The second episode in the Batman prequel series actually proves that lightning can strike twice. There are so many outstanding things I could share about "The Dark Knight" but I'm going to try to buckle down my enthusiasm long enough to deliver a competent and level headed review.

I'm going to try really hard, but no promises.

The amazing plot of "The Dark Knight" does involve The Joker (Heath Ledger). Joker knows the underworld has been crippled by Batman's activities. He "offers" his services to the kingpins of Gotham City promising to get rid of The Bat and restore disorder to the city.

Meanwhile, Bruce "Batman" Wayne (Christian Bale) is concerned that his goal of inspiring the Gothamites with his caped crusader image is backfiring. He hears about a courageous DA named Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) and believes that Dent might be the better guide for Gotham's future. Bruce is also still carrying a flame for Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal) but Dawes has been dating Dent for months. Bruce is realizing that being Batman not only means a safer Gotham but also the sacrifice of his own happiness.

That's all I would like to reveal about the story. There's more to it. A lot more. And it is so amazingly good. I know when I walked in I was all psyched to see Ledger's "Joker" and how Dent was going to be transformed into Two-Face. When I walked out my mind was on overload, in a good way, because the story was so fantastic.

Any movie buff will tell you that comic book movies are a flip of Two-Face's coin. You might get a winner like "Spider-Man" or "X-Men" or you might end up with something you want to hide in the attic such as "Hulk" or "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen". This new Bat-flick is hands down flawless. It is gold. Here are some reasons why I believe so.

Great story? Check. The next thing that I enjoyed was the style of the movie. To me it seemed like the creative minds stripped down the Batman mythos to it's bare essentials. "The Dark Knight" depends less on gimmicks, costumes, and colorful villains and instead sticks to the facts and literally keeps it as real as possible. Tim Burton's Gotham was shadowy and bizarre but looking back it really was like an alternate dimension. Then you had Schumacher's Gotham which turned the metropolis into a neon lit circus. Just like in "Batman Begins" Gotham City looks like a real city and feels like a real city.

What's even better is that Batman looks really out of place there. When I pondered it I thought, yeah! This is Batman starting out and it should look weird to see some full grown man running around in a rubber suit and cape. He shouldn't look like or be treated as the paperboy or the ice cream man.

The emphasis on realism also brings Batman back to his roots. He's a detective. His stories involve solving mysteries and preventing crime. I really appreciated how the filmmakers and screenwriters deviated from the usual formula of putting the spotlight on the featured villain and instead give you a pretty decent police story that just happens to involve Gotham's more interesting citizens. It elevates the movie to a very mature level.

This is also the first time I ever really understood the Joker. Okay, we all know that Jack Nicholson's "Joker" was made insane by his accidental fall into a vat of chemicals. He was deformed and that helped to drive him mad. He kinda blamed Batman for his literal downfall and wanted revenge. Other than that story I usually see a Batman cartoon or I read a comic where the Joker is just a nut doing things for laughs. But in "The Dark Knight" he is given some logic and motive. Oh, he's still crazy but there is, dare I say it, a method to his madness.

"The Dark Knight" is a long movie. It felt like two Bat-movies with no intermission. You will definitely get your money's worth. That's for certain. And the time is well spent on plot details and character enhancement. Some of the most pivotal moments in the film are dependent on minor characters. Batman is not at the center of everything which makes for a powerful ensemble story.
The returning cast of Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman are consistent with their performances in "Batman Begins". No complaints there except I'm still finding it hard to get used to Bale's Batman voice.

Maggie Gyllenhaal steps into the role of "Rachel" (previously portrayed by Katie Holmes) with grace, spunk, and confidence. Actually, the cast change is a benefit to Rachel's character who has moved onwards and upwards. She is a different woman now. A woman who would rather be with a stable man rather than wait around for the old flame to stop dressing up like a bat every night.

Aaron Eckhart is just fine as Harvey Dent. Thankfully, he is Dent for the majority of the picture. When he does eventually become Two-Face don't expect the off-the-wall Tommy Lee Jones schtick from "Batman Forever". Dent's transformation is sad and tragic.

Oh let's get real. What we really want to know is how Heath Ledger was. Did Ledger's "Joker" outclass Nicholson's "Joker"? On that question I would answer, "No". Nicholson played the part according to the world that Tim Burton designed: big, theatrical, and a tad over the top. "The Dark Knight" universe is dark, gritty, and sober. Therefore, Ledger's "Joker" is toned down dramatically. He still has some funny moments that will make you snicker but for the most part he is dark humor with legs. He's also a lot shrewder than his enemies think. It seems the clown persona is Joker's greatest gag; his act is a smokescreen to get his enemies to underestimate him which usually costs them their lives. The nutshell ruling is that Heath Ledger's "Joker" is fantastic and it's a performance that will enhance his legacy of work, not mar it.

There's nothing else for me to say on the matter except that "The Dark Knight" is one of the most brilliant movies of 2008. If "Iron Man" blew you away, then this newest Bat-flick will obliterate your senses into atoms.

And that's no joke. Ha ha ha!