The Dark Knight Review
4/4 Stars
A complex and near-perfect film
It's always a risk creating a sequel. It never seems to please fans of the original one. It usually is said to be "unoriginal" by following the first's plot, or not as "complex". Well, The Dark Knight takes these stereotypes, wets them into a ball, and spits it through a straw, hitting the skeptics square in the face. Like seriously, this movie invented complexity. Not to mention it has 2x the ass-kicking the original had. Here's a brief synopsis:
Gotham City's watchful protector Batman (Christian Bale) is living the high life as a wealthy businessman of his parent's companies under a different name, Bruce Wayne, to keep his ultra-secret alter-ego kept secret. As soon as Batman thinks he can take a little break, a new terror invades the town. An evil and sick psychopath called The Joker (Heath Ledger) is causing trouble and wants to take over the city. He will use every trick up his sleeve to take down his single greatest obstacle, the Batman, using his love Rachel (Maggie Gyllenhaal), the new DA Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), among others to crack down on Batman and test his boundaries to the limit. Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Gary Oldman also return as their previous characters.
This entry in the amazing Batman trilogy really digs into corruption, saying how even the most friendly and good-hearted person can turn bad when he is pushed past his breaking point. At this point in the trilogy, Batman has you hooked or completely loses your interest. Regardless of your opinion, there are many good messages and some great truth throughout. You just have to think hard enough to find them.