In most superhero movies - be it Iron Man, Spider-Man or Superman - cinema-goers turn out in droves to see the hero. While this might still be the case for The Dark Knight, the latest Batman film, there is another, even more compelling reason to see it: Heath Ledger playing the Joker.
When Ledger died of an accidental drug overdose earlier this year, the internet was awash with reports of his role as the villainous Joker in The Dark Knight, a role Jack Nicholson played in the 1989 Batman movie.
The Joker has appeared in DC Comics since 1940, first portrayed as a violent sociopath and then as a campy trickster.
But in the hands of director Christopher Nolan, and up against the talent of Christian Bale as Batman, the Joker had to become something else entirely: something original, iconic and unprecedented. There could be no broad villainy here, no self-conscious evil-doing or feigned vulnerability. The most buzzed-about bad guy in one of the most buzzed-about movies of the year had to live up to expectations.
As it turns out, the last thing that Ledger wrapped before he died also happens to be possibly his finest work.
Although nominated for his role in Brokeback Mountain, and a widely respected actor, the Australian-born Ledger brings something unexpected and inimitable to the part - a combination of genius elements that the industry is betting will yield him a posthumous Oscar nomination.