The Dark Knight

[Truman181]

I absolutely loved Jack Nicholson as the Joker. His Joker IMO is one of the best villains in movie history. Having said that, I will be the first to admit that Heath Ledgers Joker is even better. (But in a different way)

It's almost like comparing apples to oranges. Jack Nicholson was flamboyant, over the top and a showman. Heath Ledger was deranged and disturbing in all the right ways, not to mention a diabolical genius. Both were completely charismatic and a pleasure to watch.

Other than comparing the Jokers, I want to compare THIS new series of Batman to Tim Burton's Batman (specifically the first one). I loved Tim Burton's vision of Batman. The old Gotham City was so Gothic and claustrophobic. The music was unforgettable from the Batman march to the Joker's waltz. Remember how the Batman theme thundered to crescendo as Batman donned the Bat suit and looked upward into the light? Amazing! So to me, Tim Burton's Batman had amazing style and atmosphere (not to say that The Dark Knight doesn't).

To me where The Dark Knight stands out is the surprisingly intelligent plot, the deep character development, the spectacular actions scenes, and the feeling of intensity that is generated throughout the whole movie.

So like I said it's like comparing apples to oranges. I definitely want BOTH movies in my DVD collection.

On a side note, I originally didn't care for Batman Begins. Sure it stuck closer to the comics than previous Batman movies, but I felt there was something missing. When I first saw Batman Begins I thought it was too realistic. For instance remember the police chase involving the Batmobile and how it was on the eye witness news? I thought that was lame because it was too realistic. I feel that comic books, and the movies they are based on, shouldn't be a carbon copy of reality but instead should have larger than life action with a certain over the top flare as in Tim Burton's Batman. However, with the excitement of the release of the new movie I sat down and gave BB another chance. I did enjoy it more this time as I wasn't expecting Tim Burton's Batman anymore but I still feel it was missing something I can't put my finger on. Anyway, Christopher Nolan really hit the mark when he made The Dark Knight.

So to sum it up here is my order for my favorite Batman movies.

1. The Dark Knight (for the reasons I listed above)

2. Batman (1989) -for style, atmosphere, music, Jack Nicholson's Joker

3. Batman Begins (sticks to the comics, Christian Bale plays the most dangerous Batman by far)

4. Batman Forever - Jim Carey was charismatic as the Riddler. He was equal parts funny and twisted. Not to mention the movie had a bit of the Batman origin story tucked in.

5. Batman Returns - Had the stylish Tim Burton atmosphere and Danny Elfman's soundtrack. Focused too much on the Penguin though.

6. Batman and Robin - CRAP

Oh and I just had to throw this out there. I think it was Deep Dish who mentioned that it would be unlikely that Heath Leger get nominated for an Oscar both because it's a movie based on a comic book and because it's a blockbuster. Those are very good points but you have to remember that Johnny Depp got the nod for his performance in Pirates of the Caribbean (which was a blockbuster based on a theme park attraction) so I think there is a good chance HL will at least get nominated for the Oscar.

Also someone said that Johnny Depp would make a good Joker if they make The Dark Knight Returns some day. I see where you are coming from as Johnny Depp is known for his comic/charismatic and sometimes dark performances. However, let's not get too carried away assuming that based on that criteria alone he would make a good Joker. We'll have to wait and see.

 

[The Bat]

Nolan should do away with Joker for the next Batman (IF there is a next Batman). Why? Well, for one reason, repeat villians are not a great idea because the whole plot will have a deja-vu feel to it (i.e. "Oh noe Joker...here we go again...*sigh*....")

Another more obvious reason is that it will be tough to find another actor because he will have big shoes to fill (literally too...clown shoes). Depp COULD make a good Joker but he is not *dark* enough for Joker.

I'm not sure if TDK can be topped. If Nolan does make a third Batman, it will be either as good as TDK (which will be tough without Joker/Two-Face) or more than likely be worse than TDK. Maybe third Batman can go back to the themes and elements that Batman Begins had. You know, Bruce Wayne struggling with himself to better himself and others around him. Now, THAT would be a perfect follow up to TDK. Just keep the ending in mind and you can easily see how a third batman should follow up.

 

[War Against Betaism]

Actually I think Depp did a great job as Sweeney Todd, eerily creepy and dominating. Though a great Batman movie can still be made without Joker. The Animated Series is one of the best cartoons ever and it went 82 episodes without the Joker in every single episode.

 

[HandyAndy]

Remember the clapping scene? Joker in the jail cell? Well that wasnt in the script, Heath came up with that on the spot, genius!

