They're Joking, Right?
I just read a news article stating that Heath Ledger, who you may recognize from films like A Knight's Tale and Brokeback Mountain, has officially been cast as The Joker in the next Batman movie (which has the current working title of Batman: Dark Knight).
I'm not sure I'm 100 percent sold on the idea of Heath Ledger as Joker. I'd heard rumors a few months ago that Crispin Glover and Paul Bettany were considered for the role at one point, and both of them would have been really good in the role. Besides, I think Glover is already a little loony, so I'd be willing to guess that he's just a purple suit and green hair away from being Joker.
I'll admit that I'm not all that familiar with Ledger's work. I've only seen A Knight's Tale and The Patriot, and just parts of Brokeback Mountain. He's an Academy Award nominee, yeah, but I'm not sure he'd be a convincing Joker. Jack Nicholson was a decent Joker because he'd made a career from playing characters with some kind of edge. He was a biker in Easy Rider, an asylum inmate in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, and a homicidal hotel caretaker in The Shining. So a lunatic clown wasn't much of a stretch for ol' Jack.
The new movie doesn't start filming until sometime early next year and probably won't be out until 2008, so we've got two years to debate the pros and cons of arguably the great comic book villain ever being portrayed by someone who's greatest claim to fame is playing a gay cowboy in some independent movie. I'll hope for the best, and we'll see how good this decision is in 2008. All they have to do now is cast Liev Schrieber as Harvey Dent, and everything will be fine.
I'm not sure I'm 100 percent sold on the idea of Heath Ledger as Joker. I'd heard rumors a few months ago that Crispin Glover and Paul Bettany were considered for the role at one point, and both of them would have been really good in the role. Besides, I think Glover is already a little loony, so I'd be willing to guess that he's just a purple suit and green hair away from being Joker.
I'll admit that I'm not all that familiar with Ledger's work. I've only seen A Knight's Tale and The Patriot, and just parts of Brokeback Mountain. He's an Academy Award nominee, yeah, but I'm not sure he'd be a convincing Joker. Jack Nicholson was a decent Joker because he'd made a career from playing characters with some kind of edge. He was a biker in Easy Rider, an asylum inmate in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, and a homicidal hotel caretaker in The Shining. So a lunatic clown wasn't much of a stretch for ol' Jack.
The new movie doesn't start filming until sometime early next year and probably won't be out until 2008, so we've got two years to debate the pros and cons of arguably the great comic book villain ever being portrayed by someone who's greatest claim to fame is playing a gay cowboy in some independent movie. I'll hope for the best, and we'll see how good this decision is in 2008. All they have to do now is cast Liev Schrieber as Harvey Dent, and everything will be fine.
posted by Matt Sutton at
2:31 PM
2 Comments:
I'm thinking here, and I can't think of a single movie I've ever watched with Heath Ledger in it. I don't think I'm avoiding him on purpose...it just came out that way.
The Joker? I guess I'd have to see a make-up test before I can judge. But I would have thought of lots of other people before he crossed my mind.
You know, it's been two and a half years since I wrote this post. The Dark Knight has come and gone, and after seeing Heath Ledger as Joker, I'll admit that I was totally wrong about him. Ledger was great!
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