This is potentially the most accessible comic book adaptation for a mainstream audience to ever hit the big screen. The effects were gorgeous, the plot was complex and enthralling, and most of the acting was superb, especially that of The Joker (Heath Ledger).

I did get more than a little tired of Christian Bale. He is not a very good actor, and his obscenely ridiculous "Batman" voice had me laughing out loud more than a few times. But this disillusionment might just be due to the extent to which Heath Ledger outshined him in this film; Ledger gives a stunning performance here. His joker is multifaceted, pathological, and frighteningly believable.

But the descent of Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) into "Two-Face" could have been handled more eloquently. It just seemed rushed, and this really hurt Eckhart's acting ability to shine in the third act is it did in previous ones.

All in all, a very entertaining and surprisingly intellectual thrill ride - worth seeing.