In the article, “Holy Show Stealer, Batman,” the author Sara Stewart explains how the character of the Joker has changed from the classic purple suited arch nemesis to one that resembles a guitar player in a punk rock band. But don’t get me wrong, this Joker is everything you hope a punk rocker wouldn’t be. Whether he is tormenting Batman or eluding district attorney Harvey Dent, the Joker is up to his no good ways and back to his tricky self. Stewart also mentions the fact that this is Ledger’s last performance do to an overdose before the movie was even done filming. She says that “this one is so off the rails that you really don’t want to say goodbye, to the character or the actor.” She couldn’t be more right; the character of the Joker is played to a t by Ledger and leaves the audience wanting a return by this character in the next Batman movie, which will probably include an appearance by the villain named Two Face. By summing up what Stewart is basically saying in this article, I believe she is saying if you already haven’t watched this movie you should because it is a must watch and that by watching this movie you are only going to be left wanting more and waiting in anticipation for the next Batman film to come out.
When Claudia Puig says that the Dark Knight is the best superhero movie to date, it is questionable because it is hard to agree with that when I haven’t seen all of the superhero movies. However, I believe this is the best superhero movie I have seen. I also agree with Puig when she said that this is a movie that made Ledger’s career, although Brokeback Mountain also received good reviews. The way Ledger “disappeared into his role,” was also very astonishing because he made it seem like it was his normal personality and like he was an actual person instead of a made up character. He brought the joker to life and played the part flawlessly. He achieved being a perfect villain by killing without second thought and by always eerily licking his lips. The article, “Ledger’s talent lives on as The Joker in ‘Dark Knight,’ gives the movie The Dark Knight 4 out of 4 stars and I couldn’t more than agree with them but to give it an impossible 5 out of 4 stars.
The book says that the ultimate goal of any actor should be to make us believe completely in the reality of the character. I believe that when Ledger steps in costume for the Joker, he takes this to the next level by flawlessly playing and making the audience believe that this person could in fact be real. There wasn’t a time in the movie when I believed anything different. In recent films Ledger has played a cowboy in Brokeback Mountain and Bob Dylan in I’m Not There, he has never played the role of an unhinged villain and for that reason I believe he is one superb actor. For him to become a role he has never played before and to do it with such success is extremely amazing. In the movie Ledger uses both action and dramatic acting very fluently. He uses action acting at many points throughout the movie but the square off with Batman towards the end of the movie is very good action acting by both he and Christian Bale. He also uses great dramatic acting when he is getting interrogated in jail. When he talks about how he prefers a knife as a murder weapon because it’s slower, the audience is able to see how crazy the Joker really is. In the movie, Ledger plays the part of being an impersonating actor. He impersonates the character of the Joker so well that at points it seems he is actually becoming the character.
The thing that I noticed about this movie right away is how you are immediately involved in the action right from the opening scene, which you don’t get in every movie. The thing I also noticed right away is that the movie foreshadows that in the city of Gotham it is hard to trust anybody these days. The reason I think it forecasts this is because in the open scene the director has all of the clowns killing each other for a larger portion of the stolen money and in the end it’s the Joker who gets away with all of the money. I also noticed that the Joker is a very smart villain who plans everything out and rarely leaves anything to chance. By planning everything out the Joker becomes a character that leaves the crowd on the edge of their seat and leaves them thinking about what twist is going to come next. I believe the director called Harvey Dent the White Knight because he and Batman were very much alike. Harvey was the white knight because he stopped crime and put criminals away during the day and people were able to see everything he did and I thing he called Batman the dark knight because he stopped crime and criminals during the night when no one could see or give him credit for it. I also think/hope that the director made Harvey Dent burn his face and become Two Face so that there may be another action packed Batman movie. The questions that the director left me wondering were as follows: Did Harvey Dent actually die after falling off of that platform? Is there going to be another Batman movie with Two Face as the star villain? And does Batman actually hang up his shoes on his superhero career? A part in the movie that made me feel emotional is when the Joker kept licking his lips and blinking his eyes slowly. These characteristics added to the Joker’s already crazy personality. Another part of the movie that made me feel emotional was when Dent had Jim Gordon’s son and was going to kill him so he could feel what it felt like to lose someone who he loved so much. Overall I felt that this movie is one for the ages. It features a star packed cast and leaves you on the edge of your seat with all of its unexpected turn of events.
