The Dark Knight: The Greatest Superhero Film Ever Made

Rating: 10/10 (9 January 2012)

Christopher Nolan steps back into the director's chair for this sequel to Batman Begins, which finds the titular superhero coming face to face with his greatest nemesis -- Joker in this movie entitled,The Dark Knight. Christian Bale returns to the role of Batman, Maggie Gyllenhaal takes over the role of Rachel Dawes, and Brokeback Mountain star Heath Ledger dons the ghoulishly gleeful Joker makeup previously worn by Jack Nicholson and Cesar Romero. Just as it begins to appear as if Batman, Lt. James Gordon,played by Gary Oldman, and District Attorney Harvey Dent,portrayed by Aaron Eckhart, are making headway in their tireless battle against the criminal element, a maniacal, wisecracking fiend plunges the streets of Gotham City into complete chaos.Nolan's inspiration for the film was the Joker's comic book debut in 1940, and the 1996 series The Long Halloween, which retold Two-Face's origin. In addition elements of Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers' Dark Detective miniseries as well as the unpublished follow-up were reportedly cannibalized along with other elements of Batman mythology for the story.
In Gotham City, the Joker and accomplices rob a mob-owned bank, the Joker killing off the others and escaping alone. Batman and Lieutenant Jim Gordon decide to include the district attorney Harvey Dent in on their plan to bring down Gotham's mob, currently led by Sal Maroni. Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne meets Dent and Rachel Dawes, deciding to host a fund raiser to show his support for Dent. The Joker approaches the mob, offering them his services should they need it. Corrupt accountant Lau, working for the mob, flees to Hong Kong but is dragged back to Gotham by Batman, agreeing to testify against the mob.Maroni and the Chechen turn to the Joker who begins murdering people on a daily basis unless Batman unmasks himself. Among the casualties are Commissioner Loeb. The Joker targets Dent at the fund raiser, Bruce hiding him. The Joker tries to assassinate Mayor Garcia during Loeb's memorial service, Gordon taking the bullet and seemingly dying. Rachel is targeted, Bruce and Alfred Pennyworth looking after her. At a press conference, Dent claims he is Batman instead of Bruce who planned to confess to the public, and is escorted by police to county prison. The Joker intercepts, but is caught by Gordon, who faked his death. Gordon is promoted to Commissioner as a reward. However, Rachel and Dent both disappear, Batman confronting the Joker and learning both are in building filled with explosives. Batman and Gordon go to save them, Batman finding Dent and saving him, but Rachel is killed when the explosives detonate. Dent's face is set on fire and half of it is left severely scarred. The Joker escapes from the Gotham police department with Lau.Coleman Reese, an accountant working at Wayne Enterprises under Lucius Fox, realizes Bruce is Batman and plans to publicly expose him. The Joker, who kills Lau and the Chechen, threatens to bomb a hospital unless Reese is killed. Gordon rescues Reese, while the Joker visits the crazed Dent in hospital, convincing him to get revenge on those who "truly" killed Rachel. Dent kills Officer Wuertz, and spares Maroni and Officer Anna Ramirez, using his lucky coin to decide their fate. The Joker threatens to takeover the city, putting two ferries of citizens and Arkham Asylum inmates against one another, giving them to decision to blow each other up. Batman confronts the Joker, aided by Lucius using a machine able to detect phones across the city and use them as a locator. The ferry passengers refuse to kill each other, and Batman captures the Joker, but not before he learns of Dent's rampage. Dent lures Gordon to the building where Rachel died, holding his family hostage and threatens to shoot his son. Batman arrives, tackling Dent off the building to his death.Deciding to take the blame for Dent's victims, Batman forces Gordon to make him a fugitive and portray Dent as Gotham's true hero. In the closing scenes, Gordon destroys the Bat Signal, and Lucius watches the locator machine self-destruct, and Batman flees the police, Gordon considering Batman the city's real hero.
Dark, complex and unforgettable, The Dark Knight succeeds not just as an entertaining comic book film, but as a richly thrilling crime saga.It becomes more than just a superhero film unlike the others released like Superman,Spiderman,Green Latern and many others as it was more than a comic-book adventure but a sprawling crime epic.Allusions to our current struggles with surveillance, public perception and terrorism are thrown into the mix, adding political immediacy to Nolan's psycho noir.The acting of the cast was simply superb and outstanding particularly the late Heath Ledger,whose last role the Joker would still go down in cinema history as one of the most creepily unhinged big-screen bad guys of all time.Finally,this also proves that Christopher Nolan is much, much smarter than your average filmmaker.It was simply one of the best films ever made and the best superhero film ever made.