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I just got back from seeing The Dark Knight, which was totally mindblowing! (I babbled like an idiot for several hours afterwards) However, this movie raises the question, who played the Joker better? Jack Nicholson or Heath Ledger?

Personally, I can't decide. Both had such a creepy laugh...

The conundrum is that they portrayed two very different characters. I think Nicholson could have given a great "new Joker" and Ledger could have given a great "old Joker." Personally I prefer the new- it is a much grittier role and, quite frankly, a frightening performance.

Ledger was creepier and darker, as is the whole "new Batman" franchise, which I personally like. It feels older than the original, though I liked that too.

The real question, though, is why isn't this set up as a poll?

They both play very different jokers. Ledger played a much more creepy psychopathic joker, which I like much better than Nicholson.

Nick Pierce wrote: The real question, though, is why isn't this set up as a poll?

Cause I'm a noob and forgot...

Cesar Romero.

OldsRecording wrote:Cesar Romero.

Word. Best ever.

As one person put it. Nicholson's joker is a mob boss that lost everything crazy and Ledger's joker is a put on your moms underwear and run around while spreading peanut butter on yourself crazy.

the elephant wrote: BTW - I did not care for the soundtrack of this movie much. To me it was the sole weak point of an altogether excellent movie.

In what ways was it weak? Preface: I'm not trying to start a flamewar here, I am genuinely curious. I like the soundtrack very much personally, but I will also note that it is very different from most film scores and an entirely different animal from any other orchestral music. It is very simplistic, nothing elaborate about it, and very repetitive. More atmospheric than thematic. Is that what you mean?

The movie strayed too far away from the Batman I know from the animated series and comics.
The Joker is supposed to be funny; he's a joker. I didn't laugh in any of the joker scenes.

k001k47 wrote:The movie strayed too far away from the Batman I know from the animated series and comics.
The Joker is supposed to be funny; he's a joker. I didn't laugh in any of the joker scenes.

I haven't seen it yet, but, the Joker isn't really supposed to be funny. It' supposed to be more of an uncomfortable, I'm-laughing-because-I'm-nervous-this-guy-might-kill-me kinda funny. He's a total psychopath, with little to no reason behind his actions.

the elephant wrote:

k001k47 wrote:The movie strayed too far away from the Batman I know from the animated series and comics.
The Joker is supposed to be funny; he's a joker. I didn't laugh in any of the joker scenes.

That is odd. Our whole theater (about 750 viewers) cracked up at him throughout the movie. I loved the humor.

Same here - my theater laughed at him quite a few times. I won't list the specific times, to avoid giving away any plot points.

Jack or Heath?

Heath.

Sure, Jack was playing a different kind of Joker, but you always saw "Jack with makeup on".

Heath scared me.

Watching Ledger and Eckhart's Two Face brought me back to the rather frightening and disturbing Arkham Asylum graphic novel. I winced more than I laughed. The insanity, pain, and desperation of Batman's world hadn't quite been successfully conveyed until now. Even the early comics kind of glossed over the trauma of the young Bruce witnessing the execution of his parents.

Incredible movie, IMO. I don't care what else comes out this year; the Batman legacy finally got the movie that it deserves.

With viewing this in the prisim of Romero, Nichelson, Ledger, they are all playing a different Joker, although Romero and Nicholson are more similar than dis.

I liked Ledgers character just as I suspect I'll much prefer Eckhart's two-face over Tommy Lee Jones....

THat said I have to place Christian Bale at number one.......and (to my suprise) Michael Keaton at number two. His scene where he offers the joker to "go nuts" carried on the darkness of batman. For a comedian he could play pretty straight.

oh, I guess the next question is

"Will the Joker ever return in this series?"

Just got back from seeing it-

Having seen Mr. Rackley's comment on the soundtrack, I tried to listen for that, but Heath Ledger grabbed me hard. The Joker was soo... something, but I'm not giving him credit just because he's a lunatic with make-up. I really do like characters like him (maybe some kind of mix of Goron from Law & Order: CI, Q from Star Trek and Hannibal Lecter).

One pretty big turn-off for me was regarding the "soundtrack". I hated screeching drones that got louder and higher in tense scenes. It seemed really cheesy to me. There are few film elements I dislike more than sudden SHOCK jolts, and I am grateful that this film had only a few of them.

To the Joker-humor debate: the joker was hilarious in my opinion. But again, that's just an opinion.

To the soundtrack thing: I agree, I would not want to hear it in a concert, that would probably suck. I think the composers agree. I have even read (disclaimer, on wikipedia, take that as you will) that the composers deliberately avoided having any sort of "hummable" theme. It sets the tone of the movie, that's all. It isn't supposed to function as a concert work, and I definitely hope it doesn't. But it still functions by itself without the movie. Some of it is a lot of fun to listen to while driving fast on the highway late at night ! Or for working out (I need to do more of that). And I find it very good to listen to when I'm writing something, say a story or something; for the stuff I like to write it sets the tone very well. And I imagine it might give a very different tone/mood/atmosphere were one to listen to it while playing pinball or something on a computer. But again, I can see why you wouldn't like it, I agree with you in many respects, I just like it anyways. Don't worry, I didn't take offense at all. If I were offended that easily, I probably wouldn't still be here.

I can also understand not liking the high pitched drones, they were a tad distracting, but I think they were effective nonetheless.

By the way, has anybody had a chance to compare a normal theater viewing to an IMAX viewing? I am all abuzz with curiosity.

Ledger. Far and away. The most consistent comment I've heard about this film, and the thing that makes it so good compared to the other Batman films, is that many people walked out of the theater thinking, "You know, that could actually happen..." That's what I think is so good about Ledger's performance, along with the rest of the film.

About the soundtrack-unlike a good majority of films, I hardly noticed the soundtrack. In my view, that is the sign of a well-working soundtrack, which is that you forget that there is even a soundtrack while watching the movie. The only two times I noticed it were in the oil-barrel scene, and the boat scene. The drones that everyone has not liked so much, were in my opinion, utilized fairly well. The main thing I noticed is that the composers both avoided any sort of soundtrack cliche. When those drones are building, they don't do the stereotypical, "Hit a high note and then drop suddenly" move. They continue going a just a little bit past the high point of the scene, kind of like an extension of the suspense.

Well, that's all from me. Forgive the spelling problems, I had a rough night...
Aaron

For the 1989 movie, what Tim Burton was trying to accomplish, and as a compliment to Keaton's Batman, Jack Nicholson's performance as the Joker was . . . perfect.

Leger's performance in The Dark Knight also was perfect. Beyond that, it was one of the most amazing movie performances I have ever seen. Maybe the most amazing.

In my opinion:

Nicholson = perfect
Leger = perfect +++

Sorry it took so long to put up a poll. I was busy.