Works Cited
When Claudia Puig says that the Dark Knight is the best superhero movie to date, it is questionable because it is hard to agree with that when I haven’t seen all of the superhero movies. However, I believe this is the best superhero movie I have seen. I also agree with Puig when she said that this is a movie that made Ledger’s career, although Brokeback Mountain also received good reviews. The way Ledger “disappeared into his role,” was also very astonishing because he made it seem like it was his normal personality and like he was an actual person instead of a made up character. He brought the joker to life and played the part flawlessly. He achieved being a perfect villain by killing without second thought and by always eerily licking his lips. The article, “Ledger’s talent lives on as The Joker in ‘Dark Knight,’ gives the movie The Dark Knight 4 out of 4 stars and I couldn’t more than agree with them but to give it an impossible 5 out of 4 stars.
The book says that the ultimate goal of any actor should be to make us believe completely in the reality of the character. I believe that when Ledger steps in costume for the Joker, he takes this to the next level by flawlessly playing and making the audience believe that this person could in fact be real. There wasn’t a time in the movie when I believed anything different. In recent films Ledger has played a cowboy in Brokeback Mountain and Bob Dylan in I’m Not There, he has never played the role of an unhinged villain and for that reason I believe he is one superb actor. For him to become a role he has never played before and to do it with such success is extremely amazing. In the movie Ledger uses both action and dramatic acting very fluently. He uses action acting at many points throughout the movie but the square off with Batman towards the end of the movie is very good action acting by both he and Christian Bale. He also uses great dramatic acting when he is getting interrogated in jail. When he talks about how he prefers a knife as a murder weapon because it’s slower, the audience is able to see how crazy the Joker really is. In the movie, Ledger plays the part of being an impersonating actor. He impersonates the character of the Joker so well that at points it seems he is actually becoming the character.
The thing that I noticed about this movie right away is how you are immediately involved in the action right from the opening scene, which you don’t get in every movie. The thing I also noticed right away is that the movie foreshadows that in the city of Gotham it is hard to trust anybody these days. The reason I think it forecasts this is because in the open scene the director has all of the clowns killing each other for a larger portion of the stolen money and in the end it’s the Joker who gets away with all of the money. I also noticed that the Joker is a very smart villain who plans everything out and rarely leaves anything to chance. By planning everything out the Joker becomes a character that leaves the crowd on the edge of their seat and leaves them thinking about what twist is going to come next. I believe the director called Harvey Dent the White Knight because he and Batman were very much alike. Harvey was the white knight because he stopped crime and put criminals away during the day and people were able to see everything he did and I thing he called Batman the dark knight because he stopped crime and criminals during the night when no one could see or give him credit for it. I also think/hope that the director made Harvey Dent burn his face and become Two Face so that there may be another action packed Batman movie. The questions that the director left me wondering were as follows: Did Harvey Dent actually die after falling off of that platform? Is there going to be another Batman movie with Two Face as the star villain? And does Batman actually hang up his shoes on his superhero career? A part in the movie that made me feel emotional is when the Joker kept licking his lips and blinking his eyes slowly. These characteristics added to the Joker’s already crazy personality. Another part of the movie that made me feel emotional was when Dent had Jim Gordon’s son and was going to kill him so he could feel what it felt like to lose someone who he loved so much. Overall I felt that this movie is one for the ages. It features a star packed cast and leaves you on the edge of your seat with all of its unexpected turn of events.
Works Cited
Puig, Claudia. “Ledger’s talent lives on as The Joker in ‘Dark Knight.’” USA Today 16 July 2008.
Stewart, Sara. “HOLY SHOW STEALER, BATMAN!” New York Post 30 June 2008.
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