to score ''The Dark Knight Rises.''
James Newton Howard James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, music producer and keyboardist. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores ...
was offered to return and write the score with Zimmer as he did for ''Batman Begins'' and ''The Dark Knight'', but he chose not to because he noted that the chemistry established between Zimmer and Nolan during the making of ''Inception'' would make him seem like a "third wheel". Zimmer included several cues from the earlier scores but explained that he wanted to go in a "completely different direction" for Bane's theme. The film features a prevalent chant of the phrase "''Deshi Basara''". In November 2011, Zimmer
crowdsourced Crowdsourcing involves a large group of dispersed participants contributing or producing goods or services—including ideas, votes, micro-tasks, and finances—for payment or as volunteers. Contemporary crowdsourcing often involves digit ...
online audio recordings of the chant to be used in the film's score. When asked about the chant for clarification, Zimmer said, "The chant became a very complicated thing because I wanted hundreds of thousands of voices, and it's not so easy to get hundreds of thousands of voices. So, we tweeted and we posted on the internet, for people who wanted to be part of it. It seemed like an interesting thing. We've created this world, over these last two movies, and somehow I think the audience and the fans have been part of this world. We do keep them in mind." Just like ''Batman Begins'' and ''The Dark Knight'', the film's main theme consists in just two notes repeated, representing Batman's pain and guilt. Many times is also reprised in small parts "Molossus", Batman's main action theme in the trilogy.