 

[Truman181]

The thing is I understand why people think Johnny Depp would make a good Joker. It's because Heath Ledger's performance was at times reminiscent of Johnny Depp since they are both charismatic and at the same time comic. But to me I think that saying someone else who shares some of HL's characteristics could easily slip into the Joker role belittles Heath's performance.

Johnny Depp is a GREAT actor as he's charismatic and very fun to watch. Would he make a good Joker? Maybe, maybe not. Regardless, I'm super pumped by Heath Ledger's performance and I am so glad that he was chosen for the role even if it ended up being a one time shot. Because HL's Joker was one for the ages.

 

[The Bat]

Actually come to think of it, this guy would make a great Joker (or any other psychopathic Batman villain):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYCWM7qi4P0

 

[j0n024]

I have seen Dark 2 times now and I am STILL florred by Heath's performace in the movie and even though this ISNT his last movie I think everyone will remember him by THIS performance.

People can say that this movie is OVERHYPED but come on man you knew it was gonna happen with Heath's death but I think the movie lives up to the hype and frankly I think it beats ALL 3 Pirates movies ( the second was the best but the third was more of a let down) . I didnt expect to much out of the jokers performance but man did he nail it, yes I love Jack's joker and I agree that Jack's joker was more of a whimsical approach while Heath's was more of a traumatized crazy person with a bit of craziness thrown in as you see throughout the movie.

I HOPE that they dont bring back Joker because that would totally ruin the Joker for me....I dont know who they will put as the villan for the next movie but I just hope they dont ruin the performace of Heath by putting in someone else.

 

[Truman181]

Hey man,

I know you weren't referring to me with your comments about people saying the movie is over hyped. I want to go on record as saying that before I saw the movie I thought it may have been over hyped but now after having seen it I think it far surpasses the hype surrounding it.

Anyway, for those who think I was blasphemous in my earlier criticism of Batman Begins check out this link:

http://www.spike.com/video/bat-thon-part-3/3006755

The guy gives a review that better states my minor gripes with the movie.

And yes, as I said earlier, I do prefer Batman 1989 over Batman Begins. Purists will argue that Burton's vision doesn't follow the comics closely. Well if we're knitpicking I can sit here and pick out millions of minor details in which the new movie series doesn't follow the comics.

My point is to anyone who considers themselves a purist, get over yourself. Your vision of Batman is no better than any other version of Batman. While most people cite the appeal of Batman as him being the most human super hero and therefore the most relat, I see it a little different. To me, the reason that Batman is the most appealing super hero is because he is adaptable. In the 60s he was campy and fun. In the 80s and 90s he was dark and stylized. Today he is both dark and gritty.

Batman changes with the times as the culture changes. It's almost like a line from the Dark Knight: "We get the hero we deserve" and I would add to that "we get the hero we deserve for the times we are living in'.

That's why there is room for both Tim Burton's vision of Batman and the Dark Knight in my DVD library. Because neither version needs to be the exclusive vision of Batman and because I enjoy Jack Nicholson's version of the Joker ALMOST as much as I enjoy Heath Ledger's version.

 

[War Against Betaism]

You know I could actually picture Jack Nicholson as Penguin.

 

[dannyegg4575]

I have to admit that this movie was actually quite good. Philosophical and entertaining at the same time. The movie is as the title ascribe, "Dark".

Everything that the Joker said really hits home. i didn't really like the ending though as we all know too well that its mostly hollywood. really enjoyed it, hope you guys do too.

 

[SmoothTalker]

Great movie, especially the Joker.

Dannyegg, how do you figure the ending is Hollywood? It's pretty much anything but.

A Hollywood ending would have included Batman convincing Two Face to be good again, Batman's girl somehow surviving the explosion and coming to be his girlfriend, and Batman winning the key to the city for his help.

This ending was in no way typical hollywood.

 

[dannyegg4575]

The movie tries to portray the dark side of humanity. And I think Heath Ledger did a kick ass job playing the joker.

But life and reality are two different things. This movie teaches kids who look up to superheroes to take blame for something that they didn't do. A lot of things don't make sense because here we have a superhero who saved the whole city one minute and then all of a sudden became a villain and everybody buys that.

he drives away into the night with many hating him for the rest of his days and not crediting him for anything he'd ever done for them. And he's completely ok with that. And we ask ourselves why a majority of us are unhappy?

I thought I did the right thing when I did that with my ex. I pushed her away on purpose because I wanted her to have a better future and be happy with someone else. I felt it was the right thing to do because I am not financially capable of looking after her. But somehow I got all the friends and relatives hating me in the process.

I would hate to see my kids go through that.

 

[theunflushables]

(Spoiler alert for those who hadn't seen the movie)

But remember, this superhero wasn't really as well known as he would later became. He was still considered my many as a vigilante and not a superhero.

