Gallery: Comic Book Heroes

In the hysteria surrounding Heath Ledger's death and his menacing performance as a barely certificate-12 friendly psycho, most people missed the fact that this is the best Batman movie to date. Christian Bale's natural intensity finds a perfect outlet in the tightly wound Bruce Wayne and his superhero alter-ego, while director Christopher Nolan targeted Heat as the chief inspiration for this crime epic. For once, critics, fanboys, and regular cinemagoers were all in agreement, making this 2008's box office king. In a word: HUGE.