Marketing

The official website launched in May 2011, introducing a viral marketing campaign similar to the one used to promote ''The Dark Knight''. The website streamed an encrypted audio file described by users as chanting. Users decrypted the audio to the Twitter hashtag, "#TheFireRises". Warner Bros. removed a pixel from the webpage for every tweet using the hashtag. The website revealed the first official image of Bane. In July 2011, a teaser trailer leaked online before its official release with '' Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2''. The studio released the teaser three days after the leak. The trailer received mixed responses; Stephen Spencer Davis of ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
'' wrote it successfully built hype, while Kofi Outlaw of ''
Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and film theories. ''Screen Rant'' was launched by Vic Holtreman in 2003, and originally had its primary office in Ogden, Utah. ''Scr ...
'' showed disappointment, claiming it was more of an "announcement trailer" than an actual teaser trailer. Outlaw criticized the quality, writing that a scene depicting Commissioner Gordon in a hospital bed was overly dramatic, had "hammy" dialogue, and was difficult to understand due to Gordon's labored breathing. Outlaw wrote that the sweeping shot of Gotham City had poor CGI and was too reminiscent of the ''Inception'' trailer. The theatrical trailer leaked online, like the teaser trailer, before being released the following week attached to theatrical prints of '' Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows''. Critics noted political undertones with dialogue foreshadowing the theme of income inequality and an " Occupy Gotham" campaign within the world of the story. Receiving more than 12.5 million views in the first 24 hours after its release, the trailer set the record for most combined downloads from
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...
, beating the previous record held by '' The Avengers''. However, the second trailer for ''The Avengers'' again set the record with 13.7 million downloads. Warner Bros. attached a second theatrical trailer for ''The Dark Knight Rises'' to theatrical prints of ''The Avengers''. An "unnamed" Warner Brothers executive clarified that "We see this placement as a good strategic decision. We always want our trailers to be seen with films that people want to see—and a lot of people will be going to The Avengers!" The executive also commented that the trailer will "provide the best potential exposure for TDKR." Warner Bros. released the trailer online on April 30, 2012, approximately four days before they attached it to theatrical prints of ''The Avengers''. Continuing a method used with ''The Dark Knight'' whereby the opening sequence of the film was attached to IMAX prints of '' I Am Legend'' seven months before release, a six-minute prologue of ''The Dark Knight Rises'' was attached to 70mm IMAX prints of '' Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol'', again approximately seven months before release. Critical reaction to the prologue was positive. Addressing the issue in an interview with ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...
'', Nolan said "I think when people see the film, things will come into focus. Bane is very complex and very interesting and when people see the finished film people will be very entertained by him." Viral marketing campaigns for the film continued as magazine companies ''
Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'' and '' Wired'' received "
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
documents" concerning a "Dr. Leonid Pavel", with its mugshot connected to actor Alon Abutbul. According to the first document, Pavel is a missing Russian
nuclear physicist Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...
, while the second document appears to be an edited transcript of a conversation discussing the handover of Dr. Pavel to the CIA by Georgian separatists, but with most of the conversation redacted. These were later shown to be plot elements of the six-minute prologue. The official Twitter account later linked to another censored document, this time, referencing "Operation Early Bird". A website of the same name was discovered, revealing a countdown timer. When the countdown finished, the site presented a map showing all available theaters that would be screening the film's prologue earlier than its release. Various websites received a package that included a cylinder map of "strike zones", and a "fire rises"
T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are genera ...
. In April 2012, the film's official website was updated with a "dossier" on a suspect named "John Doe" also known as "the Batman" for an arrest, with a list of several accusations. The premise of the campaign starts when the mayor of Gotham City "redoubles" the effort to capture Batman and anyone supporting his return in preparation for the upcoming "Harvey Dent Day". The site also includes an extensive list of real-world locations where "graffiti related to movement in support of the vigilante's return" is located. For each tweet of a specific location marked on the list, a frame of the second theatrical trailer for the film was released on a separate website. In January 2012, six months prior to the film's release, tickets for midnight IMAX showings in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles went on sale and sold out immediately. Purchased tickets surfaced for sale online for over $100, compared with their original price of $17.50. At the
American International Toy Fair The North American International Toy Fair (formerly the American International Toy Fair and also known as Toy Fair New York) is an annual toy industry trade show held in mid-February in New York City's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and at to ...
,
Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in mor ...
unveiled figures for Batman, Bane, Catwoman, and Batman's flying vehicle, the Bat. The Mattel figures were also released in the "Movie Masters" line, featuring more highly detailed and articulated presentation, and Quiktek versions that feature interchangeable accessories.
Lego Lego ( , ; stylized as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of variously colored interlocki ...
released building sets and mini-figures based on the film and incorporating other DC Comic characters. Additionally,
Funko Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed and limited pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. In addition, the company produces licensed plush, action figures, apparel, accessor ...
released a series of plush toys, Mezco Toyz released vinyl figures, and
Hornby Hornby may refer to: Places In England * Hornby, Lancashire * Hornby, Hambleton, village in North Yorkshire * Hornby, Richmondshire, village in North Yorkshire Elsewhere * Hornby, Ontario, community in the town of Halton Hills, Ontario, Cana ...
released the Batman Tumbler car. Other partners include Jakks Pacific, who created novelty and large-scale figures and plush toys, and PPW Toys, who created a Batman themed Mr. Potato Head. Various clothing items including shoes, T-shirts, hats and wallets were also produced. A video game of the same name was released on the same day as the release of the film for the iOS and Android devices for promoting the movie. It was made by Gameloft. The game features an open world with primary focus on stealth and combat. The combat system of the game is inspired from
Arkham Asylum The Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane (), commonly referred to as Arkham Asylum, is a fictional psychiatric hospital/prison, named after the city of Arkham which appeared first in the stories of H. P. Lovecraft, and later appear ...
and Arkham City. It takes place in Gotham City, with a somewhat similar but still significantly different plot from that of the movie. IGN gave it a mediocre score of 5.5/10. The film
novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...
, written by author Greg Cox and published by
Titan Books Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of Titan Entertainment Group, which was established in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cinema reference books; and graphic novels and c ...
, was released alongside the film on July 24, 2012. Warner Bros. partnered with
Mountain Dew Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...
to do a cross-promotion that included a special paint scheme on the number 88
Chevrolet Impala The Chevrolet Impala () is a full-size car built by Chevrolet for model years 1958 to 1985, 1994 to 1996, and 2000 to 2020. The Impala was Chevrolet's popular flagship passenger car and was among the better-selling American-made automobiles ...
owned by
Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 291 Cup S ...
and driven by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...
Sprint Cup Series. On June 17, 2012, the car won the 2012 Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway. On July 4, 2012, the studio signed a deal with
Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
team
Lotus F1 Lotus F1 Team was a British Formula One racing team. The team competed under the Lotus name from until , following the renaming of the former Renault team based at Enstone in Oxfordshire. The Lotus F1 Team was majority owned by Genii Capit ...
to have the film's logos appear on the Lotus E20s driven by
Kimi Räikkönen Kimi-Matias Räikkönen (; born 17 October 1979), nicknamed "The Iceman", is a Finnish racing driver who competed in Formula One between 2001 and 2021 for Sauber, McLaren, Ferrari, Lotus, and Alfa Romeo. Räikkönen won the 2007 Formula One Wor ...
and
Romain Grosjean Romain David Jeremie Grosjean (; born 17 April 1986) is a Swiss-French professional racing driver, competing under the French flag in the NTT IndyCar Series, driving the No. 28 Honda for Andretti Autosport. Grosjean had previously spent nine ...
at the 2012 British Grand Prix. Räikkönen and Grosjean went on to finish the race in fifth and sixth place respectively. Warner Bros. had previously followed a similar promotion at the 2008 British Grand Prix, when the now-defunct
Toyota F1 Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One team owned by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to participate in Formula One in 1999, and after extensive testi ...
carried a livery to promote ''The Dark Knight''. Two digital comic books entitled ''Batman Origins'' and ''The Dark Knight: Prologue'' were released exclusively for
Nokia Lumia Microsoft Lumia (previously the Nokia Lumia) is a discontinued line of mobile devices that was originally designed and marketed by Nokia and later by Microsoft Mobile. Introduced in November 2011, the line was the result of a long-term partnersh ...
devices. A special movie application has also been released, featuring trailers, wallpapers, movie schedules and Batman trivias. Limited editions of the Lumia 710,
Lumia 800 Nokia Lumia 800 (codenamed 'Sea Ray') is a smartphone from Nokia, first unveiled on 26 October 2011 at the Nokia World 2011 event. It originally ran on Windows Phone 7.5 "Mango" and was Nokia's first device to run the Windows Phone operating sy ...
and
Lumia 900 The Nokia Lumia 900 is a Windows Phone-powered smartphone, first unveiled on January 9, 2012 by Nokia at Consumer Electronics Show 2012, where it won the Best Smartphone award in January 2012. The phone has 4G LTE support and was released in ...
were also released featuring a laser-etched Batman logo.


