Sheer cinematic perfection.

Rating: 10/10 (20 July 2012)

I'm a Batman fan. I've been one since I was a child, nerdy as it might be for a girl to be reading comics and watching Batman cartoons. I had a pretty good idea of the storyline in the comics and I wasn't expecting the movie to stick to it very literally. I was expecting a more original take.
My expectations were totally blown away.
I was nearly breathless for the whole 2.45 hours. Absolutely every bit has something awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping: unexpected changes in the plot's development, Bane's terrifying persona and larger-than-life destructive spree, Gotham's people as characters in their own right and glimpses of Bruce Wayne's sensitive, tormented soul.
I just came out of the theater 30 mins ago and felt compelled to write about how amazing it is. I know it isn't the most logically flawless movie and I'm sure that, if I analyze it, I'll find pieces that don't fit in perfectly or that could be improved upon. I know the characters could have been explored more in-depth and the ending could have been different.
BUT the experience of the movie was so intense and engrossing, that my mind wasn't (and still isn't) thinking straight. Not only have I never been so engaged by a superhero movie, I don't remember having been so engaged by ANY movie.
The special effects seemed as believable as if they were happening right next to me and the scale of the action scenes made me feel the fear and the tension I imagine the characters must have been feeling. I never got that feeling of 'living within the movie' from the first two parts.
Despite Bane not being fully developed, I can honestly say he is the only villain in any superhero movie who managed to have me terrorized. Despite Catwoman not being fully developed, she is the only movie- version of Selina Kyle that explored both her stealing antics and her constant see-sawing between good and evil. Last, but not least, despite Batman not being fully developed, he was still exquisitely portrayed and made me connect even more with the character and his story, if possible.
It goes above and beyond any criticism that you might address to it because it simply keeps you pulsating with Gotham, in the middle of everything, waiting, hoping and, at the same time, wishing it will never end.