REVIEW: The Dark Knight Rises on Blu-ray / DVD Combo

I’m a big fan of superhero movies in general, and have really enjoyed the Batman series, especially the last Dark Knight movie. And I’m not alone because on IMDB the Dark Knight has a 9/10 rating! To put that in perspective, that makes it the 7th highest rated movie of all time!

So, talk about a tough act to follow… the Dark Knight Rises almost certainly couldn’t be as good as its predecessor, right?

The Dark Knight Rises Bluray is Available!

Let me start this out by saying that our friends at Warner Brothers sent me the Dark Knight Rises Bluray combo a couple of weeks ago before the general release. I’ve been traveling so much that I didn’t have time to share a review with you guys till now – but the timing is perfect because as of today you can head over to Amazon and pick up a copy!

Lets Talk About The Dark Knight Rises

First, check out the awesome movie trailer.

Dark. Mysterious. Action-packed. AND, full of explanations!

Ok, I don’t want to ruin anything for those of you who haven’t seen it yet, but lets suffice it to say that Bruce Wayne is in terrible physical condition (because after all, he isn’t Superman) and he’s become a recluse after Batman was blamed for a bunch of bad stuff that went down in the last movie.

A series of events is going to bring him out of retirement though, and the combination of his poor physical condition, and the fact that he just generally seems worn out, is going to seriously cost him! Almost everything…

So, was this movie as good as its predecessor? I’d say yes. It starts out a little slow, but after 30 minutes its in full swing. And IMDB rates this baby an 8.7! Ranking it as #32 out of the Top 250! Which is the most amazing thing about this movie. Just imagine – a sequel as good as the movie it follows!

Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray Quality

I’m going to let you watch the movie to learn more about it, but the question you probably need to ask is whether its worth springing for the Blue-ray, or if watching it on DVD is good enough?

I watched the movie on an 80″ Sharp LED TV running through a high end audio system. This setup tends to show every single flaw in any video. Movies like Ultraviolet or even X-Men Origins: Wolverine are essentially ruined because the CGI is so transparent. But The Dark Knight Rises suffered from none of those issues. The video was crisp and realistic.

The audio quality was also immersive, with clear center channel vocals and a generally well balanced ratio of dialog to action sounds.

All in all, the movie is visually stimulating enough that you’ll get a lot more out of the Blu-ray than you will the DVD. Of course, this set comes with both plus a digital copy (which I consider useless – you’re better off ripping the DVD) so you don’t have to worry about where you watch it. You’ll see it on any player you have access to.

All in all, I highly recommend The Dark Knight Rises. What did you think of the movie?