16 December 2007
15 December 2007
Few Tidbits
Well, it seems the people behind the "Theatrical" viral site have registered another site. This was hunted down by the members over at SHH! forums. The new site is PartOfThePlan.org Don't be suprised to find that this is something to do with Harvey Dent's message over at Gotham P.D.'s website, about something happening in the New Year. After the trailer, and all these posters, i'm not quite sure what that will be though.
14 December 2007
High-Def Trailer Coming...
The new domestic poster just posted contained a hidden message under the website address at the bottom of the poster. Obviously, leave it to "42" to make us wait!
A TASTE FOR THE THEATRICAL
Keep an eye out for a High-Definition version of the new trailer, scheduled to appear there on Sunday! It's what you've been waiting for...
New Domestic Poster
Anyone in the US going to a theatre, should keep their eyes out for this new poster. I personally think it's brilliantly creepy...
ALTERNATIVE ANGLE
CLEARER FULL SHOT
ALTERNATIVE ANGLE
CLEARER FULL SHOT
The Dark Knight Trailer!
06 December 2007
Gotham Novelties Inc.
John Mayer
Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist
December 06, 2007
"Came home the other day to a package from Gotham Novelties Inc... I wasn't expecting a delivery..."
Click Here to see his surprise delivery.
The Joker deals Cake...
MovieWeb revealed today they've recieved a little gift from The Clown Prince Of Crime. For more information, including pictures, click here
New Interviews!
Christian Bale: Behind The Cowl
An in-depth look at Christian Bale's career.
Dark Knight Light's Up IMAX
LA Times talks the new footage.
IGN Exclusive: Nolan On The Dark Knight
Great interview with some new information.
Dark Horizon's goes beyond The Dark Knight
Information on parts 2, and 3, of this franchise.
04 December 2007
We Are The Answer
Well, after a heck of a viral night... i leave you with this.
Dear citizen,
Today is a momentous day for Gotham and for all of us who have participated in We Are The Answer.
Tips from concerned citizens like you are helping to bring corrupt officers to justice. You can be proud that you have aided your fellow citizens in taking the first step toward a safer city.
Due to the overwhelming citizen response, we at We Are The Answer are pouring through an avalanche of police corruption tips.
We should be through with the current backlog of tips by the very beginning of the New Year.
Thank you again. The good citizens of Gotham have to stick together to fight crime and corruption. All of us have a brighter future to look forward to.
E-Mail from wearetheanswer.org
See you soon...
Dear citizen,
Today is a momentous day for Gotham and for all of us who have participated in We Are The Answer.
Tips from concerned citizens like you are helping to bring corrupt officers to justice. You can be proud that you have aided your fellow citizens in taking the first step toward a safer city.
Due to the overwhelming citizen response, we at We Are The Answer are pouring through an avalanche of police corruption tips.
We should be through with the current backlog of tips by the very beginning of the New Year.
Thank you again. The good citizens of Gotham have to stick together to fight crime and corruption. All of us have a brighter future to look forward to.
E-Mail from wearetheanswer.org
See you soon...
The Time Is Upon Us, Clowns!
The Game Is Complete!
(Click All The Images For Better Resolution)
At the site click on The Bell...
Pick A Card... Any Card...
Card One: REWARD
The Dark Knight Teaser Poster!
Click Here For SUPER HIGH RESOLUTION (100MB)
Card Two: REWARD
Free IMAX Tickets! See The Joker Prologue Free! Click Here
Enjoy, and remember, what doesn't kill you only makes you stranger...
The Joker Needs You!
FINAL UPDATE! 04:38pm ET
ONE more...
UPDATE! 04:34pm ET
Can you feel the anticipation yet? Palpable, eh?
UPDATE! 04:26pm ET
...two down...
UPDATE! 04:21pm ET
...inching closer...
UPDATE! 04:03pm ET
More Cake details. This One's L.A.
Pics courtesy of fceeviper & -rc2k- @ SHH! Forums
UPDATE! 04:00pm ET
The last batch of animals?
UPDATE! 03:43pm ET
A more detailed look at what was inside the cakes.
Images from DrFuManchu31 @ SHH! Forums
UPDATE! 03:39pm ET
...we're almost there...
UPDATE! 03:28pm ET
The Joker card from the package inside the cake.
Props to Batsean over at SHH! Forums for the assist...
UPDATE! 03:19pm ET
...good job Boston...
UPDATE! 03:13pm ET
...another two down...
UPDATE! 03:00pm ET
More Bears!
UPDATE! 02:31pm ET
...we're getting there...
UPDATE! 02:14pm ET
Ten down. Eleven to go...
UPDATE! 02:00pm ET
More Animals!
UPDATE! 01:41pm ET.
...and another.
UPDATE! 01:33pm ET.
