I’ve been dying to see The Dark Knight for ages, and today I got my wish. There has been a lot of hype recently about it, mainly due to the tragic and untimely death of the wonderful Heath Ledger who’s portrayal of The Joker has rightly been praised from all angles.

I tried not to have high hopes for this film as it’s predecessor, Batman Begins, wasn’t as amazing as I’d hoped. It was far superior to any other Batman I’ve ever seen, but it still didn’t quite do it for me. The Dark Knight however, hit the nail on the head.

It takes off where Batman Begins left us. Thankfully the character of Rachel Dawes is played by Maggie Gyllenhaal, rather than the cardboard Katie Holmes, as she is far better, to say the very least. Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine return and add a great deal to the piece. Christian Bale does a good job as our caped crusader and Aaron Eckhart is great as the DA but it is Heath Ledger who steals the show.

To say his interpretation of The Joker is astonishing is an understatement. I’m a big fan of his and he did it again. Everything about him made the film what it is. He was totally believable and kept you rooted to the screen. When I heard a while ago that he may get a posthumous Oscar for this role I thought it might be Hollywood being a bit sentimental but now I see where that’s coming from.

If you like these kinds of films, you’ll love this one - it’s dark and character driven. Some of it you can see coming a mile away, but then it’s not rocket science. If you can suspend reality and get into it you’ll really enjoy it.