I'm willing to believe that Heath Ledger has enough potential to play the joker, I wonder if he will figure out the nuances well enough. In anycase I was suprised that he was selected.
If his portrayal is going to be completely different from Nicholsons portrayal. What can that mean?
And here I was hoping for Mark Hamill would finally get to stop voicing him and actually play him.
Posted by Javert (Member # 3076) on :
Mark, while having the perfect voice, is just a tad bit too old to play the part, since they're playing Batman so young.
Nicholson's portrayal was very unique to him...I think that, while it worked, a very different Joker (several, in fact) exists in the comics. I just hope Ledger goes there to research the role, rather than just watching Nicholson.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Jim Carrey did a passible, though nowhere near dark and homicidal enough, portrayal of the Joker when he played The Riddler.
Nicholson's Joker was a cool guy, part mob boss, part Jack Nicholson, with just a little bit of cartoon thrown in. The Joker is usually much more manic and random.
Posted by Joldo (Member # 6991) on :
Aye, Ledger has the grin for it.
Posted by Primal Curve (Member # 3587) on :
He's got the right smile.
Posted by MyrddinFyre (Member # 2576) on :
Yeah, that's the first thing I thought. I didn't know that he could, like, do more than sit around and try to look laid back. This'll be interesting.
Posted by OSTY (Member # 1480) on :
quote:Originally posted by MrSquicky: Jim Carrey did a passible, though nowhere near dark and homicidal enough, portrayal of the Joker when he played The Riddler.
Nicholson's Joker was a cool guy, part mob boss, part Jack Nicholson, with just a little bit of cartoon thrown in. The Joker is usually much more manic and random.
The Joker and Riddler are two different people. The Joker is very dark where the Riddler never seemed dark to me!
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Myr, that's exactly how I see him. He is one of the most boring actors I've ever seen. He's boring to look at (he's all the same color. hair, skin, everything!), and so far he's boring to watch in a film. I'd like to hope that Nolan is such an awesome director that he can pull out the 'not boring' in Heath Ledger. 'twill be a task indeed. Posted by Ginol_Enam (Member # 7070) on :
MrSquicky knew that, I believe. What he was saying that Carrey's portrayal of the Riddler would have been perfect for the Joker if he had made it a little darker and homocidal.
Basically, what you just said.
Anyway, it says that the Joker won't appear until halfway through the movie, but how will that work out since the Joker is "introduced" at the end of Batman Begins?
Posted by Javert (Member # 3076) on :
He won't appear...but that doesn't mean his actions won't be seen.
Remember, how long was it in "Jaws" before you actually saw the shark?
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
OSTY, I was being...I guess sarcastic kinda fits. Jim Carrey's role was The Riddler, a character who is supposed to be highly cerebral, arrogant, and controlled whose schemes were intricated designed, but always with clues that could be deciphered. He played a character much more akin to The Joker, manic, chaotic, and flamboyant.
I enjoyed both Nicholson's and Carrey's performances, but they were neither of them true to the canonical concepts of their respective characters.
[ July 28, 2006, 03:53 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by Mig (Member # 9284) on :
The article says that the Joker will have a backstory. I wonder if that means that Ledger will appear early and throughout the movie's first half but not appear in full make-up as the Joker until later in the movie. This would focus the first half of the movie on the Joker's origin as just a normal crook without he makeup, which I figure will be pretty closly tied to Bruce Wayne given Director Nolan's preference of focusing on the man behind the mask.
Posted by MyrddinFyre (Member # 2576) on :
Narnia, that's exactly the word I was looking for. Boring! He is boring!
Posted by Joldo (Member # 6991) on :
Hmm, and an aussie Joker would actually be pretty cool, too . . .
Posted by OSTY (Member # 1480) on :
quote:Originally posted by MrSquicky: OSTY, I was being...I guess sarcastic kinda fits. Jim Carrey's role was The Riddler, a character who is supposed to be highly cerebral, arrogant, and controlled whose schemes were intricated designed, but always with clues that could be deciphered. He played a character much more akin to The Joker, manic, chaotic, and flamboyant.
I enjoyed both Nicholson's and Carrey's performances, but they were neither of them true to the canonical concepts of their respective characters.
ok sorry just must have misunderstood what you were saying
Posted by PUNJABEE (Member # 7359) on :
I have to give them the benefit of the doubt, sure - but come on. I don't see ledger as the joker.