...another two gone... Eight in total now!
UPDATE! 01:26pm ET.
Two More Bite The Dust!
UPDATE! 01:18pm ET.
The Cake!
The Contents!
The Contraband!
UPDATE! 01:09pm ET.
They're going fast!
UPDATE! 01:00pm ET.
More animals have appeared! Looks like there will be 22 in all, judging by the lights on the carnival game... Check out the site to see them, and where you have to go to get your prizes. Stay tuned for more updates.
UPDATE! 12:45pm ET.
One of the animals has dissappeared! If you click the weight now, the bottom lights turn on. Click them, and it shows you the prize thats been located successfully. If you want to take part, you're going to have to hurry.
------------------------------
Step Right Up has been updated!
All locations are aware of the marketing, and aren't giving away anything over the phone. Best to get there fast... First come, first served!
03 December 2007
Full WIZARD Joker Image
Wizard has released the full image they used as their cover of the latest magazine. You can head over to their official site for confirmation. They also released a better quality picture of The Joker in the back seat of a car. Check out the photos in the gallery.
IMAX Preview Description!
DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED!
Highlight The Text...
Source: WIZARD
Tonight, at the Loews IMAX theater on the upper west side of Manhattan, director Chris Nolan debuted the first six minutes of the upcoming “The Dark Knight” movie, a sequel to the Christian Bale-starring, multi-million-dollar-earning “Batman Begins,” to a crowd of about 60 people. Set to swing into theaters July 18, 2008, “Dark Knight” has been hyped for its inclusion of not just one, but two new villains—Two-Face (played by Aaron Eckhart) and the already mentioned, much discussed Joker (played controversially by Heath Ledger).
“I don’t want to bore you,” Nolan joked as he introduced the clip, which will play in select IMAX theaters prior to “I AM Legend” next weekend and was lifted directly from the film. Nolan went on to explain that “Dark Knight” marks the first time a major motion picture utilized the IMAX filming technique.
“I wanted to make the Joker’s introduction a mini film,” added the director. “That’s what this footage is. So we shot it in this higher-quality, more intense format to get across that feeling.” Then, the footage began.
Kicking off with a sweeping shot of downtown Gotham, the camera zooms in above a few buildings before focusing in on a single, traditional skyscraper covered in windows. Suddenly, one window in the skyscraper explodes outward, exposing two criminals inside. Donning clown masks and standing with a rifle, the two criminals shoot a grappling hook across a busy street below to the next building—the Gotham National Bank. The two then slide across using a zip line.
On the street below, a man stands, his face unseen as the shot creeps up from behind, a clown mask slung in his grip. A van suddenly screeches up before he climbs inside and the van hauls off again. Inside, there are now three men, all wearing clown masks. They begin negatively discussing their boss and how he’s sitting out the heist. “The guy thinks he can sit out and get a cut?” laughs one man. “Must be why they call him the Joker!”
Back on the bank’s roof, the two men we first saw now shimmy into the bank’s security wiring while also discussing the boss. “Why do you think they call him Joker?” asks one. “I hear it’s cause he wears make-up,” answers the other. “Like war paint.”
Suddenly, below, the three men blast into the bank, demanding money and commanding everybody to the floor. Back on the roof, the two criminals intercept the out-going emergency alarm set off by an employee. After they cancel its signal, one of the men shoots the other and heads inside for the vault.
Back inside, the clown gunmen hand all the hostages live grenades. “We wouldn’t want your hands free would we?” asks one with a laugh.
At the vault, a clown opens the door, and just then a second clown shoots him in the back. They’re taking each other out so that the cut between them grows higher! And it’s all because the boss, the Joker, has told them to.
Back in the lobby, a bank manager surprisingly begins firing on the clown gunmen with a shotgun hidden under his desk. Turns out this bank belongs to an influential mobster and the manager, fearless and crazed, says as much to the clowns as he walks defiantly at them. He takes one out with a point-blank blast.
Two remain and manage to disarm the manager by shooting him in the arm before one clown turns his gun on the other.
“I’m sure the boss told you to take me out first,” says the one holding the gun. “No,” says the other, his hands in the air as he sways back in forth as if he didn’t care a gun was pointed at his chest. “I called a bus.”
“What?” asks the one holding a gun. And then BOOM, a school bus bursts its back end through the wall of the bank, killing the clown holding the gun! The lumpy driver steps out and asks what’s happened to the gang, just as the clown who’s life he saved shoots him without remorse.
The surviving clown begins to board the bus with bags of money when the bank manager, lying on the floor bleeding, tells the clown he has no idea who he’s messing with and asks why the crooks in this city have no beliefs anymore. The lone clown aborts boarding the bus and instead turns to the manager. The manager asks him dead to his face, “What do you believe in?”
