The Dark Knight Trilogy

Cast

Bruce Wayne/Batman                                                 Christian Bale

Alfred Pennyworth                                                      Michael Caine

Rachel Dawes                                                             Katie Holmes/Maggie Gyllenhaal

James Gordon                                                             Gary Oldman

Lucius Fox                                                                  Morgan Freeman

Selina Kyle/Catwoman                                                Anne Hathaway

Robin John Blake                                                        Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Dr. Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow                                    Cillian Murphy

Ra’s al Ghul                                                                 Liam Neeson

Joker                                                                           Heath Ledger

Hervey Dent/Two-Face                                                Aaron Eckhart

Bane                                                                            Tom Hardy

Miranda Tate/Talia al Ghul                                             Marion Cotillard

Batman Begins (2005)

The movie starts out with a young Bruce Wayne running around with a young Rachel Dawes. However while playing he falls down a well where a group of bats come out of a whole scaring him. His father comes down saying the fames line of “Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.” The movie continues and we see how Bruce becomes an orphan and furthermore how he becomes the batman. As he starts off his crime fighting as batman we see how his skills and money give him the ability to overcome the obstacles. The movie as a slight twist towards the middle followed by a seat gripping climax.

The Dark Knight (2008)

               We see Bruce return as the Batman. The city of Gotham loves him and criminals are scared to do business with him around. However there’s a new enemy in town, and he isn’t clowning around. As the movie progresses we come to see how evil and twisted the joker is. That this man does not kill for business, or for any apparent reason, he does it because he likes to, or as the movie puts it “some men just want to watch the world burn”. It is a gripping story filled with lots of new toys for Batman to play with, as well as a few new characters. The movie has a somewhat depressing ending making you feel as if Batman is doomed.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

               In this final chapter of the Dark night Trilogy we see that Bruce as become several depressed since the last movie. It also seems as if the effects of running around the city jumping off buildings as taken its toll on Bruce. However we also meet Batman’s greatest enemy, Bane, who plans on destroying the whole city of Gotham and everyone in it. This movie seems to focus more on the effect that Batman has had on Bruce, both physically and mentally. 

REVIEW

               This is one of my personal favorite movie trilogies. It has all the parts of a great action movie, a guy with almost super human abilities, good looking girls, and explosions. What more could you ask for from an action film? How about the fact that it’s based in the DC universe and it involves one of the most beloved super heroes of all time. You know the one I’m talking about, he jumps off roof tops, is super rich, and drives that awesome car, that’s right it’s Batman.

               But in all seriousness this is a great film trilogy. The acting by all the different actors is absolutely amazing, gripping you and bringing you in making you feel as if you are by Batman’s side the whole time. One of the best actors in the whole trilogy in my opinion was Heath Ledger (Joker). His acting is what makes you believe that the Joker is an insane, brilliant, villain. The way he moves and talks just make the Joker seem so much more than your typical villain. But as his name would state, there’s also a dark sense of humor to him that Ledger pulls off so well. It think most of the people who have seen all three batman films would agree that the Joker is by far the darkest and most cunning of the villain. And that is because of how good the acting is that just drags you into the film.

               Not only is the acting spectacular, but the special effects are top-notch. This really comes out in the third movie where we see some truly amazing shots. Such as the Bat flying around Gotham blowing everything in its path up. While the special effects in a movie aren’t everything, they do help you enjoy what you are watching.

               I can’t think of many bad parts to the movie, however there was one scene that I felt wasn’t needed. And that was the Robin reveal scene. You were expecting it the whole time, and then he just says it at the end. There’s no buildup of suspense, it just says it for no reason. It almost seems as if it was just thrown in at the end to satisfy someone. I think it could have been written in much better, and in a way that would have built a lot more suspense so that when it was revealed you would actually be surprised. But besides that I found the trilogy very enjoyable to watch.

