Batman (Christian Bale) has been retired for eight years, and has become a recluse mourning the death of Rachel Dawes. The city has been doing well, having locked up 2000 criminals based on the Dent laws. But there is evil brewing beneath the surface. Batman's old nemesis, the League of Shadows is returning. Not Ta's Al Ghul, but those who think like him are filtrating the city and government. Bane (Tom Hardy) in particular is the essence of evil. He breaks people's necks, or rips out their trachea with his bare hands.
Commissioner Gordon's (Gary Oldman's) wife has left him, but he continues to protect the reputation of Harvey Dent, and lets Batman take the blame for his crimes. John Daggett (Ben Mendelsohn) wants to take over Wayne Enterprises and kick Bruce Wayne out. Cat Woman/ Selina (Anne Hathaway) steals Wayne's finger prints, and sell them to Bane. They attack a stock market bank, and using the fingerprints are able to wipe Wayne out of money, and Daggett gets his wish, but Bane ends up killing him. Bane has bigger goals.
Gordon is kidnapped by Bane's men, but escapes with the help of new police man, John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). However Gordon is hospitalized from the trauma. Alfred (Michael Caine) leaves, hoping he can keep Batman from becoming involved again as Batman. Batman is older and Bane will certainly kill him. Batman does confront Bane, and Bane beats him in a fight, injuring Batman's back. Bane keeps him alive but puts him in an Asian prison. Meantime he takes over Gotham, using explosives so as to isolate it on Gotham island, trapping the police under ground, liberating all the prisoners who are set up as mob rule. He comes upon nuclear material from Wayne Enterprises, and having kidnapped a scientist to make it into a bomb. They hold kangaroo courts presided by Jonathan Crane (Cillian Murphy) in which the put wealthy people to death.
Batman is in the Asian prison for five months, giving his body time to heal. He is finally able to climb out of the prison. He finds that a child of Ta's Al Ghoul was also in the prison and escaped. The child was helped by a protector. Batman assumes the child is Bane.
Batman returns to Gotham, and takes on Bane with a different result. He is able to knock his breathing mask which causes great pain. However just as he is on the point of victory, an ally, Miranda stabs him in the back, literally. She worked for Wayne Enterprises but turns out to the Talia Al Ghul (Marion Cotillard), daughter of Ta's Al Ghul. Bane is the protector. Talia attempt to detonate the bomb but fails as the signal is blacked by Gordon at the bomb. Thali takes off to go to the bomb. Catwoman kills Bane with the bat cycle. The chase Talia, and finally catch her, but the bomb is going to detonate. Batman takes the bomb in a bat plane out into the ocean where it explodes, ending the threat and Batman. Batman had said the remote for the plane was not working, but they later discover it was working.
This movie as very good. I liked it better as the evil characters played their parts well and were truly evil. Blake is set up to be Robin as he finds the bat cave.