As the clown slowly places a concussion grenade in the manager’s mouth, he removes his mask, exposing his scar-ridden face. It’s the Joker! “I believe that whatever doesn’t kill you simply makes you stronger,” he says before smiling a huge, twisted grin.
The grenade has a string attached to its pin and as the Joker boards the bus, the string goes taut. When he pulls away and the pin comes loose, the manager lays sweating on the floor. Surely his head is about to explode! Instead, the bottom of the grenade emits a gray, harmless gas. It was a joke!
On the street, the bus pulls into traffic along with several others. Before long, sirens can be heard, but by then, the bus is lost in the crowd. The Joker gets away.
Then the footage cuts to several quick clips, including the new Batsuit in a cage, the new Batpod, the Batmobile (aka, the Tumbler), a shot of a fire truck on fire in the streets of Gotham, Batman on a roof overlooking his city and, finally, a clip of Lieutenant Gordon (played by Gary Oldman) using an ax to shatter the Batsignal.
When the lights came up, applause greeted Nolan before he invited everybody to join him in the lobby for cocktails.
Look for the footage to appear before select prints of “I Am Legend” in IMAX starting next weekend. “Hopefully they’ll play up until the movie comes out next summer,” added Nolan, who’s built a bigger, better, more intense corner into his Batman universe. Don’t be a Joker yourselves. Go see it!
...and another...
Source: MTV NEWS
If the opening frames of "The Dark Knight" are any indication, Batman will have his hands full come June. The Joker is on the loose, and MTV News has seen just how devilishly maniacal and dangerous he can be.
On Sunday night, a small crowd in New York gathered to watch the first six minutes of director Christopher Nolan's eagerly awaited sequel to "Batman Begins" and, holy extended trailer, the footage did not disappoint. Introduced by the beaming director and displayed on an 80-foot-tall IMAX screen, the opening of the film welcomed Heath Ledger's Joker to the Nolan/Batman universe.
And it was clear from the start, much as you might have loved Jack Nicholson's villain, the purple-clad bad man won't have the time or inclination to dance to Prince this time around. Nolan spoke at length with MTV News immediately prior to and following the special event, clearly proud of his new villain. "I think what Heath is doing is very adventurous," he said. "What he's doing is very radical. It's very much what I wanted. I knew I needed someone really fearless."
The opening sequence — specially filmed in the IMAX format, and set to debut December 14 with prints of "I Am Legend" in theaters — fulfilled a dream for Nolan, who said he had been wanting to shoot in the format for 15 years. "In the finished film, there will be four or five IMAX sequences," Nolan explained. He continued excitedly before the screening: "Everything about doing this in the IMAX format is trying to get that feeling back when I was a little kid when I'd sit in a movie theater and see images that were larger than life. That's what I'm trying to get back to with this material. I felt like introducing the Joker in this way because he's such a huge character [and it] would be a very fun thing to do."
But Nolan also revealed that not all the IMAX scenes will be action-filled. "Some of them are actually quiet scenes which pictorially we thought would be interesting. It's not all the slam-bam scenes," he said.
As the lights dimmed, the first images were revealed, of a gleaming and bright Gotham City. The camera moves in close on a building when suddenly the calm is shattered, quite literally, by a broken window. A group of clown-mask-clad robbers are about to seize a bank. They bicker about the mysterious man who has employed them. "Why do they call him the Joker?" one asks another. It's a refrain almost identical to those rooftop thugs who wonder about the mysterious "bat" in the opening frames of Tim Burton's "Batman."
Soon we are inside the bank as a tense standoff is under way. None of the employees resist, save one played by character-actor extraordinaire William Fichtner. This is a mob bank, we learn, and the wrong place to mess with, even for a group of seasoned criminals.
The controlled heist degenerates into a mess quickly enough, with each of the robbers mysteriously getting taken out. But it's not Batman knocking them off — rather, it's one of the robbers themselves. Just as the final two robbers are set to leave, one pulls a gun on the other. "I bet the Joker told you to kill me as soon as we loaded the cash," he says, clearly with the upper hand.
The eerily calm but playful response comes. "No, no, no. He killed the bus driver."
Before the gun-toting clown can finish asking, "What bus driver?," he is taken out by a school bus crashing into the bank. "School's out. Time to go!" screams the sole survivor of the gang.
All that remains for him is the bank employee (Fichtner) lying at his feet. By now we're pretty sure these are going to be his last words: "The criminals in this town used to believe in things. Honor. Respect. What do you believe in?" He screams it again, louder, "What do you believe in?"
And the mask comes off. The grinning, scarred face of the Joker is revealed at last. His face filled the 8-story-high screen as the clip played. "I believe whatever doesn't kill you simply makes you ...," he said. He pauses on the last word: " ... stranger."
