As the bleak, black story begins, Gotham struggles with lawlessness while we get established with Batman/Bruce Wayne's (Christian Bale) crime-fighting brand. Wayne is secure in his secret identity as the playboy billionaire and has a loyal support group with tech wizard Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), police Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and butler Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine) in a fine selection of bow ties.

Wayne/Batman doesn't trust many people in the corruption-riddled halls of justice, and is wondering if it isn’t time to hang up his cape and retire his ethically ambiguous alter ego. But he does take a chance on Gotham's White Knight: crusading new District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), and ponders letting him take over the war on crime.

Still, criminals have Gotham City in a tizzy, beginning with that riveting bank heist, and Wayne’s brutal nocturnal exploits spawning a wave of copycat vigilantes. Behind that bank robbery is the Joker, a disfigured arch-criminal less interested in the money and more in unmasking the caped crusader. Teaming up with the city's mobsters, his sole mission in life is to reveal the man in black’s identity.