The Dark Knight Rises is a 2012 superhero film based on the DC Comics character Batman. Directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan, and the story with David S. Goyer, 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 as Bruce Wayne / Batman, alongside Anne Hathaway, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Michael Caine. Set eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, it follows a retired Wayne being forced to resume his role as Batman to save Gotham City from nuclear destruction at the hands of the terrorist Bane (Hardy).
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, and the 1999 storyline "No Man's Land". Filming took place from May to November 2011 in locations including Jodhpur, London, Nottingham, Glasgow, Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, and Pittsburgh. Nolan used IMAX 70 mm film 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 specially 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, and was released in the United States and the United Kingdom on July 20. The film received positive reviews from critics, who deemed it a satisfying conclusion to the trilogy. It received a nomination for Special Visual Effects at the 66th British Academy Film Awards, and numerous other accolades, in addition to being named one of the top-ten films of 2012 by the American Film Institute. It also grossed $1.085 billion worldwide, making it the second film in the Batman film series to earn $1 billion, and the highest-grossing Batman film to date. It became Nolan's second-highest-grossing film, after The Odyssey (2026), as well as the seventh-highest-grossing film of all time at the time of its release and the third-highest-grossing film of 2012.
Plot
Bane, a former member of the League of Shadows, leads an attack on a CIA plane over Uzbekistan to abduct nuclear physicist Dr. Leonid Pavel. Meanwhile, eight years after the death of Gotham City district attorney Harvey Dent and the arrest of the Joker, organized crime has been eradicated in Gotham by the Dent Act, legislation that gives expanded powers to the police. Police commissioner James Gordon has kept Dent's killing spree a secret and allowed the blame for his crimes to fall on Batman. Bruce Wayne, still mourning the death of Rachel Dawes, has become a recluse.
Bane conspires to help Wayne Enterprises board member John Daggett take over the company. Cat burglar Selina Kyle steals Bruce's fingerprints from Wayne Manor for Daggett, but he double-crosses her, and she alerts the police. Bane's henchmen capture Gordon in the sewers but he escapes and is found by steadfast Gotham City police officer John Blake, an orphan who has deduced Bruce's secret identity. Blake persuades Bruce to resume his vigilantism. Bane attacks the Gotham Stock Exchange and uses Bruce's fingerprints to verify fraudulent transactions, leaving Bruce ousted from his company and bankrupt. Fearing Bruce will purposely get himself killed fighting Bane, his butler, Alfred Pennyworth, reveals to him that Rachel was going to marry Dent, and thus, Bruce should let her go. When Bruce does not give up, Alfred resigns and leaves Wayne Manor. Batman encounters Selina, and both narrowly escape Bane's henchmen. Bane kills Daggett to pursue his own goals while Bruce and Wayne Enterprises's new CEO, Miranda Tate, become lovers.
Selina agrees to take Batman to Bane, but instead leads him into a trap under Wayne Tower. Bane, aware of Batman's identity, gloats that he intends to fulfill Ra's al Ghul's mission to destroy Gotham City before brutally crippling Batman in combat. He takes Bruce to an ancient underground prison in the Middle East, where Bruce learns that Ra's al Ghul's wife was sent there while pregnant with his child. The child was born and raised there, but had a protector who helped them escape. Back in Gotham, Bane detonates explosives, trapping the police forces in the sewers, destroying all but one bridge surrounding the city, and killing Gotham's mayor. He forces Pavel to convert the fusion reactor core owned by Wayne Enterprises into a decaying neutron bomb before publicly executing him. Effectively taking over Gotham, he exposes Dent's crimes to the world, and releases the prisoners of Blackgate Penitentiary. Bane also has Gotham's elite exiled and killed in proletarian kangaroo courts presided over by Jonathan Crane.
Five months later, Bruce, now healed, escapes the prison. As Batman, he returns to Gotham and frees the police to battle Bane's army together. During the battle, Tate stabs Batman, revealing herself as Ra's al Ghul's daughter, Talia. Bane is her decoy and guardian who had helped her escape the pit, becoming mauled in the process. Talia activates the bomb, but it fails due to Gordon blocking the signal. Selina kills Bane and helps Batman pursue Talia, hoping to return the bomb 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 reveals his identity to Gordon, and uses his aerial craft, the Bat, to haul the bomb over the bay, where it safely explodes.
In the aftermath, Batman is presumed dead and honored as a hero. Since Bruce is also presumed dead, Wayne Manor becomes an orphanage, and Bruce's estate is left to Alfred. Gordon finds the Bat-Signal repaired, while Lucius Fox discovers that Bruce had fixed the Bat's malfunctioning autopilot, implying that he escaped the Bat before the detonation. In Florence, drinking a Fernet Branca, Alfred discovers that Bruce is alive and in a relationship with Selina, and they acknowledge each other with a smile. A disillusioned Blake, whose legal first name is revealed as Robin, resigns from the GCPD, and receives a package leading him to the Batcave.
Cast
Christian Bale 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, now modified for Wayne's current state and Bane's style. Bale has stated that The Dark Knight Rises would 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 [his 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: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 hinting that the relationship will be strained as it never has before. Gary Oldman 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 before sensing that Gotham is about to come under threat. Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle / The Cat:A professional cat burglar, grifter, and femme fatale 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. Jessica Biel and Kate Mara were considered for the role. 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 had previously ruled out in 2008 including Catwoman in a third film for having already appeared in Tim Burton's Batman Returns, portrayed by Michelle Pfeiffer. Tom Hardy as Bane:A mysterious, intelligent, and physically imposing villain who was excommunicated from the League of Shadows and portrays himself as a "liberator of pain" and revolutionary. He is intent on completing 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, the character wears a mask that supplies him with an analgesic 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'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 later said training for the role probably damaged his body. Hardy based Bane's voice on several influences, which include Bartley Gorman 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 is a ruse in order to exploit Gotham's citizens for the League of Shadows' ultimate goal in destroying the 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 as young Talia al Ghul