As the Joker made his getaway, the sequence ended, but before the lights returned, the audience was treated to quick tantalizing flashes of the rest of the film. The Joker firing what looks to be an automatic weapon in a city street. Police Commissioner Gordon raising an ax dramatically. Batman whizzing by in his batpod. And finally, Gordon lowering the ax, destroying what we see now was the bat signal. Troubled times clearly await in Gotham. And it's clear who's to blame.
Nolan explained to MTV News that the Joker we meet in "The Dark Knight" is fully formed. Don't look for an origin story here. "To me, the Joker is an absolute," he said. "There are no shades of gray to him — maybe shades of purple. He's unbelievably dark. He bursts in just as he did in the comics."
Though there was no sign of much of the supporting cast in this extended preview, Nolan stressed there's much more to the story. Asked about Aaron Eckhart's Harvey "Two-Face" Dent, the director said "his story is in some ways the backbone of the film. [Bruce Wayne and Harvey] have an interesting relationship. They're friends and rivals."
And what about the caped crusader we left at the end of "Batman Begins"? Nolan explained that "he's a little more sure of himself" in the new film. "We didn't want him sitting around wrestling with the same angst. It's all-new angst," he laughed.
Nolan, who wrapped filming just two weeks ago, said he's shooting for a running time comparable to the first film's 140 minutes. Congratulated on the ambitious slam-bang start to his sequel, MTV News asked if the next six minutes could help but live up to the first. The director smiled and sighed nearly in unison. "That's what I'm working on now."
...and another...
Source: MovieBlog
Our pals over at Warner Bros. called us up this morning with the best Christmas gift ever…an exclusive IMAX screening of the first six minutes of The Dark Knight. Director Christopher Nolan was on hand to present the clip to roughly one hundred New Yorkers on this frigid Monday evening.
Before the clip ran, Nolan stood before us, dramatically lit from behind by the glowing 80-foot IMAX screen. He shot several scenes using the IMAX camera; a first for a feature length film. These six minutes introduce Heath Ledger’s interpretation of The Joker to the world and Nolan’s intention was for this introduction to stand alone as a “short film.” Easily the best short film I’ve seen since Hardware Wars.
Forget Nicholson, “The Laughing Fish,” Caesar Romero, Mark Hamil and The Killing Joke. Heath Ledger’s Joker is THE definitive Joker.
A bank heist is really the only way to introduce the Clown Prince of Crime.
It starts off with a breathtaking shot of Gotham City in broad daylight. The camera swoops into this big glass skyscraper the way only an IMAX movie can. It was stunning. Then BOOM! One of the windows in this big glass skyscraper is blown out. It then cut to two thugs in ugly clown masks (the ones we saw in the first publicity stills that were released months ago) shooting a zip line down to an adjacent rooftop.
Cut to the street as we see another thug waiting on a street corner with his clown mask in his hand. We’re looking at him from behind and can’t see his face. A van pulls up and the thug puts on his mask and jumps in to join the rest of the clowns. The clown who’s driving is *****ing about how this Joker guy who planned the heist didn’t even bother to show up and questions why they should cut him in on any of the loot.
There’s an awesome line from one of the clowns about The Joker and how he wears make-up as “war paint” to scare the crap out of people. Very cool stuff.
The two clowns in the skyscraper dramatically swing down to the rooftop while the clowns in the van enter the bank guns a blazing.
One of the rooftop clowns disables the silent alarm and comments that the alarm isn’t going to the cops. Once the alarm is halted, his partner shoots him dead.
Cut to William Fichtner.
I was so amped to see Fichtner’s creepy mug. He’s the new Brion James. He’s in everything the way Brion was back in the 80s and he’s as badass as ever. Brilliant casting, Mr. Nolan. Fichtner is the bank manager and he looks pissed.
Then cut to two clowns cracking the safe. Once the one clown gets the safe door open, his partner shoots him dead. We start to see a pattern here. The remaining clown starts to fill the gym bags with cash.
As the clowns in the bank lobby control the crowd, Fichtner goes to work. The bank manager pulls out a shotgun and starts hunting clowns. It was unexpected and super-freakin-awesome. Crazy-ass Fichtner is enraged and ranting on about how these clowns have no idea who they are messing with.
You learn that much like the rest of Gotham City this bank is corrupt and run by the mob. Nice twist. Of course the silent alarm doesn’t go to the cops.
Too bad Fichtner runs out of shells and the remaining clowns shoot his angry ass. He’s down, but not dead.
Then the clowns start to argue with each other. One clown asks the other, “So, I guess the Joker told you to shoot me once we had the money?”
The other clown tells him, “No, I’m supposed to shoot the bus driver.”
“Bus driver?” WHAM! A school bus crashes through the front of the bank, running over the first clown.
