Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises

On Thursday night, I went to Harkins Theatres with a group of friends to view the final film in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises. Going into the film, I didn’t want to get my hopes up too high. The Dark Knight, in my eyes, is one of the most flawless films I’ve ever seen in my lifetime (storyline, casting, music, cinematography, and so on). When the soundtrack to The Dark Knight Rises was released on July 17^th, I downloaded the entire album right away, and knew Hans Zimmer had worked his magic again, with the final installment.  It gave me hope that the film might live up to its predecessor, The Dark Knight.

If you have seen any of the numerous previews, you already know that the main villains are Bane (Tom Hardy) and Catwoman (Anne Hathaway). Out to protect Gotham in the place of the Batman (who has now been missing for 8 years, since taking the wrap for the murders Harvey Dent committed) are Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman) and police officer Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt).  When Bane proves to be much too powerful for the Gotham police force, after his long absence, the Dark Knight… Rises.

In the course of this film, I realized how much there was to the story. It almost seemed like the storyline was overcomplicated to the point where it was too much. I’m not saying it was hard to follow; it was just a lot to take in during the course of one movie. I understand that Nolan really had to tie up loose ends with this being the final film, but that, combined with the introduction of Bane, Catwoman, and Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard), felt almost overwhelming.
Christopher Nolan really knows how to cast his films. Tom Hardy doesn’t look all that terrifying as himself but he was by far the most horrifying of all the Batman villains in this series - There was nothing redeeming about him.  When he broke Batman’s back (which you would already know if you read the comics), I just sat there in shock. He shows no mercy.
I know a lot of people were unsure of Anne Hathaway being cast as Catwoman, but I couldn’t see anyone else playing this version of Catwoman. I loved Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman in Tim Burton’s Batman Returns, but in this specific trilogy Anne was perfect.
And I have to give credit to Michael Cane for managing the break my heart in every single scene he was in.  Another special credit to my main man, Morgan Freeman, for being Morgan Freeman.

I felt unsure of the timeline throughout the film, and I kind of gave up trying to figure it out towards the last hour of the film. Other than that and the storyline being jam packed, I enjoyed the film. It was NOT by any means better than The Dark Knight, but I left the theatre satisfied with how Nolan ended the trilogy that I’ve been attached to since Batman Begins came out in theatres in 2005. Christian Bale was a great addition to the legacy of the Batman, and Hans Zimmer was the perfect movie score composer for these films. His music really set the tone for all the films. Thank you, Christopher Nolan, for these films. I may not have been super impressed with The Dark Knight Rises over The Dark Knight, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t see it.
I suggest that everyone who has seen the first two films to go see The Dark Knight Rises and judge for yourself. SEE IT. It’s worth it, especially if you’ve followed the films up to this point.

One last thing: At the very end, when the girl is like ‘’you should go by your legal name, I like _____”.
REALLY? 

Movie Review: Magic Mike

Story: I was super excited to turn 17, so that I could start going to see rated R movies. When I saw the previews for Magic Mike, I knew that it had to be the first one I bought my own ticket to see. I was all prepared to show my I.D. and prove that I was 17, right? They didn’t even question me about it. I was severely disappointed, and that was the beginning of my Magic Mike experience.

Magic Mike is set in Tampa, where Adam (played by Alex Pettyfer) is a 19 year old struggling to find a job that he can stick out. By chance he meets Mike, a roof tiller that owns many side business’. Adam meets Mike that night by chance, and they go into a club, where Mike tests Adam’s ability to attract women. As Mike expected, the ladies love Adam, and he lures them to the strip club Xquisite, where Mike is the star stripper. That night, Adam has to step in and replace one of the dancers who is unable to perform, and so begins Adam’s journey to becoming a successful stripper (who quickly picks up the moniker ‘The Kid’).

This movie… I’m not sure how to properly judge it. You go into the movie expecting to see a bunch of ripped, sexy guys dancing around nearly naked on stage. Yes, you get plenty of that (which I will not complain about), but you also get a really dry plot. I honestly didn’t enjoy a lot of the movie where the guys weren’t dancing onstage. The choreography for the men was better than most of the script for the film, which is a shame. The plot was dry, and I hated both Adam and his sister, Brooke (played by Cody Horn). Both of these actors could’ve been replaces easily, in my opinion, because neither played the parts very well. Cody’s portrayal of Brooke felt very forced, and every time she laughed I wanted to punch her in the face.
Now, the rest of the gang… Oh, I liked them.
Matthew McConaughey as the ring leader, Dallas, was hilarious. One of my favorite scenes was when Dallas was teaching the Kid to take his clothes off for the crowd, Dallas wearing short –shorts and a little yellow tank top. McConaugheywas cast perfectly in this film, as was Channing Tatum as Mike. I really felt bad for all the times Mike had to bail the Kid out of trouble, and I was rooting for him the entire film. The rest of the ensemble (including Matt Bomer, TrueBlood’s Joe Manganiello, and Kevin Nash) were entertaining enough to make the film fun to watch.

I left the theatre very disappointed with the plot of the film. If you are honestly just going to see the film to see Channing Tatum and friends dancing with hardly anything on, then by all means, go and see it! You won’t be disappointed by the abs you see on those boys! Really though, those are the only scenes worth watching in the movie.
I would suggest seeing this film for a girls night out, because there’s really no other occasion to see it for. The film was poorly cast for the most part, with a poorly written plot. It’s only appealing element is the hot strippers (which face it, that’s the only reason this film is being watched).