Matt Reeves’s film The Batman will be released in March 2022, with verified antagonists the Penguin and the Riddler, and speculation that the Joker will play a role is undeniable. It’s understandable that enthusiasts would demand a Joker, given that he’s been Batman’s nemesis since the Clown Prince of Crime first appeared in comic books in 1940. This would surely be exciting to see the Joker weaved into The Batman’s noir-inspired environment, as well as a fresh incarnation would add to the intense discussion about who best portrayed the Joker in live-action.
Till then, most Batman enthusiasts considered Heath Ledger or/and Joaquin Phoenix to be the best live-action Jokers. Although both performers were famous as the Joker, one of them was considerably more in accordance with the character’s comic book origins. Expecting supporters to decide on a winner between the two, on the other hand, is a difficult assignment.
#1 The Dark Knight Has Received More Critical Applause Than The Joker.
Although Todd Phillips‘ Joker was a great commercial success, the 2019 psychological thriller mixed reviews. The film received a 59 out of 100 on Metacritic, with a 9 from the viewers. The film has a similar Rotten Tomatoes rating, with 68 percent among critics & 88 percent among viewers. The Dark Knight, on the other side, received significantly higher scores. It has a Metacritic grade of 84, with a 9 from the public. On Rotten Tomatoes, though, it has a 94 percent approval rating from experts and fans alike.
Typically, audience ratings are often greater than reviewer evaluations, so it’s no surprise that Joker had such a successful ticket sales performance. Despite this, The Dark Knight is often regarded as the superior film by both audiences and experts. Of course, those numbers represent the movie overall, not an individual actor’s work; but, Heath Ledger’s performance in The Dark Knight has a lot to do with the movie’s success.
#2 Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker is Comic spot-on.
Heath Ledger & Joaquin Phoenix both portray A-list villains, and they have many similarities, beginning with the idea that they both won multiple accolades for their acts. Both of their Jokers are more connected to reality than their comic-book counterparts, which isn’t necessarily a negative factor since it reflects what a real-world evil would look like. Furthermore, their personality is consistent with that of the original Joker. Nevertheless, there is a fundamental distinction between the two, which has to do with the genres of their respective films.
The Dark Knight, to say the obvious, is a superhero movie. As a result, Ledger’s Joker has to be the worst-of-the-worst in order to portray Batman in a justice light; this is accurate with the Joker’s comic background. Of course, the Clown Prince of Crime has evolved significantly throughout the time, but prior to his period as a practical joker in the 1960s, he was a corrupt genius and the polar opposite of Batman’s heroism. To execute anything like that, the Joker must be as crucial to a Batman’s hero movie, which Ledger does by dominating every moment in which he features. The best thing is that he accomplishes this by being a direct contrast: he’s a complete lunatic, but he’s also a cunning strategist.
#3 Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of the Joker falls short of the villain’s mystique.
To be true, Joaquin Phoenix owns the frame, but his content is vastly different from that of Heath Ledger. Despite being an origin story, Joker might easily be viewed as a tragedy. Arthur Fleck is not the ruthless criminal that Heath Ledger portrays; instead, he is diagnosed with a mental condition. As a result, when he embarks on his destruction rage at the end of the movie, audiences are left wondering what might have been needed to mitigate his behavior.
#4 In Conclusion
In other ways, Phoenix’s interpretation of the Joker humanizes him while diminishing his comic book reputation as a vicious criminal genius, establishing Heath Ledger as the accurate Joker.
