The most satisfying conclusion to a trilogy I've ever seen

Rating: 9/10 (21 July 2012)

I just saw TDKR in IMAX with my Mom, and I have just one word for it... WHOA! I was really impressed with Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, but this one... I'm sorry but I'm still in awe of this movie. The best Batman movie I've ever seen, and maybe the best MOVIE I've ever seen. Since the final scene in The Dark Knight when Batman is riding the Bat-Pod and disappears into downtown Gotham, I've been waiting four years to see what direction Christopher Nolan and the rest of the crew and cast would take. Now that we've finally reached the release of "The Dark Knight Rises", I'm extremely happy to say that I was completely blown away by this movie. Usually threequels tend not to do so good, but this is one of the few that are outstanding!
Story (No spoilers): 8 years have passed since the Joker's rampage, and Batman has not been seen since he has taken the fall for Harvey Dent/Two-Face's crimes. Bruce Wayne is now a recluse, and is clearly emotionally damaged by his experiences as Batman, and his loss of his childhood sweetheart Rachel Dawes. The crime rate in Gotham City has quieted down, but that peacetime is short lived when a new threat arrives. A threat even worse than what the Joker had in store for Gotham... BANE. Batman is then forced to come out of hiding to stop Bane's reign of terror.
The acting as always is top notch: Christian Bale is an excellent and believable Batman/Bruce Wayne, and accurately shows the complexity of the character. This is probably his best portrayal of Bruce Wayne since we get a really good insight on Bruce Wayne much like the insight we got on Peter Parker in Spider-Man 2, and how Bruce must rise above his personal demons once again and become Batman in his heart and mind. Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle/Catwoman really surprised me. I loved her performances in some of her other movies, but this performance is probably her best yet! She is the best Catwoman ever put on screen! Tom Hardy as Bane, while he may not be as interesting as the Joker he's still an awesome villain. Tom Hardy's performance as Bane is phenomenal, and he is one of the most exciting and most terrifying villain I've ever seen. He's physically superior to Batman which is shown in the first confrontation between the two characters, which was so intense by the way. I like how his physical appearance was changed for this movie because the expressions in his eyes makes him more intimidating. And yes his voice was much more easier to understand this time, even though there are times you may not clearly understand what he said. Plus, Tom Hardy's Bane made me forget all about Joel Schumacher's version of Bane in "Batman and Robin", and that's saying something. As for the rest of the cast, Michael Caine (he got me teary eyed a few times in this one), Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotilliard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (awesome as usual, and his character has a surprising story arc at the end) are fantastic in their roles. Heck, anyone who had a small part or anyone who was an extra should be proud that they were even in this movie! Lastly the directing: Christopher Nolan has done such a superb job with telling his story of Batman, and I congratulate him for making a trilogy that is probably the best I've ever seen.
The moment this movie started, I was completely drawn into it from beginning to the end, as was everybody else in the theater. No spoilers, but there were twists and turns that I didn't expect to happen, some scenes with funny lines (especially some of the scenes between Lucius Fox and Bruce Wayne, and between Bruce Wayne/Batman and Selina Kyle/Catwoman) and yes some romance. And the way the film ends (without spoiling anything) was perfect. All the loose ends that were open throughout the trilogy were wrapped up so nicely.
The visual effects once again were amazing and I liked the scene at the football stadium. The music by Hans Zimmer is mind blowing, and I don't think you could come up with a better score for Batman than this! And I also love the look of Gotham City in this one. Unlike the last two films which were filmed in Chicago, most of it this time was filmed in NYC, and some of the shots were filmed in Los Angeles and Pittsburgh. Plus I was able to pick out a few spots obviously since most of this was filmed in NYC, since my family is from NYC.
This trilogy once again is probably the best that I've ever seen, and it's definitely the kind of trilogy we'll be telling our kids about in 20 years time much like our parents told us about Star Wars. These three movies have given me such great experiences and memories that I will remember forever, and I'm absolutely going to miss the hype that comes with waiting for Nolan's next Batman, but I think he's right when he says it's time for the story to come to an end. I'm not kidding when I say this: Check this one out because, you're in for one hell of a ride!
(This is in light of the tragic shooting in Colorado: may God take care of the victims that are now with Him, the families of those who were killed and may He help the family of the shooter get through this terrible ordeal he's put them through.)
Update: I still think this film is great, and I don't really see any problems or plot holes like people keep insisting there is. This was a solid ending to the trilogy and nothing more.