As for taking the blame that is called being noble. If Harvey Dent had been accused of the crimes he commited the whole taking down of the mob would have been moot, the case would be cleared. Batman said he commited those crimes to save all that Dent and himself had worked for in cleaning up the organized crime. Despite the ordeal Batman will have to go through, that is a great message for people. In my opinion that's trully being a hero.

 

[SmoothTalker]

Dannyegg, exactly.

Your choice was like batmans, it made people dislike you. But you did it because you felt it was the right thing to do.

And even though she may hate you, was she able to find a better boyfriend because you let her go, like you wanted her to?

(Though in general I don't think having money is that important to being a good boyfriend, so maybe in this case your actions weren't necessary.)

 

[The Bat]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2yv8aT0UFc

ENUNCIATE! ENUNCIATE!!

 

[slickaz]

Heath is the biggest lost to hollywood today. if there was one character i want to be, itd be him..i like batman, but the Joker..just the way he organized everything and his character..attitude..just superb!

I watch this movie 3 times and only tune in when The Joker is on.
every si ngle scene every single turn he has acted as though this was reality.

he assumes the cold hearted evil genius in his acting...i absolutely think he should win an oscar.

if he doesnt, then i lose the little faith i have in awards.

Australia has lost one of its best citizens..kudos to him for doing such an amazing job..i will buy this on DVD

oh PS: insider information, there will be another batman, but the final one is going to be a clash of 2 mighty warriors.

but before that releases they are going to release another superhero movie where 2 other superhero's fight it out.

its going to be an interesting 3 to 4 years from hollywood

 

[Nighthawk]

Why did they put the criminals on the ferry? And why didn't they check the ferries for bombs?

Ledger was fantastic.

 

[theunflushables]

Because the Joker said he was going to blow up The Narrows, where Arkum is located. No city government would allow criminals to get blown up regardless of what they did. Why didn't they check the ferries for bombs? Look it how corrupt Gotham PD is. It would be easy for someone to walk on the ferry if its past the right person. Kind of like the police in Fight Club, they're members.

 

[Squiggly Sponge]

As great as Heath was, I found by far the most interesting character to be Harvey Dent. Seeing him playing the role in between the incorruptible Batman and the demented Joker managed to balance out the film... kind of. Also the philosophical stuff made great food for thought. The concepts behind the film left me feeling a little depressed afterwards (I, myself am fairly cynical), but the film itself was awesome. Tops Iron-Man for best (superhero) film of the year.

 

[thederekeffect1]

If only Heath Ledger was still around to see the reaction to his role in The Dark Knight. I'm going to have to agree with everyone else, Keith Ledger rocked the role of The Joker.

In fact, Keith Ledger isn't the only person that could act in The Dark Knight. Christian Bale and Aaron Eckhart also gave a knock out performance. By the way, the make-up job on Two Face was absolutely perfect. Much better then that purple-ish thing that Tommy Lee Jones wore over his face.

The thing is I understand why people think Johnny Depp would make a good Joker. It's because Heath Ledger's performance was at times reminiscent of Johnny Depp since they are both charismatic and at the same time comic. But to me I think that saying someone else who shares some of HL's characteristics could easily slip into the Joker role belittles Heath's performance.

Johnny Depp is a GREAT actor as he's charismatic and very fun to watch. Would he make a good Joker? Maybe, maybe not. Regardless, I'm super pumped by Heath Ledger's performance and I am so glad that he was chosen for the role even if it ended up being a one time shot. Because HL's Joker was one for the ages.

Heath Ledger's shoes will be extremely tough to fill if they bring The Joker back in the next Batman movie or any other future Batman movie for that matter. Take into consideration that the man has quite possibly out-performed a legend in the movie industry (Jack Nicholson).

However, I thought about who I would cast for the role of The Joker myself and I also came up with Johnny Depp. It has nothing to do with Keith Ledgers performance. Johnny Depp is the king of unusual roles. When it comes to choosing an actor that can play The Joker, You really need an actor like Johnny Depp or Keith Ledger.

In the original Batman movie, Jack Nicholson was casted as The Joker, because of his performance in The Shining. Jack Torrance and The Joker were practically the same character. The problem was that Nicholson had a hard time turning a clown into a seriously psychotic character. It didn't help that the writing sucked either.

Johnny Depp, on the other hand, is a master of playing roles like that. All you really have to do is watch Edward Scissor Hands, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory or Sweeney Todd to know that. The problem is that I don't think he'd ever accept that role, especially after Heath Ledger already gave an Oscar worthy performance. Chances are they aren't even going to return The Joker and they'll probably bring back Two Face as the cities new leader because no one will be able to fill Heath Ledgers shoes.