I was sure that everyone's gushing over Ledger's performance as The Joker was just being nice because he died at an early age. I was wrong! The hype is real, because Ledger's Joker is the real deal. For any of you that know the real Joker of the comics and graphic novels, you will love Ledger's portrayal. The movie itself is truly awesome. I won't spoil anything by reviewing the plot, but I agree with Roeper that this is one of the best comic book movies of all time and rivals movies such as Heat and The Departed.