The back of the bus opens and the bus driver clown jumps out and helps load up the loot. Then bus driver clown gets capped. One clown left.
Fichtner bank manager then mutters something about there once being honor in the underworld of Gotham and this gets the clown’s attention. The clown shoves a grenade in Fichtner’s mouth with a string attached to the pin. The clown takes off his mask and we get an 80-foot IMAX Heath Ledger Joker face telling us “whatever doesn’t kill us makes us stranger.” It’s chill inducing. People are going to lose their minds.
The Joker jumps into the school bus, closes the back door on the string, and drives off. The pin on the grenade is pulled as the bus pulls away. Instead of an explosion, pink gas is released. The school bus pulls into the street and joins a convoy of school buses loaded with children. The Joker escapes into Gotham City.
We were then treated to a montage of Batman shots before the lights went up.
I yelled out, “Play it again!” but Mr. Nolan explained that it takes about thirty minutes to set the whole thing up again and we all shuffled out into the lobby for some cocktails.
New Viral Site!
Today, all those who E-mailed WhySoSerious have recieved a reply. Here's a transcript of what that E-Mail says...
Heads up, clown! Tomorrow means that there's one last shifty step left
in the interview process:
Arwoeufgryo
By clicking each letter to the right of arwoeufgryo you get steprightup. The new site shows a rather old-looking toy monkey, stuffing showing, and a clock. Keep your eyes open at 12pm ET. tomorrow, until then, visit the site by clicking here
02 December 2007
New Promo Pictures!
Six new promotional images appeared on the 'net today. One of them is a clear shot of Batman in his new suit, and five are of The Joker. These look like they are promotional photos than weren't used. Check Them Out Here!
Batman Meets The Roker
The Dark Knight Special on The Today Show
Al Roker sat down with Christian Bale, Aaaron Eckhart and Christopher Nolan to discuss the latest installment of the Batman franchise. The new footage includes Harvey Dent, the new Batsuit, and various shots of them filming the sequel to 2005's Batman Begins.
Note: Check out the picture of Conrad Veidt!
Al Roker sat down with Christian Bale, Aaaron Eckhart and Christopher Nolan to discuss the latest installment of the Batman franchise. The new footage includes Harvey Dent, the new Batsuit, and various shots of them filming the sequel to 2005's Batman Begins.
Note: Check out the picture of Conrad Veidt!
Teaser Trailer Coming!
Warner Bros has announced that the teaser trailer for The Dark Knight will be showing infront of I Am Legend at all standard theaters when it opens on December 14th. As was previously announced, there will also be a special 7-Minute prologue of The Dark Knight playing before I Am Legend at all IMAX Screenings nationwide.
Source: ComingSoon, WorstPreviews
Here's a look a the original teaser...
Source: ComingSoon, WorstPreviews
Here's a look a the original teaser...
One On One With The Joker
FEAR HAS A FACE
Source: Empire Magazine
In a vacant office block on the west side of LaSalle street in downtown Chicago - temporary production base of a movie that our press pass insists is called Rorys first kiss, but everyone knows is really The Dark Knight - EMPIRE is shown into a high-ceilinged, wood-panelled room, the kind of place you'd imagine very important decisions were once taken by powerful, polyester-clad men back in the 1970's. We've ostensibly been invited here to observe director Christopher Nolan at work in the street outside and the building opposite via a live feed to a flatscreen TV, but the producers have arranged something else, too.
In a small, windowless side-room stand a pair of costumes. In one corner, hanging from a sturdy, metal frame, is the new-look batsuit, all matte-black mesh and unyielding hard-plastic carapace, the first to allow the moody crime-fighter to actually turn his head. Impressive. But in the corner to its left, draped simply over a headless mannequin, is something far more exciting. Its a tatty, threadbare get-up, a dark-green waistcoat over a grey shirt, with a dark green tie at the collar. Purple trousers hang below and a long, angular purple coat sits on top. The ensemble's completed by a pair of purple gloves and a silver fob chain dangling from the belt. Its part Vivienne Westwood, part Alexander McQueen, part thrift-shop grunge. And its entirely The Joker.
Well, of course, not literally entirely. Later, Heath Ledger, the man who fills the suit onscreen, joins EMPIRE - sadly sans his ravaged,psycho-clown make-up. Ledgers ill-at-ease body language and propensity to mumble suggest a nervousness you might expect from some tackling such an iconic role. But everybody else EMPIRE'S talked with that day, from Nolan himself to Michael Caine, who returns as Bruce Waynes sardonic butler Alfred, descibes Ledger as "Fearless".
"Oh, i definately feared it" Ledger tells EMPIRE quietly, with a half-apologetic smile. "Although anything that makes me afraid i guess excites me at the same time. I dont know if I was fearless, but i certainly had to put on a brave face and believe that i had something up up my sleeve. Something different....."
