On Halloween,
Gotham City mayor Don Mitchell Jr. is murdered by a serial
killer calling himself the Riddler. Billionaire Bruce Wayne, who has
operated for two years as the vigilante Batman, investigates alongside
the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD). Lieutenant James Gordon
discovers that the Riddler left a message for Batman, but commissioner
Pete Savage berates him for allowing a vigilante to enter the crime
scene and forces Batman to leave. The Riddler kills Savage and leaves
another message for Batman.
Batman and Gordon discover that the
Riddler left a thumb drive in Mitchell's car containing images of
Mitchell with a woman, Annika, at the Iceberg Lounge, a nightclub
operated by mobster Carmine Falcone's lieutenant Penguin. Batman
questions the Penguin, who pleads ignorance, but notices that Selina
Kyle, Annika's roommate and girlfriend, works there as a waitress. After
Annika disappears, Batman sends Selina back to the Iceberg Lounge to
search for answers. Through Selina, Batman discovers that Savage was on
Falcone's payroll, as is district attorney Gil Colson. Selina shuts off
communication when Batman presses her about her relationship with
Falcone.
The Riddler abducts Colson, straps a timed collar bomb
to his neck, and sends him to interrupt Mitchell's funeral. When Batman
arrives, the Riddler calls him via Colson's phone and threatens to
detonate the bomb if Colson cannot answer three riddles. Batman helps
Colson answer the first two, but Colson refuses to answer the third:
name of the informant who gave the GCPD information that led to a
historic drug bust ending mobster Sal Maroni's operation. The bomb
explodes, killing Colson and knocking Batman unconscious.
Batman
and Gordon deduce that the informant may be the Penguin and track him to
a drug deal. They discover that Maroni's operation never actually ended
and many GCPD officers are involved. Selina inadvertently exposes them
when she arrives to steal money. As the Penguin flees, Selina discovers
Annika's corpse in a car trunk. Batman captures the Penguin but learns
that he was not the informant.
Batman and Gordon follow the
Riddler's trail to the ruins of an orphanage operated by Bruce's parents
Thomas and Martha. They learn that the Riddler was a resident at the
orphanage and holds a grudge against the Wayne family. Bruce's butler
and caretaker, Alfred Pennyworth, is hospitalized after opening a letter
bomb addressed to Bruce. The Riddler then leaks evidence that Thomas,
who was running for mayor when he was murdered, hired Falcone to kill a
journalist for threatening to reveal embarrassing details about Martha's
history of mental illness. Bruce, who grew up believing his father was
morally upstanding, confronts Alfred, who confirms the allegations but
states that Thomas decided to turn Falcone over to the police after
learning of the murder; Alfred surmises that Falcone had Thomas and
Martha killed to prevent this.
Selina tells Batman that Falcone
is her neglectful father. She learns that Annika was strangled because
Mitchell told her that Falcone was the informant, and resolves to kill
him. Batman and Gordon arrive at the Iceberg Lounge in time to stop her.
Batman physically prevents Selina from killing Falcone, explaining that
she shouldn't allow Falcone to destroy her future through murdering him
and facing prison. Batman escorts a cocky Falcone to the police, while
Falcone tells Batman that he knows of all Gotham's hidden secrets and
underworld dealings and that everything he knows dies with him. No
sooner does Batman bring Falcone outside to the patrol waiting than
Riddler snipes Falcone from his apartment window. Unmasked as forensics
accountant Edward Nashton, the Riddler is incarcerated in Arkham State
Hospital. Nashton says that, as a neglected orphan, he was envious of
the sympathy Bruce received after his parents' murder. He idolizes
Batman-who inspired him to target the corrupt-and proposes a
partnership, but Batman angrily rejects him.
Angered at being
rejected by his idol, Nashton begins ranting to which Batman realizes
that Nashton still has something planned. Upon realizing Batman hasn't
figured out his next course of action, a delighted Nashton gives him one
last clue by singing "Ave Maria," the song sung at the Mitchell's
funeral to imply that the final part of the plan is mayor-elect Bella
Real's assassination. However, Batman fails to realize this and
exclaims, "What have you done!?"
Searching his apartment, Batman
is inadvertently aided by a cop who shows him a carpet cutting tool
which Riddler had murdered the mayor with at the beginning. Realizing
this tool is another clue to uncovering the Riddler's master plan,
Batman cuts open the rug of the apartment and discovers via a map drawn
on the floor underneath that Nashton has stationed car bombs around
Gotham. No sooner has he done this than an online video of Nashton's
final transmission before his capture and incarceration plays,
explaining gleefully that he had cultivated an online following that
plans to assassinate mayor-elect Bella Reál.
The bombs destroy
the breakwaters around Gotham and flood the city. A shelter is set up in
an indoor arena, where Nashton's followers non-fatally shoot Reál but
are stopped by Batman and Selina. While battling the cult atop the
rafters, Batman defeats them but is almost killed by a last member who
is about to execute Batman. Selina arrives and rescues Batman before
kissing him, thanking him for preventing her from murdering Falcone.
However, the member comes to and almost kills Selina with a knife.
Batman is incapacitated from his injuries and unable to get up to
protect Selina. He injects himself with adrenaline, gets up, and tackles
the member to the ground. He has the member pinned down and beats his
face savagely until he is stopped by Gordon and Selina. Gordon
approaches the member and tears off his mask to reveal his swollen,
bruised face. Gordon asks, "Who the hell are you?". The man responds,
"Me? I'm vengeance."
Batman sees a power line swinging just past
the crowds in the flooded water below, throwing sparks everywhere as it
flails wildly. Batman uses his grappling hook to swing toward the cord
and grab onto it. Once he is hanging onto the cord, he uses his
detachable bat emblem to sever it, causing him to be shocked by the
electricity and fall down into the water. Batman rises from the water,
lights a flare, and leads the survivors to safety. Batman aids recovery
efforts and vows to inspire hope in Gotham, having seen that his weapon
of fear has fueled the drive of vigilantes.
Meanwhile in Arkham,
Nashton is upset that his plan failed and wailing in his cell. A
neighboring cell mate, who is largely obscured behind the steel door of
his cell, proposes Nashton a riddle, asking, "Riddle me this. The less
you have of me, the more I am worth." Nashton answers, "A friend." They
laugh together.
Selina deems Gotham to be beyond saving and tries
to convince Batman to leave with her, but he declines. They set out to
the streets on their motorcycles, playfully weaving around each other.
When they get to a fork in the road, Selina goes right and Batman goes
left. He looks back in his mirror as she disappears into the horizon.
Then, he looks straight ahead.