The Dark Knight stands as THE overpraised movie of the year. Maybe people are just too afraid not to like it (or to say they do) with Ledger's death and all. If you have to see one movie about a billionaire industrialist moonlighting at a costumed vigilante this summer, Iron Man is more fun, intelligent, and morally interesting (yes, it is). But as to which is the second best performance, gotta go with Gary Oldman. And Dan nailed it: Maggie Gyllenhaal may be the better actress, but at least Katie Holmes has the decency of being somewhat attractive. Plus MG was charmless and not at all unique. When the Joker took her out, I didn't even bat an eye.

The award for second best performance in The Dark Knight goes to: Aaron Eckhart.

it takes the most basic brain to know that when morgan freeman has a role in a movie, the movie will be great. so with that morgan freeman takes the cake. eat it f*%*ers

I wish I could copy and paste my review of the movie from the original post on Travers' review ....but I"m lazy so yeah: Eckhart ..but not as the second best I think he was bar none the best performance..

def. give it to gary oldman...... he is an actor whose ability knows no bounds

What I hear a lot of folks saying (and I tend to agree) is that as good as The Dark Knight is, perhaps it has been overhyped by critics leading to slight disappointment when you actually see it. Case in Point: I saw the X-files movie the day after The Dark Knight and found that I enjoyed it as much as The Dark Knight, mainly because I didn't have to worry if it was living up to the hype. The negative reviews it received freed me to enjoy the movie on its own terms without elevated expectations.

Eckhart was a great Dent but i didn''t think he was a great two face. As with Bale who I think is an amazing Bruce Wayne but doesn't shine as Batman although this is difficult to do with the character. For me the second best performance is Michael Cain as Alfred, he plays the character very well.

Did anyone else think the "burned half" of Dent's face rip off mummy from the 1st "The Mummy" movie?

Gary Oldman was great, up there with his best in Sid & Nancy and Leon: The Proffesional I'm glad that he gets mentioned a couple of times on this board. All the performances were good. The transformation of Dent was rushed but Eckhart did good with what he was given. But the line "you live (shows bright side of coin)...you DIIEE(shows burned side of coin) was cheesy, but he was still good.

To me The Dark Knight 2nd best performance is something Two Face would have to decide between Christian Bale and Aaron Eckhart. Bale's performance is the most difficult to pull off, a man who has to hide his emotions from just about everyone for what he believes is the greater good. To call his performance weak or underdeveloped is like saying that about Al Pacino in Godfather 2.
And if Bale is Michael Corolone, Eckhart is Fredo. A man with a heart of gold that is corrupted by the world around them and the pain it has brought him. The scene where he watches the building explode is one of the film's most heartbreaking moments.
Ledger is the show of The Dark Knight but Bale and Eckhart gives the film it's heart

Guys, I seriously don't understand all the hype around Eckhart's performance. To be fair to Eckhart, I thought Dent was a pretty poorly written character, particularly post-transformation. The dude went from squeeky clean goody-two shoes to crazed villain in less than two minutes of screen time, and did an unconvincing job at that.

Gary Oldman all the way, followed by Caine and Gyllenhal.

i liked aaron eckhart as harvey dent but not so much as two-face.

maggie gyllenhaal is so ugly in this it's a shame and it stains the rest of the movie. they should have cast her to play the joker... with no make up. heath ledger would've made a prettier girl

Sorry, but that Two-Face zombie make-up/effect was way too much. It distracted from the acting. Gary Oldman was outstanding. Glad he had more to chew on this film. What happened to the look of the film? Where was the Narrows? The ghetto Blade Runner area that gave the original film it's look?

Bale's Batman goes behind the ever-prepared, stoic super-hero archetype and into the realm of a confused young man trapped in a nightmare of his own design. You can see the idealism fade from his eyes in the Maroni interrogation scene. You can feel his heart break when he kisses Rachel goodbye before he means to turn himself in. You can sense the dread as Alfred tells him Joker is a man that can't be understood. Bale has won the uphill battle of turning Batman into a person, not an icon (albeit a touch more subtly than Ledger's Joker). I pick Bale above Eckhart simply because the path of turning Batman human seems infinitely more labyrinthine than Dent's flop from light to dark.

Eckart, all the way. I LOVE Oldman's Gordon, but he doesn't get to do enouh to make you say anything more than the fact that it's a solid performance - until the bitter end, that is. But Aaron is solid the whole way through and when he becomes Two Face, I have to agree with Peter - you get to watch his descent into insanity.and he plays it to the bone (no pun intended ... okay, FULLY intended). Xtian Bale is probably the best Batman so far, but that ridiculous growl he uses when he's in the cowl is obnoxious and distracting. A subtle gruffness would have been sufficient, Xtian - and please don't come kick my ass for saying that.

Also, did anyone else notice Spawn (Michael Hai White) as Gamble? I was the only one in the theater screaming, "YO! THAT'S SPAWN!" But I am a geek.

Christian Bale displayed plenty of emotion. The scene where he's got the bat mask in his lap after Rachel Dawes dies and Alfred is talking to him is a great example. Christian Bale is the rock of that movie. Everyone was great in it, Eckhart's two-face makeup and CGI grew on me immensely from the first to third time seeing the movie. The Dark Knight is a masterpiece.