Christopher Nolan made it quite clear that after he'd completed Batman Begins that he had no intention of making a sequel. But then, while shooting his next movie, The Prestige, something surprising happened : Nolan found himself replaying Batman Begins' final dialogue exchange in his head, the moment when good copper Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) talks of a criminal with " a taste for the theatrics" and hands Batman (Christian Bale) a playing card adorned with the smile-snarl face of a Joker. And Nolan found himself wanting to make a sequel, if only to see The Joker done his way.
"The way Batman Begins ended was intended not so much as sequel bait" Nolan insists, "but to create a level of excitment at the end of the movie. Ultimately, the sequel happened because we got caught up in that process of imagining how you would see The Joker through the prism of what we did in the first film". And how is The Joker seen through that prism?
"Indescribable, really. Not to sound evasive - it actually is quite difficult to explain, but all i can really say is Heaths not doing any paticular thing, He's just inhabiting the character in very much the way i'd hoped from a psychological perspective. He really created something that i think is going to be quite terrifying."
Throughout EMPIRES time noodling about on The Dark Knights set nobody seems confident enough to say precisely how The Joker will be portrayed in this film. A "Prologue" sequence revealing something of this mysterious villains origin (various versions of which have been presented over the years in the comic-books) will be screened ahead of I am legend on its US release later this month, and is likely to appear in the UK, too, come the latter films January release. Even so, Ledger himself quips that "I feel like i'll be assassinated if i tell you something wrong" so when asked how much we'll see in the film of the man who becomes The Joker, he merely says that " Most of the villains in the Chris Nolan style of Batman films are normal people......or once were normal people".
Still, Ledgers more than happy to discuss how he became The Joker - and we're not just talking about an hour in make-up. "Its a combination of reading all the comic books i could that were relevant to the script and then just closing my eyes and meditating on it. I sat around in a hotel room in London for about a month, locked myself away, formed a little diary and experimented with voices - it was important to try to find a somewhat iconic voice and laugh. I ended up landing more in the realm of a psychopath - someone with very little to no conscience towards his acts. Hes just an absolute sociopath, a cold-blooded, mass-murdering clown, and Chris has given me free reign, which is fun, because there are no real boundaries to what The Joker would say or do. Nothing Intimidates him, and everything is a big joke"
"I think we have that in all of us" Ledger muses, before attempting to describe the physicality of inhabiting his and Nolans vision of The Joker : "Its kind of like eating raw meat. What that does to your mouth and your eyes, simple little visual things like that. I dont know - i guess the rest is just trusting your research."
There is a very specific reason, though, why Ledger - who's never even played a villain before - is considered a brave man to tackle this role. And , as with many things, nobody expresses that reason better than Michael Caine.
"If i put myself in the producers shoes, i think : 'Wait a minute, we are making a movie about The Joker'" the 74 year old actor ruminates. "Now, we have had Jack Nicholson, who is one of the Jokers and one of the greatest characters in this kind of movie. I have worked with Jack and i know him really well. You do not really want to follow Jack into anything. Unless its a nightclub!"
For his part, Nolan had no reservations about "following" Jack (Somewhere other than a nightclub). "None at all, to be honest" he says. "And that was very important to us in deciding to make this film. I certainley knew that story-wise the character was going to be very different, and it was always going to require a fearless performance from someone not afraid to put forward his own interpretation".
"Heath Ledger stunned me" continues Caine. "Jack played The Joker as sort of a benign nasty clown - like a wicked uncle. Heath plays him like an absolutely maniacal murderous psychopath. You have never seen anything like it in your life. He is very, very scary. I turn up very month or so and do a couple of bits, then go back to London. I had to do this bit where Batman and I watch a video which The Joker sends to threaten us. So i'd never seen him, and then he came up on the television in the first rehearsal and i completely forgot my lines. I flipped, because it was so stunning, it was quite amazing. Wait until you see it, its incredible".
Fans of the comic book will realise that what we'll be seeing here is a version more of the original Joker - the pure, cold-hearted sociopath version - and the recent portrayals of him as a deeply insane man. Not the crown price of crime, the rather more harmless prankster-bank-robber of the 60's, the cesar romero version if you like, which the Jack-joker ran with for Burtons Batman.
Indeed, the ratty costume which EMPIRE was introduced to right at the beginning of our day provides some key clues to the contrast between Ledgers Joker and Nicholsons. "Hes certainley not a dapper, dandy gentleman in this film" says costume designer Lindy Hemming. "Whatever is wrong with him, it means he doesnt care about himself at all, really. We were trying to make him sort of a...i dont want to say vagrant, but his look in this film has a much punkier feel. Anarchic feel. Scruffier, grungier, and therefore when you see him move, hes slightly twitchier or edgy."
