It has been eight years since the unfortunate passing of Harvey Dent, Gotham’s charismatic District Attorney. Gotham City is now a much quieter, more peaceful place due to Batman’s efforts and the Dent Act, a government decree that gives police officers considerable leverage over organized crime---Harvey Dent’s legacy to Gotham. Batman has all but disappeared from the city following the events before Dent’s death. Unbeknownst to the rest of the populace Commissioner James Gordon has been covering up for Dent’s psychotic rampage as his dark alter-ego Two-Face, who was created by the trauma inflicted upon him by the Joker, by pinning the blame on Batman. This was a plan devised by both Batman, as he wanted Dent to be remembered as a heroic defender of justice and not a psychopathic monster. Gordon however is wracked with guilt with trying to maintain the farce and prepares to resign but does not carry it out, deciding that it is an inappropriate time to leave the force.
The situation for Bruce Wayne isn’t all that pleasant either. He has begun to live his life as a complete hermit, refusing to see anyone, neglecting to even groom himself. He is still crushed by the death of his beloved Rachel Dawes. Financially, he is faring no better as the Wayne Enterprises has begun to lose profits after terminating a major project for alternative energy. The fusion reactor project his company was working was shelved after he learned that it could be used as a weapon. While Bruce Wayne mopes in his mansion, expert cat burglar Selina Kyle infiltrates Wayne Manor and abducts Congressman Byron Gilley as well as samples of Bruce’s fingerprints. The fingerprints are sold to Wayne Enterprises’ biggest rival John Daggett in exchange for the “Clean Slate” program, a computer program designed to locate and delete all criminal records stored in law enforcement databases.
Daggett betrays Selina at the agreed tradeoff, but she manages to call the police using Cong. Gilley’s phone. The authorities arrive and rescue the congressman and give Daggett’s men chase into the sewers. Selina escapes during the confusion. Daggett’s men turn out to be loyal to Bane, an ex-member of the League of Shadows, who has been establishing his operations underneath Gotham undetected. Gordon and the rest of his men are captured then taken to Bane for questioning. Commissioner Gordon manages to get away and is located by newbie officer John Blake. Officer Blake is a resourceful, streetwise policeman with remarkable deduction skills. He determines that Bruce Wayne may have connections or might himself be the Batman and he compels him to take up the mantle once more making an emotional appeal as a fellow orphan. Whilst Bruce Wayne resolves his internal conflicts Bane strikes, attacking the Gotham Stock Exchange. He uses the fingerprints stolen by Selina Kyle to make a transaction that impoverishes Bruce Wayne. Bane then proceeds to cut loose ends, killing Daggett. In Wayne Manor a worn-out Alfred Pennyworth, the Wayne Family’s butler and Bruce’s only family has all but given up on his charge. He divulges the painful truth to Bruce that prior to Rachel’s death she had plans to marry Dent. He then resigns from his duties to the Wayne Family in an effort to push Bruce out his rut and move on. He manages to move on taking comfort in the arms of the new CEO of Wayne Enterprises, Miranda Tate.
Batman realizes that he cannot take Bane on alone so he seeks out the assistance of Selina Kyle, who betrays him leading him into a trap devised by Bane as he holds her sister ransom. Batman faces off with Bane he divulges his reason for targeting Gotham: he intends to finish what Ra’s Al Ghul started---the complete destruction of Gotham City through the use of Wayne Enterprises technology. This goads Batman into a mad rage, making him careless in combat and Bane manages to beat him a deal a crippling blow to his back. After disabling Batman he taken into an underground prison deep in a fictional foreign country. Whilst incarcerated one of the older inmates, who also serves as Bruce’s physician recounts the story of Ra’s Al Ghul’s child. The child was born from the union of Ra’s Al Ghul and the daughter of a powerful warlord. Their child was the only one with the sheer will to escape. The story fuels Bruce’s will to overcome his disability and escape the pit.
Meanwhile in Gotham City, Bane manages to manipulate the police force into following him underground. He then uses explosives to trap and kill as many as he can and destroys all the bridges connecting the city to adjacent areas, effectively isolating it. Bane then kills the mayor and compels the Russian nuclear physicist, Dr. Leonid Pavel to convert the reactor core stolen from Wayne Enterprises into a nuclear bomb, killing the doctor once the bomb was ready. The resultant nuclear bomb is then used to hold the city captive, preventing intervention from outside forces. Bane then reveals the whitewashing of Harvey Dent’s by means of Commissioner Gordon’s would-be resignation speech tarnishing his reputation for good. After crushing the morale of the citizens he then proceeds to release the prisoners of Blackgate Penitentiary letting all hell break loose. Chaos reigns in Gotham as the city’s elite are captured and taken to mock trials officiated by the now insane Jonathan Crane. All those taken to court are sentenced to death regardless of the verdict.
Having recovered fully from his injuries months later later Bruce Wayne then escapes from the prison and returns to Gotham to put a stop to Bane’s reign of terror. He enlists the aid of Lucius Fox, Commissioner Gordon, Selina Kyle, and John Blake to put together a plan to rescue as many citizens of Gotham as they can and diffuse the bomb. Batman and his rag-tag team then manage to free the trapped police officers and they go head-to-head with Bane’s forces on the streets of Gotham. In the ensuing melee Batman singles out Bane and this time, he defeats him. Miranda Tate mysteriously appears on the scene and interferes in their “duel” stabbing Batman through a vulnerable spot in his armor. She then reveals herself to be the fabled child of Ra’s Al Ghul, Talia Al Ghul. Bane is then revealed to be nothing more than a figurehead and spokesperson for Talia as she is actually the one calling the shots and she is now carrying out her plan to take vengeance for her father and to finish his plan of utterly destroying Gotham city.
Talia tries to detonate the bomb remotely but Commissioner Gordon blocks it. When the bomb doesn’t explode as planned she leaves to fix the situation. Selina manages to kill Bane before managing to strike a killing blow to a wounded Batman. Batman and Selina Kyle chase after Talia after she had successfully located the bomb, planning to return the now activated bomb to the reaction chamber so it can be neutralized. Talia’s truck crashes and she is critically wounded in the process, before dying though she floods the reactor chamber destroying their hopes of neutralizing the bomb. Batman realizes that the only way to save Gotham is haul the bomb as far away using the Bath and allow it to detonate, where it will likely kill him.
Without a moment’s hesitation Batman takes the bomb to the bay where it blows up without causing any casualties or damage to property. Batman is presumed dead after the blast and is honored as a hero and Bruce Wayne is presumed to have been killed during the mass riots. Stately Wayne Manor was been converted and all the remaining property is left to Alfred Pennyworth. As the dust settles and individuals try to restore a sense of normalcy, Lucius Fox learns that Bruce Wayne had found a way to pilot the Bat remotely and Gordon returns to the precinct to find that the Bat-Signal has been mysteriously repaired. Having inherited a tidy sum Alfred takes a holiday in Florence, Italy and discovers that Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle are very much alive and are happily involved with each other. John Blake, disillusioned with the ideals of the Police force resigns from service and per Bruce Wayne’s will becomes the inheritor of the Batcave---and obliquely hinted---the mantle of the Batman.
