Not the best movie ever, but strong none the less....

Rating: 8/10 (31 July 2008)

I don't no what it is but the over the top ratings that this movie is getting on here is starting to unnerve me. It is a very strong movie and the portrayal of the Joker by Heath Ledger is top notch without question.
However, some of the flaws of this movie is that is part of a series that is continuous so you kind of know without seeing it what is going to happen and you combine that with the advent of sites such as this one and all the exposure it gets via other entertainment media and you get to know almost to much before you see it.
As well, in this movie the Heath Ledger death factor did come into play for me at certain points that gave me a real sympathetic feel for the Joker. Typically you'd have some bad feelings towards the villain and route against him, but in my case I was kind of routing for him. As funny as that might sound I detested the Batman character the most of the four major characters.
It wasn't Bale that I didn't like but just the typical Batman hero bit that I've seen many times before. It is kinda like a relationship you've been in for years where you know the exact thing the person is gonna do and say it just gets stale. As an extension of the same thing is Batman's girlfriend, played by Maggie Glynehall, she dies but I didn't care less--I was happy that the Eckhart character was saved instead of her. I know that sounds a little harsh but movie wise her character was just a prop to get to the next villain in the series--Two Face, played by Eckhart. Not for one minute did I think that either one of the Bale or Eckhart really cared for her.
All in all, Ledger and Eckhart steal the movie and the ending is of course and open one that seems to lead to a more Darker side of Batman in the next film that will be beneficial I think. I know some of my views sound very cynical but I guess, when you see the hero win ever time you get to the point that you've seen that before and it isn't very interesting.
Don't forget, I did like this film 8 out of 10 but I just write this as a big movie fan that doesn't think that this movie should be hailed as the best movie ever.