Release

On July 6, 2012, Warner Bros. held a special
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...
screening of ''The Dark Knight Rises'' for more than one hundred reporters and critics. However, technical issues with the computer device synchronizing the sound and picture forced the studio to postpone the screening by a day. The film later premiered on July 16 at the AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York City, followed by a European premiere on July 18 at
Leicester Square Leicester Square ( ) is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. It was laid out in 1670 as Leicester Fields, which was named after the recently built Leicester House, itself named after Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicest ...
in London, England. The film was released in Australia and New Zealand on July 19, and was later released in North America and the United Kingdom on July 20.


Colorado shooting

On July 20, 2012, during a midnight showing of ''The Dark Knight Rises'' at the Century 16 cinema in
Aurora, Colorado Aurora (, ) is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe, Adams, and Douglas counties, Colorado, United States. The city's population was 386,261 at the 2020 United States Census with 336,035 residing in Arapahoe County, 47,720 residing in ...
, a gunman wearing a
gas mask A gas mask is a mask used to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft tissues of the face. Most gas mas ...
opened fire inside the theater, killing 12 people and injuring 58 others. Police responding to the shooting apprehended a suspect later identified as 24-year-old
James Eagan Holmes James Eagan Holmes (born December 13, 1987) is an American mass murderer responsible for the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting in which he killed 12 people and injured 70 others (62 directly and eight indirectly) at a Century 16 movie theater on ...
shortly after arriving on the scene. Initial reports stated that Holmes identified himself as "the Joker" at the time of his arrest though this has been debunked. Warner Bros. cancelled the Paris, Mexico, and Japan premieres of ''The Dark Knight Rises'', and suspended the film's marketing campaign in Finland. Several broadcast networks also suspended television ads for the film in the United States. The trailer for '' Gangster Squad'', another Warner Bros. movie included in the screening of ''The Dark Knight Rises'', was removed as it contains a scene which shows gangsters shooting submachine guns at moviegoers through the screen, similar to the shooting in Aurora. Director Christopher Nolan released a public statement calling the shooting "unbearably savage". Other stars of the film released statements expressing their condolences, with star Christian Bale paying a personal visit to the survivors and the memorial in Aurora.