Rating as a trilogy: 8.5/10

Batman Begins: 8/10

The Dark Knight: 9/10

The Dark Knight Rises: 7.5/10

Jurassic Park Trilogy

Cast

Dr. Alan Grant                                     Sam Neill

Dr. Ellie Sattler                                     Laura Dern

Dr. Ian Malcolm                                   Jeff Goldblum

John Hammond                                    Richard Attenborough

Lex Murphy                                         Ariana Richards

Tim Murphy                                         Joseph Mazzello

Robert Muldoon                                   Bob Peck

Dennis Nedry                                       Wayne Knight

Ray Arnold                                           Samuel L. Jackson

Dr. Sarah Harding                                 Julianne Moore

Nick Van Owen                                   Vince Vaughn

Roland Tembo                                      Pete Postlethwaite

Kelly Curtis Malcolm                            Vanessa Lee Chester

Peter Ludlow                                        Arliss Howard

Billy Brennan                                        Slessandro Nivola

Paul Kirby                                            William H. Macy

Amanda Kirby                                      Tea Leoni

Eric Kirby                                             Trevor Morgan

Jurassic Park (1993)

            When two archeologist, Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ellie Sattler, are invited to a secret island to give a review on a Amusement park owned by John Hammond. When they arrive they find out that Hammond is able to recreate Dinosaurs using their blood found in mosquitos. They also meet up with Hammond’s two grandchildren, Lex and Tim Murphy, and Dr. Ian Malcolm, a chaos theory scientist. Hammond sends them on a tour of the park, but during the tour something goes terrible wrong and the dinosaurs become free and start attacking the group. They are forced to fight for their life as they seek safety.

The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

            This one starts out with John Hammond, who has now changed to an environmentalist, losing control of his company. He is wanting to capture the dinosaurs in their natural habitat (Which is on a different island then the first film) so that it can be preserved. So he hires a team including Ian Malcolm. At first Ian Malcolm is hesitant to go but when he finds out that one of the other people on the team is his current girlfriend, Sarah Harding, he sets out to save her. However once they get on the island they find out that there is another team there to capture dinosaurs. They sabotage this other group and as a result both groups become stuck on the island. The only way out is though using the phones at the center of the island which. And so both teams make their way together to the island, getting attacked along there way.

Jurassic Park 3 (2001)

            Jurassic Park 3 starts out with 2 rich people (The Kirby’s) hiring Dr. Alan Grant to give them a tour of the island from The Lost World. He agrees and him and his assistant, Billy Brennan, leave to give this couple a tour from the air. However they soon find out that the Kirby’s had lied to him and where really searching for their son who got stuck on the island a few months before. Once they land they are almost immediately attacked by a dinosaur and while they are try to take off crash. They then most make their way to a boat in order to get off the island. While trying to do this they run into the Kirby’s son and a more dinosaur’s. They are however rescued from the island in the end.

REVIEW

            This series has a great start in Jurassic park. The first movie starts out strong, leading you into this large fantasy world where dinosaurs exist. Then once you get into this world and start to feel connected to the characters everything starts to go wrong. You actually feel connected to the characters grasping the edge of your seat in fear for the characters. The movie ends and you feel satisfied with what you just saw. But that all ends soon enough.

            While the second movie tries to make you feel connected to the characters, you end up not caring that much about them. In fact if it wasn’t for Jeff Goldblum, who was in the first film, you wouldn’t care about them at all. When people start dying you just laugh because it’s so ridicules. So much that in one scene a person yells “Don’t go into the long grass”(ignore the end) after realizing its velociraptors territory, then immediately runs into the long grass. At this point I literally said out loud, “WHY?!” he could have easily turned around and went the other way.

            By the third movie, Jurassic Park 3, it seems the people and the plot didn’t even matter. After the first 15 minutes of the film it seems all that happens is the group of people being chased by some dinosaur. I can’t help but remember that Office episode where Michael talks about his improve and says “Think about this: what is the most excitingthing that can happen on TV or in movies, or in real life? Somebody has a gun.That's why I always start with a gun, because you can't top it. You just can't.” This must have been what the writers where thinking when the wrote the Jurassic Park 3, what is the most exciting thing that can happen on TV or in movies, or in real life? Somebody gets chased by a dinosaur. Let’s do that, let’s do a lot of that.

            Overall I give the serious as a whole 6 out of 10 for lazier and lazier writing. However on an individual scale the first would have received an 8, the second a 5.5, and the third a 5.