The Dart Night Part Trois

Here be spoilers. You've been warned.

Food for thought:

Would the hype around Heath Ledger's performance be so huge if he wasn't, well, deceased? I think that's a question that many people are pondering right now, but no one really wants to come out and say it. Well, I'm saying it.

I'm not questioning that Heath's performance was amazing. It was. But it was amazing because it was such a stretch from anything we ever thought Heath was capable of. It's not just that the Joker is amazing. It's that Heath's performance of the Joker is amazing for him. Could someone else have been just as great? Well, probably. The Joker and Heath both = amazing. But, Oscar worthy? I guess we'll see.

As different as Heath's Joker is to Nicholson's, I actually saw a bit of Jack's Joker in Heath. It was right near the end. When you watch the movie (or if you've seen it already) see if you can figure out what scene I'm talking about.

The fundamentals of the Joker are the same. He lies. He's crazy. He does things without a real purpose because he's crazy. But they're also very different. I actually wouldn't say that Heath's Joker is much darker. I would say that the movie casts him that way. The character itself is still just as maniacle and just as silly. We see him in a different light because of the tone of the movie. The differences are more stark in terms of violence I would think. Nicholson's Joker was much more tame (or what we see of him is much more tame). Heath's Joker carries a knife and we see him kill people. This is not a kid's Joker. This Joker is geared much more towards adults -- a real villian.

What I thought was a great story point has been taken away, though. Instead of having killed Bruce's parents, the Joker kills Batman's love interest and it doesn't come until pretty late in the movie. I found the whole 'killed Bruce's parents' dance with the devil thing a little more hard hitting. Also, in Nicholson's portrayal of The Joker, Batman literally creates Joker. In The Dark knight, it's more of a figurative creation, which I found interesting but slightly less effective.

In conclusion? The reason Heath's Joker is being lauded? It's because after watching A Knight's Tale, this performance isn't anything anyone ever expected from Heath Ledger. It's so much more than anyone thought he could pull off. It's a damn shame that he's not here to enjoy his transition into an actor that's seen as someone who can pull almost anything off -- a true talent. It's a shame that we've finally been exposed to his amazing talent just as he's been taken away from us.

I thought I'd find seeing Heath Ledger on the big screen a little creepy and sad. It wasn't at the time, but now... I'm sad for him. He deserved so much more than what he got.

Oh... and as for my favourite Batman? It's still Michael Keaton. Why? Because you totally don't expect him to be Batman. Also, he's not over the top as Batman. I found him to be brooding but not overly so. Much more 'normal' that Christian Bale's portrayal. To me, he brought both the personality of Bruce Wayne and the personality of Batman to the table while keeping them both different from each other yet believable. When I picture Batman, it'll always be Michael Keaton I see. I think he was a brilliant casting choice. No one thought he could pull it off... but that was sort of the point, right? Also, his 'Batman Voice' didn't make me crack up. Oh, Michael Keaton... come back!