Am I the only one who absolutely loves the idea that the role of The Joker is so intense and seductive, that it killed a dude? I'm sorry, and no disrespect is intended to the loved ones of Mr. Ledger, but wouldn't the Joker laugh his ass off that the simple act of portraying his unique and captivating manner of psychosis on a film drove a man off the edge to his death?
The Joker has never been done right onscreen. Not once. Nicholson was fun in 1989 and I think he got the joke, so to speak, but never was the moment where you gaze at old Jack and go "he's completely off his nut." He was always playing to the crowd, being goofy. The Joker is iconic because, as Alan Moore so tastefully put it, he's the demon inside all of us that gets out should that 'one bad day' manifest. He's the void made flesh as we all stand on the precipice looking down.
I'm still not overjoyed that Heath Ledger is playing the Joker, nor that "Dark Knight" director Christopher Nolan felt the need to jam pack what seems like 7 story lines into this film. You've got Batman vs. Himself (always), Batman vs. The Joker, Bruce Wayne vs. Harvey Dent, Batman vs. Two Face, Batman vs. the Joker's gang, Batman vs. Two Face, Bruce Wayne vs. Rachel Dawes and probably more. Even if it runs 140 minutes, you're not getting that all resolved.
But, the reason this is number one with a bullet is three-fold. First, Christopher Nolan has yet to make a bad movie and he doesn't seem intent on starting now. "Momento" is classic, "Insomnia" should be and "The Prestige" was goofy fun at worst and an acting powerhouse to the enlightened. And, critics be damned, I loved "Batman Begins." It's very re-watchable and it's very spot on. It's got its problems, but some of the stuff in there is straight out great, and chief among that stuff is the final conversation between Batman and Ltn. Gordon about escalation.
"We buy semi-automatics, they (the criminals) buy automatics. We buy Kevlar, they buy armor piercing rounds. And you're wearing a mask, and jumping off rooftops. Take this guy, armed robbery, double homicide, got a flare for the theatrical like you. Leaves a calling card."
When Batman turned over the Joker card, it was at that moment I started anticipating this movie. That was nearly three years ago.
You got the sense early on that "The Dark Knight" was playing for keeps. The cast, first and foremost is a testament to that - no stunt casting Jim Carrey, no rotating heroes, no Robin. But you get the sense they really hammered down this time, and what we're going to see is an adult, psychologically brutal film that goes bang on the screen and acting that goes bang in your head. Not to make too much out of it, but I expect to leave the theater feeling like I've gone 10 rounds with the mighty Thor (or mauled by Jesus, thank you Philip J. Fry).
One last word on the marketing. Warner Brothers has understandably stepped away from Heath Ledger in the marketing, which is fine. But their viral stuff has been great. They revealed the face of the Joker through nation-wide scavenger hunt. Every poster or trailer has had a game attached. They've taken this thing to the streets, it would seem and it's very interesting.
Again, can...not...wait.
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