Home media

''The Dark Knight Rises'' was released on November 28, 2012, in Hong Kong and New Zealand. On December 3, it was released in the United Kingdom, and on December 4, it was released in the United States. It is available on
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...
, DVD, and as a digital download. Coinciding with the release of this film, a box set of ''The Dark Knight Trilogy'' was released. ''The Dark Knight Rises'' was released on 4K UHD Blu-ray on December 19, 2017.


Reception


Box office

Hours before the midnight release of the film, several box office analysts suggested as much as a $198 million domestic opening weekend. However, in the wake of the mass shooting during a midnight screening of the film, Warner Bros. decided to not report further box office figures for the movie until Monday, July 23, 2012. As a result, other distributors also delayed the release of their official estimates as well. The shooting is also speculated to have hurt the ticket sales as E! Online reported that a
North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...
audience member had stated that "this theater was kinda empty". Some reports released on July 21, 2012, said that rival studios estimated that the film grossed $75 million to $77 million on its opening day. Warner Bros. shortly after released a statement to
ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast '' ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include morning news-talk show '' Good Morning America'', '' ...
stating that they delayed the release of their estimates for the opening day total of the film "out of respect for the victims and their families," and added "Warner Bros. Pictures will not be reporting box office numbers for ''The Dark Knight Rises'' throughout the weekend. Box office numbers will be released on Monday." ''The Dark Knight Rises'' earned $448.1 million in North America, and $632.9 million in other countries, summing up to a worldwide total of $1.081 billion. Worldwide, it became the seventh-highest-grossing film of all time and the third-highest-grossing film of 2012. It had a worldwide opening weekend of $248.9 million. The film set a worldwide IMAX opening-weekend record with $23.8 million (overtaken by '' Avengers: Age of Ultron'') and also broke the record for the fastest movie to make over $50 million in IMAX theatres. IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond explained this by claiming, "Audiences are clearly seeking out and embracing the film the way it was meant to be seen – in IMAX." On the 2012 Labor Day weekend, it became the third film distributed by Warner Bros. and the thirteenth film in cinematic history to cross the $1 billion mark. The film also became the second movie (after ''Avatar'') to reach $100 million in worldwide IMAX grosses.


North America

''The Dark Knight Rises'' opened on Friday, July 20, 2012. It earned an estimated $30.6 million in midnight showings, which was the second-highest midnight gross behind '' Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2'' ($43.5 million). It did, however, set an
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...
midnight-gross record with $2.3 million (overtaken by '' Avengers: Age of Ultron''). The film made $75.8 million during its opening day, achieving, at the time, the third-highest single and opening day tally of all time. On July 23, 2012, it was announced that the film grossed $160.9 million for its debut weekend, which was the third-highest opening weekend ever, at the time, behind '' Marvel's The Avengers'' ($207.4 million) and ''Deathly Hallows – Part 2'' ($169.2 million). However, it did set an opening-weekend record for a 2D film (previously held by '' The Dark Knight'') and an IMAX opening-weekend record with $19.0 million (previously held by ''Marvel's The Avengers''). The film also held the top spot at the box office for its second and third weekends. In North America, it is the thirteenth-highest-grossing film, the third-highest-grossing 2012 film, as well as the sixth-highest-grossing superhero film and film based on comics.
Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb, which itself is owned by Amazon. History Brandon Gray be ...
estimates that the film sold more than 55 million tickets in the US.


Other territories

Outside North America, the film opened with $88.0 million from 7,173 theaters in just 17 markets. It was in first place at the box office outside North America for four consecutive weekends. Its three largest markets are the UK, Ireland and Malta ($90.3 million), where it is the highest-grossing superhero film, China ($52.8 million) and Australia ($44.2 million).