Christian Bale is the heart, soul, glue, and whatever else that holds these movies together. When he is on screen ,especially as Bruce Wayne, my heart stops! He is amazing.
Second, Gary Oldman - amazing to see him play this role after recently watching 'Sid and Nancy'.
Aaron Eckhart isn't even in the top five.

after Ledger, I wanna say Gary Oldman Strictly because of the way Oldman is in real life. He's a mumbling brit, you can't understand half of what he says. After Oldman I would go with Bale. The Scene where he is talking to Gordon after getting hit in the Lamborgini where he acts like a total oblivious asshole is so brilliant, I loved it. THEN I would say Eckhart. Maybe it was the writing, but there too many times he had to scream "RACHEL!!". I could hear people giggling in the theatre.

I don't agree with anyone who liked Maggie Gyllenhals character. She was so disposable, I called that she would be killed off as soon as I heard Katie Holmes wasn't coming back. Could a character be that important if a studio decides to just recast the character and pretend we don't notice? They wanted to make that character the eye candy with some substance, be she had no substance, so why not get better eye candy like the drop dead gorgeous Natalie Portman who is in my opinion a better actress the Gyllenhal anway.

I agree with everyone who says Oldman. What a great character Jim Gordon is in these Batman movies.

this is a great Eckhart performance, but his best was "Thank You For Smoking," especially when he starts arguing with children in a classroom about medical reports: "Is your mommy a doctor? Well, that means she's not a credible witness, now, is she?" Priceless.

Ledger number 1. Eckhart i'd say no 2. However I didnt like the make-up/digital effect of two-face and kinda put me off his acting for a while their, but good actor nonetheless. Bale is fine as Batman. But Ledger and Eckhart just stole the show.

Everyone who bashes Christian Bale for being emotionless and boring doesn't understand the nature of Bruce Wayne's character. I won't disagree with Travers in that Eckhardt's performance is more memorable because, as he explains, there is more depth to the character Harvey Dent. Bruce Wayne had little to no social life growing up, and must portray himself as a careless playboy to detract any notion that he is in fact Batman. Also, the complaints about his voice as Batman I don't quite get because the point is to conceal his identity; this isn't Christian's fault but a difficult translation from page to screen. So yes, Eckhardt definitely does deserve his props, and would totally make an excellent captain america, but I think Bale is taking way too much unnecessary criticism, and not receiving enough praise.

My rankings (Briefly):

1. Heath Ledger - Memorable from start to finish
2. Aaron Eckhart - Gives two radically different personalities in one movie.
3. Gary Oldman - Compassionate, honest, and willing to place his life on the line in order to protect the city. Not something you would expect from Oldman.
4. Christian Bale - Performance works best when he's quiet and uses his facial expressions to convey emotions and communicate with the audience.
5. Everybody else -- Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Maggie Gyllenhaal. They did not act in the movie, they just swam.

Great performances from all, but Ledger and Eckhart are working on a higher level than everybody else.

Eckhart gives the 1st best performance of the film. Ledger is second.

You are all fools, Gary Oldman gave the second best performance in that film. Even though the Aaron did a good job, Gary made you feel his performance. It didn't have to be over the top unlike most of the performances in the film. Gordon was a family man who wants to see Gotham reborn to true justice, and that comes out in garys performance especially at the end when he is made to chose. Which of his family he loves the most! I be damned the man can play anything and he still doesnt get the respect from the film critics like he deserves, or the academy. One day Gary, one Day!

My Favorite Performance was Anthony Michael Hall's as the News Reporter cause I was shocked that it was indeed him. Found out via IMDB...such great method acting.

Dent: "what was that name they used to call me down in Internal Affairs?"

Gordon: "I-I..uh..don't remem.."

Dent: "sayy itt...JJUSTT SSAYY ITT!!"

brilliant

He obviously has not been given much to do with a character who is in all actuality rendered very one dimensional by the script, but Gary Oldmen has been able to provide very subtle depth to Comissioner Gordon and flesh him out.

Thank you for acknowledging my work.

Georgie Boy -

I saw your post at EW's web-site about David A. You have serious issues, dude!

I saw Conversations with Other Women and have been in love with Aaron Eckhart ever since. Oh, and he is a pretty good actor too.

I think Aaron Eckhart's performance was the best of the movie. He should get a supporting actor nod at the least... Ledger was really good, don't get me wrong, but I think Eckhart's was better...

Michael Caine as Alfred gives the 2nd best performance...he just didn't get enough screen time to be recognized...He was the one who told Bruce that Batman should persevere because he could make the decision that know one could make...he put the Joker and his motives in perspective...he made the decision about Rachel's letter and convinced Bruce to keep going even after Rachel's death...He nailed the most powerful scenes in the movie...he just wasn't in it enough to get the 2nd best performance..

i agree, eckhart was the second best performance in the movie, followed by gary oldman's commissioner gordon, bale's batman, and morgan freeman's lucious fox.

Agree..... My fave scene was toward the end, with Dent in the hosp, with the final transition from good --> evil. "Do you remember what they used to call me??"

Intense!!