He doesnt even have 'clown' make-up on, as such. "Hes just somebody who exaggerates tha scar on his mouth" adds hemming. A quick word with Conor O'Sullivan, lead make-up prosthetic artist, gives us some clue as to how The Joker recieves this scar. "I cant say too much because its a major plot point for the movie, but lets just say that The Joker himself is responsible for at least some of the scarring".
"What the director has done" says Caine, "which is so clever, is that the Joker has left the make-up and just let it rot off. It is never renewed. He's got a big, wide mouth and it gradually almost looks like a bad skin disease".
An Antagonist is nothing without his protagonist, of course, and we should not forget that we wouldnt even have The Joker if it were'nt for Batman. Still, with Nicholson stealing Burtons movie away from the frowning Michael Keaton, you could forgive Christian Bale for worring that Ledger would do the same to him.
"Im not worried at all" says Bale. "That was exactly the problem i had with all of the other movies - after i had read Frank Millers Batman : year one and the various other graphic novels, i looked at those films and said "Well, how come its always been that Batmans the most boring character?, ive never found him to be intriguing at all. Whereas these graphic novels depicted him as really being by far the most fascinating character. So i feel like we gained that back with Batman Begins. Now we've made him a character of substance, i have no problem with him competing with someone else. And thats going to make better entertainment and a better movie, which is great."
Bale grins "I dont mind if everybody tries to chew up the scenery!".
Source: Empire Magazine
In a vacant office block on the west side of LaSalle street in downtown Chicago - temporary production base of a movie that our press pass insists is called Rorys first kiss, but everyone knows is really The Dark Knight - EMPIRE is shown into a high-ceilinged, wood-panelled room, the kind of place you'd imagine very important decisions were once taken by powerful, polyester-clad men back in the 1970's. We've ostensibly been invited here to observe director Christopher Nolan at work in the street outside and the building opposite via a live feed to a flatscreen TV, but the producers have arranged something else, too.
In a small, windowless side-room stand a pair of costumes. In one corner, hanging from a sturdy, metal frame, is the new-look batsuit, all matte-black mesh and unyielding hard-plastic carapace, the first to allow the moody crime-fighter to actually turn his head. Impressive. But in the corner to its left, draped simply over a headless mannequin, is something far more exciting. Its a tatty, threadbare get-up, a dark-green waistcoat over a grey shirt, with a dark green tie at the collar. Purple trousers hang below and a long, angular purple coat sits on top. The ensemble's completed by a pair of purple gloves and a silver fob chain dangling from the belt. Its part Vivienne Westwood, part Alexander McQueen, part thrift-shop grunge. And its entirely The Joker.
Well, of course, not literally entirely. Later, Heath Ledger, the man who fills the suit onscreen, joins EMPIRE - sadly sans his ravaged,psycho-clown make-up. Ledgers ill-at-ease body language and propensity to mumble suggest a nervousness you might expect from some tackling such an iconic role. But everybody else EMPIRE'S talked with that day, from Nolan himself to Michael Caine, who returns as Bruce Waynes sardonic butler Alfred, descibes Ledger as "Fearless".
"Oh, i definately feared it" Ledger tells EMPIRE quietly, with a half-apologetic smile. "Although anything that makes me afraid i guess excites me at the same time. I dont know if I was fearless, but i certainly had to put on a brave face and believe that i had something up up my sleeve. Something different....."
Christopher Nolan made it quite clear that after he'd completed Batman Begins that he had no intention of making a sequel. But then, while shooting his next movie, The Prestige, something surprising happened : Nolan found himself replaying Batman Begins' final dialogue exchange in his head, the moment when good copper Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) talks of a criminal with " a taste for the theatrics" and hands Batman (Christian Bale) a playing card adorned with the smile-snarl face of a Joker. And Nolan found himself wanting to make a sequel, if only to see The Joker done his way.
"The way Batman Begins ended was intended not so much as sequel bait" Nolan insists, "but to create a level of excitment at the end of the movie. Ultimately, the sequel happened because we got caught up in that process of imagining how you would see The Joker through the prism of what we did in the first film". And how is The Joker seen through that prism?
"Indescribable, really. Not to sound evasive - it actually is quite difficult to explain, but all i can really say is Heaths not doing any paticular thing, He's just inhabiting the character in very much the way i'd hoped from a psychological perspective. He really created something that i think is going to be quite terrifying."
Throughout EMPIRES time noodling about on The Dark Knights set nobody seems confident enough to say precisely how The Joker will be portrayed in this film. A "Prologue" sequence revealing something of this mysterious villains origin (various versions of which have been presented over the years in the comic-books) will be screened ahead of I am legend on its US release later this month, and is likely to appear in the UK, too, come the latter films January release. Even so, Ledger himself quips that "I feel like i'll be assassinated if i tell you something wrong" so when asked how much we'll see in the film of the man who becomes The Joker, he merely says that " Most of the villains in the Chris Nolan style of Batman films are normal people......or once were normal people".
