Lives up to the hype

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2013)

This, the second of director Cristopher Nolan's Batman trilogy opens with a bank robbery; the robbers are all wearing clown masks and when each has finished his part of the job he is killed by one of his colleagues. When only one is left he removes his mask to reveal a disturbing face; he is wearing predominantly white make up with black around his eyes and a disturbing red smile he is The Joker and clearly he is insane. It turns out the money he stole belonged to the mob and they are worried about losing the rest; either to The Joker or to the forces of law and order. Leading the campaign against crime in Gotham is a new white knight; DA Harvey Dent; a man who intends to take down the criminals by using the system rather than hiding behind a mask. Soon Dent, Lt. Gordon and Batman are after The Joker; and he in turn is after them and those they love.
I put off watching this for a long time fearing I'd be disappointed; surely no film could live up to the hype this one received It turned out I needn't have worried; this is a fantastic film. The returning cast members perform well but it is the new characters that really stand out. Heath Ledger certainly deserved his Oscar; his Joker is genuinely disturbing, Aaron Eckhart is great too in the roll of Harvey Dent and Maggie Gyllenhaal shines as his girlfriend, and Bruce Wayne's old friend Rachel. Those wanting action will be pleased as it rarely stops and is spectacular; this doesn't mean there is any sacrifice of good characterisation and plot though. There are some good surprises along the way as well as a degree of tragedy. If you think superhero films are for children you should be aware that there are plenty of disturbing and even brutal moments here which might disturb youngsters I was a little surprised that it got a UK '12' certificate; it is certainly a 'high 12'. Overall I'd say don't worry about the hype just sit back and enjoy an excellent action film that just happens to have a superhero as its main character.