Before I go on raving about this movie, I think it's important to clarify that such ravings are not skewed by the untimely death of Ledger. I know that I was personally expecting less of the movie, since all the hype was around this being Heath's last performance. However, to my pleasant surprise, this movie was just as substantive as it was pivotal, and all actors performed phenomenally. The movie takes off right from the beginning and doesn't miss a beat throughout. I was not necessarily a Batman fan before, but I certainly am now. Truly deserving of all of the accolades it is receiving.