The Dark Knight returns tonight

Joe Hornaday

The long awaited and highly anticipated sequel to 2005's hit Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, is poised to dominate the box office and take Bat-fans on a wild roller coaster ride of action and thrills through the streets and rooftops of Gotham City this weekend.

As billionaire Bruce Wayne continues his one-man onslaught against the crime that plagues his city, his efforts begin to make an impact. Gotham City starts becoming safer as Batman brings down mob boss after mob boss. Naturally, the criminal elements of Gotham begin to notice. In their desperate search for a solution, they turn to a man they know nothing about except that he gets results.

That man is The Joker, a psychotic bank robber and killer who paints his face to resemble an insidious clown and whose plans for domination of the criminal underworld put him squarely in opposition to Batman.

Just as The Joker arrives on the scene in Gotham, Batman, police Lt. James Gordon and the city’s new district attorney Harvey Dent form an alliance to take on the Clown Prince of Crime. But The Joker doesn't plan to go down without a fight, and his crimes grow deadlier as the three men wage their war on him. Little do they know that The Joker's schemes are far grander and more horrible than they could have imagined, and the mad man’s methods grow increasingly more dangerous as his plan unfurls.

Despite the ending of Batman Begins pointedly making The Joker Batman's next villain, a sequel was never a sure thing. In fact, Batman Begins opened strongly with $48 million during its first weekend domestically, but that amount is shallow compared to other superhero blockbusters. This was probably due to the bad taste left in the mouths of Batman fans after director Joel Schumacher took over the reins from Tim Burton in the series and unintentionally produced the hilarious and undisputedly abysmal abominations that were Batman Forever and Batman and Robin. But through positive word of mouth and glowing critical reviews, Batman Begins went on to make $371 million worldwide and became a titanic success.

Returning to his breakthrough mainstream role as the devoted but borderline psychotic Bruce Wayne/Batman is Christian Bale. Since he starred in Steven Speilberg’s Empire of the Sun at the age of 12, Bale has built his career on interesting and obscure roles, and often winning mass critical acclaim, most recently in films like The Prestige, The Machinist and American Psycho. Michael Caine comes back as the mentor and butler Alfred, alongside Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman, both reprising their roles as Lt. Gordon and Bat-gadget supplier Lucious Fox, respectively.

Newcomers to the franchise include Maggie Gyllenhall, who replaces Katie Holmes as Wayne's love interest and damsel-in-distress Rachel Dawes. Aaron Eckhart will play D.A. Harvey Dent, and if the comic book history is any indication, this film is likely to see him become the conflicted but dangerously heinous villain Two-Face, creating a possibility for another sequel.

Heath Ledger, as the menacing and maniacal Joker, is expected to steal every scene he is in, and cast members have been saying for months that his performance is downright frightening and spectacular. His portrayal is even generating a fair amount of early Oscar buzz.

Ledger's death in January spun many speculative rumors about the state of the movie, but the actor had completed all of his scenes and post-production efforts before his passing. Portraying The Joker in The Dark Knight will be his final full film role.

The film is directed by Christopher Nolan, who directed Caine and Bale in Batman Begins and The Prestige. With Nolan behind the camera, audiences can expect some major twists and turns as the darkening plot unfolds.

The viral marketing campaign and all-out media blitz have ramped up hype surrounding The Dark Knight, and theaters will likely be packed with people waiting to see what The Joker and Batman have in store for them.

The Dark Knight is sure to put a smile on faces when it opens July 18.

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