Critical response

''The Dark Knight Rises'' received highly positive reviews from critics. Many have named it one of the best films of 2012, and one of the best superhero films of all time. Film review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
gave ''The Dark Knight Rises'' an approval rating of based on reviews, and a rating average of . The web site's critical consensus reads, "''The Dark Knight Rises'' is an ambitious, thoughtful, and potent action film that concludes Christopher Nolan's franchise in spectacular fashion."
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, another review aggregator, assigned the film a weighted average score of 78 out of 100, based on 45 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
reported that audiences gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. It has been cited as one the most influential films of the 2010s.
Robbie Collin Robbie Collin is a British film critic. Collin studied aesthetics and the philosophy of film at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. He edited the university's student newspaper, '' The Saint''. Collin has been the chief film critic at ''The D ...
of ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' granted the film a maximum score of five stars, stating that it is "a superhero film without a superhero" and praising Hardy's performance as well as the film's intricate plot and narrative. Kenneth Turan of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...
'' thought the film was "potent, persuasive and hypnotic" and that it was "more than an exceptional superhero movie, it is masterful filmmaking by any standard." ''The Playlists'' Todd Gilchrist wrote "A cinematic, cultural and personal triumph, ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is emotionally inspiring, aesthetically significant and critically important for America itself – as a mirror of both sober reflection and resilient hope." IGN gave it a 9 out of 10, noting similarities in tone and theme to ''Batman Begins'' over the trilogy's second installment, ''The Dark Knight'', but also describing Bane as "that bit less interesting to watch" than Ledger's Joker, despite praising his "menacing voice" and "body language-driven performance". Film critic Richard Roeper gave the film an "A", calling it "a majestic, gorgeous, brutal and richly satisfying epic", and citing the final scenes of the picture as "the best five minutes of any film this year." The London Film Review gave the film a B and said "Nolan's film is a reminder that superheroes aren't merely a frivolous distraction, but an embodiment of our best selves." ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'' scored the film four out of five stars, calling it a film of "granite, monolithic intensity", yet also calling it a "hammy, portentous affair". Andrew O'Hehir of ''
Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...
'' writes "if ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a fascist film, it's a great fascist film, and arguably the biggest, darkest, most thrilling and disturbing and utterly balls-out spectacle ever created for the screen".
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...
'' gave the film three out of four stars, stating "the film begins slowly with a murky plot and too many new characters, but builds to a sensational climax." This was the final Batman film and also the final DC film Ebert reviewed before his death in 2013. The film was crowned by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'' as the best modern comic book superhero adaptation on screen, outranking both its main summer blockbuster competitor, '' Marvel's The Avengers'', and the trilogy's previous installment '' The Dark Knight''. It was selected for the American Film Institute's top 10 films of 2012, in addition to being on over 140 top ten end-of the year lists. CNN's Tom Charity said the film was a "disappointingly clunky and bombastic conclusion to a superior series" and called it Nolan's worst film. Anthony Lane of ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' says that the "story is dense, overlong, and studded with references that will make sense only to those intimate with Nolan's previous excursions into Batmanhood". In reaction to fan backlash to some of the negative reviews, Rotten Tomatoes chose to disable user commentary for the film leading up to its release. Some fans had threatened violence against critics while others threatened to take down the websites of movie critics who had given the film a negative review. Outside of the positive critical and audience reception that ''The Dark Knight Rises'' has received both upon release and retrospectively, certain retrospective reviews have been mixed or negative. In 2011, Aidan Gillen's character in the film, CIA operative Bill Wilson, became the subject of an
Internet meme An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...
popular among
4chan 4chan is an anonymous English-language imageboard website. Launched by Christopher "moot" Poole in October 2003, the site hosts boards dedicated to a wide variety of topics, from anime and manga to video games, cooking, weapons, television, ...
users known as "Baneposting", which references the dialogue between Wilson and Bane in the film's opening plane scene.


