'The Dark Knight Rises' review

Christopher Nolan is without a doubt one of the most consistent and talented writer/directors of recent memory. His modern masterpieces such as 'Inception', 'The Prestige', 'Memento' and of course, 'Batman Begins' and 'The Dark Knight' have cemented his position amongst the all time greats with his own unique type of film that captures the viewer in a way that few directors can manage. The man is a genius. So with the release of the immensely anticipated conclusion to his epic Batman trilogy, the question always was, will it live up to the hype?

 In a word; yes. 'The Dark Knight Rises' manages to achieve all that it aims to. But it does so much more than that - it smashed all the expectations I had. From it's epic and mysterious opening to it's satisfying and well rounded ending, 'The Dark Knight Rises' delivers in a way I could never have imagined. The twists and turns, the explosive action sequences and the fantastic character interplay all combine to result in undoubtedly one of, if not the, finest superhero film ever.

Whilst many people may say that 'The Dark Knight Rises' could never live up to the brilliance of 'The Dark Knight' (mostly because of Heath Ledger's outstanding and utterly memorable performance as The Joker) I would say that the character of Bane is a wholly more threatening presence throughout the film and Tom Hardy's performance is fantastic. The sheer brutality of Bane and his calculated and well planned actions prove to be a more frightening counterpart to Batman compared to the madness and unpredictability of Heath Ledger's Joker. (Although of course in comparison to Bane, The Joker's plan was much simpler - kill The Batman). And because of this, you find yourself (for potentially the first time ever) worrying about Batman as a result of the fact that Bane outmatches Batman - both physically and mentally, due to the fact that Bruce Wayne never recovered from the events of 'The Dark Knight' and is in terrible shape for his first encounter with Bane.

Alongside Tom Hardy's excellent performance is the great Anne Hathaway, who manages to destroy all of the prejudices I may have felt towards her as an actress and Catwoman as a character. Other great performances include Gary Oldman who is a large and attention grabbing presence as always. And, of course, Christian Bale - Batman himself, who turns out an immense performance as the broken bat. Perhaps most surprising is Joseph Gordon-Levitt's stellar performance as Blake, a police officer with much more intelligence and importance than initially meets the eye.

The story itself is what makes 'The Dark Knight Rises' stand above all of it's competition. The unpredictability of the events and the constant failed attempts that you make at trying to stay one step ahead of the film and guess the events before they happen, both speak volumes in terms of how quickly the feel and tone of the movie changes constantly. This film screams epic. The characters, changes of setting and the tone of the movie itself make it apparent that this is the conclusion to one of the greatest trilogies in motion picture history. The loose ends are tied and whilst you feel a certain sense of completion in regards to this superb series of films, it does leave you feeling saddened, knowing that this is the end of Christopher Nolan's outlandishly entertaining take on Batman.

So, there you have it, the greatest film of the year so far, with perhaps only The Hobbit left to contend with for the title itself. An obscenely good film, with bags of intrigue, originality and thought. A modern masterpiece. Thank you Christopher Nolan for gifting us with this eruptive finale. 10/10

Periphery - 'II' album review

The emergence of the genre known as 'Djent' has resulted in a plethora of bands utilising what can only be described as the guitar tone of Satan himself. Periphery are undoubtedly one of the genre's forerunners and they showed this with their excellent début record that managed to capture the essence of  Djent in every track; with chugging riffs, luscious solos and polyrhythms. With their second album it is clear that Periphery wanted to capture the magic of their début (which made them stand head and shoulders above the vast majority of their peers) but to drive it forward and to give themselves a more well rounded and perhaps even unique sound. An amiable task, but, did they manage it?

 The great thing about Periphery is the sheer ease with which their music can be listened to, in terms of a progressive, technical metal band they are perhaps the most accessible and this makes for some great songs. That's right. Not just tracks that showcase the bands huge amount of talent, but songs. Well written, well performed and wholly listenable songs. Here is a band that gain great influence from the progressive metal titans Meshuggah -the band that coined the term 'Djent' - managing to craft an album that consists of songs that don't tax the brain in a way that the new Meshuggah record does (don't get me wrong though, 'Koloss' is breathtaking) but also manages to leave the listener with a feeling that they won't be able to get the full amount of satisfaction out of every song without listening to each one for a third, fourth or fifth time. A great achievement indeed.

However, don't let the fact that this is a somewhat accessible record fool you. The musicianship on this album is frankly sublime. The guitar work in particular stands out; with an abundance of riffs, solos and mind boggling grooves. It is something to behold. Furthermore, the vocals on this record are fantastic, soaring melodies and brutal growls, 'II' has it all. It is probably the vocals that separate this album from the competition, the variety is a breath of fresh air and you will have a chorus or two circling around your head after listening.

Another great thing about 'II' is the length, you get a lot of bang for your buck, 14 tracks clocking in at around the 70 minute mark. The best thing about long albums is that you can really sink your teeth into them. They provide plenty of sustenance and this is very true of this record. You will find yourself crawling inside it and not wanting to leave, every fresh listen revealing another little intricacy you didn't notice earlier.

So, yes, Periphery did achieve their aim, producing an incredible album which will unquestionably be appearing in many people's 'albums of the year' lists. A mature, unique sounding record without a bad song. Fantastic. 8.5/10