Heath's Joker carries this

Rating: 7/10 (7 March 2015)

If ever there was a film in which a non-protagonist character entirely carries the ride then it's The Dark Knight.
After Heath Ledger passed on there was the almost-offputting hype machine in action proclaiming his performance as one for the ages. I was pretty convinced this was luvvy-talk in lieu of his tragic death, and not being impressed with Batman Begins I went in with cynical expectations...
...but lo, the hype was right. Heath's Joker is truly one of cinema's greatest antagonist portrayals. On par with most people's Nummer 1: Anthony Hopkins' Dr Lecter (and yes, better than Jack Nicholson's classic Joker performance). Utterly infectious...when he's not on screen you long for him to return, when he's on it you savour every little tick.
...which makes it a shame that the rest of the movie is a formulaic emotionless romp. Entertaining, but lacking the artistic vision and colourful cast of Tim Burton's 2nd Batman film. Christian Bale's Batman is simply boring, while his ultra-gravel voice is just silly. The rest of the cast, along with the story and direction, are largely forgettable.
A 6/10 without The Joker scenes...same as Batman Begins. The Dark Knight Rises is perhaps the best of the trilogy (again saved by a great villain character), but suffers from the same bland characterisation (a Nolan trademark, perhaps).