Analysis

Writing in ''
Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...
'',
David Sirota David J. Sirota (born November 2, 1975) is an American journalist, columnist at ''The Guardian'', editor for '' Jacobin'', author, television writer, and screenwriter. He is also a political commentator and radio host based in Denver. He is a nati ...
, a progressive political commentator, compared ''The Dark Knight Rises'' and the game ''
Call of Duty ''Call of Duty'' is a first-person shooter video game franchise published by Activision. Starting out in 2003, it first focused on games set in World War II. Over time, the series has seen games set in the midst of the Cold War, futuristic ...
'' to 1980s popular culture reflecting the political period of the time, accusing them of perpetuating a conservative agenda: "Just as so many 1980s pop culture products reflected the spirit of the Reagan Revolution's conservative backlash, we are now seeing two blockbuster, genre-shaping products not-so-subtly reflect the Tea Party's rhetorical backlash to the powerful
Occupy Wall Street Occupy Wall Street (OWS) was a protest movement against economic inequality and the influence of money in politics that began in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district, in September 2011. It gave rise to the ...
zeitgeist." An article in ''Variety'' reported Chuck Dixon, the cocreator of the Bane character, as saying that Bane is "far more akin to an Occupy Wall Street type if you're looking to cast him politically." Catherine Shoard of the center-left British publication ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'' said the film "is a quite audaciously capitalist vision, radically conservative, radically vigilante, that advances a serious, stirring proposal that the wish-fulfilment of the wealthy is to be championed if they say they want to do good." In contrast, liberal commentator
Jonathan Chait Jonathan Benjamin Chait () (born May 1, 1972) is an American pundit and writer for ''New York'' magazine. He was previously a senior editor at '' The New Republic'' and an assistant editor of ''The American Prospect''. He writes a periodic co ...
opined in ''
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
'' that "What passes for a right-wing movie these days is ''The Dark Knight Rises'', which submits the rather modest premise that, irritating though the rich may be, actually killing them and taking all their stuff might be excessive." Writing in ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'', Bryan Alexander called Bane "the ultimate occupier" and reported that Christian Bale was amazed that the script had "foreseen" the Occupy movement. Nolan has denied that the film criticizes the Occupy movement, and insists that none of his Batman films are intended to be political: "I've had as many conversations with people who have seen the film the other way round. We throw a lot of things against the wall to see if it sticks. We put a lot of interesting questions in the air, but that's simply a backdrop for the story. What we're really trying to do is show the cracks of society, show the conflicts that somebody would try to wedge open. We're going to get wildly different interpretations of what the film is supporting and not supporting, but it's not doing any of those things. It's just telling a story. If you're saying, 'Have you made a film that's supposed to be criticizing the Occupy Wall Street movement?' – well, obviously, that's not true." Alternatively, politically conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh alleged that the film was biased against 2012 Republican presidential nominee
Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts ...
due to Bane's name being a
homophone A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same (to varying extent) as another word but differs in meaning. A ''homophone'' may also differ in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (pa ...
for
Bain Capital Bain Capital is an American private investment firm based in Boston. It specializes in private equity, venture capital, credit, public equity, impact investing, life sciences, and real estate. Bain Capital invests across a range of industry se ...
, the financial service company Romney used to head, despite the fact that the character has existed as a major Batman foe since 1993. In response, Nolan said that the comments were "bizarre", while Dixon and Freeman said that the comments were "ridiculous". Democratic adviser Christopher Lehane has noted the similarities between the narratives of the film and the presidential campaign. Slovenian philosopher
Slavoj Žižek Slavoj Žižek (, ; ; born 21 March 1949) is a Slovenian philosopher, cultural theorist and public intellectual. He is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, visiting professor at New ...
pointed out that the film was inspired by the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
as portrayed by novelist
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
.


Accolades


Other recognition

* In 2014, ''
Empire Magazine ''Empire'' is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. The first issue was published in May 1989. History David Hepworth of Emap, the publisher of British music magazines '' Q'' and '' Smash Hits'', among other titl ...
'' ranked ''The Dark Knight Rises'' the 72nd greatest film ever made on their list of "The 301 Greatest Movies Of All Time" as voted by the magazine's readers. * In 2018, a poll of 1,000 British adults was conducted by ''
Virgin Media Virgin Media is a British telecommunications company which provides telephone, television and internet services in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are at Green Park in Reading, England. It is owned by Virgin Media O2, a 50:50 joint ventu ...
'' for people's choice of favorite superhero movie, and ''The Dark Knight Rises'' came in eighth place out of 20 films. * Film critics Richard Roeper and Roe Conn of ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...
'', for their ''Best Movies of the Decade'' podcast, ranked ''The Dark Knight Rises'' among their list of the best action movies of the 2010s. * ''Total Film'' named it the 48th best film of the 2010s. * In 2019, on a poll held by LADbible, ''The Dark Knight Rises'' was voted as the best film of the decade 2010–2019. * ''Den of Geek'' ranked it No. 61 on their list of the best movies of the decade. * ''The Daily Telegraph'' has frequently ranked it number one on their list of the 25 best superhero films of all time. * In 2018, the film was featured on ''The Daily Telegraph''s list of the 100 greatest films of all time in 2018. * Tom Hardy's bane was voted in the top 100 movie characters all time by ''Empire'' readers. * The film's soundtrack was listed on BBC top 20 movie soundtracks. * Voted in the top 20 films of the 2010s so far by the readers of ''Rolling Stone'' in 2015.


Notes


References


External links

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