The Dark Knight Rises

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2015)

Quite a hard task to live up to its two predecessors. The first Batman was a landmark because it marked the change of direction. Less silliness from comics, more focused on a strong, tangible storyline. Of course we're talking about a superhero here. The Dark Knight wasn't all that great if you think about it, Heath Ledger took the scene though and made it especially memorable.
The third and final statement might not have received the extensive hype of its direct predecessor but the overall result is even better. The movie's main antagonist Bane gives us a memorable performance, it simply won't be easily compared because the Joker is essentially more charismatic. Also, Ledger's death over-hyped everything about his impeccable job, turning him into a legend in no time. I wouldn't want to face a task that difficult.
Tom Hardy takes on this like there's no tomorrow and bring a performance comparable to Ledger's. Although the nature of the Joker makes him much more easier to stand out, Bane's got something on his favor. The story surrounding everything is much stronger. The dialogs are full of witty moments. There's so much happening and everything seems to somewhat be linked with everything that comes next.
The twists are more recurrent, in the last movie action was based on how disturbingly ingenious the Joker's next move would be. This movie inserts important plot links all over the place. Unfortunately for Nolan this is the last movie of the series and might lack a ground-breaking aspect to it. Not in the sense of quality because quality is there. Lots of it in the strong screenplay, the stylish main villain, the background supporting what's being shown. What this movie lacks, and this is mostly an advertising thing, which ultimately leads to memorability, is a title to go by.
Pretty much like Begins is "the new Batman" and Dark Knight is "Heath Ledger". If you compare them without the rose-tinted glasses you'll find that Rises has as much or even more quality as the other two.