[ July 29, 2006, 01:18 PM: Message edited by: Lord Solar Macharius ]
Posted by MyrddinFyre (Member # 2576) on :
I really hope his eyebrows can *move*. They just kinda lounge up there on top of his eyeballs.
Posted by Sterling (Member # 8096) on :
Och, why do they have to have multiple villains? Can't they trust one strong villain to carry the story?
I'm sure it can be done well... But I also can't entirely forget that someone's decision that every Batman movie had to have multiple villains definitely played a role in the slide down to Batman and Robin-land.
I think Ledger's a pretty good actor. He's certainly "pretty" enough to imagine someone who would be driven to psychosis by disfigurement. What he'd bring to the Joker, I can't quite picture.
Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
Batman begins was able to do multiple villians fairly well. If the article is correct in saying that he won't appear until the second half of the movie, then it would probably be done simmilar to Batman Begins (in the sense that he is part of a larger overall plot).
Posted by Sterling (Member # 8096) on :
Yeah, that could work.
But still... Batman and Robin. <shudder>
Posted by Lord Solar Macharius (Member # 7775) on :
Batman-On-Film has posted an update on Ledger and possible Penguin casting.
quote: Y'all are going to LOVE this! I think. Anyway, this comes in from probably my best source who confirmed many things for BOF in the past (such as the Katie Holmes and Ken Watanabe casting; the offer made to Ledger). Here goes:
As you have long suspected, the two main villains in the BATMAN BEGINS sequel will be The Joker and The Penguin.
I can confirm (as I did a few weeks ago) that while an offer has been made to Heath Ledger, Ledger has not signed any deal, and is reluctant to do so (at the moment.) Ledger is not a lock.
It seems Nolan has been listening to you guys when it comes to casting his other villain, however. I can confirm that an offer has been made to Phillip Seymour Hoffman for the role. Yet Hoffman has indicated that he may not get involved in the sequel.
Also, industry reaction to the Ledger 'leak' has been much like the fans: A fair bit of head scratching, and a generally tepid response.
So the scuttlebutt long reported by BOF that The Penguin will be in the sequel looks to be true (The rumor is that he'll be a British arms dealer/mob boss with designs on Gotham). Also, this was the second time in a very short time frame that I heard that Ledger, while offered the part, had not yet signed on. While I'm down with the offer to Ledger due to my trust of Chris Nolan, I've on record saying that I would've prefered someone else for the part (like my choice, Lachy Hulme). There's a bit more to this, so check back later today for additional info.
Edit: Jett has just updated again:
quote: I can confirm that Heath Ledger will indeed be The Joker in the next Batman film (which was broke by LATINO REVIEW originally) and it will be titled THE DARK KNIGHT (per Warner Bros.). Take it to the bank boys, it’ll be in the trades tomorrow...
So there we go. Look for Ledger to be signed on for The Dark Knight.
[ July 31, 2006, 09:38 PM: Message edited by: Lord Solar Macharius ]
Posted by Jhai (Member # 5633) on :
Ledger impressed me with his acting in Brokeback Mountain - a lot! Before going to that movie, I had no idea he had that in him as an actor.
Maybe he has manical in him as well - just hasn't had a chance to show it yet.
Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :
Joker AND Penguin?? Come on, they got their own movies already. Aren't there enough other villains in canon to come up with someone else to carry the story???
Posted by Javert (Member # 3076) on :
Just because The Penguin is in it doesn't mean he'll be a main character. He could be, for example, the villain Batman is investigating when he runs afoul of the Joker.
Posted by Lord Solar Macharius (Member # 7775) on :
The plot outline as I've heard so far:
With the fall of the Roman Empire in Batman Begins, various mob forces are all trying to grab a piece of Gotham. Newly appointed District Attorney Harvey Dent teams up with Lieutenant James Gordon and the Batman to stem this growing tide of violence and clean up the corruption running rampant in the GCPD. Meanwhile, the Joker killings are becoming more frequent and more violent, pushing the city to its knees.
The Penguin fits into all of this as an arms supplier. Other rumoured characters include Sarah Essen as an ATF officer and Roman Sionis (aka Black Mask) as a past associate of Wayne’s and a player in the Gotham organised crime scene (False Face Society).
![[Wink]](wink.gif)