The legend ends with a bang – don't listen to haters

Rating: 8/10 (18 May 2015)

Do not compare "TDKR" to "TDK" because it's completely different movie. It's a simpler story , more character driven , slower paced and the most comic bookish movie in the trilogy. Realism and real life logic gets replaced with comic book logic at some point. The series were never really 100 % realistic , but this movie requires sometimes a lot of suspension disbelief from the viewer.
The first 40 minutes is busy jumping between characters new and old, and setting up many sub-plots. Storytelling takes time to get to the main plot . The movie leaves the viewer with many blanks that he has to fill on his own. That's why many people were complaining about the plot holes that don't actually exist. If you think for a while you will find answers . Other flaws - very dialogue-heavy , underwritten character of Miranda Tate and undeveloped romance between Miranda and Bruce , some cheesy scenes. I liked that Bruce Wayne had a lot of screen time , but some people might have problem with not enough of Batman.
I loved Tom Hardy's Bane . His menacing voice that sounds like a mix of Darth Vader and Sean Connery . He speaks in a calm manner like a philosopher and is intimidating to everyone. Bane has a raw physicality rarely seen on the big screen. Look closely at his body language (eyes and gestures). It's an intelligent beast. While not as fascinating as Joker it's definitely memorable and entertaining villain with tragic back-story.
Anne Hathaway never looked more beautiful and sexy than here as Catwoman . Her mannerisms and voice perfectly captured the character . Her morality is as flexible as her body. She's feisty , sly, dangerous, charismatic and unpredictable. She has a troubled past but also conscious and wants something more out of life. She and Batman are soul mates- so different , yet so similar. The romance between them is one of the better I've seen. The chemistry between her and Bale is great , you can see the sparks flying.
"TDKR" feels more like a drama , with action in the background . The mid air stunt , bike chase and the takeover of Gotham are quite impressive. The fights are the best in trilogy and full of emotions. Nolan leaves the best for the finale – the last 30 minutes are absolutely breathtaking. It's really epic with the two armies , heroes, villains , truck chase and a bomb. The climax is thrilling. The last 5 minutes are very touching and fitting end for great saga . The whole movie has a lot of heart.
It's a story about masks , pain , trust , redemption and hope. "TDKR" makes a social commentary about economic inequality , capitalism and Occupy Wall Street movement. Capitalism is flawed , but a flawed system is better than anarchy lead by populists . The movie is a warning to the world to search for some solution before it's too late.
Cinematography by Wally Pfister (his last movie with Nolan) is still great . Hans Zimmer (without James Newton Howard this time) repeats most of the music themes from previous movies , however the new ones (Bane and Catwoman theme) are really cool. The special effects deserved Oscar nomination. Only editing seems to be clumsy at times.
There are countless nods and references to classic comic books stories – "The Dark knight returns" , "Son of a demon" , "Batman year one" ,"No man's land" , "Knightfall .... A lot of inspiration of the story is out of classic "Tale of Two Cities" (1859) by Charles Dickens , about French revolution. Movie fans will be reminded of "Metropolis" , "Superman 2" , "Rocky 3" , "Batman returns" and even "Batman" with Adam West (!) .
This movie divided people and suffered death from many nitpicks. I was very satisfied with Nolan's conclusion to Batman legend. It's not without flaws , but the good definitely outweighs the bad. It keeps the high level of quality of whole series and gets better with each view. It's better than people say. I give it 8/10.