Still, Ledgers more than happy to discuss how he became The Joker - and we're not just talking about an hour in make-up. "Its a combination of reading all the comic books i could that were relevant to the script and then just closing my eyes and meditating on it. I sat around in a hotel room in London for about a month, locked myself away, formed a little diary and experimented with voices - it was important to try to find a somewhat iconic voice and laugh. I ended up landing more in the realm of a psychopath - someone with very little to no conscience towards his acts. Hes just an absolute sociopath, a cold-blooded, mass-murdering clown, and Chris has given me free reign, which is fun, because there are no real boundaries to what The Joker would say or do. Nothing Intimidates him, and everything is a big joke"
"I think we have that in all of us" Ledger muses, before attempting to describe the physicality of inhabiting his and Nolans vision of The Joker : "Its kind of like eating raw meat. What that does to your mouth and your eyes, simple little visual things like that. I dont know - i guess the rest is just trusting your research."
There is a very specific reason, though, why Ledger - who's never even played a villain before - is considered a brave man to tackle this role. And , as with many things, nobody expresses that reason better than Michael Caine.
"If i put myself in the producers shoes, i think : 'Wait a minute, we are making a movie about The Joker'" the 74 year old actor ruminates. "Now, we have had Jack Nicholson, who is one of the Jokers and one of the greatest characters in this kind of movie. I have worked with Jack and i know him really well. You do not really want to follow Jack into anything. Unless its a nightclub!"
For his part, Nolan had no reservations about "following" Jack (Somewhere other than a nightclub). "None at all, to be honest" he says. "And that was very important to us in deciding to make this film. I certainley knew that story-wise the character was going to be very different, and it was always going to require a fearless performance from someone not afraid to put forward his own interpretation".
"Heath Ledger stunned me" continues Caine. "Jack played The Joker as sort of a benign nasty clown - like a wicked uncle. Heath plays him like an absolutely maniacal murderous psychopath. You have never seen anything like it in your life. He is very, very scary. I turn up very month or so and do a couple of bits, then go back to London. I had to do this bit where Batman and I watch a video which The Joker sends to threaten us. So i'd never seen him, and then he came up on the television in the first rehearsal and i completely forgot my lines. I flipped, because it was so stunning, it was quite amazing. Wait until you see it, its incredible".
Fans of the comic book will realise that what we'll be seeing here is a version more of the original Joker - the pure, cold-hearted sociopath version - and the recent portrayals of him as a deeply insane man. Not the crown price of crime, the rather more harmless prankster-bank-robber of the 60's, the cesar romero version if you like, which the Jack-joker ran with for Burtons Batman.
Indeed, the ratty costume which EMPIRE was introduced to right at the beginning of our day provides some key clues to the contrast between Ledgers Joker and Nicholsons. "Hes certainley not a dapper, dandy gentleman in this film" says costume designer Lindy Hemming. "Whatever is wrong with him, it means he doesnt care about himself at all, really. We were trying to make him sort of a...i dont want to say vagrant, but his look in this film has a much punkier feel. Anarchic feel. Scruffier, grungier, and therefore when you see him move, hes slightly twitchier or edgy."
He doesnt even have 'clown' make-up on, as such. "Hes just somebody who exaggerates tha scar on his mouth" adds hemming. A quick word with Conor O'Sullivan, lead make-up prosthetic artist, gives us some clue as to how The Joker recieves this scar. "I cant say too much because its a major plot point for the movie, but lets just say that The Joker himself is responsible for at least some of the scarring".
"What the director has done" says Caine, "which is so clever, is that the Joker has left the make-up and just let it rot off. It is never renewed. He's got a big, wide mouth and it gradually almost looks like a bad skin disease".
An Antagonist is nothing without his protagonist, of course, and we should not forget that we wouldnt even have The Joker if it were'nt for Batman. Still, with Nicholson stealing Burtons movie away from the frowning Michael Keaton, you could forgive Christian Bale for worring that Ledger would do the same to him.
"Im not worried at all" says Bale. "That was exactly the problem i had with all of the other movies - after i had read Frank Millers Batman : year one and the various other graphic novels, i looked at those films and said "Well, how come its always been that Batmans the most boring character?, ive never found him to be intriguing at all. Whereas these graphic novels depicted him as really being by far the most fascinating character. So i feel like we gained that back with Batman Begins. Now we've made him a character of substance, i have no problem with him competing with someone else. And thats going to make better entertainment and a better movie, which is great."
Bale grins "I dont mind if everybody tries to chew up the scenery!".
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